Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex · Library of Congress. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Released in 2004 by Lionsgate, The Punisher arrived during a transitional era for comic book adaptations, when studios outside the majors were beginning to stake claims in the genre before the superhero boom fully crystallized. Based on the Marvel antihero created by Gerry Conway, John Romita Sr., and Ross Andru, the film starred Thomas Jane in the title role and leaned into a harder, more violent register than its contemporaries, distinguishing itself from the brighter tentpole pictures of the period. It remains a touchstone for fans of vigilante cinema and practical, R-rated action storytelling from the early 2000s.
This cell preserves Frank Castle, the former soldier turned one-man war on organized crime, a character prized by collectors for his uncompromising ethos and enduring cult status across comics, television, and film. As a 35mm piece featuring the man behind the skull emblem, it represents a foundational image tied directly to the character's screen identity, the kind of frame that anchors a memorabilia collection built around the Punisher mythos rather than the wider ensemble of the picture.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm colour release print of The Punisher (2004).
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame visible on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced; punched edges appear clean with no visible tearing or distortion.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, with what appears to be a separate digital data region (consistent with a Dolby Digital block pattern) in the inter-perforation gaps on the same edge.
Edge print
Not clearly legible in this capture; text markings appear present along the edge but cannot be quoted with confidence.
Base & colour
Base appears with a slight warm-neutral tint; dye image reads as a colour positive with no obvious fading or red shift visible.
Projection history
Light longitudinal lines are visible across the frame area, consistent with projection wear; no splices or cue marks seen.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, consistent with a theatrical release print of a 2004 feature.
Era check
The combination of a variable-area optical track, Dolby Digital inter-perforation data blocks, and colour positive stock on a safety base is consistent with a mid-2000s 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 000064403
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
