Sources: Wikidata. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Pokémon: The Movie 2000 arrived from Warner Bros. and Nintendo/4Kids at the height of Pokémania, a follow-up to the 1999 phenomenon that proved the franchise could sustain theatrical runs beyond a fad. Built around the legendary birds Zapdos, Articuno, and Moltres, it pulled young audiences back into cinemas with a mix of merchandising tie-ins and mythology expansion, cementing Pokémon as a fixture of turn of the millennium pop culture rather than a passing craze.
This cell belongs to Magikarp, the franchise's famous joke of a creature, beloved by collectors precisely because of its reputation as the weakest Pokémon in the games, a punchline that made its way into the film's world. Its presence here is a small piece of the broader Pokémon universe threaded through the movie, a single frame preserving one appearance of a character whose charm lies in being underestimated. For enthusiasts, owning a Magikarp cell is a wink to the fandom's long-running affection for the underdog of the roster.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokémon: The Movie 2000.
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on each edge; spacing appears even and the punched corners are rounded and cleanly cut.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible along one edge, with what appears to be a Dolby Digital data-block strip in the inter-perforation gaps on the same edge, and a DTS timecode line is also discernible, consistent with a tri-format optical release print.
Edge print
Not clearly legible in this capture; no manufacturer text or key numbers can be read with confidence.
Base & colour
The base shows a light blue-cyan tint typical of estar safety stock; the dye image reads with strong, saturated colour and no visible fading.
Projection history
Light vertical scratching is visible across the frame area, consistent with a print that has passed through a projector gate.
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single animated shot, consistent with the animated feature on record.
Era check
The combination of cyan-tinted safety base, tri-format optical soundtrack layout, and saturated colour dye image is consistent with a theatrical release print from the late 1990s to early 2000s, matching the 2000 release date on record.
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 000063346
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
