<Tr> <Th> Box office </Th> <Td> $163.6 million </Td> </Tr> <P> Pokémon: The First Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back, commonly referred to as Pokémon: The First Movie, originally released as Pocket Monsters the Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back (劇場 版 ポケットモンスター ミュウツー の 逆襲, Gekijōban Poketto Monsutā: Myūtsū no Gyakushū), is a 1998 Japanese anime film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama, the chief director of the Pokémon television series . It is the first theatrical release in the Pokémon franchise . </P> <P> It was first released in Japan on July 18, 1998 . On July 8, 1999, a Complete Version (完全 版 kanzenban) of the film was aired in Japanese television . In addition to an added prologue, the updated version included new animation and CGI graphics . </P> <P> The film primarily consists of three segments: Pikachu's Vacation, a 21 - minute feature focusing on the series mascot Pikachu; Origin of Mewtwo, the 10 - minute prologue added to the Complete Version of the film; and Mewtwo Strikes Back, the main 75 - minute film feature . Overseas, the prologue can only be seen as a bonus short in DVD versions of Pokémon: Mewtwo Returns . </P>

When did the first pokemon movie come out