Pokemon Movie 17: Hakai no Mayu to Diancie

Overall 8/10
If you're not a Pokemon fan, then don't jump into the series watching the movies, because generally they're not first-time friendly
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The plot of Diancie movie wasn't so amazing, but as the first XY series movie, it was good, but not more. Compared to Hoopa movie, it was better though.
Plot 6
The plot was ultimately rather cliche/overused as far as Pokemon movies go. But in this movie, it's the characters (that includes pokemon) that make it enjoyable.
Art 9
As part of the movies, it has more budget for effects, so the already good XY art was amplified to be better temporarily
Sound 8
I'm not sure I remember ... much about the BGM. gotta check the movie again.
Character 10
the main characters chemistry and the joy of life that is Diancies SUPER CUTE VOICE (jp original voice) IS A MIRACLE OF LIFE AND OMFG SHE'S SO DAMN CUTE I CAN'T BELIEVE I MISSED THE DIANCIE DISTRIBUTION EVENT

Yeha. This movie is all about Diancie as the title suggests and she's just SO CUTE that I can't stop typing in caps. I enjoyed this movie mainly because of Diancie's overall overflowing cuteness and voice and surprisingly cute appearance~~

Enjoyment 8
Diancie ftw

Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction is the first Pokemon film in a while that features some fresh ideas and creative moments. In the vein of the last few, it's also an unambitious work stuck in a rut.

Near the end of the film, there's a great scene with Ash and five antagonists awaking Yveltal. The ensuing attempts to kidnap Diancie and run away from the harbinger of death are joyously written. These scenes make only a tiny portion of the film overall, but they stand out from the cookie-cutter writing we're usually treated with in these films.

The good thing about this one is that ... Diancie is a likeable character and her interactions with Ash & co are fun to watch. Of course, the dialogue isn't going to win any awards, but I feel it's done its part. Adequate to keep us entertained, not enough to uplift the work.

Diancie's lack of a distinguishing character arc is disapointing. Her mini adventures aren't enough to keep us entertained for over two thirds of the film, either. It's for this reason that wacky sequences not fittingt the film are utilized to shake things up a bit. A good example of this is the infinite ladder at the mall.

Just like Shaymin's film, this one suffers from a sudden focus shift from characters to the plot, where characters aren't developed enough for a character focused film and the plot is too weak to make itself worth it.

The last fifth of the film with Yveltal petrifying the waking world is, again, a joy to watch. However, Yveltal & Xerneas don't feel like world shattering legendaries because the plot had no time to build up them or the legend around them. Unlike, say, legendary birds from the second film, these feel like pseudo-legendaries which only the local town folk are aware of as a curiosity.

The film made a few big mistakes in its conceptual stage which paved the way to an unfulfilling plot and somewhat stale middle of the film, but from the execution it's obvious that they treated this one with some care, unlike the last two. Nothing groundbreaking for the most part, but at least it gives hope for further installments. It's been 16 films. After a draught, finally one I can recommend to general Pokemon fans. It's okay.

*THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS*

Anyone who knows the Pokemon movies knows that a lot of them are very formulaic, but most still appeal to fans in one way or another. Diancie and the Cocoon of Destiny, however, is different, becoming most likely my least favourite Pokemon film yet.
I watched the Cartoon Network broadcast of the movie, so perhaps that's the reason why, but this movie felt very hurried, and it lacked impact as a result.

The story was very much to the formula of numerous other Pokemon movies. Meet new Pokemon -> Help it achieve its goal -> Uh-oh! Human baddies/Pokemon baddies -> Friendship prevails!
This same old ... layout is usually remedied from being too boring by the individuality of the setting, Pokemon or enemies. However, Diancie's movie had no fully interesting setting, moving about across pretty same-y towns and areas, with only the Carbine tunnels being somewhat more unique.
The bulk of the movie was comprised of a complete lack of action, with small, unsatisfying battles scattered throughout. This lack of action, however, provided the place for a few gags which were, to a degree, entertaining... But overall, the film just seemed boring and devoid of purpose.
The end-game villain, Yveltal, appeared somewhat briefly towards the conclusion, and was quickly sent packing. Unlike other big-bad, such as the monster from Jirachi Wish Maker, Yveltal lacked a real sense of awe and excitement when it arrived, and was a disappointment that could have been cool.
Oh, did I mention that Pikachu got turned into stone at the end? How absolutely original!

The art was some of the best from a Pokemon movie. The use of CGI was nice, and the whole movie was attractive and stylish. The sound, as well, was fitting and quite good, including a rehash of the "Gotta Catch 'em All!" theme which surprisingly WASN'T terrible! The voice acting, the first of the English dub I've heard for XY, matched the characters and their original voices pretty well, especially Citron (or Clemont). Diancie's voice, however, became gradually more and more annoying, something that was only made worse by the overkill of flimsy dialogue about "bein frienz".
The characters in the film were, in my opinion, one major reason this movie failed. The original characters could have been interesting, but even then, characters that drove the storyline were paper-thin and unmemorable. Supposedly important characters were barely introduced prior to the ending. Ninja Riot, for example, was a silly character who seemed to mock the whole idea of a ninja, and it was kinda funny... But, his seriously limited screen time held him back from being memorable beyond next week, no matter how ballin' his Ninjask flight was. Ash and his gang of above-par pals, Serena, Bonnie and Clemont, were as good as they usually are, and Team Rocket were there, despite having no real role. But that's not a change, now, is it?

I didn't enjoy this movie nearly as much as I wanted to. The film had the potential to be exciting and radical, but instead was bland and uninteresting. If you want to watch just one new Pokemon movie, I recommend you wait until next year's ORAS movie - because, I mean, how can they mess up a movie about the Super Ancient Pokemon?