Pokémon: The First Movie arrived in 1999 courtesy of Warner Bros. and Nintendo's growing media empire, marking the franchise's leap from television to theatrical release. Built around the clash between Mewtwo and Mew, the film capitalized on peak Pokémania, drawing families and collectors alike into theaters during a cultural moment when the brand's merchandise and trading cards were already reshaping youth culture. The trailer itself served as a crucial advance piece, stoking anticipation for Mewtwo's cinematic debut.
This 35mm trailer cell centers on Mewtwo alone, placed within what the name calls Mewtwo's Arena, a staging ground for the Pokémon stand-off that defines the character's introduction to film audiences. Mewtwo remains one of the franchise's most sought-after figures among collectors, a genetically engineered Pokémon whose isolation and power set the emotional stakes for the entire movie. As a trailer cell rather than a finished frame from the feature itself, this piece represents the promotional machinery that built anticipation ahead of release, a physical artifact from the marketing campaign that introduced Mewtwo to the wider public.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm Dolby Digital release-print strip from the Pokémon: The First Movie trailer (1999).
Gauge
35mm layout with four perforations per frame along both edges; the strip holds three full frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, rounded-rectangle holes that look evenly spaced and cleanly punched, with no visible tears.
Soundtrack
A two-track variable-area optical track runs between the picture and the lower perforations, with Dolby Digital data blocks in the gaps between the lower perforations.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Light blue-cyan tint along both edge margins, with a neutral clear base and saturated dye colours in the picture, showing no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
Not visible in this capture
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames repeat the same held shot, and the animated Pokémon figures fit the film on record.
Era check
The dual optical track plus Dolby Digital blocks fits a late-1990s 35mm theatrical release print, so it is consistent with the 1999 trailer 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 in partnership with National Film Vault, 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.
CROWN SERIAL 000069879
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
