Pokémon Heroes (2002) User Reviews

More Pokemon fun for the fans, but marketing could be better

[The Fox-2 · 7/10 · 19 May 2003]

Here we are at "Pokemon Heroes," the latest installment in the Pokemon movie series. I know the naysayers among you are thinking, "What? ANOTHER Pokemon movie? Why are they beating this 'dead' franchise?" Though it's far from the powerhouse that it once was, Pokemon still enjoys a level of popularity in the U.S. that justifies the release of a new movie every year (the cards and videogames still sell briskly to this day). Cross the ocean to Japan, and you'll see that Pokemon is STILL going strong after all this time; the 6th Pokemon movie has just been released over there, and Japanese Pokemon merchandising continues heartily.

"Pokemon Heroes" finds our protagonist, one Ash Ketchum, his ever present Pikachu, and pals Misty and Brock traveling through the Venice-like city of Alto Mare. It is said that Alto Mare is guarded by the spirits of Pokemon siblings Latios (brother) and Latias (sister), whose father, long ago, brought water to the city and saved the people from rogue Pokemon who had been terrorizing the city. Once again, Alto Mare is in danger, but the threat comes not so much from evil Pokemon, but from the ever dangerous Team Rocket. However, it is not the blundering Jessie, James and Meowth (and now also Wobbuffet) who pose the threat, but the graceful and stylish Annie and Oakley who look to rule Alto Mare (and eventually the world) and capture Latios and Latias to present to the Team Rocket boss as prizes. Latias, who has been roaming the city disguised as a local girl, takes a shine to Ash, who inevitably becomes involved in the siblings' struggle against Annie and Oakley for the fate of Alto Mare. Can Ash and his friends help Latias and Latios protect Alto Mare from the evil of Annie and Oakley? Will Jessie, James, Meowth, and Wobbuffet ever be more than just comic relief? Will Brock ever get the girl?

As with the previous 4 movies, those who are already Pokemon fans will derive the most enjoyment out of "Pokemon Heroes." Those who are not already fans may still enjoy the movie, if they let themselves. I know what it is like to not have any emotional investment in a movie, to the point of apathy or even distaste for the subject matter or the actors within, yet I have seen and actually enjoyed quite a few movies in spite of my initial impressions. Why many people, including kids who once were rabid Pokemon fans but now for whatever reason claim to now hate it, do not approach Pokemon in the same way is quite unfortunate.

What is also unfortunate is Miramax's marketing strategy for "Pokemon Heroes." As with "Pokemon 4Ever," Miramax has decided to release "Pokemon Heroes" in only a handful of theaters (196 on opening weekend) with a minimum of promotion. I am guessing that it is because they are trying to bolster sales of the future VHS/DVD release by firing up anticipation for it, and what better way to get anticipation up than by making the movie available to only a small number of theaters? Personally, I think it's a lousy way to market a popular franchise, and I hope that 4Kids Entertainment will find another distributor for the 6th Pokemon movie, because this so-called "dynamic" marketing strategy Miramax claims to have had for "Pokemon 4Ever" and "Pokemon Heroes" is a bunch of hooey.

Inferior to 4Ever, but still worthy.

[CuriosityKilledShawn · 7/10 · 27 August 2012]

This, the 5th Pokemon movie, is a step down from the previous entry in the series but is still better than a 5th movie ought to be. Ash, Misty, and Brock arrive in a Venice-type town called Altomare for a water Chariot race involving their Pokemon.

The town is protected by legendary Pokemon siblings Latios and Latias, who can assume human forms. Meanwhile, Annie and Oakley, a couple of cat burglars from Team Rocket (this affiliation is only in the Western dub) attempt to steal a special jewel called the Soul Dew, which powers the city.

It takes just a little too long to get going. Jesse, James, and Meowth are featured, but they don't really have much to do. However there are still some lovely moments, a bittersweet ending, and in the end they do add up to more than the sum of their parts. The animation and architecture of Altomare echoes the look and feel of Koriko from Kiki's Delivery Service. I just wish that Miramax didn't tamper with it before releasing it to Western audiences. There is about 5 minutes missing and its inclusion might have made the film a little bit stronger.

5th Pokémon movie is the shortest one yet.

[BrianDanaCamp · 16 May 2003]

At 70 minutes (as timed at a press screening), POKÉMON HEROES is the shortest Pokémon movie yet. This may be a relief to parents and Pokémon-haters everywhere, but it leaves Pokémon's target audience hungering for more. The big action climax never quite delivers and the great triumphal note the earlier films ended on never quite comes. This is especially disappointing because the film's first half offered a most exciting build-up involving two spectacular new Water Pokémon and two clever and attractive new villains. Thanks to these elements, the film is still worth seeing but you may want to wait until the DVD release, when it will be accompanied by the Pikachu short that played with it when it ran in Japanese theaters last summer.

The film does at least make its new Pokémon characters, Latios and Latias, a little more powerful and more layered than most Pokémon get the chance to be. Shaped somewhat like dinosaurs and able to both fly at high speeds and swim underwater, they're colorful, graceful creatures, a brother-and-sister team who are thoroughly devoted to each other. Aside from Ash's faithful Pikachu, they get the most screen time of any Pokémon in the film.

Annie and Oakley are the new bad girls in town and they completely blow their colleagues, Team Rocket, out of the water (well, actually, INTO the water--a running gag throughout the film). They're fashionable, if somewhat snobby, teen villainesses with eye-catching outfits and hairdos who get ample opportunity to wrap the audience (at least the older male part) around their little fingers before their ill-fated (and somewhat rushed) attempt to take over Alto Mare, an island city that hosts the annual Water Pokémon Festival (the draw for our heroes, Ash, Misty and Brock). As master thieves, Annie and Oakley seem to be a lot more efficient than Team Rocket and should be given more to do in future Pokémon entries.

The design of Alto Mare deserves note for being the most extensively detailed urban setting yet seen in the entire Pokémon series. Largely created by CGI, and modeled after Venice, Italy, it's quite visually stunning and deserves greater attention from anime fans than it's likely to get.

The big mystery surrounding this film (and the previous one, POKÉMON 4EVER) is why Miramax has chosen to distribute it in theaters without the 23-minute Pikachu short that normally accompanies each Pokémon movie (and did so for the first three Pokémon movies when they were released by Warner Bros.). Certainly, given the short running time of this one, the addition of the delightful "Pika Pika Starlight Camp" (as it was called in Japan) would have gone a long way to giving fans their money's worth.

better pokemon movie

[gandalf_a_1999 · 7/10 · 2 September 2006]

I enjoyed this one. Better than the 6th Jirachi movie.

From the start you could see the villains were much smarter and well prepared, their pokemon quite strong. You still see the other two Team Rocket members Jesse and James who are useless.

I had to rewind the part I thought Latias got captured, after a few rewinds Latios got in front of her otherwise it didn't make any sense. It was a bit hard to make out it definitely looked like she was captured.

The ending was sad, a bit confusing to see 3 latios. If you're going to see a poké movie this is the one.

A good pokemon film.

[Mightyzebra · 7/10 · 7 June 2008]

This is one of quite a few films based on the cartoon anime Pokemon TV series.

Ash, Brock, Misty and their pokemon are in a town called Altamar for a big water race. Ash comes in the lead - but takes a wrong turn. It turns out Misty wins! The person who came second, a boy just older than Misty, takes her and her friends on a Gondola around the town.

Meanwhile, two baddies working for the same person as Team Rocket are, are looking for two rare pokemon in Altamar, Latias and Latios...

I think this Pokemon film is very good, due to the well-structured plot, the characters, the pokemon and the setting, which is based on Venice.

However, there are often distracting songs in the background of the film and Team Rocket are very silly and most of their content is slapsticky jokes.

Overall, a good film for Pokemon fans or just for people who like animated children's films. Enjoy! :-)

7 and a half out of ten.

Surprisingly the strongest up to this point

[breakdownthatfilm-blogspot-com · 7/10 · 14 August 2021]

The Pokémon franchise has always been one of the most recognizable icons of Nintendo. There's an intense loyal fan base who take pride in the wide variety of Pokémon events. One of those moments being the annual film releases. With Season 5 coming to a close, the next film was on its way for fans of the show. While this film itself marked quite a low for the brand due to its poor box office return, over time it has garnered a following because of course it would. Despite the nostalgia many fans have for Pokémon: The First Movie - Mewtwo Strikes Back (1999) and that the majority of those watching this entry would only be fans of the show anyway, this movie actually surpasses the original film to some degree. This is in part due to technology and the rest is because of the experience in general.

The story for this entry follows Ash & company to the city of Alto Mare, the Pokémon version of Venice Italy. There they learn the legend of Latios and Latias, the legendary Pokémon that protect the city after it was once attacked from an evil Pokémon trainer. Keeping the city alive is the soul dew, an orb that contains the past Latios' essence who saved the city. This would all be fine if it weren't for Annie (Megan Hollingshead) and Oakley (Lisa Ortiz), top members of Team Rocket looking to steal the soul dew. Watching over this item is Bianca (Tara Sands) and her father Lorenzo (Wayne Grayson). The crew behind the Japanese and English productions are again the same pretty much as they've always been. Original direction is from Kunihiko Yuyama and the adaptation was done by Jim Malone. The script was written by Hideki Sonoda.

While the production crew is very much the same set of people, the reason why this story hits a higher mark than the last is due to a number of factors. For one, the story is dialed back in scale. Pretty much every film before it felt huge when it came to the number of Pokémon and trainers involved. Here, the narrative is focused more on Ash and the new characters introduced. Not even Jessie, James and Meowth do much in this film despite them also having their own scenes. And somehow that's okay because of how the story is executed. Not everyone has to be involved every waking minute. Additionally, the fact that the antagonists in this feature have a clear background and the audience will easily understand their intentions is a good thing too. Perhaps the one thing that doesn't make sense is a hint of a romantic relationship between two characters.

What throws this off though is that it is between a human and a Pokémon. It's a little...odd and because of the situation, it's not specified what it was really supposed to mean. Of course, voice acting is going to be good. The regular recurring cast members who voice Ash and company do what they do best, no questions asked. Tara Sands as Bianca who's no newbie to anime in general or Pokémon does just fine. Wayne Grayson is also not fresh to anime voice acting before this but became best known for playing Joey Wheeler in Yu-Gi-Oh. The same could be said for Lisa Ortiz as Oakley, who also voice Serenity Wheeler. Megan Hollingshead as Annie is also best known in Pokémon as Nurse Joy. As for action, while it's not as abundant as the previous entries, it is just as entertaining mainly because of the look of the film.

Cinematography again was provided by Hisao Shirai and it still isn't the clearest on the usage. With the use of more prominent CGI, there are sweeping camera shots in the film. Maybe it was used there? This does make the experience feel more cinematic than any other Pokémon entry before it. This also blends well with the animation which not only has better shading but more detail as well. It's the best it's ever looked. Lastly the music composed by Shinji Miyazaki was a great listen. Unfortunately, the soundtrack did not get a domestic release but it still can be enjoyed because of how unique it sounds. Because of the setting, it has a more Italian feel with instruments sounding like they came from the country. Additionally, there's the usual Pokémon cues and even a new spy genre motif for Annie and Oakley. Also, the song Secret Garden by Madoka is a very relaxing song.

Deep into the series, fans of the franchise should find this entry not only entertaining but also even better than all other entries before it. Aside from one little out of the blue romantic subplot and cinematography, if that exists, the animation, acting, action and music makes for a solid Pokémon feature.

Boring

[ThunderKing6 · 3/10 · 20 June 2019]

Latio and Latia were so weak.

They story was boring.

Ash is Ashcringy.

Team Rocket once again is just used for terrible cheap laughs.

Those 2 girls i didn't understand their motives.

A must skip movie.

superlatively done

[mathos22 · 10/10 · 20 February 2006]

I don't see why this movie didn't get tens across the board. I loved the bond that Latios and Latias share with Ash. I also love how Pikachu zaps the crap out of the bad guys (girls, really) with thunderbolt ( ow). I came close to crying when they caught Latios. It also makes all the other movies shrink in comparison. The Pikachu movie was also very good (only topped by Pikachu's Rescue adventure.) It was without a doubt one of the best Japanese animation I have ever seen. Come on, people! Why don't you get up and give this movie a ten. The graphics have also gone vastly up from the last film. And the music is also so much better. Also notice, Ash and Misty will always have that little bond that no one talks about. The voices are also major parts of the rolls. If you had Jude Law do Lorenzo, yuck!

Concise and powerful

[dbtmdth · 7/10 · 9 February 2021]

The movie was short but not boring.It's interesting, sweet and touching , really worth watching

Good, but not great

[sportmaster032000 · 5/10 · 4 February 2005]

This Pokemon movie was not as good as the 4th one, but it's great. I liked the part where the "Pokemon Heroes" are about to save the city, Altima (?) and eventually, Latios had to give up his life to save the whole city. That ALMOST made me cry, however, so this movie wasn't as great as the 4th one. I just hope people like the next two movies, because they're great! I agree with others that the 5th Pokemon movie is good, but not great, because it has some flaws in it. Sorry, Pokemon! I feel sorry for you, but if you could just improve some things in this movie, I would give this movie an 8 or a 9. The music for the Pokemon movies are great, too. Although it sounded almost the same as the music that you hear in the Pokemon series, the music in the movies were a bit more "improvised," so I give all the Pokemon movies two thumbs WAY up for the music criteria.

Short, sweet, and extends the games' storyline

[pokemasterdg · 8/10 · 23 January 2004]

As it should be. This movie continues along the concept of the original movies: to further the sales of the games by expanding upon their concepts. For those of you who actually play the game, this movie makes complete sense. For everyone else, I suggest you start by playing the game to get some background before delving into the Pokémon Universe (and giving this movie a one).

A literal headache

[annahudak-70828 · 4/10 · 21 June 2021]

Yeah, this one wasn't all that good. The 3D in this movie was abysmal. They really shouldn't have kept using 3D in these movies, but for some god-forsaken reason they did. The story is completely forgettable. While the other Pokemon movies so far did at least a decent job of feeling like movies instead of extended TV show episodes, this absolutely felt like a extended TV show episode. Also, why did they make Latio and Latia communicate with high-pitched sounds? I legitimately was getting a headache 37 minutes in because of it. Not a good movie.

Underrated and awesome

[Poke504 · 8/10 · 29 November 2008]

Pokemon Heroes is fun. It's action packed, full of suspense, and everything a Pokemon fan like myself could want. Some may tell you different, Pokemon is known for being hated on for things every movie has. It may be short, but it will leave you entertained. My fourth favorite out of all of them, watch it yourself without a negative output, as most people who watch this movie do. Another example of why Pokemon is not for little kids, this movie will be entertaining to any fan of the show and people who don't watch the show might like it as well. Probably the most underrated out of all the films, give it a chance and you will find some soft-spot for it. Fans love it, others give it a try and you might like it for yourself.

Ash Does Venice

[owen-watts · 5/10 · 16 June 2023]

The film that killed the cinematic franchise in the west and cost Miramax a lot of money (fair play to it on that front) is a strange flat affair. It feels like an extended TV episode albeit with beautifully painted Venetian backgrounds and some nicely integrated graphics. The central mythical pokemans are some of the most sonically annoying things in cinema history - alongside the original Dark Crystal's squawking skeksis. Ash's sidekicks feel strangely limp in the narrative here and spend most of the time flapping around the edges like Team Rocket. After watching it occurs that the English-language version also does that classical Pokemon movie thing of cutting out loads of scenes which actually explain the plot. Baffling.

enormous creativity! Best!

[goku_z · 10/10 · 19 August 2005]

Woooaaahh!!! wonderful...This movie is awesome, adorable. Every scene, smells "design". I adored the creativity of the design of the atmosphere, from city to weather. It really makes the audiences feel that city and event. The computer graphics brought a new level to Pokemon. I couldn't even imagine how it could fit perfectly to Pokemon. Every details in the city worked incredibly well and well-thought. Beside, just establishing a movie, artists, it seems, revealed their creativity and design talents onto this movie. Thats why it seems different than others. City is so beautiful, so mysterious. Sceneraio is well settled. It has some resembled issues to Disney's Atlantis such as Latios' having sacrificed for the city, but it is perfect idea for this movie. Action, is at the high level that this movie seems like it goes forward and back between limited animation and full animation. Tsunami at the end was the highest level that prove this. Musics are the best. If this movie had soundtrack, it would be the best. I really need it. Especially the one that was done via accordion. It really gives the atmosphere of the city and properly fit. Whatever they say about this movie -though I don't believe they understand anything about animation art or even Pokémon- this movie is one of the bests with its everything. This movie must have been the first Pokémon movie since the first one is terrible -although I like mew-two so much.

Me, as an animation artist and designer, I am thanking to the animators and director and everyone that helped to create this movie. Thank you all.... you created the best...

75% Worse 25% Good

[yalvihidayat · 5/10 · 1 June 2015]

This movie not decent or bad to watch and the problem for its visual effect, special effect, and dubbing are poor. Story slightly better than previous film. Better thing is "the space- like vehicle" could be its one of several creativity that should doesn't exist in this condition.

Well unlike another anime in 2000s and before 2000s, i cannot find the main focus of this movie. Like 1997 Princess Monoke which related its story and quality of effect. This is only for children and children will entertained. Other audience cannot do anything except for watching this film or hearing horrible noises. This is will be a bad nightmare for adults.

So I prefer you wait till next year and sit down the next movie and like what that movie. Being better or worse?

SHORT REVIEW END i m sorry if my English is not good

A Great Film

[mrusty5 · 10/10 · 7 May 2008]

My second favourite Pokemon film. This film is set in the city Altomare, based on Venice. The city is guarded by Latios and Latias, two dragon and psychic Pokemon. They also protect the Soul Dew, a jewel said to contain the spirit of their father. However, two thieves come to steal the jewel in order to power the DMA (The Defence Mechanism of Altomare), although the reason why is never explained. Once again, coincidentally, Ash, Pikachu, Misty and Brock are visiting the city and get involved in the race to save the city. There also a wonderful bond between Ash, Latias and Latios, which seems to be the main support beam which prevents this movie from turning bad. As a nice point to Mario, the curator of the city's museum is dressed in his attire.

It is a very well thought out movie.

[allessandradog · 9/10 · 19 May 2017]

This is a great movie, one of the movies I grew up with. It was excellently done, a decent story, and great characters. I love the bonds shown or developed throughout the movie, especially Latios and Latias. These two are the closest Pokemon duo I have seen, and they were quite well done. So you ask, why is it 9 stars if you enjoy the movie so much? Well, I have quite a few problems with the movie. First, I would like the clear up that this is the shortest Pokemon film released so far, and will probably stay that way as long as Pokemon is running. If you skipped directly to the race and watched to the part where 2 Latios and 1 Latias fly towards Alto Mare, it would be about 30 seconds under an hour. This leaves Pokemon fans hungering for more, and I myself wish this was a longer film.

My second problem is that the English version should have had a more similar story to the Japanese version. The Japanese version was a very successful film, with a brilliant story. So why, just why, was this all changed up? This isn't a question I've seen many people ask, but I am wondering. Why was Latios's voice changed in the English dub. It helped distinguish Latios and Latias's differences better, which is one of the things I liked about the Japanese version.

These are only three problems, but they are big enough to knock the movie down a star for me. But the movie is still kid-friendly and entertaining. I love it until this very day, and the movie itself was very emotional. Latias and Latios are adorable and cool at the same time, just the Pokemon I love the most. Latios's death set a new course for the Pokemon world, and it still affects some today. Annie and Oakley were funny and unusual villains. I like both of their characters, Oakley's desire for power, and Annie just the more girly of the two, wanting to steal pretty things and wear nice clothes. I wish they were given another role in the future.

I am not denying that this was a great film, but it could have easily been better. But this movie is unique for its design focus. I like how Alto Mare is loosely based off of Venice, which is a gorgeous city. Latios and Latias will always have a special place in my heart, as well as this movie.

This was an excellent movie!

[stewellis · 10/10 · 21 May 2003]

...and I still haven't watched a full episode of the television cartoon show. The previous films in the series were top-notch in every way. I remember seeing the first one and being completely blown away. I am a die-hard supporter of Pokemon. I'm also a grown man. I haven't been this interested in a cartoon since the days of He-man in 1983 and 1989. The animation in Pokemon was good for what it was as well. But what really sets it apart is the storytelling and the appeal it to the kid in all of us. ***** (five stars).

10 stars for the original Japanese unedited version

[ManWithGoodTaste · 10/10 · 12 October 2009]

Let's make a few things clear:

1. Yes, probably only Pokemon fans will be able to enjoy Pokemon movies.

2. Pokemon feature films are not stupid, but they are made so when dubbing. For example, in the first movie, during translation, the entire plot was dumbed down and changed and a twenty minute sequence was deleted.

3. The names of the characters were changed in the English adaptations to appeal to younger audiences. Name of the main protagonist is Satoshi, a normal Japanese name. But we got a boy called Ash. That is just epic fail.

4. The names of the movies themselves were almost always changed(for the worst). This one was called "Guardians of Altomare", not "Heroes".

5. The music in the original versions is very good. But in the dubs usually we get some really low- quality stuff.

6. Don't complain that the whole Pokemon franchise is "cockfighting". Don't say the concept is immoral. Remember that it came from Japan, where they have a different view of the world. There, friendly battles are considered a key to individual's growth (Karate, anyone?). "We fight each other to win, only to give a helping hand to the defeated opponent". That's not so hard to understand.

7. In the end, Pocket Monsters (Jap. name) movies are great and should interest any anime fan out there.

P.S. We should do something to stop animation in from being aimed towards small children only in the US. Teenagers and adults should be able to enjoy it too. American companies must leave the original music and plots intact to keep foreign animated movies interesting to us as they were originally made.

decent movie

[maverick-69 · 21 April 2004]

it was a decent movie but definitely not as good as the 1st movie. in fact the movies have declined pretty much in order from 2 on down. if you are a poke-fan you'll like seeing Latios and Latias. but the story doesn't live up to the build up it takes most of the 1st half setting up. if you are a poke-fan you've already seen it, if you are new<where have you been?>JK. see it for the short which was cute. the graphics are also awesome especially the beginning during the song and the water race that is running. they introduce another 2 team Rocket members "Annie and Oakley" cute names like other western names "Jesse and James" etc. anyone else think they should get new villains and get rid of Jesse and James?

A film that just does it's job. Nothing wrong with that.

[MrTwinkie · 8/10 · 16 September 2012]

I honestly don't get the critic bash for this movie. This is not the next critically acclaimed highly anticipated blockbuster from Christopher Nolan. This is not a interesting concept that has the potential to redefine cinema. This is Pokémon.

Pokemon Heroes takes place in a city of Altomare obviously inspired by Venice where the trio of Ash, Misty and Brock goes into a plot to destroy the city in the world of the iconic little cute monsters: Pokemon. The characterization fit the bill finely. The characters and the legendary Pokémon: Latias and Latios are given reasonable background information to build you familiarity into understanding Altomare's secret. Latias and Latios are a beautiful combination of tender love and charming style. Many people don't like the sounds they make but I personally reckon they're the cutest and most endearing sounds you'd wish your puppy makes more.

Many of the ways this film is presented has implausibility and childish overtones but then again this is aimed at children before they go to high school. Animation and background art is superb and only a few steps behind Studio Ghbli. However the CGI is quite a nono, they stand out and do not look all that natural at all.

In my opinion this story has great style. It presents action that does not feel too forced and an emotional drama that did hit me when I was a little boy. Just the other day I suddenly thought of Pokémon and having a watch, the nostalgia sounds wonderful sensations throughout your body. The soundtrack also fits well to this film's environment and gives it a great natural wonder.

For dedicated Pokémon fans, this film is actually slightly more disappointing due to the lack of Pokémon action. Ash doesn't use his Pokémon and gets magically saved by the Pokémon of Brock and Misty as they just so happen to find Ash in trouble in a city that spans a thousand streets and creeks.

However Pokémon is a fun film for kids. It gives them that wonder that makes them wish to escape into an alternate universe and the voice acting and characterization does a fine job in conveying a story. Although the mums and daddies would snore before this film hits its first quarter, Pokemon Heroes does its job and that's exactly what it should do.