Crown Grading
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FILM NOTES
Pokémon: The First Movie arrived in 1999 as the franchise's leap from television to theaters, released by Warner Bros. in North America after Toho's original Japanese run. It rode the crest of Pokémania, when the trading cards, games, and animated series had become a cultural phenomenon among younger audiences and collectors alike. The film's marketing push, including trailers screened ahead of other family features, helped cement Pokémon as a theatrical property rather than a passing fad. This trailer material captures that promotional moment, when anticipation for the movie was being built frame by frame in cinemas nationwide.
This cell isolates Mewtwo, the genetically engineered Pokémon whose creation and existential struggle form the emotional core of the film. As the central antagonist turned tragic figure, Mewtwo holds particular weight for collectors, representing the franchise's rare foray into weightier themes of identity and purpose. A trailer cell like this one served to introduce audiences to that gravity before the film's release, using Mewtwo's presence alone to signal stakes beyond typical Pokémon battles. For collectors, it marks an early, promotional glimpse of the character who defined the movie's ambition.
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, evenly spaced, cleanly punched with no visible torn or deformed holes.
- Soundtrack
- A variable-area optical track is visible below the picture area on one edge, alongside what appears to be a DTS timecode line immediately adjacent to it.
- Edge print
- Not visible in this capture.
- Base & colour
- Base appears with a slight warm-neutral tint; dye image shows rich blues, purples, and yellows with no visible fading or colour shift.
- 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 animated content from the film on record.
- Era check
- The combination of a variable-area optical track, apparent DTS timecode line, and richly saturated dye image is consistent with a mid-to-late 1990s theatrical release print.
