The fifth Pokémon movie takes Ash, Misty, Brock, and Pikachu to the city of Altomare, a thinly disguised Venice guarded by the shape-shifting Pokémon Latios and Latias. Two new agents of Giovanni's, Annie and Oakley, are out to capture these rare Pokémon--reducing Team Rocket to the role of spectators. Latios and Latias are linked to an elaborate, computer-generated mechanism that defends the city, controls the tides and brings fossil Pokémon back to life. Ash and Pikachu foil the evil plan with some help from Misty, Brock, and Bianca, a girl who lives in Altomare with her kindly grandfather. The contrived story suggests that as far as features are concerned, the Pokémon franchise has pretty much run dry. --Charles Solomon