Pokémon: The First Movie arrived in 1999 courtesy of Warner Bros. and Nintendo's licensing machine, riding the crest of Pokémania as it swept American pop culture. Adapted from the Japanese original, it introduced Mewtwo to Western audiences and became one of the highest grossing anime releases in US theatrical history. Promotional trailer material from this release circulated widely in theaters and on home video, making surviving 35mm trailer cells a tangible link to the franchise's first major cinematic push.
This cell marks a notable beat in that promotional reel, the approach toward Mewtwo's stronghold, a moment that trailers lean on to build anticipation ahead of the feature's central conflict. Mewtwo remains one of the franchise's most sought after characters among collectors, prized as the original's genetically engineered antagonist and a figure central to its themes of identity and power. A trailer cell like this one preserves a fragment of the marketing campaign itself, distinct from the finished film, offering collectors a piece of how Pokémon was first sold to American audiences.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm Dolby Digital release print of the Pokémon: The Movie Trailer (1999).
Gauge
35mm: four perforations per frame along both edges, and the strip holds four complete frames in a row.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced and cleanly punched with rounded-rectangle holes; none torn or missing in this capture.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track runs beside the picture, with Dolby Digital data blocks visible in the gaps between the lower-edge perforations.
Edge print
Reads backwards along the top edge: "2383 187 341 1 30 KODAK 28 1999 M", with a small square symbol, consistent with a Kodak 2383 release stock.
Base & colour
Pale blue-tinted base, which is typical of print stock; the dye image looks saturated and neutral, with no obvious fading or colour shift.
Projection history
No scratches, splices or cue marks seen at this size; only a few faint marks on the base.
Picture
Positive image; four consecutive frames of one shot with almost no change between them. Not visible in this capture whether they match Pokémon: The Movie Trailer.
Era check
Consistent: Kodak 2383 print stock with a 1999 date code, an optical track and Dolby Digital data blocks suit a late-1990s release print.
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 000070175
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
