John CW
Supporting Actor
- Joined
- Oct 7, 2000
- Messages
- 619
Hi all, I was wondering what people think about the possibility of David Simon's The Wire appearing on Bluray. It seems like it might never be appearing at this rate and I was wondering why.
I understand that The Wire was shot 4:3, and while Seasons 1, 2 and 3 were "future proofed" for 16:9 (making sure it could be broadcast that way later), Seasons 4 and 5 were just shot straight 4:3. This shouldn't be a problem for HD viewing, though, as it was shot on 35mm and so could look gorgeous in 4:3 1080p on Bluray, especially since the picture quality on DVD is pretty poor on some episodes (see Season 4 -- yikes, some awful compression artefacts there!).
I've also read that even when broadcast on HBO it was shown as upscaled SD.
Is the issue with HBO or with the creators? According to one of the DPs, it was Simon himself who decided that 4:3 looked more "real", in a meeting they had prior to the start of Season 4. I can't help worry that Simon is being over-protective of his baby and doesn't understand the best way to present it. I really cannot imagine I would be any less immersed in The Wire if I watched it without black bars down either side of my screen. I also think I would only be MORE involved if I was watching it in HD, not least thanks to the reduction of compression artefacts.
So to ask my question once again: What's the deal with The Wire on Bluray? Will it ever appear? If not, why not? It'd be great to finally put this question to bed, once and for all.
Thanks a lot.
PS - Sorry if this has been asked before, but searching for "The Wire" only bring up posts about cabling
I understand that The Wire was shot 4:3, and while Seasons 1, 2 and 3 were "future proofed" for 16:9 (making sure it could be broadcast that way later), Seasons 4 and 5 were just shot straight 4:3. This shouldn't be a problem for HD viewing, though, as it was shot on 35mm and so could look gorgeous in 4:3 1080p on Bluray, especially since the picture quality on DVD is pretty poor on some episodes (see Season 4 -- yikes, some awful compression artefacts there!).
I've also read that even when broadcast on HBO it was shown as upscaled SD.
Is the issue with HBO or with the creators? According to one of the DPs, it was Simon himself who decided that 4:3 looked more "real", in a meeting they had prior to the start of Season 4. I can't help worry that Simon is being over-protective of his baby and doesn't understand the best way to present it. I really cannot imagine I would be any less immersed in The Wire if I watched it without black bars down either side of my screen. I also think I would only be MORE involved if I was watching it in HD, not least thanks to the reduction of compression artefacts.
So to ask my question once again: What's the deal with The Wire on Bluray? Will it ever appear? If not, why not? It'd be great to finally put this question to bed, once and for all.
Thanks a lot.
PS - Sorry if this has been asked before, but searching for "The Wire" only bring up posts about cabling