Grade: C

Verdict: Stupefyingly slow, predictable and clunky.

Details: Directed by Jim Malone and produced by Kathy Borland, from a screenplay by Michael Haigney. Rated G. 76 minutes.

See it: Theaters and showtimes for Pokemon 4ever

Rate it: Write your own review

Review: Pokemon is back in movie theaters, and if you're a big fan or a little kid, that's probably good news. For the rest of us, it's a yawn.

Too bad, because its immediate predecessor--"Pokemon 3 The Movie"--could capture even the most skeptical grownup's heart with its lushly rendered backgrounds and imaginative creatures. It was just fun to watch.

Now comes "Pokemon 4ever." The backgrounds are still lovely and the creatures still interesting to see. But this time, they just don't overcome a stupefyingly slow pace, predictable plot and clunky dialogue like this:

"What's that?"

"I don't know."

"We better go find out."

"Right."

At least the dialogue is so clumsily filled with exposition that you'll have no trouble keeping up with the plot.

Pokemon, of course, are creatures that battle each other under the direction of human trainers--often for sport, sometimes for real. The new show features a Pokemon called Celebi, cute but powerful. Among other things, it can travel through time.

And that's what it does one day while trying to escape a hunter in the woods, taking a boy named Sam along with it. They vault 40 years into the future. There, they meet Ash, another boy well-known to Pokemon fans as a trainer, and his companions.

Now there's another, more powerful hunter chasing Celebi. Ash, his cute little Pokemon Pikachu and their companions become involved. Alas, the new hunter uses a magical device to turn Celebi to his evil purposes, and Celebi creates a huge monster. That's good for the audience--the monster is really cool to watch--but it's bad for the creatures of the forest. Of course, Ash and friends come to the rescue, returning Celebi to its old self.

Trouble is, the whole adventure seems to last a lot longer than the 76 minutes it really occupies on the screen.

— Malcolm Ritter, The Associated Press