The best Pokemon movies encapsulate everything that makes this monumental franchise great. Fans of Pokemon are drawn to the games' focus on friendship and companionship, as your trainer treks through the world alone with only your little monsters for company. Additionally, every Pokemon region from Kanto to Paldea is packed with deep lore, which makes the game world feel as real as our own.
As Pokemon celebrates its 30th anniversary, it's a great time to spotlight one of the many ways in which Pokemon innovated in the realm of entertainment – its movie adaptations. Though other franchises had been adapted to the screen before Pokemon: The First Movie in 1998, the franchise's consistent cinematic presence over the last few decades cemented the viability of video games as adaptable IP and has given us some of the best anime movies of all time in the process as well.
