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 as part of the early 2000s wave of gritty comic book adaptations, made before superhero films leaned heavily on spectacle and instead favored revenge thriller mechanics and hard R sensibilities. Thomas Jane starred as Frank Castle, a former agent turned vigilante after his family's murder, in a production that leaned on practical stunts and a moody crime aesthetic. The film has since become a cult touchpoint for fans of the Marvel property, valued more for tone and performance than box office standing.
This cell isolates Frank Castle himself, the character whose entire mythology rests on loss, discipline, and the taking up of arms. A cell marked Armed points directly to the identity at the core of the Punisher legend: a man defined by his weaponry and resolve. For collectors, single character cells like this one hold appeal as clean, focused artifacts, free of surrounding cast or set clutter, offering a direct link to the character's defining posture within the film's world.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm Dolby Digital composite optical release print of The Punisher (2004).
Gauge
35mm; the strip holds three frames, each with four perforations visible on the top edge and four on the bottom edge.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched holes appear cleanly formed with no torn or missing perforations visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along the bottom edge beside the perforations, appearing as a dual-bilateral waveform pattern consistent with an analog stereo optical track; Dolby Digital pixel blocks are visible in the inter-perforation gaps on the bottom edge, indicating a Dolby Digital SR·D composite track.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read manufacturer codes or key numbers.
Base & colour
The base shows a warm amber-brown tint on the bottom strip area; the picture frames display a warm, slightly desaturated dye image consistent with a color release print.
Projection history
Light horizontal scratching is visible across the frame area, consistent with a print that has passed through a projector gate.
Picture
Positive color image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, consistent with a release print of a 2004 theatrical feature.
Era check
The Dolby Digital SR·D composite optical track format, combined with the warm-base color stock and positive print presentation, is 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 000064444
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
