Original title: Pocket Monster: Myuutsu! Ware wa Koko ni Ari

Top credits

In this direct-to-video sequel to Pokémon: The First Movie, Ash, Misty, and Brock continue exploring the Johto region, then have to rescue Pikachu after Jessie and James of Team Rocket kidnap him. The search leads them to the hidden plateau where Mewtwo has established a haven for the cloned Pokémon from the previous film. The evil Giovanni is plotting to recapture Mewtwo and renew his efforts to create an army of bio-engineered Pokémon. Aided by the reluctant Meowth, Ash and his friends defeat Giovanni and his henchman.—Ash

What I mean by my title summary is that Pokemon: The First Movie was a good movie that was meant for the fans. Still, it was only meant to be seen once. A promising idea for a sequel to the most liked of the horrible movie series(the TV series is half-good, it's the video games that started it all for a reason), in a direct to video release turned out to add another dent to the bashed Pokemon phenomenon, most of the damage coming from the movies. In fact, the newest Pokemon movie(Pokemon 4) and maybe this one has been released by Miramax films, behind the Spy Kids movies, who had already been accused(though it was quickly forgotten) by rumors that they had tried to buy Pokemon movie rights. Kids'WB, owners of the first 3 movies and TV show, seem to look in a selling mood as a card-game, movies and their own TV show are looked over and insulted, with a GameCube game(mostly known as Meowth's Party) shelved, and everyone looking at the new movie and waiting for the new Game Boy Advance games to judge the old phenomenon again.
The direct-to-video approach was probably selected as the effects of a big-screen Pokemon movie wore off on kids, despite their newest attempts in Pokemon 4. Now for the movie. It starts out regularly introducing how Ash and friends, the stars of the show and movies, and their arch-nemesi(or whatever) Team Rocket get caught up in the happenings. Ash and co. miss an important bus and must try to get to another side of a mountain Mewtwo and his clones from the first movie(minus Mew, the pokemon Mewtwo was cloned from, for some reason) are perched on top of(with a TV system and hidden cameras.???). The boss of Team Rocket, who created Mewtwo, is the only one who remembers Mewtwo after the clone erased everyone's mind at the end of First Movie, finds Mewtwo on his satellite system or something and decides to try to catch him, with the help of his own army. Ash and co. wind up trying to climb the mountain because of poor excuses the writers had to come up with to not allow them any other way. Ash, friends and Team Rocket winds up surrounded by clones, with a confused Mewtwo who doesn't know what to do with them. He's opposed against fighting now(a message that worked in the first movie, because Pokemon usually faint, not die, from battling, but now is an excuse to drag on the movie).The TR boss, named Giovanni, moves in and (eventually) traps Mewtwo into giving himself up or sacrificing his clone friends. The whole movie has a message of a life is a life, no matter what origin, a great anti-racism message which is a shame because almost nobody will know about it, this movie being so quietly released most video rental places don't even have it.
With the whole against fighting message added in, probably used in the first movie to try and counter parents fears, makes this a boring, dragging movie that has no big fight at all, though slightly dramatic, though with a predictable ending. Not even good for fans, which at least the longer, better first movie(and that's not saying much) at least achieved. As I said to my friends as we all watched it, so bad it's funny. Not funny-ha-ha, funny you're-so-stupid-and-pathetic, ha-ha.