Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex · Library of Congress. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
FILM NOTES
Lionsgate released The Punisher in 2004, an adaptation of the Marvel vigilante that carried the character's comics legacy into a leaner, R-rated crime picture. Thomas Jane took the lead role as Frank Castle, with Dolph Lundgren appearing as a separate incarnation of the same character in his own screen history, tying this frame to a broader lineage of Punisher portrayals across film. The movie found its audience less through box office than through home video and cult fandom, becoming a reference point for fans tracking how the character has been handled by different studios and eras.
This cell, marked Frank Castle - In Action, captures the character mid-mission, the identity collectors most associate with the Punisher mythos: a man operating outside the law, driven by loss, defined by relentless pursuit. Pairing Jane's Castle with Lundgren's version underscores the character's continuity across separate productions, making this piece attractive to collectors building a cross-film study of the Punisher. As a 35mm cell, it preserves a physical fragment of that action-driven persona, a tangible artifact of the character's ongoing cinematic presence.
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, with what appears to be a second parallel track beside it, consistent with a stereo or Dolby SR optical configuration; Dolby Digital data blocks are not clearly distinguishable in this capture.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at a legible resolution.
Base & colour
The base carries a distinct blue-cyan tint overall, with the image dye appearing cool and slightly shifted toward blue; no obvious fading is present.
Projection history
Fine vertical lines consistent with projection wear are visible across the frame area on at least two of the three frames.
Picture
Positive image; the three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, consistent with a theatrical release print of a 2004 feature film.
Era check
The blue-tinted polyester base, variable-area optical soundtrack, and perforation style are all consistent with a 2000s theatrical release print, matching the 2004 production 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 000064407
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
