Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Pokémon: The First Movie arrived in the fall of 1999 through Warner Bros., riding the peak of Pokémania as the franchise crossed from Japanese import to full-blown American cultural event. Adapted and expanded for Western audiences, it introduced a generation of young viewers to Mewtwo, a genetically engineered Pokémon wrestling with questions of identity and purpose that gave the film unusual philosophical weight for a children's release. Its box office success proved the durability of the brand well beyond television and trading cards.
This cell centers on Mewtwo, the film's tragic antagonist and one of the franchise's most enduring creations, paired here with Pikachu, the series' universal mascot. Their shared presence marks a pivotal exchange between the two, a moment collectors prize for placing the story's central emotional conflict directly on celluloid. Owning a frame from this pairing means holding a physical fragment of the movie's thematic core, the meeting point between artificial creation and natural companionship that defined the picture's lasting appeal.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokémon: The First Movie.
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 holes appear cleanly formed with no visible tearing.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along the bottom edge beside the picture area, appearing as two bilateral variable-area tracks consistent with a stereo optical print.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read any key numbers or manufacturer text.
Base & colour
The base shows a blue-violet tint consistent with a dye-transfer or colour-print stock; the dye image reads as a negative with strong blue channel dominance.
Projection history
Light vertical lines are visible across the frame area, consistent with projection wear; no splices or cue marks are seen.
Picture
Negative image; the three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, and the character silhouette visible against a bright circular light source is consistent with imagery associated with the film on record.
Era check
The bilateral variable-area optical soundtrack, blue-tinted polyester base, and four-perforation 35mm format are all consistent with a theatrical release print from the late 1990s, matching the 1999 North American release of the film 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, 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
