Pokémon The Movie: I Choose You! Arrives On Netflix In The U.S.

Screen Rant

By Jack Gardner

Published Jan 3, 2019

The twentieth Pokémon film can now be watched on Netflix, and offers a wonderful opportunity to revisit iconic moments from the series in a new light.

Go back to where it all began with Pokémon The Movie: I Choose You! now streaming on Netflix. Now fans can experience the magical moment that shocked the world when Pikachu talked for the first time.

The 2017 film offers an alternative retelling of the origins of anime series protagonist Ash Ketchum and his friendship with the iconic Pikachu. It roughly condenses a number of story beats from the original series into a new arc wherein Ash chases after the elusive legendary Pokémon Ho-Oh while introducing Marshadow, a new mythical Pokémon. Together with the trainers Verity and Sorrel, Ash learns about what it means to be a trainer and the meaning of friendship.

Now that Pokémon The Movie: I Choose You! is on Netflix, everyone can see just how far Pokémon movies have come, especially since multiple other Pokemon movies and shows are also already available on the service. It offers a stark contrast between its crisp 2D animation style and the upcoming CG dependent films Detective Pikachu and Mewtwo Strikes Back: Evolution. Somewhat inexplicably, Pokémon The Move: I Choose You! has released in English, German, Spanish, French, and Italian, but fans will have to track the movie down elsewhere to watch it in the original Japanese.

The twentieth film in the Pokémon franchise, Pokémon The Movie: I Choose You! exists as a love letter to the fans who've stuck with Pokémon over the years. It features cameos from series mainstays like Brock and Misty, as well as numerous other companions that joined Ash during his original journey. The entire film has been built out of iconic moments from the original Kanto arc and that original mysterious Ho-Oh sighting. The power of that nostalgia clearly still runs deep, as the film performed incredibly well at the box office during its Japanese theatrical release, and grossed well over $30 million in its homeland before leaving theaters.

For those who haven’t been keeping up with the hundreds of new Pokémon introduced to the series throughout the years, Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You! is the perfect vehicle in which to take a nostalgia trip, and relive some great memories. It features a number of newer Pokémon, but focuses most of its energy on the iconic and cherished friendship between Ash Ketchum and Pikachu. It also delivers on various narrative turns for Caterpie and Charmander that fans of the original anime will appreciate.