Pokémon: The First Movie arrived in theaters in November 1999, riding the wave of Pokémania that had swept through toys, trading cards, and television in the preceding year. Distributed by Warner Bros. in the United States after Nintendo and 4Kids brought the Japanese property stateside, the film was a cultural event as much as a cinematic one, drawing families and young fans eager to see the franchise's creatures on the big screen. The promotional trailer campaign that preceded it helped build anticipation, teasing the film's darker, more ambitious tone compared to the television series.
This cell preserves a moment from that trailer, centered on Mewtwo, the genetically engineered Pokémon whose creation and existential struggle form the emotional core of the movie. Mewtwo's introduction to a mass audience made him one of the franchise's most collected characters, prized for his unusual gravity within a series built on lighter adventure. A trailer cell like this one represents the industry's early effort to sell that weight to audiences, offering a single frame from the footage used to announce the film before its wide release.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm release print trailer of Pokémon: The First Movie (1999).
Gauge
35mm layout, with four perforations per frame along both edges; the strip holds four frames in the picture area.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced and cleanly punched with rounded-rectangle holes and no visible tears or missing sprocket holes.
Soundtrack
A two-track variable-area optical track runs between the picture and the lower perforations; the Dolby Digital data blocks sit between the lower perforations, shown as grainy grey squares.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Clear base with a slight cool blue tint at the edges; the dye image looks neutral, with no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
None seen at this size; no scratches, cue marks or splices are visible on the four frames.
Picture
Positive image; the four frames run consecutively as one shot of electric discharges, and the animated look is consistent with the Pokémon film on record.
Era check
Consistent with a late-1990s release print, since a dual optical track plus Dolby Digital blocks between the perforations was the standard 35mm format of that period.
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
