Gekijô-ban poketto monsutâ: Maboroshi no pokemon: Rugia bakutan (1999)

Director:

Kunihiko Yuyama

Writers:

Takeshi Shudo (characters)
Satoshi Tajiri (writer)

Release Date:

21 July 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Action | Adventure | Family

Tagline:

This summer, one person can make all the difference.

Plot:

An evil genius in a flying fortress is trying to kidnap the birds of the fire, ice, and lightning islands in hopes of luring the sea power...

Plot Keywords:

Based On Video Game | Pokémon | Sequel | Pocket Monsters

Cast

Rica Matsumoto	...	Satoshi (voice)
Mayumi Iizuka	...	Kasumi (voice)
Tomokazu Seki	...	Kenji (voice)
Megumi Hayashibara	...	Musashi (voice)
Ikue Ootani	...	Pikachu (voice)
Shinichirô Miki	...	Kojiro (voice)
Inuko Inuyama	...	Nyarth (voice)
Satomi Koorogi	...	Togepi (voice)
Unshô Ishizuka	...	Dr. Okido (voice)
Kôichi Yamadera	...	Rugia (Japanese) / Lugia (English) (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Masatoshi Hamada	...	Yadoking (voice)
Shoshi Hiramatsu	...	Flula (voice)
Takeshi Kaga	...	Jiraldan (voice)
Kotono Mitsuishi	...	Ship's captain (Mic-chan) (voice)
Chikao Ôtsuka	...	Elder (voice)

Also Known As:

Pocket Monsters X: Revelation Lugia (Japan: English title)
Pocket Monsters the Movie: The Phantom Pokemon: Lugia's Explosive Birth
Pokémon the Movie 2000: The Power of One (USA)
Pokémon: The Power of One (Europe: English title)
Pokemon: Power of One (USA)
The Phantom Pokemon: Lugia's Explosive Birth

Runtime:

84 min | Germany:79 min | USA:80 min

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

South Korea:All | France:U | Germany:6 (w) | Netherlands:AL | Spain:T | UK:PG | USA:G

Company:

4 Kids Entertainment

Trivia:

As a word, "bakutan" (commonly translated as "explosive birth") does not exist in Japanese, but its two kanji are abbreviations of the Japanese words "bakuhatsuteki" (explosive) and "tanjou" (birth). "Bakutan" is a pun of "bakudan" which means "bomb" in Japanese.

Goofs:

Continuity: Melody calls Misty by her name before the two are ever introduced. It's been suggested this was because Misty is a famous gym owner and Pokemon master, though Melody doesn't seem to treat her as someone famous, and in fact another correspondent says she is not well known.

Quotes:

Ash Ketchum: It's times like these that I wish I had been named Bob.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in ReBoot: My Two Bobs (2001) (TV)

My 2 cents

Many of those who claim to hate this movie openly admit to hating Pokemon to begin with. As I had said in my comments on "Pokemon The First Movie," you have to go in to the movie with an open mind. If you go see "Pokemon 2000" because you were "dragged in" by your kids/nieces/nephews/others, you've already decided that you're going to hate it. I'm not saying that you WILL hate it; just that you've DECIDED that you're going to hate it no matter what, just because it's Pokemon. Current Pokemon fans (like me, and I'm 30!) or more open-minded moviegoers will probably like "Pokemon 2000."

I was glad that Kids WB decided to go with a more "theatrical" score for "Pokemon 2000." Although I would have preferred that more of the Japanese music would have been left in, I think that the orchestral music was more fitting than the bubblegum pop that permeated "Pokemon The Movie."

Like most people, I liked "Pokemon 2000" more than "Pokemon The First Movie," probably because of the overall brighter feel. I personally loved the first U.S. appearance of one of my favorite new Pokemon, the flowery Bellossom. There are points of the movie that I felt could have been expanded on, but overall, "Pokemon 2000" is a fun ride.