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National Film Vault

OFFICIAL FILM AUTHENTICATION BY CROWN GRADING
A
AUTHENTIC
CROWN CERTIFIED
Film cell NFV-000003253 Tap to enlarge
MOVIEPokémon The Movie: Kyurem vs. The Sword of Justice
SCENEAsh and Friends
FILM FORMAT35mm
YEAR2012
CERTIFICATE IDNFV-000003253
Film Record Public record
Directed by
Kunihiko Yuyama
Studio
OLM, Inc. · 68 min
Sources: Wikidata. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.

FILM NOTES

Pokémon The Movie: Kyurem vs. The Sword of Justice arrived in 2012 as the fifteenth entry in the long-running theatrical series, produced by OLM and distributed through Toho in Japan before its international rollout. Set within the Best Wishes era of the franchise, it paired the ongoing adventures of Ash Ketchum with the mythology of the Swords of Justice and the legendary Kyurem, reflecting the series' steady push to anchor each film around a signature legendary Pokémon while keeping its traveling cast at the emotional center.

This cell preserves a frame of Ash and his companions, the recurring heart of the franchise rather than its legendary spectacle. Collectors prize these group appearances because they capture the ensemble that carries the human throughline across the film's events, the characters audiences return to from movie to movie. A 35mm cell of this kind represents a physical fragment of the actual theatrical print, a tactile link to the picture as it was projected, standing apart from a trailer or credits piece by belonging to the film's main narrative footage itself.

Authentication Findings 8 checks

Consistent with a 35mm release print of Pokémon The Movie: Kyurem vs. The Sword of Justice (2012).

Gauge
Four perforations per frame along both edges, which fits 35mm; the strip holds three frames, each seen in full.
Perforations
Four per frame on the top and bottom edges, rounded-rectangle holes, evenly spaced and cleanly punched with no tears or torn edges visible.
Soundtrack
A single pale blue variable-area optical track runs along one edge as a wavy band of two intertwined lines; no Dolby Digital blocks, DTS timecode or SDDS tracks are visible.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture
Base & colour
Clear to slightly cream base with a neutral cast; the dye image looks saturated, with no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
No scratches, cue marks or splices seen at this size; the dark rings on the right frame are phone reflections, not damage.
Picture
Positive colour image; the three frames repeat the same shot with almost no change, and the animated style fits the film on record.
Era check
A variable-area optical track on a colour positive base is consistent with a 35mm release print of a 2012 animated feature.
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 000071028
Original Film Capture As received
The film strip as photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size