Pokémon: The First Movie arrived in 1999 as Warner Bros. and Nintendo's gamble on translating a handheld and television phenomenon into a theatrical event, and the trailer that preceded it became a cultural marker in its own right. Promising audiences a showdown between Mewtwo and Mecha Mewtwo, the film's marketing leaned hard into spectacle and mythology, introducing a wider public to the franchise's darker, more philosophical corners. The trailer campaign built anticipation across Saturday morning airings and theater previews alike, making surviving 35mm trailer material a rare physical link to that original theatrical rollout, distinct from the feature print itself.
This cell captures a moment of command, with Mewtwo positioned as the dominant force directing cloned Pokémon, here represented by Gyarados and Venusaur. Mewtwo remains among the most collected figures in the franchise, prized for its origin as a lab-born, morally ambiguous power rather than a simple mascot. The presence of Gyarados and Venusaur alongside it speaks to the clone army concept central to the film's plot, a roster of familiar creatures repurposed as instruments of Mewtwo's will. As a trailer cell, it preserves a promotional fragment built specifically to entice, not narrate.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical release print of Pokémon: The First Movie Trailer (1999).
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 edges appear clean with no torn or missing perforations visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical soundtrack track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, appearing as a narrow light-modulated stripe.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read any key numbers or manufacturer text.
Base & colour
The base appears with a slight warm-neutral tint; the dye image shows saturated blues, pinks and greens consistent with an intact colour dye set.
Projection history
Light longitudinal lines are visible running along the film surface, consistent with a projected print.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, and the animated character content is consistent with the Pokémon franchise film on record.
Era check
The variable-area optical soundtrack, saturated colour dye image, and 35mm four-perforation format 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
