MGM: THE PAN & SCAM OUTRAGE CONTINUES!..I COULD GO ON SINGING Foolscreen ONLY! (1 Viewer)

[Andy_MT]

very disappointed in MGM. they really should know better.

 

[Joe Caps]

WE WON !!!!!!
Talked again, late this afternoon to folks in MGM programming - did not ask about the Elvis film (didn't think to) but they said the Garland film and Man of La Mancha will be held back so they can do them widescreen!!

 

[WillG]

If this is true, I take back things I said, and will thank MGM for listening to us (at least on a couple of releases)

 

[William Miller]

Hey Joe!

Call them back and tell them about Follow That Dream!

Thanks.

 

[Patrick McCart]

Good to hear that they're doing the right thing.

This is the kind of communication we need between the HTF and the studios!

 

[Michael_DC]

Joe,
How did this change come about?
Are the people you spoke to, the ones who made the decision to change to widescreen?
WHY were they planning to do a pan/scan in the first place?
Did they just have NO IDEA what a stupid mistake they were making?
What changed their minds?
If you can enlighten me, many thanks.
Mike

 

[David Lambert]

Good news, Joe Caps. Thanks for that! Kudos to MGM for doing these right...hopefully others will be reconsidered, too.

Details! Details!

 

[Marc Colella]

Noticed the specs for the latest batch.

Some that are widescreen are listed as non-anamorphic, for example Altman's Fool for Love. I was going to pic this one up, but not if it's non-anamorphic.

Still don't know what to expect from the Cyrano release.

 

[Jay E]

I'm also wondering what the mindset is of the people in MGM programming. I wish there was a way we could communicate the fallacy in releasing catalog titles non-OAR. There are quite a few DVDs they have released that I didn't buy because of their being non-OAR.

 

[Greg_M]

Well here's to MGM for acutally listening to Joe! Thanks you MGM/UA for hearing us. Now I again look forward to purchasing "Man of La Mancha"

 

[Jeff McMillan]

Good news. Maybe MGM is starting to get a clue and notice the sales figures that show that OAR will beat MAR every time (when a title is released in both formats simultaneously).

Why ANY title can be released only in MAR in this day in age is a real headscratcher.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

WoW!

I am really taken back by MGM's actions here!

When they do something good like this they
deserve our praise.

Bravo!

 

[Dan Hitchman]

As most industry video sales figures seem to indicate: if a movie is released in its proper WIDE-SCREEN ratio only, it will still sell very well, and in fact hit in the Top 5 sellers. This has happened time and time and time again. The latest titles being Pirates of the Caribbean and The Two Towers DC, both OAR-only.

If a movie is PAN & SCAN/OPEN MATTED only then they lose the enthusiasts' sales right off the bat.

This should also tell them that they need not waste their time and money and resources on a modified transfer, just the best possible OAR presentation.

A big DUH! to the studios. The end of non-OAR releases should be nigh! However, many corporate suites just don't get it. They're out of the loop, unable to think outside the box, and don't move with the times.

Dan

 

[David Von Pein]

THIS very nice-looking DVD site shows the cover art for ICGOS. (Showing a "Full Frame" only aspect ratio in its specs. But--hopefully--that will be updated at a later date.)

 

[Andrew Budgell]

Dave,

For some reason my browser doesn't want to take me to the web site that has the ICGOS cover art. Could you possibly post it here? I would really appreciate it!

Thanks,

Andy

 

[David Von Pein]

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[Michael_DC]

Since these terms are being bandied about here, what do they mean?
1. OAR (I think it's widescreen but what does it stand for?)
2. anamorphic (I thought it was widescreen until I read this sentence:"Especially since there are pre-existing non-anamorphic widescreen transfers available"),
3. MAR(I think it's pan/scan but what does it stand for?)
Mucho thanks,
Mike

 

[Benjamin.D]

Yay!!! My compliments to MGM!!

 

[David Von Pein]

Just noticed a site with ICGOS up for Pre-Ordering (www.moviesunlimited.com). They're showing an April 20th release date.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

MAR = Modified Aspect Ratio. Ever see a film where it says at the beginning "This film has been modified from it's original version: it has been formatted to fit your screen"? That's an example of a MAR release. Most commonly, MAR releases are pan and scan. (But not always. Films like "Gone With The Wind" and "Fantasia" were made when films were shot in Academy ratio, the same shape as a standard TV. When widescreen films started coming out, someone had the not-so-bright idea of taking films like those and chopping off the top and bottom to make an image that looked "widescreen" - since that's not how the film was shot or intended to be seen, that's also an example of a MAR release. Fortunately, both of these films are on DVD in their OAR.)

Hope this helps.

Josh