''Pokémon 4Ever – Celebi: Voice of the Forest'' is a 2001
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
film directed by
Kunihiko Yuyama
is a Japanese director best known for his work on the ''Pokémon'' anime franchise. He also directed ''Magical Princess Minky Momo'', '' Leda: The Fantastic Adventure of Yohko'', ''The Three Musketeers Anime'', ''Ushio and Tora'', '' Kimagure ...
and based on the television series ''
Pokémon
(an abbreviation for in Japan) is a Japanese media franchise managed by The Pokémon Company, founded by Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures (company), Creatures, the owners of the trademark and copyright of the franchise.
In terms of ...
''. The fourth official
''Pokémon'' film, it was released in Japan on July 7, 2001. The film was directed in Japan by
Kunihiko Yuyama
is a Japanese director best known for his work on the ''Pokémon'' anime franchise. He also directed ''Magical Princess Minky Momo'', '' Leda: The Fantastic Adventure of Yohko'', ''The Three Musketeers Anime'', ''Ushio and Tora'', '' Kimagure ...
and written by Hideki Sonoda. It stars the regular television cast of
Rica Matsumoto
is a Japanese actress, voice actress and singer who was born in Yokohama, Japan. Her name is also sometimes romanized as Rica Matsumoto. She was one of the founders of the anison band JAM Project.
After early stage work, she began both voice ac ...
,
Ikue Ōtani
is a Japanese actress, singer, voice actress and narrator from Tokyo, Japan. She is best known for her anime roles in the ''Pokémon'' series (as Pikachu), ''One Piece'' (as Tony Tony Chopper), ''Corpse Party'' (as Sachiko Shinozaki), ''Nar ...
,
Mayumi Iizuka
is a Japanese actress, voice actress, singer and disc jockey who was born in Tokyo. She is currently affiliated with Across Entertainment and her label is Lantis. She is an instructor at the Stay Luck training school Follow-Up. For her singing a ...
,
Yūji Ueda
is a Japanese actor, voice actor and singer from Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. He is best known for voicing the roles of Sagara Sanosuke in ''Rurouni Kenshin'', Akito Tenkawa in ''Martian Successor Nadesico'', Takeshi/Brock and Sonansu/Wobbuffet ...
,
Megumi Hayashibara
is a Japanese voice actress, singer, lyricist and radio personality from Kita ward in Tokyo and is affiliated with self-founded Woodpark Office. One of the most prominent Japanese voice actresses since the 1990s, Hayashibara is best known for ...
and
Shin-ichiro Miki
is a Japanese voice actor from Tokyo.Doi, Hitoshi.Miki Shinichirou. ''Seiyuu Database''. July 13, 2010. He is a member of 81 Produce.
Miki is known for his distinctively smooth voice and often calm delivery in the roles he has landed. He often ...
. The events of the film take place during ''
Pokémon: Johto League Champions''.
The English adaption of the film was released on October 11, 2002, in the United States, produced by
4Kids Entertainment and distributed by then-
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
subsidiary
Miramax Films
Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey Weinstein, Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.
It was ...
, which would take over from
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
starting with this film. The English dub was directed by Jim Malone, and written by
Norman J. Grossfeld. The English adaption stars the regular television cast:
Veronica Taylor
Kathleen Charlotte McInerney, also known by her stage name Veronica Taylor is an American voice actress known for her dubbing work in English-language adaptations of Japanese anime, in particular for voicing Ash Ketchum and his mother Delia in ...
,
Eric Stuart
Eric Stuart is an American voice actor and musician who worked for 4Kids Entertainment, NYAV Post, and Central Park Media.
Early life
Stuart was born in Brooklyn, New York to a modern dancer mother and a criminal attorney father.
Voice act ...
,
Rachael Lillis
Rachael Lillis (born July 8) is an American voice actress and scriptwriter. She studied acting in Boston and New York City and has appeared in various theater productions, animated series and independent films.
She was formerly based in New Yor ...
and
Maddie Blaustein
Madeleine Joan Blaustein (born Adam Blaustein, October 9, 1960 – December 11, 2008), also known as Kendra Bancroft, was an American voice actress and comic writer who was known for her voice acting work for 4Kids Entertainment, DuArt Film an ...
.
Plot
In a forest in the
Johto region, a Pokémon trainer named Sammy is warned by a woman named Towa to be wary of the “Voice of the Forest”, which is
Celebi, a Pokémon capable of
time travel
Time travel is the concept of movement between certain points in time, analogous to movement between different points in space by an object or a person, typically with the use of a hypothetical device known as a time machine. Time travel is a w ...
. Celebi is pursued by a Pokémon hunter and is injured. Sammy protects it from the hunter, but Celebi uses its powers to travel forward in time, taking Sammy with it. Forty years later, the elderly hunter is confronted by the Iron Masked Marauder, a cruel and sinister member of
Team Rocket
A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal.
As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to infor ...
, who seeks to enslave Celebi. The Marauder uses a Dark Ball(a unique poke ball that can capture Pokémon already owned by Trainers, turns them evil, and increases their power to the highest level) on the hunter's Tyranitar and orders it to use its Hyper Beam attack to destroy most of the hunter's possessions.
Meanwhile,
Ash Ketchum
Ash Ketchum, known as in Japan, is a fictional character in the ''Pokémon'' franchise owned by Nintendo. He is the protagonist of the ''Pokémon'' anime and certain manga series as well as on various merchandise related to the franchise. I ...
,
Misty
Misty may refer to:
Music
* ''Misty'' (Ray Stevens album), an album by Ray Stevens featuring the above song
* ''Misty'' (Richard "Groove" Holmes album), an album by Richard "Groove" Holmes featuring the above song
* ''Misty'' (Eddie "Lockjaw" ...
and
Brock arrive in the neighbourhood of Arborville, spotting the legendary
Suicune on a riverbank. Speaking to
Professor Oak
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...
, the trio learn he encountered Suicune himself many years ago, but they have to depart before he can explain how. The group are taken to the forest by a local named Mr. White, but encounter the elderly Towa and her granddaughter Diana, warned of the Voice of the Forest. Celebi and Sammy appear from the past, but the former hides, while Sammy comes to term with his time displacement. Ash, Sammy, Misty and Brock find the wounded Celebi and decide to take him to the Lake of Life, said to have healing waters.
Team Rocket
A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal.
As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to infor ...
pursue the children, joining forces with the Marauder. The children are guided to the lake by wild Pokémon, where Celebi is healed. That night, Ash and Sammy bond, hoping the latter can return to his era. The next day, the Marauder confronts the group, using a Dark Ball to capture Celebi and uses its immense powers over nature to encase it in enormous draconian-like armour made from the forest. Jessie is captured; the Marauder admitting he plots to overthrow Team Rocket's leader Giovanni and conquer the world. Ash, his friends, and Suicune battle to rescue Celebi from the Marauder's influence.
Ash, Sammy and
Pikachu
is a fictional species in the ''Pokémon'' media franchise. Designed by Atsuko Nishida and Ken Sugimori, Pikachu first appeared in the 1996 Japanese video games ''Pokémon Red'' and ''Green'' created by Game Freak and Nintendo, which w ...
breach Celebi's armour and convince it to resist the Marauder, regaining his memories and is freed from the Dark Ball's influence. The Marauder and Jessie tumble in the lake as Celebi's armour collapses.
However, upon taking Celebi to the lakeside, it dies in Sammy's arms. The group attempt to revive it when Suicune purifies the lake, but it fails. Just as all hope of reviving Celebi is lost, the Voice of the Forest, which is actually each Celebi from across time, materializes in the sky and magically
resurrects their brother. Suddenly, the Marauder appears and kidnaps Celebi, using a
jetpack
A jet pack, rocket belt, or rocket pack is a device worn on the back which uses jets of gas or liquid to propel the wearer through the air. The concept has been present in science fiction for almost a century and became widespread in the 1960s. ...
to escape, but Ash and Pikachu rescue Celebi, the Marauder crashing into the forest and is confronted by Towa, Diana, White, and the angry wild Pokémon.
Celebi takes Sammy back to his own time, who promises to reunite with Ash in the future. The Marauder's freed Pokémon go their separate ways, as
Giovanni Giovanni may refer to:
* Giovanni (name), an Italian male given name and surname
* Giovanni (meteorology), a Web interface for users to analyze NASA's gridded data
* ''Don Giovanni'', a 1787 opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, based on the legend of ...
would learn about the Marauder's betrayal and urge to kill him and claim Team Rocket for himself and refuse to bail him out. Ash, Misty, and Brock speak to Professor Oak of their adventure, Ash saddened by Sammy's departure. However, Professor Oak reassures him that friendships can withstand the test of time and he and Sammy will remain friends. However, upon ending the call, the trio are perplexed about how Professor Oak knew Sammy's name, having never mentioned it. In his laboratory, Oak owns Sammy's sketchbook, revealing he is the same character. During the end credits,
Tracey
Tracy, Tracey, or Tracie may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Tracy (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname, also encompassing spelling variations
Places United States
* Tracy, C ...
discovers Oak's sketchbook and inserts it into a bookshelf for safekeeping. In the end, Jessie is swimming in the lake when James and Meowth find her on a raft. Soon after the Tyranitar which was caught by the Marauder attacks the raft. Team Rocket, having their raft destroyed, decide to relax in the lake.
Cast
Production
The movie was directed by
Kunihiko Yuyama
is a Japanese director best known for his work on the ''Pokémon'' anime franchise. He also directed ''Magical Princess Minky Momo'', '' Leda: The Fantastic Adventure of Yohko'', ''The Three Musketeers Anime'', ''Ushio and Tora'', '' Kimagure ...
and written by Hideki Sonoda.
Norman Grossfeld, the producer of the English adaption, said that the animation quality in the film was the "finest yet" from
Oriental Light and Magic
, formerly Oriental Light and Magic, is a Japanese animation and film studio headquartered in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan, founded on October 3, 1990.
Establishment
OLM was founded as Oriental Light & Magic, Inc. on October 3rd, 1990 by Toshiaki Ok ...
. The animators felt "tremendous pressure" that their adaption, both in the writing and the casting, held up against "this incredible achievement". Grossfeld says they adjusted the casting so that the guest characters did not sound too "cartoony" – "and instead had a larger than life tone to fit in with the epic nature of this story and the craftsmanship of the animation".
Jim Malone directed the English dub that was written by Michael Haigney.
Reception
Box office
The first three ''Pokémon'' films, ''
Pokémon: The First Movie'', ''
Pokémon: The Movie 2000'', and ''
Pokémon 3: The Movie'', were released outside of Japan by
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
, but the distribution rights for ''Pokémon 4Ever'' and ''
Pokémon Heroes'' were given to
Miramax
Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by brothers Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.
It was initially a leadi ...
on April 2, 2002, by
The Pokémon Company
The Pokémon Company (株式会社ポケモン, ''Kabushiki gaisha Pokemon'') is a Japanese company responsible for brand management, production, publishing, marketing, and licensing of the ''Pokémon'' franchise, which consists of video game s ...
. Miramax was rumored to have bought the rights for $1 million and by giving up 75% of the profits.
Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein (; born March 19, 1952) is an American former film producer and convicted sex offender. He and his brother, Bob Weinstein, co-founded the entertainment company Miramax, which produced several successful independent films includ ...
stated that Miramax could "reinvigorate the franchise" and that ''Pokémon 4Ever'' would be released in October.
''Pokémon 4Ever'' was successful in Japan, where it grossed . The revenue of the films in the United States had fallen from $85.7 million for the first movie to $17 million for the third movie.
In the United States, the film had a limited release, opening in only 249 theaters. Comparatively, the
previous film had opened in 2,675 theaters. It earned $717,061 in its opening weekend, ranking #18 on the box office for that weekend. The film earned a total of $1,727,447 during its run in North America.
The film had a 58-day theatrical run, ending on December 5, 2002.
Much like
the next film, it was more successful upon its release on video and DVD.
The film also grossed $79,642 in the Netherlands, bringing its overseas gross to . The film's total worldwide gross was .
Reception
''Pokémon 4Ever'' received generally negative reviews from television critics. Some critics called it "predictable" and "disappointing", while others stated that "the viewers won't be disappointed". The film received a 14% rating on
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, with 32 of a total 37 reviews being determined as negative, the lowest of the Pokémon film series (original), with the consensus reading, "Only for diehard Pokemon fans". It received a rating of 25 out of 100 (signifying "generally negative reviews") on
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
from 16 reviews. In a review of the film, Dann Gire of the ''
Daily Herald'' said that "nothing feels more desperate than a movie that tries to extort emotions from young viewers. That happens in the animated ''Pokémon 4Ever'', in which colorful characters stand around crying over the shriveling corpse of a magical creature called Celebi. The movie has emotional warmth of tin foil, mainly because it never establishes connections among the characters, or between the characters and viewers".
Tenley Woodman of the ''
Boston Herald
The ''Boston Herald'' is an American daily newspaper whose primary market is Boston, Massachusetts, and its surrounding area. It was founded in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States. It has been awarded eight Pulit ...
'' said that "''Fans 4Ever'' would be a more appropriate title for the film because ''Pokémon'' enthusiasts likely will be the only ones satisfied by the fourth big-screen installment of this Japanimation craze".
He added that "the story line is solid, with ''Pokémon''
's proxy-fighter premise pieced together for first-time viewers. However, the film lacks the spark needed to make it a must-see flick".
Robert Koehler of ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' said that the "script by Hideki Sonoda is thin in terms of levels of action and adventure, and suffers from last minute padding with one ostensible ending following another. A clever notion to pop up in the larger ''Pokémon'' epic, however, is the suggestion that The Professor (the Pokémon trainers' long-term, reliable guide to all things Pokémon) is actually Sam, now grown up in the present".
He then added: "Yank voices – holdovers all from the past films – remain as irritating and overly emphatic as ever".
Tasha Robinson of
The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
criticized the movie's pacing stating that "In the concrete, though, it's deadly dull. There's no point to prolonging the inevitable, except to pad the movie out to its barely feature-length run time".
Lawrence Van Gelder
Lawrence Ralph Van Gelder (February 17, 1933 – March 11, 2016) was an American journalist and instructor in journalism who worked at several different New York City-based newspapers in his long career. Until 2010, he was senior editor of the Ar ...
of
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
stated that when "it comes to entertainment, children deserve better".
Loren King of the ''
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
'' gave the film a generally positive review, saying: "The latest installment in the ''Pokémon'' canon is surprising less moldy and trite than the last two, likely because much of the Japanese anime is set in a scenic forest where Pokémon graze in peace. The backdrop provides a welcome respite from the ear-, eye- and mind-numbing Pokémon action. And the time-travel plot, though less than inspired, is still tolerable enough for adults accompanying kids".
He added that "like most ''Pokémon'' tales, this one offers lots of exposition and clunky dialogue, but also counters the expected mayhem with a sweet-sided story about friendship and peaceful creatures who prefer to live far from the madding crowd".
Angel Cohn of ''
TV Guide
TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...
'' said in his review that "the story is a bit predictable and the characters given to restating the obvious (presumably for the benefit of very young viewers), but overall this third ''Pokémon'' sequel is surprisingly entertaining, and a mystery surrounding Sammy's identity provides an interesting twist. The film's flat, traditional anime aesthetic is perfectly suited to the look of the bold, cartoon-like creatures, though the animators switch to a more CGI-influenced look for portions of the final battle sequence. While well done, these scenes feel jarring and out of sync with the rest of the film. Quibbles aside, children and adults enamored of all things ''Pokémon'' won't be disappointed".
See also
*
List of films based on video games
This page is a list of film adaptations of video games. These include local, national, international, direct-to-video and TV releases, and (in certain cases) online releases. They include their scores on Rotten Tomatoes, the region in which they ...
Notes
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pokemon 4Ever
2001 films
2001 anime films
2000s Japanese-language films
Environmental films
4Ever
Animated films about time travel
Toho animated films
Films directed by Kunihiko Yuyama
Japanese animated fantasy films
Japanese fantasy adventure films
Japanese sequel films
Miramax films
Miramax animated films
Films scored by Shinji Miyazaki
OLM, Inc. animated films