Released in 1999 by Warner Bros. in North America under license from Nintendo and The Pokémon Company, Pokémon: The Movie served as the franchise's theatrical debut, arriving at the height of Pokemania and introducing Mewtwo and the wider mythology to audiences beyond the games and television series. Preceded by an extensive promotional campaign, the trailer run for this release is remembered as a cultural marker of the period, when Pokemon crossed from a handheld gaming phenomenon into mainstream American cinema. For collectors of early franchise material, trailer reels from this era represent a scarce category, predating much of the merchandising boom that followed.
This cell preserves a moment from that trailer centered on Ash Ketchum, the series' central trainer and its most enduring and widely recognized figure. The rescue described in the cell's name points to a narrative beat of protection and loyalty, themes that run through Ash's character across the franchise. A trailer cell differs from a film print in that it was built to entice rather than narrate, making this a fragment of marketing history as much as cinematic history, valuable to collectors for its early placement in the Pokemon theatrical timeline.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm release trailer print of Pokémon: The Movie (1999), with Dolby Digital and optical sound.
Gauge
35mm: four perforations per frame along both edges, with three full frames visible on this strip.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced, rounded-rectangle holes that look cleanly punched; the lower edge sits between Dolby data blocks.
Soundtrack
A stereo variable-area optical track sits beside the picture, with Dolby Digital data blocks in the gaps between the lower-edge perforations.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Pale blue-tinted clear base with a neutral dye image; dark areas stay deep and colours look unfaded.
Projection history
No scratches, splices or cue marks seen at this size; a hair-like fibre lies below the strip on the panel, not on the film.
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames run consecutively as one shot, and the animated look is plausible for the Pokémon film on record.
Era check
Optical track plus Dolby Digital blocks on 35mm is consistent with a late-1990s release print, which suits a 1999 Pokémon trailer.
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 000069953
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
