Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Pokémon: The First Movie arrived in theaters in November 1999, released by Warner Bros. after Nintendo's franchise had already reshaped American toy aisles, television schedules, and playground economics. Produced in Japan and adapted for Western audiences, it capitalized on a cultural wave that turned a handheld game into a multimedia juggernaut. The film's box office success proved that anime could command mainstream family audiences, and it remains a touchstone for millennial nostalgia and franchise history alike, marking the moment Pokémon fully cemented itself in global popular culture.
This cell isolates Mew, the legendary Pokémon whose mythic rarity and central role in the film's plot make it one of the most sought-after figures among collectors of Pokémon memorabilia. Mew functions as the story's origin point, the genetic wellspring from which the film's central conflict and its clone, Mewtwo, emerge. A single-character cell of this kind typically comes from promotional or theatrical print material, isolating the figure for collectors who prize Mew's scarcity within both the games and the movie's mythology.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokémon: The First Movie (1999/1999).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame visible on both edges; the strip holds two frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both visible edges; spacing appears even and the punched holes appear cleanly cut with no torn or deformed edges visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible below the picture area, appearing as a dual bilateral variable-area pattern; Dolby Digital data blocks are also visible in the inter-perforation gaps on the lower edge, indicating a hybrid optical/Dolby Digital soundtrack configuration.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read any key numbers or manufacturer text.
Base & colour
The base shows a strong violet-purple dye shift across both frames, consistent with a colour print stock; the image is not neutral.
Projection history
No visible splices, cue marks, or heavy scratching are apparent; faint longitudinal lines are present suggesting the print has been projected.
Picture
Positive image; both frames appear to be from the same continuous shot and depict animated content consistent with the Pokémon: The First Movie animated feature on record.
Era check
The hybrid variable-area optical plus Dolby Digital inter-perforation data block soundtrack configuration is consistent with a 1999-1999 theatrical release print, as Dolby Digital on 35mm was standard for major studio releases of that period.
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
