Pokémon: The First Movie, originally released as Theatrical Edition Pocket Monsters: Mewtwo's Counterattack , is a 1998 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama, the chief director of the Pokémon television series. It is the first theatrical release in the Pokémon franchise. The title can also be interpreted as Mewtwo's Counterattack released on July 18, 1998 in Japan and released on November 10, 1999 in United States. As Pokémon was extremely popular when the film was released, it was a box office success worldwide. The First Movie topped the box office charts... in its opening weekend, grossing over US$163 million. Pikachu's Vacation is a 21-minute short film that is shown before Mewtwo Strikes Back in both the theatrical and the DVD version of the main film.
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| Release date: | July 18, 1998 |
| Directed by: | Michael Haigney, Kunihiko Yuyama |
| Rated: |  |
| Runtime: | 76 Minutes |
| Producer: | Igarashi Tomonori, Mori Takenori, Norman J. Grossfeld, Choji Yoshikawa |
| Editor: | Toshio Henmi, Yutaka Ita, John Loeffler |
| Music by: | Ralph Schuckett, John Lissauer, Kenneth Lampl |
| Cinematography: | Hisao Shirai |
| Screenplay by: | Takeshi Shudo |
| Estimated budget: | $30,000,000 |
| Genre: | Animation, Comedy, Fantasy, Adventure, Science Fiction |