SHREK is a must buy, even though 1.33:1 on Disk 1 is a waste. (1 Viewer)

[Chad Gregory]

Carlo,
I agree the you completely. And I also am curious in a "science project" way. I would have to concur with the tough time that Pixar had with reframing A Bug's Life, just too much info to fit in.
I guess I'll have to check out the variance in the Toy Story 2 reframing and possibly the Shrek reframing (if that is what was done), but I definitly don't plan on watching more than a couple parts of scenes that way.

It was an admirable effort but one that ultimately they shouldn't have to make, if OAR would just be accepted.

It is an unfortune state of the industry that we have to suffer through. None of these efforts are beneficial.
-Chad

 

[Brad_W]

Tom,
No, I didn't notice the 1st disc was pan and scan because it... wasn't. Unless it was pan and scan with black bars.
------------------
"I was born to murder the world." -Nix (Lord of Illusions)
My Home Page http://www.geocities.com/masternix/DVD.html
My List O' DVDs:
Link Removed

 

[Chad Gregory]

No, I didn't notice the 1st disc was pan and scan because it... wasn't. Unless it was pan and scan with black bars.

Brad,
I think you are mistaken and have the discs mixed up. The first disc is 1.33 Full Frame (Pan and Scan or whatever you want to call it). Also this first disc doesn't include DTS.
The second disc is 1.85 anamorphic and does include the DTS track.
-Chad

 

[Mark_Wilson]

Can't comment on TS2 but Bug's Life was recomposited for 1.33:1.
Watch some of the extras on disc 1, they show some of the 'screens' in various states of pre- and post-rendering. You can see semi-transparent mattes on the top and bottom. It looks like the 1.33:1 version could be an open matte version and not P&S.

 

[NickSo]

Just FYI for anybody who doesnt have it yet, Buy.com has it for $17 + S&H for preorders.. go to buy.com and search for SHREK
------------------
The So Family Home Theater!
http://www.multimania.com/sonick182/ht/index.html
Birthday: November 29 (Sagittarius)
Horoscope:
Sagittarius - You are very sexy and women are attracted to you.
ICQ: Add Me to your Contact List!

 

[Carlo_M]

Mark, ABL was not simply open matte. Open matte just means exposing more top and bottom information that was on the original negative but masked for theatrical exhibition (layman's explanation).
ABL was totally recomposited, with moving characters and scenery around to try and find a compromise so that ABL was not totally P&S'd when shown full frame. What they came up with was still a compromise, some scenes have more top and bottom, some lose sides, some lose characters. But it was less of a compromise from Pixar's POV than straight Panning and Scanning.

 

[Michael Coate]

I didn't do any research on this DVD besides reading WSR's review. They list it as a "Two DVD-9 Discs/Anamorphic Widescreen"

AllenD,
Did you read this review online or in the print edition? The information you are referring to *was* clearly included in the review.
In the online review, the reference to Disc One containing the 1.33:1/Dolby Digital edition and Disc Two including the 1.78:1/Dolby Digital/DTS edition is included in the write-up of the Special Features rather than in the picture evaluation section.
In the print edition (Issue 54 - "Shrek" is on the cover), the review was written the same way but included on two different pages: the story synopsis, picture evaluation and soundtrack evaluations are on page 96, with the supplemental material evaluated on page 94.
You brought up a good point, though, that being whether or not there should be a mention in the actual review if there is a 1.33:1 version included on the same disc. Widescreen Review has traditionally ignored this information in the quest to focus only on the OAR versions.
Michael Coate
Widescreen Review

 

[Brad_W]

When I watched the first disc, it was in 1.33:1, but had black bars: What's that all about? This was NOT the P&S I'm used to seeing. That's why I didn't see a problem when first watching this. When I watched the second disc, it was in anamorphic widescreen 1.78:1 with DTS.
Holding the set in my hands right now, it says 1.33:1 Full Frame. Why the bars?
------------------
"I was born to murder the world." -Nix (Lord of Illusions)
My Home Page http://www.geocities.com/masternix/DVD.html
My List O' DVDs:
Link Removed
[Edited last by Brad_W on November 01, 2001 at 08:24 PM]

 

[JamesCS]

I am disappointed the OAR version is on disc 2. Obviously it's better to have it in the set rather than not at all. But I fear this presentation gives more credence to the non-OAR mentality creeping into mainstream - one where OAR gets viewed as an add-on, bonus, or optional (special-edition) feature.

 

[Ricky Hustle]

I could care less which disk the OAR presentation is on. It's in the set, that's all I ask.

 

[Tom Ryan]

I could care less which disk the OAR presentation is on. It's in the set, that's all I ask.

I don't care particularly which disk the OAR is on either. I do, however, have a strict preference as to where the P&S version should go: disk 0, e.g. not at all!
-Tom

 

[AllenD]

Did you read this review online or in the print edition? The information you are referring to *was* clearly included in the review.

Michael,
I read what you quoted on the small gray box in the DVD Review section. I don't normally read the special features of the print edition. I explore that section of the DVD first hand when I finally have it in the player. I'll pay better attention to it now that you've mentioned the section since it serves as a good source of info. I normally read the picture/sound quality and critics composite only. With that said, I apologize for misquoting the mag. Keep up the good work.

 

[Jim Robbins]

Just watched this movie for the first time. I see why everyone liked it, it's really funny on two levels and the quality is superb.
It's funny that Shrek sounds like Fat Bastard.

 

[Rob_J]

Brad:
Maybe check your DVD player settings. Make sure you're not on 4:3 widescreen. Just a suggestion, I'm not sure if it will solve your problem or not.
Jim:
Yes! Fat Bastard was the first person I thought of when I first heard Shrek in the theatre. I also read that the directors had to tell Mike Myers to "tame down" his Fat Bastard-esque accent. Throughout the entire movie, I kept waiting for Shrek to say "now get in ma bellay!"

 

[Scott-C]

I SO want to buy this DVD today! Wife will get mad if I do because I'll be eliminating Christmas gift ideas...I can always come up with more DVDs for the list!
If anyone else here is having a similar problem, let's create an illusion of best friendship, so I can get you a DVD for a Christmas gift and you can get me Shrek...
------------------
Scott