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Pokémon 3: The Movie

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Pokémon 3: The Movie
Theatrical release poster
Japanese name
Kanji劇場版ポケットモンスター 結晶塔の帝王 ENTEI
Literal meaningPocket Monsters the Movie: Lord of the "UNKNOWN" Tower ENTEI
Transcriptions
Revised HepburnGekijōban Poketto Monsutā Kesshōtō no Teiō ENTEI
Directed byKunihiko Yuyama
Screenplay by
Based onPokémon
by Satoshi Tajiri
Produced by
  • Choji Yoshikawa
  • Yukako Matsusako
  • Takemoto Mori[1]
Starringsee below
Narrated byUnshō Ishizuka
CinematographyHisao Shirai
Edited by
  • Toshio Henmi
  • Yutaka Ito[1]
Music byShinji Miyazaki[1]
Production
company
Distributed byToho[1]
Release date
  • July 8, 2000 (2000-07-08) (Japan)
Running time
74 minutes[1]
CountryJapan
LanguageJapanese
BudgetUS$3–16 million[2][3]
Box officeUS$68.5 million[2]

Pokémon 3: The Movie[a] is a 2000 Japanese anime film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama as the third film in the Pokémon franchise. The film stars the voices of Rica Matsumoto, Ikue Ōtani, Mayumi Iizuka, Yūji Ueda, Koichi Yamadera, Megumi Hayashibara, Shin-ichiro Miki, Ai Kato, Masami Toyoshima, Akiko Yajima, and Naoto Takenaka. In the film, Ash Ketchum and his friends go on a journey to save Molly Hale and Ash's mother Delia Ketchum from an illusionary legendary pokemon named Entei.

This was the first Pokémon film to premiere in an IMAX theater. The realistic crystallization and Unown created a 3D effect in the film. This was also the last Pokémon film to be released internationally by Warner Bros. Pictures until the release of Pokémon: Detective Pikachu in 2019. The Japanese opening theme is OK! 2000 by Rica Matsumoto, and the Japanese ending theme is The Day a Rainbow Was Born (Niji ga Umareta hi) by Kumiko Mori. The English opening theme is Pokemon Johto by PJ Lequerica, and the English ending theme is To Know the Unknown by Innosense.

Plot

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In the town of Greenfield, research scientist Professor Spencer Hale conducts research on the elusive Pokémon Unown. He and his assistant, Skyler, discover a site of ruins, but Hale is sucked into the dimension of the Unown. His disappearance leaves his young daughter Molly alone, her mother having disappeared previously. Molly finds a box of tablets containing Unown images and begins assembling the letters, which summons the Unown themselves. The Unown, sensing Molly's desires, use their powers to make Molly's wishes come true, transforming her manor house into a crystal-like palace which spreads across the town and cuts her off from the world. An illusionary Entei is created to represent Molly's father, who agrees to fill this role for her.

Meanwhile, Ash Ketchum and his friends meet and befriend a trainer named Lisa, arriving in Greenfield just in time to see the crystallization slowly in progress. They also meet up with Professor Oak and Ash's mom, Delia, who arrived to help with the situation, as the Ketchum's are old friends of the Hale's. However, Entei kidnaps Delia, following Molly's request for a mother as well, and he hypnotizes her into thinking she is Molly's mother. Ash, Misty, Brock, and their Pokémon head out to the mansion to save Delia, communicating with Oak and Skyler thanks to a PokéGear device given to them by Lisa. Team Rocket try investigating the mansion, but Entei blasts them into the depths of the mansion. Molly watches Ash's Pokémon in action through a television and falls asleep, imagining herself being a Pokémon Trainer; Delia is snapped out of her trance by seeing Ash on the TV. Entei creates a dream version of Molly as an adult to let her battle the three, first fighting and defeating Brock with her stronger dream Pokémon, and then having a more friendly fight with Misty.

Ash locates Molly and Delia, attempting to convince Molly to leave with them, but she is too scared and refuses, causing the power of the Unown to fight back. Entei returns and battles Ash, defeating his Pokémon and nearly killing him and Pikachu. However, having witnessed the crisis on TV in Charicific Valley, Ash's Charizard appears in time to rescue Ash and Pikachu. Entei engages Charizard in a duel and eventually tries to kill him. But then Molly, who realizes that her desires are causing more harm than good, tells Entei to stop fighting. She is finally convinced to let go and leave with them, as Entei reveals he will soon depart, having served his purpose to follow her wishes.

The Unown suddenly begin losing control of their powers and start to seal the group in the mansion. The group (plus Team Rocket) escape to the main hall where the Unown are. Pikachu and Charizard attempt to break the forcefield protecting the Unown, but they are unsuccessful, until they are joined by Entei, combining their powers to destroy the shield with Molly's support. Entei sacrifices himself and the Unown return to their dimension, reversing all of their effects on the world and returning Hale to the ruins where he originally vanished.

The group ventures outside, where Oak, Skyler, Lisa, and others meet them. Team Rocket hides in the mansion upon seeing the police outside and declare that they will always have another opportunity to catch Pokémon. Charizard and Lisa depart from Ash's company, and Molly reunites with her biological father as well as with her long-lost biological mother.

Cast

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Main article: List of characters in the Pokémon anime series
Character Japanese English
Ash Ketchum (Satoshi) Rica Matsumoto Veronica Taylor
Pikachu
Ikue Otani
Misty (Kasumi) Mayumi Iizuka Rachael Lillis
Brock (Takeshi) Yuuji Ueda Eric Stuart
Narrator Unsho Ishizuka Ken Gates
Togepi (Togepy)
Satomi Korogi
Jessie (Musashi) Megumi Hayashibara Rachael Lillis
James (Kojiro) Shin-ichiroh Miki Eric Stuart
Meowth (Nyarth) Inuko Inuyama Maddie Blaustein
Entei Naoto Takenaka Dan Green
Spencer Hale (Sully Snowdon)
Molly Hale (Me Snowdon) Akiko Yajima Amy Birnbaum
Lisa (Rin) Ai Katoh Lisa Ortiz
Schuyler (John) Hirohide Yakumaru Ted Lewis
Delia Ketchum (Hanako) Masami Toyoshima Veronica Taylor
Professor Samuel Oak (Dr. Yukinari Okido) Unshō Ishizuka Stuart Zagnit
Tracey Sketchit (Kenji) Tomokazu Seki Ted Lewis
Officer Jenny (Junsar)* Chinami Nishimura Lee Quick
David Kōichi Yamadera Peter R. Bird
  • Officer Jenny has no lines in the film despite her prominence.

Release

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Theatrical run

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Pokémon 3: The Movie was released in Japanese theaters on July 8, 2000 by Toho. That following year, the English version, produced by Nintendo and 4Kids Entertainment and licensed by Warner Bros. under the Kids' WB banner, was released in North America on April 6, 2001. The events of the film take place at the end of the third season of Pokémon: The Johto Journeys.

Home media

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Pokémon 3: The Movie was released on VHS and DVD on August 21, 2001.[4][5]

A limited edition Blu-ray Steelbook containing the first three Pokémon films was released on February 9, 2016, along with single releases on DVD (These are: Pokémon: The First Movie, Pokémon: The Movie 2000 and Pokémon 3: The Movie). In accommodation with the 20th anniversary of the Pokémon franchise, a digitally remastered version of the film was released on iTunes, Amazon and Google Play on February 27, 2016.

Reception

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Box office

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Like its predecessors, for the film's theatrical release, select theaters would give away exclusive Pokémon trading cards, to capitalize on the success of the trading card game.

Pokémon 3: The Movie opened in theaters in Japan on July 8, 2000 with a 74-minute running time.[1] The film was the third highest-grossing film in Japan for the year behind Mission: Impossible 2 and The Green Mile, with a gross of US$48.5 million.[6][7]

The film was released in the United States on April 6, 2001, debuting at number 4 on its opening weekend, earning $8,240,752 from 2,675 theaters, less than half as much as first-place finisher Spy Kids.[8] The film proved less successful in the box office compared to previous films. During its 10-week box office run, Pokémon 3: The Movie made a significant profit-margin, grossing $17,052,128 in North America.[9]

The film grossed US$4,605,214 in five other countries, including US$2,736,100 in Germany, US$714,016 in the United Kingdom, US$549,902 in Australia, US$327,752 in Austria, and US$277,444 in Denmark. Combined, the film grossed US$21,657,342 overseas outside of Japan.[10] In total, the film's gross was US$70,157,342 (equivalent to $124,127,657 in 2023).

Critical response

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The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported that 21% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 57 reviews, with an average rating of 4.01/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Critics say that the third Pokemon movie has a better plot than its two predecessors. This is not enough, however, to recommend it to those not already fans of the franchise."[11] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 22 out of 100 based on 18 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[12] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.[13]

Soundtrack

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Pokémon 3: The Ultimate Soundtrack
Soundtrack album by
Various artists
ReleasedApril 3, 2001
GenrePop
Length58:35
LabelKoch Records
ProducerJohn Loeffler
Various artists chronology
'Totally Pokémon'
(2001) 		Pokémon 3: The Ultimate Soundtrack
(2001) 		'Pokémon Christmas Bash'
(2001)

Pokémon 3: The Ultimate Soundtrack is the soundtrack to the third series and the movie, It was released on April 3, 2001 by Koch Records on Audio CD and Compact Cassette. Many of the songs were featured on the album Totally Pokémon but as that was not released outside of North America and Australia, this soundtrack encouraged European fans to own the music. In Australia, some copies of the CD were released with a bonus disc of the musical score album for Pokémon: The Movie 2000 (which was also released as a separate disc worldwide).[citation needed] The Japanese and English-language editions contained different tracks. Shinji Miyazaki wrote the original film score, while Ralph Schuckett composed the score for the International and Japanese DVD releases.

The second track, "To Know the Unknown", was performed by girl group Innosense. Tracks 13 to 15 were karaoke versions. The album also features two Pokémon videos, the Pokérap and a scene from the film, which are accessible upon insertion of the disc into a computer.

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Pokémon Johto [Movie Version]" (Élan Luz Rivera feat. PJ Lequerica)Neil Jason, John Loeffler, John Siegler 
2."To Know the Unknown" (Innosense)Norman J. Grossfeld, John Loeffler, John Siegler 
3."Pikachu (I Choose You)" (Élan Luz Rivera)Neil Jason, John Loeffler 
4."All We Wanna Do" (Élan Luz Rivera feat. Jamily Gray)Ken Cummings, John Loeffler 
5."He Drives Me Crazy" (Shauna McCoy)Ken Cummings, John Loeffler 
6."You & Me & Pokémon" (Élan Luz Rivera feat. PJ Lequerica)Neil Jason, John Loeffler, John Siegler 
7."Song of Jigglypuff" (Jamily Gray feat. Shauna McCoy)Louis Cortelezzi, John Loeffler et Bob Mayo 
8."Pokerap GS" (Jolan Boockvor, Jamily Gray, PJ Lequerica, Shauna McCoy, Shareef McQueen, Élan Luz Rivera)John Loeffler, John Siegler 
9."Two Perfect Girls" (Eric Stuart)Norman J. Grossfeld, John Loeffler, John Siegler 
10."Pokémon Johto [TV Version]" (PJ Lequerica)John Loeffler, John Siegler 
11."Biggest Part of My Life" (PJ Lequerica)Ken Cummings, John Loeffler 
12."Medley from Spell of the Unown"John Loeffler, Ralph Schuckett 
13."Pikachu (I Choose You)" (Karaoke Version)  
14."Song of Jigglypuff" (Karaoke Version)  
15."You & Me & Pokémon" (Karaoke Version)  

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Known in Japan as Pocket Monsters the Movie: Emperor of the Crystal Tower – ENTEI (Japanese: 劇場版ポケットモンスター 結晶塔の帝王 ENTEI, Hepburn: Gekijōban Poketto Monsutā Kesshōtō no Teiō Entei)

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Galbraith IV, Stuart (May 16, 2008). The Toho Studios Story: A History and Complete Filmography. Scarecrow Press. p. 415. ISBN 978-1461673743.
  2. ^ a b "Pokémon 3: The Movie (2001) - Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  3. ^ "Pokémon 3: The Movie (2001)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  4. ^ Amazon.com: Pokemon 3 - The Movie
  5. ^ "The Third Time is a Charm! On August 21, Pokemon 3: the Movie Arrives to Captivate Audiences On VHS & DVD". Business Wire. Berkshire Hathaway. June 29, 2001. Archived from the original on August 21, 2001. Retrieved June 14, 2019 – via Yahoo.com.
  6. ^ Macias, Patrick (2003). Japan's Movie House Masterpieces. DH Publishing. p. 39. ISBN 9780972312448.
  7. ^ Herskovitz, Jon (January 29, 2001). "Japan's plex boom unmatched by B.O". Variety. p. 58.
  8. ^ "Pokemon 3: The Movie Weekend Box-Office". Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
  9. ^ "Pokemon 3: The Movie (2001)". Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
  10. ^ "Pokemon 3: The Movie (2001) - International Box Office Results". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  11. ^ "Pokémon 3: The Movie (2001)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved June 6, 2019.
  12. ^ "Pokémon 3: The Movie Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  13. ^ "Find CinemaScore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on December 20, 2018. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
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Wikiquote has quotations related to Pokemon: Spell of the Unknown.
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