Hoopa and the Clash of Ages is not a movie that thrives on its plot. With a runtime of eighty minutes, the movie wisely doesn't waste precious time, instantly setting up the main conflict and building up to the climax. The premise is simple: stop Hoopa's dark side from rampaging and destroying the city. The movie has exactly one major twist, but that's all it needed to be generic: also, the pacing is pretty good, and when the legendary brawl started at the fifty minutes mark I wasn't bored at all of the set up done until then.
There's not much time to dedicate to characterization either, and the film wisely doesn't throw many characters at us: just the Arcay siblings, and both incarnations of Hoopa. They might come off as a bit generic, but they serve their role in the plot well and Hoopa, while probably annoying to some, has a good personality and a very simple but well told character arc.
The main selling point of this movie is the legendary brawl, which allows Ash to be the badass trainer he is when written properly, commanding legendaries and managing to deal with Hoopa Unbound despite being severely outnumbered. The battle is pretty good and fun to see, and definitely lives up to the hype. My only complaint about it would be that the Black Rayquaza is pretty transparent in its advertisement quality, given its Shiny value has no bearing in the plot (something similar to the Shiny Legendary Beasts in Zoroark's movie).
Another flaw is that, by keeping a tight focus on what's necessary, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie aren't given much to do despite still helping with the progress of the plot. Ash and Hoopa are the main focus from the beginning to the end.
Hoopa and the Clash of Ages is, however, fun. It's simple and aims to be a fun showcase of legendaries with a straightforward plot, and as that, it works. It doesn't reach the pathos of some movies or the character depth of others, but it's far from the worst movie in the franchise. Go in with the right expectations, and you will enjoy this movie.
Simple, straightforward fun
Hoopa and the Clash of Ages is not a movie that thrives on its plot. With a runtime of eighty minutes, the movie wisely doesn't waste precious time, instantly setting up the main conflict and building up to the climax. The premise is simple: stop Hoopa's dark side from rampaging and destroying the city. The movie has exactly one major twist, but that's all it needed to be generic: also, the pacing is pretty good, and when the legendary brawl started at the fifty minutes mark I wasn't bored at all of the set up done until then.
There's not much time to dedicate to characterization either, and the film wisely doesn't throw many characters at us: just the Arcay siblings, and both incarnations of Hoopa. They might come off as a bit generic, but they serve their role in the plot well and Hoopa, while probably annoying to some, has a good personality and a very simple but well told character arc.
The main selling point of this movie is the legendary brawl, which allows Ash to be the badass trainer he is when written properly, commanding legendaries and managing to deal with Hoopa Unbound despite being severely outnumbered. The battle is pretty good and fun to see, and definitely lives up to the hype. My only complaint about it would be that the Black Rayquaza is pretty transparent in its advertisement quality, given its Shiny value has no bearing in the plot (something similar to the Shiny Legendary Beasts in Zoroark's movie).
Another flaw is that, by keeping a tight focus on what's necessary, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie aren't given much to do despite still helping with the progress of the plot. Ash and Hoopa are the main focus from the beginning to the end.
Hoopa and the Clash of Ages is, however, fun. It's simple and aims to be a fun showcase of legendaries with a straightforward plot, and as that, it works. It doesn't reach the pathos of some movies or the character depth of others, but it's far from the worst movie in the franchise. Go in with the right expectations, and you will enjoy this movie.