Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex · Library of Congress. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
The Punisher arrived in 2004 through Lionsgate and Marvel Enterprises, part of an early-2000s wave of comic adaptations released before superhero films dominated the box office. Directed by Jonathan Hensleigh and starring Thomas Jane as Frank Castle, it built its reputation less through blockbuster numbers than through cult devotion, becoming a touchstone for fans drawn to a grimmer, vigilante-driven corner of Marvel history distinct from the studio's later cinematic universe. It stands as a snapshot of comic book cinema before the genre's modern conventions solidified.
This cell preserves the Lionsgate opening logo, the studio marker that greets audiences before the story begins. For collectors, distributor logo cells hold appeal as artifacts of print history, marking the exact reel and release lineage of a physical print rather than any character or scene. They represent the film's institutional identity, the moment a theater audience knew whose production they were entering, and serve as a quiet bookend piece for anyone assembling a complete reel history of this release.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm colour release print of The Punisher (2004)
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three complete frames
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced, cleanly punched with no torn or deformed holes visible
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track runs along one edge beside the perforations, with what appears to be a Dolby Digital data block pattern visible in the inter-perforation gaps on the same edge
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read key numbers or stock codes
Base & colour
Base shows a slight cyan-blue tint consistent with a colour print stock; dye image appears neutral with no obvious red shift or fading
Projection history
No splices, cue marks or prominent scratches are visible in this capture
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames show the same Lionsgate Films logo title card, consistent with a studio logo sequence from a release print of The Punisher (2004)
Era check
The Dolby Digital optical track format, colour positive print stock with cyan base tint, and Lionsgate Films branding are all consistent with a 2004 theatrical release print
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 000064367
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
