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 push to bring the television phenomenon to American theaters, pairing the Mewtwo Strikes Back storyline with the short Pikachu's Vacation. It became a box office success that introduced a generation of collectors to Pokémon on 35mm film, cementing the franchise's crossover from card game and cartoon into mainstream cinema history.
This cell preserves Jessie, James, and Meowth, the trio known throughout the series as Team Rocket, the recurring antagonists whose schemes and loyalty to one another became a fan favorite thread across the franchise. Their inclusion in a theatrical release cell holds particular appeal, marking their presence in the series' cinematic debut rather than its weekly television run. For collectors, a piece naming all three together represents the complete unit, the comic foil to the film's larger battle between Mewtwo and Mew, and a tangible link to the movie's earliest theatrical prints.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokémon: The First Movie (1999)
Gauge
35mm, four perforations per frame on both edges, four frames visible on the strip
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced, cleanly punched with no visible torn or deformed holes
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, appearing as a single-track analog optical stripe
Edge print
2383 324 110 1 21 KODA·K 06 2000 D
Base & colour
Base shows a blue tint consistent with a dye-transfer or color-print stock; the dye image appears saturated with no visible fading
Projection history
No visible scratches, splice marks, or cue marks seen in this capture
Picture
Positive color image; all four frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, consistent with an animated theatrical release print matching the film on record
Era check
The Kodak 2383 print stock, blue-tinted base, and analog optical soundtrack are all consistent with a 1999 theatrical release print of this title
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
