Released in 1999, Pokémon: The Movie brought Warner Bros. and Nintendo's cultural phenomenon to American theaters, adapting the Japanese film Mewtwo Strikes Back for a generation raised on the trading card game and television series. It marked one of the first major theatrical crossovers of a video game property into mainstream cinema, arriving at the height of Pokémania and introducing moviegoers to the franchise's mythology surrounding Mew and its engineered counterpart, Mewtwo. The trailer campaign itself became a collectible artifact of that era, distributed to theaters on 35mm reels before the format's steady decline.
This cell preserves a strip from that promotional reel, centered on Mew, the rare and elusive Pokémon whose mystique anchors the film's central conflict. As a title card, it functioned as an introductory marker within the trailer, likely announcing the character or setting the tone for audiences ahead of the feature. Mew's scarcity in the games made it a prized figure among fans, and that same rarity carries into film memorabilia, where early appearances of the character remain sought after by collectors tracing the franchise's theatrical debut.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm release-print trailer strip for Pokémon: The Movie (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, evenly spaced, rounded-rectangle shape and cleanly punched, with no torn or missing holes visible.
Soundtrack
Two variable-area optical tracks run beside the picture, with Dolby Digital data blocks visible in the gaps between the lower-edge perforations.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Clear base with a faint cool blue-teal tint at the edges; the dye image looks saturated, with no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
No scratches, cue marks or splices seen at this size.
Picture
Positive image; the three frames run consecutively as one shot, and the lettering reading MEW matches a Pokémon film trailer.
Era check
Two analogue optical tracks plus Dolby Digital blocks fit a late-1990s theatrical 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 000069986
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
