Sources: Wikidata. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Pokémon: The Movie 2000 arrived from Warner Bros. and Pikachu Project 1999 as the second theatrical entry in the franchise, riding the peak of Pokémania in the West. Following the surprise box office success of the first film, this sequel pushed the animation and mythology further, introducing the legendary bird trio and Lugia as guardians of a global elemental crisis. For a generation of collectors, it represents the height of the Pokémon movie era, when theatrical releases were cultural events tied to card sets, toy lines, and Saturday morning anticipation.
This cell preserves a frame of Lugia, the guardian of the seas and one of the most sought-after legendary Pokémon in the franchise's visual history. As the central figure of the film's mythic structure, Lugia anchors the story's stakes and its central conflict, making any surviving frame of the character a meaningful artifact from the production. Whether drawn from a pivotal scene or a promotional sequence, a 35mm cell bearing Lugia connects directly to the character's defining theatrical appearance, a touchstone for collectors tracing the legendary Pokémon's earliest and most iconic animated depiction.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm Dolby Digital theatrical release print of Pokémon: The Movie 2000.
Gauge
35mm, 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 edges appear clean.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track with two bilateral tracks is visible below the picture area, with a blue Dolby Digital data-block strip running between the optical tracks and the lower perforations.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture.
Base & colour
Base appears with a warm amber-orange cast consistent with the dye image; no obvious fading or red shift detected.
Projection history
No visible scratches, splice marks, or cue marks seen.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, consistent with an animated theatrical release print.
Era check
The combination of a dual bilateral variable-area optical track and Dolby Digital data blocks between perforations is consistent with a late-1990s to early-2000s theatrical release print, matching the 2000 release date 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
