Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Pokémon: The First Movie arrived in 1999 as Warner Bros. and Nintendo's bid to translate a global phenomenon into theatrical event cinema. Adapted from the anime and built around the battle between Mewtwo and Mew, it became a box office success that cemented Pokémon's crossover from television and trading cards into mainstream American pop culture. For a generation of collectors, this release marks the franchise's cinematic debut and its first attempt at feature length storytelling.
This cell preserves a frame tied to Team Rocket, the recurring trio whose schemes and comic rivalry run through the series as a counterpoint to its larger battles. Their presence in a movie print reel connects the film's core narrative to the show's established comic identity, a link many collectors specifically seek out. Whether drawn from footage, trailer material, or a segment built around the group, this piece represents their place within the film's assembled identity, a physical fragment tying the animated character work to the release's original theatrical run.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokémon: The First Movie.
Gauge
35mm; the strip holds one frame with four perforations visible on each edge.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched edges appear clean.
Soundtrack
A band of fine horizontal dashes runs below the picture area consistent with a Dolby Digital data block between the perforation strip and the frame line; a variable-area optical track region is also suggested along the lower edge band, though fine detail is limited at this size.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture.
Base & colour
The clear base shows a cool-neutral tint; the dye image reads with strong saturated colour and no visible fading or red shift.
Projection history
No scratches, splice marks or cue marks are visible in this capture.
Picture
Positive colour image; the single frame shows animated figures consistent with the cel-animation style of the film on record.
Era check
The saturated dye image, cool-neutral base, and Dolby Digital data block between perforations are all consistent with a mid-to-late 1990s 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, 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.
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
