Movie:
Pokemon: Mewtwo Returns is a direct-to-video sequel of Pokemon: The First Movie and picks up where that film left off. At the end of The First Movie, Mewtwo takes the cloned Pokemon away to a secret place and erases the memories of them from everyone – except Giovanni, who had Mewtwo created to be his perfect weapon. Giovanni has since been scouring the globe to find him, and finally has: Mewtwo is hiding on the top of Mount Quena, which is located in the Johto region. Of course, our heroes – Ash, Misty, and Brock – are luckily in the same region looking for new Pokemon. When chance brings them to the mountaintop, they witness the spectacular confrontation between Mewtwo and Giovanni, with the fate of the clones hanging in the balance.

Despite missing The First Movie, I did catch Pokemon 3 and was only slightly impressed. Still, this new Pokemon video looked to have promise, as Mewtwo was always rather cool in the videogames. I'm happy to report that Mewtwo Returns makes much more sense and flows better than Pokemon 3, and at the same time, seems less like a commercial and more like a movie. However, Mewtwo Returns does look like the regular series, as it employs very little in the way of CGI. Children who love Pokemon should definitely get a kick out of seeing Mewtwo again and the film's storyline is decent as well.

Picture:
Pokemon: Mewtwo Returns is primarily presented in 1.33:1 full screen, which is the original aspect ratio. However, the movie starts out in 1.85:1 widescreen as it is recapping the events depicted in The First Movie. The transfer is sharp throughout, with vibrant colors that practically leap off the screen. There are a few specks that occasionally appear, but these are easily overlooked.

Sound:
Pokemon: Mewtwo Returns is presented in Dolby 2.0 Surround in English, French, and Spanish. Unlike the amazing 5.1 surround tracks in the feature films, the 2.0 surround here is more subdued, though still remains fairly active during battle scenes. Dialogue throughout is crisp and clean with no distortion that I could detect. Optional subtitles are available in English, French, and Spanish.

Extras:
The primary extra here is the ten-minute animated short titled "The Uncut Story of Mewtwo's Origin." Presented in widescreen, it fleshes out the Mewtwo character in greater depth and adds some motivation for his actions in The First Movie. Next up is "Johto League Champions," which is the textless opening of TV series. Also included are trailers for the first three Pokemon films.

Summary:
Pokemon: Mewtwo Returns is easy to recommend to fans of Pokemon, especially those who have seen and enjoyed The First Movie. Those new to the Pokemon universe should probably start with The First Movie before proceeding here. Rent it.