Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Labyrinth arrived in 1986 as a Jim Henson production released through TriStar Pictures, blending Henson's creature workshop artistry with George Lucas's producing muscle and a soundtrack and starring performance from David Bowie. It underperformed on initial release but found a devoted afterlife on home video, becoming a touchstone of practical effects fantasy filmmaking and a showcase for the era's puppetry craft alongside Jennifer Connelly's lead turn. Today it stands as one of the defining cult objects of eighties studio fantasy, prized for its design work and Bowie's singular contribution to genre cinema.
This cell preserves a piece of film tied to Jareth the Goblin King, the character David Bowie brought to the screen and the figure most associated with the film's identity in the collecting world. Jareth anchors Labyrinth's fantasy conceit, the rival and antagonist around whom Sarah's journey through the labyrinth turns. A 35mm cell bearing his presence represents a fragment of that authored performance, the kind of piece collectors seek specifically because Bowie's involvement is irreplaceable and inseparable from the character's enduring pull.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Labyrinth (1986).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched edges look clean with no torn or missing perforations visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical soundtrack is visible as two wavy white lines running along the bottom edge of the strip, consistent with a dual bilateral or stereo variable-area track.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read any key numbers or manufacturer text.
Base & colour
The base shows a warm cream-yellow tint typical of older acetate safety stock; the dye image reads with a cool blue-dominant cast that appears intact rather than faded.
Projection history
Light horizontal lines are visible across the frame area, consistent with projection wear; no splices or cue marks are seen.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, consistent with a release print of Labyrinth (1986).
Era check
The dual variable-area optical track, warm acetate base tint, and colour dye structure are all consistent with a mid-1980s theatrical release print of the period.
Read from the original intake capture shown below. Observations only — film is authenticated, not graded.
This original motion picture film element has been examined and authenticated by Crown Grading in partnership with National Film Vault, and encapsulated for archival preservation.
Why so little survivesRelease prints were leased to theaters, not sold. When the run ended they went back to the distributor to be destroyed, and most were. What collectors hold today came from the prints that escaped that order, and no new 35mm prints of these films are being struck.
CROWN SERIAL 000063033
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
