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Review M20: I Choose You!

I hear that's better than expected. And supposedly misty, brock, and all of ash's other companions appear in the end credits. So...that's neat I guess.
 
Well - I'm lucky enough to be in Japan for the summer, and had a chance to see M20 this morning. Figured I'd post here for any curious people who are interested in yet another opinion of this movie. It was...strange, to say the least.

Spoilers lurk within.

M20, to me, was very different from any of the Pokemon movies thus far. If I had to pick the movie closest to it, plot-wise, it would probably be M08 (the Lucario one) - since basically most of that movie was Satoshi-goes-to-find-Pikachu and there wasn't much plot to speak of. Now, I liked the Lucario movie, and I feel like many people did. I am...unsure of how I feel about M20.

Marshadow is a really peculiar Pokemon. I didn't understand most of the part where they were talking about it, so I might be wrong - but to me, Marshadow was the physical form of Satoshi's self-doubt and/or fear. We see it lurking in dark corners and sometimes whispering in Satoshi's mind. Its first real interaction with Satoshi is after Charmeleon's loss to Cross's Incineroar - Satoshi made mistakes during the battle and blamed himself, and Marshadow sort of took control of him, making the Rainbow Wing grow dark and resulting in this (actually really cool) sequence with Satoshi in a grey world where there are no Pokemon.

More than anything, I think, M20 is a sort of coming-of-age story. Marshadow didn't do much in the movie, true, but if you take Marshadow out and replace it with the concept of self-doubt, Marshadow basically becomes the plot. There is the overarching thing of Satoshi looking for Ho-Oh and some legend or something, true, but the movie is about Satoshi learning how to deal with loss, how to not be consumed by fear and how to not give up hope. This is why I found it interesting that they chose to keep Butterfree of all Pokemon, because besides marketing value and the fact that it was the first Pokemon he caught, Satoshi releasing Butterfree does tie in well to the dealing-with-loss concept.

Notably, when the Rainbow Wing grows dark and Satoshi is pulled into that grey no-Pokemon world, Pikachu is the one who pulls him out. In a way, Pikachu is the opposite of Marshadow - he is Satoshi's partner, his best friend and therefore Pikachu is Satoshi's hope. In the climax of the movie, Pikachu and Marshadow fight one-on-one. This is like the manifestation of Satoshi's internal battle - hope against fear, light against dark.

Satoshi dies at the end of the movie - legitimately dies, I think, not petrified like in the Mewtwo movie - and Ho-Oh brings him back but, again, Pikachu is the one to pull him out. The scenery surrounding Satoshi when he dies is initially greyscale, but when he's reunited with Pikachu in that world everything turns colorful again - Ho-Oh saved Satoshi's physical life, but Pikachu is the reason why Satoshi is alive. Over the years, we've come to know Satoshi as this character filled with hope and a positive outlook, and this movie claims that Pikachu makes Satoshi the character that he is.

And the fact that Satoshi is brought back to life by Ho-Oh has a similar significance. Generations of people know Pokemon, so Satoshi, as a character, is timeless. He's continually born again each series - goes through "the endless zero" as they mentioned in that XY anime title - which directly parallels the phoenix aspect here.

Other things...Souji and Makoto. They were semi-interesting (Makoto is Sinnoh Champion Shirona's daughter? Maybe? We see a picture, and I think it was her. And when Souji was a kid, his friend Luxray died while protecting him from the cold.) but pretty unnecessary. We don't learn too much about them, Piplup and Lucario are pretty stock characters (especially when compared to Pikachu), and they don't have too much significance apart from traveling with Satoshi. Cross was the other major character and the antagonist of sorts - a bit like Paul, except more abusive.

I also loved the opening and ending themes. :)

Anyway: Was this a good homage to Gen 1? I'm not sure. Did it get me thinking a bit about Satoshi and Pikachu as characters, despite them having existed for 20 years? Definitely. I'm still not sure if I liked this movie or not, but I recommend everyone watch it.
 
Well - I'm lucky enough to be in Japan for the summer, and had a chance to see M20 this morning. Figured I'd post here for any curious people who are interested in yet another opinion of this movie. It was...strange, to say the least.

Spoilers lurk within.

M20, to me, was very different from any of the Pokemon movies thus far. If I had to pick the movie closest to it, plot-wise, it would probably be M08 (the Lucario one) - since basically most of that movie was Satoshi-goes-to-find-Pikachu and there wasn't much plot to speak of. Now, I liked the Lucario movie, and I feel like many people did. I am...unsure of how I feel about M20.

Marshadow is a really peculiar Pokemon. I didn't understand most of the part where they were talking about it, so I might be wrong - but to me, Marshadow was the physical form of Satoshi's self-doubt and/or fear. We see it lurking in dark corners and sometimes whispering in Satoshi's mind. Its first real interaction with Satoshi is after Charmeleon's loss to Cross's Incineroar - Satoshi made mistakes during the battle and blamed himself, and Marshadow sort of took control of him, making the Rainbow Wing grow dark and resulting in this (actually really cool) sequence with Satoshi in a grey world where there are no Pokemon.

More than anything, I think, M20 is a sort of coming-of-age story. Marshadow didn't do much in the movie, true, but if you take Marshadow out and replace it with the concept of self-doubt, Marshadow basically becomes the plot. There is the overarching thing of Satoshi looking for Ho-Oh and some legend or something, true, but the movie is about Satoshi learning how to deal with loss, how to not be consumed by fear and how to not give up hope. This is why I found it interesting that they chose to keep Butterfree of all Pokemon, because besides marketing value and the fact that it was the first Pokemon he caught, Satoshi releasing Butterfree does tie in well to the dealing-with-loss concept.

Notably, when the Rainbow Wing grows dark and Satoshi is pulled into that grey no-Pokemon world, Pikachu is the one who pulls him out. In a way, Pikachu is the opposite of Marshadow - he is Satoshi's partner, his best friend and therefore Pikachu is Satoshi's hope. In the climax of the movie, Pikachu and Marshadow fight one-on-one. This is like the manifestation of Satoshi's internal battle - hope against fear, light against dark.

Satoshi dies at the end of the movie - legitimately dies, I think, not petrified like in the Mewtwo movie - and Ho-Oh brings him back but, again, Pikachu is the one to pull him out. The scenery surrounding Satoshi when he dies is initially greyscale, but when he's reunited with Pikachu in that world everything turns colorful again - Ho-Oh saved Satoshi's physical life, but Pikachu is the reason why Satoshi is alive. Over the years, we've come to know Satoshi as this character filled with hope and a positive outlook, and this movie claims that Pikachu makes Satoshi the character that he is.

And the fact that Satoshi is brought back to life by Ho-Oh has a similar significance. Generations of people know Pokemon, so Satoshi, as a character, is timeless. He's continually born again each series - goes through "the endless zero" as they mentioned in that XY anime title - which directly parallels the phoenix aspect here.

Other things...Souji and Makoto. They were semi-interesting (Makoto is Sinnoh Champion Shirona's daughter? Maybe? We see a picture, and I think it was her. And when Souji was a kid, his friend Luxray died while protecting him from the cold.) but pretty unnecessary. We don't learn too much about them, Piplup and Lucario are pretty stock characters (especially when compared to Pikachu), and they don't have too much significance apart from traveling with Satoshi. Cross was the other major character and the antagonist of sorts - a bit like Paul, except more abusive.

I also loved the opening and ending themes. :)

Anyway: Was this a good homage to Gen 1? I'm not sure. Did it get me thinking a bit about Satoshi and Pikachu as characters, despite them having existed for 20 years? Definitely. I'm still not sure if I liked this movie or not, but I recommend everyone watch it.

That was an awesome review..... I really liked the metaphor for Pikachu being Ash's hope and inner light and Marshadow being his inner self-doubt and negativity.

Was the movie worth the wait? Did it succeed in breaking the mold?
 
That was an awesome review..... I really liked the metaphor for Pikachu being Ash's hope and inner light and Marshadow being his inner self-doubt and negativity.

Was the movie worth the wait? Did it succeed in breaking the mold?

Thank you.

Did it succeed in breaking the mold? Yes, I think so. Most of the Pokemon movies so far had the same sort of pattern - there's a problem involving a legendary and usually the end of the world, and Satoshi and his friends help fix it. Sure, there are legendaries in this movie, but this movie isn't really about them (and that's partly why I thought of M08 at first). It focuses the most on Satoshi and Pikachu, and that's it - no huge problem (until pretty much the very end), no violent legendary clashes like there were in M18. That said, they still did introduce Marshadow to us in what I thought was a very different and interesting way.

Was it worth the wait? You're going to get differing opinions on that - I'm not sure how popular M20 is in Japan, but I have a hunch that it's not going to be very popular when it hits the rest of the world. If you ignore the metaphor, there's not too much in this movie - just a random chase for Ho-Oh marked by a bunch of haphazardly put together scenes and Marshadow just kind of being there. So...maybe.
 
Here's a list of states from Serebii.
Montgomery, AL - Chantilly 13
Fayetteville, AR - The Razorback Cinema
Fort Smith, AR - Malco Ft Smith Cinema
Rogers, AR - Pinnacle Hills Cinema 12
Scottsdale, AZ - Studio Movie Grill Scottsdale
Petaluma, CA - Boulevard 14
Sonoma, CA - Sonoma 9
Folsom, CA - Palladio 16 Cinema and LUXE
Rocklin, CA - Studio Movie Grill Rocklin
Hesperia, CA - Civic Plaza 12
Fairfax, CA - Fairfax 6
Tiburon, CA - Tiburon Playhouse 3
Angels Camp, CA - Angel 6
Fortuna, CA - Fortuna 6
Livermore, CA - Livermore Cinemas
Martinez, CA - Contra Costa 8
Tampa, FL - Studio Movie Grill Tampa 14
Daytona Beach, FL - Paragon Ocean Walk 10
Davie, FL - Paragon Ridge 8
Fleming Island, FL - Fleming Island 12
Alpharetta, GA - Studio Movie Grill Holcomb Bridge
Duluth, GA - Studio Movie Grill Duluth
Cummings, GA - Movies 400
Iowa City, IA - Sycamore 12 Theatre
Cedar Falls, IA - College Square 12 Theatre
Cedar Rapids, IA - Cedar Rapids Galaxy Cine
Twin Falls, ID - Magic Valley Cinema 13
Meridian, ID - Village Cinema 15
Elgin, IL - Elgin Fox Theatre
Gurnee, IL - Gurnee Cinemas 20
Orland Park, IL - Orland Park Cinemas 14
Addison, IL - Addison 21
Wheaton, IL - Studio Movie Grill Wheaton
Chicago Heights, IL - Chicago Heights
Bloomington, IL - Bloomington Galaxy Cine 14
North Pekin, IL - Showplace Pekin 14
Frankfort, IL - Emagine Frankfort
Indianapoilis, IN - Studio Movie Grill Indianapolis
Saline, MI - Emagine Saline
Novi, MI - Emagine Novi 18 + EMAX
Rochester Hills, MI - Emagine Rochester Hills
Saint Paul, MN - Oakdale Cinema
Waite Park, MN - Parkwood 18 Theatre
Duluth, MN - Lakes 10 Theatre
Rochester, MN - Rochester Cine
O Fallon, MN - OFallon Cine
Mounds View, MN - Mounds View 15
Oakdale, MN - Oakdale 20
Plymouth, MN - Emagine Willow Creek
Cape Girardeau, MO - Cape West Cine
Saint Louis, MO - Ronnies Cine
Chesterfield, MO - Chesterfied Galaxy Cine
Madison, MS - The Grandview Cinema
Omaha, NE - Majestic Cinema of Omaha
Omaha, NE - Village Pointe Cinemas
Lincoln, NE - Lincoln Grand Cinemas
Bellevue, NE - Twin Creek Cinemas
Westfield, NJ - Rialto Theatre
Columbus, OH - Crosswoods Cinema 17
Pickerington, OH - Pickerington Cinemas 16
Memphis, TN - Paradiso Cinema
San Antonio, TX - The Santikos Rialto
San Antonio, TX - Embassy 14
Colleyville, TX - Studio Movie Grill Colleyville
Dallas, TX - Studio Movie Grill at Royal Lane
Dallas, TX - Studio Movie Grill Spring Valley
Dallas, TX - Studio Movie Grill NW Highway
Houston, TX - Studio Movie Grill Copperfield
Lewisville , TX - Studio Movie Grill Lewisville
Tyler, TX - Studio Movie Grill Tyler
Houston, TX - Studio Movie Grill City Centre
San Antonio, TX - Silverado 16
San Antonio, TX - Palladium IMAX
San Antonio, TX - Santikos Bijou Cinema Bistro
San Antonio, TX - Mayan Palace 14 + AVX
Arlington, TX - Studio Movie Grill Arlington
The Colony, TX - Studio Movie Grill The Colony
Fredericksburg, VA - Paragon Village
South Burlington, VT - Merrill Palace 9
La Crosse, WI - La Crosse Cinema 11
Rothschild, WI - Cedar Creek Cinemas
Sturtevant, WI - Renaissance Cinema
Green Bay, WI - Bay Park Cinemas
Oshkosh, WI - Oshkosh Cinemas 12
Oak Creek, WI - South Shore Cinemas 16
Thiensville, WI - North Shore Cinemas 11
Menomonee Falls, WI - Menomonee Falls Cinemas 16
Appleton, WI - Valley Grand
Madison, WI - Point Cinemas 16
New Berlin, WI - Ridge Cinemas 20
Waukesha, WI - Majestic Brookfied
Sun Prairie, WI - Sun Prairie Palace
The list is just unfair, there's only 21 out of 50 that are getting the movie while anyone who doesn't have a theater close to them playing a movie are left in the dust. Why in the world you have multiple cities playing the movie in theaters in the same city when you can use that space for other cities in other states? Most of the states left in the dust are the small ones and the ones not the part of the mainland US, and no one wants to waste a lot of their time to just to see a movie that isn't within 30 minutes from them. Then TPCI start to wonder why they didn't get much ticket sales in the US as they hopped. They need to make all theaters in the US play the movie since it's one of the largest countries in the world.
 
Here's a list of states from Serebii.
Montgomery, AL - Chantilly 13
Fayetteville, AR - The Razorback Cinema
Fort Smith, AR - Malco Ft Smith Cinema
Rogers, AR - Pinnacle Hills Cinema 12
Scottsdale, AZ - Studio Movie Grill Scottsdale
Petaluma, CA - Boulevard 14
Sonoma, CA - Sonoma 9
Folsom, CA - Palladio 16 Cinema and LUXE
Rocklin, CA - Studio Movie Grill Rocklin
Hesperia, CA - Civic Plaza 12
Fairfax, CA - Fairfax 6
Tiburon, CA - Tiburon Playhouse 3
Angels Camp, CA - Angel 6
Fortuna, CA - Fortuna 6
Livermore, CA - Livermore Cinemas
Martinez, CA - Contra Costa 8
Tampa, FL - Studio Movie Grill Tampa 14
Daytona Beach, FL - Paragon Ocean Walk 10
Davie, FL - Paragon Ridge 8
Fleming Island, FL - Fleming Island 12
Alpharetta, GA - Studio Movie Grill Holcomb Bridge
Duluth, GA - Studio Movie Grill Duluth
Cummings, GA - Movies 400
Iowa City, IA - Sycamore 12 Theatre
Cedar Falls, IA - College Square 12 Theatre
Cedar Rapids, IA - Cedar Rapids Galaxy Cine
Twin Falls, ID - Magic Valley Cinema 13
Meridian, ID - Village Cinema 15
Elgin, IL - Elgin Fox Theatre
Gurnee, IL - Gurnee Cinemas 20
Orland Park, IL - Orland Park Cinemas 14
Addison, IL - Addison 21
Wheaton, IL - Studio Movie Grill Wheaton
Chicago Heights, IL - Chicago Heights
Bloomington, IL - Bloomington Galaxy Cine 14
North Pekin, IL - Showplace Pekin 14
Frankfort, IL - Emagine Frankfort
Indianapoilis, IN - Studio Movie Grill Indianapolis
Saline, MI - Emagine Saline
Novi, MI - Emagine Novi 18 + EMAX
Rochester Hills, MI - Emagine Rochester Hills
Saint Paul, MN - Oakdale Cinema
Waite Park, MN - Parkwood 18 Theatre
Duluth, MN - Lakes 10 Theatre
Rochester, MN - Rochester Cine
O Fallon, MN - OFallon Cine
Mounds View, MN - Mounds View 15
Oakdale, MN - Oakdale 20
Plymouth, MN - Emagine Willow Creek
Cape Girardeau, MO - Cape West Cine
Saint Louis, MO - Ronnies Cine
Chesterfield, MO - Chesterfied Galaxy Cine
Madison, MS - The Grandview Cinema
Omaha, NE - Majestic Cinema of Omaha
Omaha, NE - Village Pointe Cinemas
Lincoln, NE - Lincoln Grand Cinemas
Bellevue, NE - Twin Creek Cinemas
Westfield, NJ - Rialto Theatre
Columbus, OH - Crosswoods Cinema 17
Pickerington, OH - Pickerington Cinemas 16
Memphis, TN - Paradiso Cinema
San Antonio, TX - The Santikos Rialto
San Antonio, TX - Embassy 14
Colleyville, TX - Studio Movie Grill Colleyville
Dallas, TX - Studio Movie Grill at Royal Lane
Dallas, TX - Studio Movie Grill Spring Valley
Dallas, TX - Studio Movie Grill NW Highway
Houston, TX - Studio Movie Grill Copperfield
Lewisville , TX - Studio Movie Grill Lewisville
Tyler, TX - Studio Movie Grill Tyler
Houston, TX - Studio Movie Grill City Centre
San Antonio, TX - Silverado 16
San Antonio, TX - Palladium IMAX
San Antonio, TX - Santikos Bijou Cinema Bistro
San Antonio, TX - Mayan Palace 14 + AVX
Arlington, TX - Studio Movie Grill Arlington
The Colony, TX - Studio Movie Grill The Colony
Fredericksburg, VA - Paragon Village
South Burlington, VT - Merrill Palace 9
La Crosse, WI - La Crosse Cinema 11
Rothschild, WI - Cedar Creek Cinemas
Sturtevant, WI - Renaissance Cinema
Green Bay, WI - Bay Park Cinemas
Oshkosh, WI - Oshkosh Cinemas 12
Oak Creek, WI - South Shore Cinemas 16
Thiensville, WI - North Shore Cinemas 11
Menomonee Falls, WI - Menomonee Falls Cinemas 16
Appleton, WI - Valley Grand
Madison, WI - Point Cinemas 16
New Berlin, WI - Ridge Cinemas 20
Waukesha, WI - Majestic Brookfied
Sun Prairie, WI - Sun Prairie Palace
The list is just unfair, there's only 21 out of 50 that are getting the movie while anyone who doesn't have a theater close to them playing a movie are left in the dust. Why in the world you have multiple cities playing the movie in theaters in the same city when you can use that space for other cities in other states? Most of the states left in the dust are the small ones and the ones not the part of the mainland US, and no one wants to waste a lot of their time to just to see a movie that isn't within 30 minutes from them. Then TPCI start to wonder why they didn't get much ticket sales in the US as they hopped. They need to make all theaters in the US play the movie since it's one of the largest countries in the world.
You can just wait until it comes out on video.
 
Considering we now have Manga doing the home media stuff and since they've released quite a few anime films to cinemas, here's hoping TPCI does the right thing and gives them a chance.
 
Here's a list of states from Serebii.

The list is just unfair, there's only 21 out of 50 that are getting the movie while anyone who doesn't have a theater close to them playing a movie are left in the dust. Why in the world you have multiple cities playing the movie in theaters in the same city when you can use that space for other cities in other states? Most of the states left in the dust are the small ones and the ones not the part of the mainland US, and no one wants to waste a lot of their time to just to see a movie that isn't within 30 minutes from them. Then TPCI start to wonder why they didn't get much ticket sales in the US as they hopped. They need to make all theaters in the US play the movie since it's one of the largest countries in the world.

The list that was posted was incomplete, Fathom Events have since taken down the list until they have a more complete list.

Anyone know if it's getting a screening in the UK?

It should be, since TPCi sent out a press release for the UK/France/Germany/Italy/Spain for a movie release by Fathom. Fathom's website is not made to list non-US theater though...
 
The list that was posted was incomplete, Fathom Events have since taken down the list until they have a more complete list.



It should be, since TPCi sent out a press release for the UK/France/Germany/Italy/Spain for a movie release by Fathom. Fathom's website is not made to list non-US theater though...
Is Belguim not in the list?
 
If it's not aired in Canada hope they do it at least in New York, then I could go down to watch with no major problems. Because all other options seem impossible for me to make it...
 
Please note: The thread is from 7 years ago.
Please take the age of this thread into consideration in writing your reply. Depending on what exactly you wanted to say, you may want to consider if it would be better to post a new thread instead.
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