Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex · Library of Congress. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
The Punisher (2004) arrived courtesy of Lionsgate, a mid-budget attempt to revive Marvel's vigilante antihero for a post-Blade, post-Spider-Man audience still sorting out how comic properties should feel on screen. Thomas Jane took the lead as Frank Castle, playing him with a grim, stripped-down intensity closer to a revenge thriller than a superhero spectacle. The film found its audience less through box office than through home video and cable rotation, becoming a cult favorite for fans who preferred their Marvel adaptations hard-edged and unglamorous.
This cell centers on Frank Castle in his identity as the Punisher, armed, which places the emphasis squarely on his transformation from grieving family man to instrument of retribution. Collectors prize Castle material because he represents one of Marvel's starkest characters, a man defined by loss and weaponry rather than power. An armed moment speaks to the operational, hunter identity of the character, the part of the film built on preparation and consequence rather than origin.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of The Punisher (2004).
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 appear clean with no visible tearing.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, consistent with a mono or stereo optical track; Dolby Digital pixel blocks appear present in the inter-perforation gaps on the same edge, suggesting a Dolby Digital optical composite track.
Edge print
Upper edge reads partially as '...S2S1...TST...' and additional numeric/alphanumeric codes; text appears to run in reverse, indicating emulsion-up orientation.
Base & colour
Base shows a slight cyan-green tint typical of modern safety stock; the dye image appears neutral with no visible red shift or fading.
Projection history
No prominent scratches, splice marks, or cue marks are visible in this capture.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, and the subject matter is consistent with a theatrical release print of The Punisher (2004).
Era check
The Dolby Digital composite optical track, cyan-tinted polyester safety base, and key-number format are all consistent with a mid-2000s theatrical release print, matching the 2004 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 000064375
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
