Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You! is a 2017 Japanese animated adventure film and the 20th film in the Pokémon anime series created by Satoshi Tajiri and produced by OLM. Loosely adapted from the anime's pilot episode of the same name and much of the first season, it was directed by Kunihiko Yuyama and written by Shoji Yonemura. The film stars the voices of Rica Matsumoto, Ikue Ōtani, Unshō Ishizuka, Megumi Hayashibara, Shin-ichiro Miki, Inuko Inuyama, Kanata Hongō, Shiori Sato, and Ryōta Ōsaka. Set in an alternate timeline, the film follows the journey of Pokémon Trainer Ash Ketchum and his friends, Pikachu, Verity, and Sorrel, as they seek to meet the Legendary Pokémon Ho-Oh at the summit of Mount Tensei.
I Choose You! premiered at Japan Expo in France on July 6, 2017 and was then released in Japan on July 15. The release coincided with the 20th anniversary of the anime series. The film grossed $37.6 million worldwide and received mixed reviews from critics.
Plot
Ash Ketchum wakes up late one morning after having broken his alarm clock in his sleep. He eventually makes it to Professor Oak's lab, but he is told by Oak the three starters Pokémon (Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander) have already been taken by Trainers who were on time. However, Oak reveals he has one more Pokémon, an Electric-type named Pikachu. Despite Pikachu's volatile and feisty personality, as well as his refusal to get inside a Poké Ball, Ash happily takes Pikachu on his journey.
Outside of Pallet Town, Ash encounters a wild Pidgey. When Pikachu refuses to fight it, Ash tosses a rock at it, but it hits a Spearow that mistakes Pikachu as the culprit. Soon, more Spearow shows up forcing Ash and Pikachu to run. Injured and tired, Ash tells Pikachu to get inside his Ball, but he once again refuses. Instead, Pikachu defends Ash from the Spearow by summoning a large Thunderbolt that scares them away. As the storm ceases, Ho-Oh flies above and drops a feather called a Rainbow Wing. Ash and Pikachu decide to go and find the Legendary Pokémon.
After hearing the Legendary Pokémon Entei is nearby, Ash and several other Trainers rush into the woods to look for it. Ash finds the Entei but ends up fighting over it with a Trainer named Verity and an aspiring young Pokémon Professor named Sorrel. When Entei escapes, Ash and Verity argue and Sorrel leaves, urging them to find shelter. As they look for shelter, Ash and Verity find a Charmander, which they quickly learn belongs to an arrogant trainer named Cross who left it out in the rain.
Cross refuses to take Charmander back, calling it weak, so Ash and Verity come across a cave where Sorrel happens to be and help Charmander back to health. Sorrel reveals that Ho-Oh only gives the Rainbow Wing to the "rainbow hero" who is destined to fight it, as a shadow Pokémon named Marshadow watches. The next morning, Ash convinces Charmander to join them. The group follows the Rainbow Wing, which guides them toward the Raizen Mountain Range, to meet Ho-Oh. Charmander evolves into Charmeleon. Verity sees a Suicune at a nearby lake. Cross returns and challenges Ash's Charmeleon with his Incineroar. Charmeleon is savagely defeated, causing Ash much grief.
Upset over his loss, Ash openly admits that he could have won with Pikachu and wishes he had gotten Bulbasaur or Squirtle. Alone in the woods, Marshadow puts Ash in a sleep-like state as the Rainbow Wing turns dark. Ash has a dream where no Pokémon exist and he attends regular school with Verity and Sorrel. Realizing something is missing, he remembers Pikachu and wakes up to his friends, and the Wing regains its color. They see a Raikou after Ash releases his Butterfree to mate and migrate with a Pink Butterfree. The group realizes they are getting close when the Wing begins to glow in the direction of Mount Tensei.