Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex · Library of Congress. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl arrived from Walt Disney Pictures in the summer of 2003, a swashbuckling gamble built around a theme park ride that few expected to succeed. Directed by Gore Verbinski and anchored by Johnny Depp's Captain Jack Sparrow, it revived the pirate adventure genre for a new generation and became a defining blockbuster of the era, spawning a long-running franchise.
This 35mm cell isolates Captain Hector Barbossa, the cursed captain of the Black Pearl and Jack Sparrow's great rival, played by Geoffrey Rush. Barbossa is a cornerstone figure for collectors, embodying the film's supernatural pirate lore and its battle for command of the seas. A single-character cell like this one preserves a moment belonging entirely to him, without other cast members sharing the frame, making it a focused artifact of his presence within the larger story.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame visible on both edges; the strip holds three complete frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched edges appear clean with no torn or missing perforations visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, appearing as a dual bilateral variable-area pattern; a separate thin line consistent with a DTS timecode stripe is also visible adjacent to the optical 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 slight blue-green tint consistent with a modern safety stock; the dye image reads as a cool, slightly blue-shifted colour positive.
Projection history
Light longitudinal lines are visible across the frame area, consistent with projection wear; no splices or cue marks are visible.
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, and the subject matter is consistent with a creature or character from the film on record.
Era check
The dual bilateral variable-area optical track combined with a DTS timecode stripe and the blue-tinted polyester base are all consistent with a theatrical release print from the early 2000s, matching the 2003 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 000063442
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
