Video Game Movie Anatomy hosts break down Video Game inspired movies to answer the age old question: DO GAMES MAKE GOOD MOVIES?!?! In today's episode, hosts Mark Donica and Stacey Shuttleworth break down Pokémon: The First Movie. Pokémon: The First Movie is a 1998 Japanese anime film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama, the chief director of the Pokémon television series. It is the first theatrical release in the Pokémon franchise. It was released in Japan on July 18, 1998. The English-language adaptation, produced by 4Kids Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, was released in North America on November 10, 1999. The film primarily consists of three segments: Pikachu's Vacation, a 21-minute feature focusing on the series mascot Pikachu; Origin of Mewtwo, a 10-minute featurette that functions as a prologue to the main feature; and Mewtwo Strikes Back, the main 75 minute film feature. The featurette was added on for later releases and eventually dubbed as a special feature in