How did YOU learn about widescreen? (1 Viewer)

[Ken Garrison]

I learned it by reading on the back of some DVDs, I think someone mentioned it to me, and I looked up "letterbox" myself and have loved letterbox ever since.

How were YOU HTFers convinced about widescreen? How'd ya learn about it?

 

[Rob Tomlin]

My dad was really into his Laserdisc collection. He would have my over to watch movies and they were all in widescreen. I asked about those "pesky black bars". He then proceeded to show me an example (on the back of one of the laserdisc movies, but I dont recall which one) of the difference between pan and scan and widescreen. Basically, the pan and scan version showed two "noses" talking to each other!

I was convinced from that point on!

 

[Patrick McCart]

By accident.

I became interested in film and learned of different widescreen processes. After I learned about CinemaScope and VistaVision, I really cared a lot about letterboxing. In fact, my first LBX videos were 2001, West Side Story, Amadeus, It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World, and I think Monty Python and the Holy Grailen.

While I'm not too avoiding of unmatted stuff like 1.66:1 films and certain 1.85:1 (I do use a case-by-case basis), I refuse to buy any more non-OAR product. I have a lonely P&S DVD (Vegas Vacation) which I don't play much for other reasons. (It's a gift)

 

[Steeve Bergeron]

I was convinced by the people over here! That was 3 years ago.

 

[Rich Romero]

I learned about widescreen right here at the HTF. That was also a few years back.

 

[Matt Stone]

I learned about widescreen when I watched the SW trilogy at my uncle's house about 10 years ago...but I didn't buy anything widescreen until Scream 1 VHS about 4 years ago.

 

[SteveGon]

My first experience with widescreen was long ago when I saw a commercial for laserdiscs (I think) which touted widescreen as one of their benefits. After that, even though I didn't have the money to get into laserdiscs, I always purchased widescreen VHS tapes when available.

 

[Ken Garrison]

Hey, that's cool. I've been into OAR/Widescreen for little over a year now. Give or take a few months.

 

[John Thomas]

It was in VHS days, while watching Star Wars. I had the one that "filled the screen" and had seen the letterbox version at, of all places, Blockbuster and had noticed there were more details in the periphery that were left out in the version I owned. I think it was about the time when the SEs first came out on VHS.

I had noticed black bars earlier but never really paid it that much attention. :b

 

[george kaplan]

In the early 90s, after having to repurchase vhs tapes, I bought a laserdisc player for the durability of the medium. I don't even remember which films they were, but some of the laserdiscs I bought were letterboxed, and I looked into it, and once I understood why and saw what a difference it made, I quickly become an OAR advocate. It was also a really good excuse to buy a large RPTV, so that I could still see a big picture even with the letterboxing.

 

[Andrew Chong]

I first became conscious of the benefits of widescreen from the 'Independence Day' videotape in Fox's excellent Widescreen Collection (THX mastered!).

At the very beginning of the tape is a little self-promotion spot for the Widescreen Collection extolling its virtues that included the first dogfight scene where two alien craft chase Will Smith's and Harry Connick Jr.'s characters' planes.

The scene in question was an overhead shot of the two flying alien craft. The spot showed a direct side-by-side comparison of the moving scene with standard on one side and widescreen on the other. You could clearly see that the widescreen example had both craft visible for the length of the clip while in the standard example only one craft was visible for the clip's length. I was concretely sold right there and bought additional Widescreen Collection tapes: 'Aliens', 'The Abyss', and 'The X-Files: Fight the Future'.

 

[JonZ]

The first time I remember seeing it was Michael Manns The Last of the Mohicans VHS, but I REALLY noticed the difference in the early 90s when I began using my moms old LD player and rented Last Action Hero.

 

[AllanN]

Probably back in 99 when I first got my first DVD player. Most titles back then where in widescreen. I never really noticed a difference aside from the fact that I liked them (and the whole DVD format) better. I also never liked audio tapes. Although the first time I appreciated widescreen was when I was watching The Professional at some girls dorm on VHS P&S. It had so many horrible pans in it I could not stand it. Then a few months ago when I got my Star Wars Definitive Collection Laserdisc box set. It was only the second time I saw the OT in widescreen. The other was during the 1997 re-release. Widescreen and PLII just blew me away.

 

[Lew Crippen]

It was in VHS days, while watching Star Wars.

ditto, only in my case it was a purchased pan and scan Star Wars tape for my son. When he opened the package his face just fell. Turns out that he expected a widescreen version. After seeing the difference, I never looked back. My son is now working on an MFA in film, so it was worth the exchange effort.

My only defense is that (1) I didn’t even realize that widescreen editions were available. I really never paid much attention to films on VHS or TV (except for some older, classic ones). I now think that that it was due to an unconscious dissatisfaction of something missing. Or maybe that’s just a rationalization.

 

[Brook K]

The ever-lovin' blue-eyed HTF

 

[Ken Garrison]

I just visited my aunt and uncle today and I noticed they gotta DVD player. They were fully aware about Letterbox and they understood it and don't mind watching it that way on their 19 Inch TV.

 

[Nicholas Vargo]

I learned about widescreen on the "Microsoft Cinemainia 97" CD-ROM. There are tours on the discs and one was called "On the Big, Big Screen", which was hosted by Roger Ebert. He gave many clear examples by showing clips from "Star Wars", "Ben-Hur", "Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid" and "Chinatown" and also explained its origens and how the first widescreen movie was "Napoleon" in 1927 and how filmmaker Fritz Lang was disturbed by the process and how you might be only seeing "half the picture", which of course that is kost likely the case. If you ever pick up that CD-ROM, give that tour a try and it might change your mind about the picture filling you whole screen because films do not need to fill the whole screen. For those who know what widescreen is, give it a try anyway if you ever pick up that CD-ROM,

 

[Simon Massey]

Well I remember seeing a great trailer on a Fox video for the Star Wars trilogy, Alien and Die Hard in widescreen in the early 90s. The clip began in full frame, and slowly pulled back so that the full frame image was a small square in the middle of the TV, and then the frame widened to reveal the "extra picture at the sides" They should put this on every DVD first thing, instead of that annoying "Are you ready for Fox DVD promo"

The first widescreen VHS I bought was The Abyss Special Edition. After that I always looked for a widescreen version of a film, though I still bought pan and scan:b when it wasn't available - then laserdisc saved me!

 

[Ken Garrison]

If Pan and Scan never existed and all films were letterboxed, this argument we have with Joe 6 Packs wouldn't exist. Once you teach a 4 year old about letterbox, they'll stick with it. If Pan and Scan didn't exist, we wouldn't have a choice. If you don't like the black bars on your TV, then you should've seen the movie in the theater. Theater = Huge widescreen, no black bars, OAR!! At home on TV = Smaller TV, black bars, OAR perserved because of black bars, don't like it, kiss directors ass. LOL

I know one lady, a friend of the family, who doesn't mind letterbox. She said not all movies are letterbox. I'm like "OH? Well, almost all movies after around 1953 ARE widescreen, therefore, letterbox on a TV." I also told her the only movies I will rent/buy and watch are the ones in widescreen to preserve that aspect ratio. And I told her about the many people pissed off at Disney for release Snow Dogs in Pan and Scan. I explained to her that the movies she's got on VHS are actually cropped. She understands very well. She's the kind who knows a lot and will find a way to lecture about it. Sometimes, I'll stay a night or two at her house helping her with yardwork and keeping her computer up and running, since I built it. I sometimes bring a few movies I've recorded onto VHS in Letterbox format. We watched Rush Hour 2 a while back I recorded off DVD onto VHS. She really enjoyed it. I told her about the letterbox before we started the movie. She knew what I was talking about. Then after the movie, they hadda thing on AMC about OAR vs Pan and Scan. And they showed Letterbox for the rest of the night. Now, When is that ever gonna happen again on AMC? HA HA!! Well, anyway. Nice to know some Mid Aged people out there understand some about letterbox. I kinda made her more aware about it.

 

[Rick Deschaine]

I can thank Woody Allen for enlightening me to letterbox.

I believe the first movie I remember seeing at home on my television was Manhattan on VHS. I don't remember if all his movies were in letterbox, but he did prefer to put videotapes out that way; he's one of our first home video purists.

Rick