Released in 1999 by Warner Bros. in North America following its Japanese debut the prior year, Pokémon: The First Movie arrived on a wave of unprecedented merchandising and cultural momentum, as the Pokémon franchise crossed from handheld games and television into a full theatrical event. The trailer campaign that preceded it played a crucial role in building anticipation, teasing audiences with glimpses of a darker, more mythic story than the series had offered before. This promotional material circulated through theaters and television spots, functioning as a bridge between the franchise's playful origins and its ambitions toward something more cinematic and dramatic.
This cell preserves a moment from that promotional reel centered on Mewtwo, the genetically engineered Pokémon whose creation and existential struggle anchor the film's narrative. As a trailer frame, it belongs to the material designed purely to entice, built from selected imagery meant to stand apart from the finished feature. Mewtwo's presence alone makes this desirable to collectors, since the character represents the franchise's rare foray into weightier themes, a figure of power and isolation that distinguished the film from its lighter television counterpart and gave the marketing push its sense of gravity.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm Dolby Digital release trailer print of Pokémon: The Movie (1999).
Gauge
35mm layout: four perforations per frame along both edges, and the strip shows three full frames with a partial frame at the left edge.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced, rounded-rectangle shape, cleanly punched with no tears or missing perforations visible.
Soundtrack
Two variable-area optical tracks run beside the picture, and Dolby Digital data blocks sit in the gaps between the lower-edge perforations.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Clear base with a faint blue-grey tint along the edges; the dye image looks neutral to cool with no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
No scratches, splices or cue marks seen at this size; the frames and tracks look clean.
Picture
Positive image; the three frames run consecutively as one near-identical shot, and the stylized animated artwork is consistent with the animated film on record.
Era check
Consistent: a variable-area optical track with Dolby Digital data blocks suits a late-1990s 35mm release print or trailer of this film.
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 000070135
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
