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, brought to American audiences by Warner Bros. and Nintendo at the peak of Pokémania. Adapted from the Japanese original, it introduced Mewtwo as a tragic, engineered figure wrestling with questions of purpose and identity, a darker tone than the television series prepared fans for. The film's box office success cemented Pokémon's crossover from a handheld game into a full-fledged cinematic franchise, and 35mm cells from its release remain sought after as physical artifacts of that cultural moment.
This cell preserves a frame of Venusaur as it appears among Mewtwo's cloned creatures, the artificial counterparts bred to challenge the original Pokémon in the film's central conflict. Venusaur's clone carries particular weight for collectors since it represents one of the earliest and most recognizable starter Pokémon reimagined under Mewtwo's design, tying the character directly to the film's themes of duplication and manufactured life. A single 35mm cell like this one is a fragment of the actual theatrical print, a tangible piece of the movie rather than a reproduction, making it a durable link to that specific narrative beat.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokémon: The First Movie (1999).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds four frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched edges appear clean throughout the strip.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible along the bottom edge beside the perforations, appearing as a dual bilateral variable-area pattern; a thin blue line consistent with a Dolby SR or analog optical track is also discernible immediately adjacent.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture.
Base & colour
The base shows a slight blue-grey tint consistent with a colour print stock; the dye image reads with green, blue, and lavender tones that appear stable and not noticeably faded or red-shifted.
Projection history
Fine horizontal lines are visible across the frame area consistent with projection wear; no splices or cue marks are seen.
Picture
Positive colour image; all four frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single shot, and the animated cel-style imagery is consistent with the animated feature on record.
Era check
The variable-area optical soundtrack, colour print stock with blue-grey base tint, and perforation layout are all consistent with a 1999 theatrical release print of an animated feature.
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
