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space balls - nose gag (1 Viewer)

BrettV

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Did anybody notice that on the Spaceballs DVD, at the part where dark helmet threatens to give princess vespa back here old nose, it is completely cut off in the picture? (the screen cuts it off) .. and in BOTH WIDESCREEN AND PAN/scan ... What the heck?? Why did they do that?
 

Michael Reuben

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Apparently, they made the same mistake on the widescreen LD (it may be the same transfer). A lot of people commented on this when the DVD was first released, but nothing came of it. After all, it's an MGM disc.
rolleyes.gif

M.
 

Britton

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The nose gag is still on the transfer, it's just that the overscan on TV sets cuts it off. I can see the gag when I play it on my computer.
However, I agree 100% withy you that it is ridiculous that MGM messed it up. They should've framed it so that everyone sees the nosegag, even with the overscan on TV sets.
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Lannie Lorence

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I believe MGM did the right thing. You get the movie the way it was filmed using the full horizontal resolution that NTSC can provide. My dream wish is that more TV's have underscan capability, which allows you to see the whole picture. I believe, perhaps mistakenly, that most front projection systems as well as computers do this naturally.
 

Michael Reuben

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You get the movie the way it was filmed using the full horizontal resolution that NTSC can provide.
Not quite sure what you mean there, since the disc isn't 16:9-enhanced.

M.

[Edited last by Michael Reuben on August 12, 2001 at 05:48 PM]
 

Lannie Lorence

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"Not quite sure what you mean there, since the disc isn't 16:9-enhanced"
That's why I said "horizontal" resolution.
 

StephenT

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I was in Germany when this movie came out because my dad was in the Army. I saw it in a theater there, and it was framed wrong. The nose was cut off, and none of us in the theater could figure out why the princess was so upset about getting back her old nose. I didn't get the joke until I saw the movie on VHS. How sad is that?
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Stephen
 

Leo Kerr

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I remember this topic coming up when the LD first came out; it was discussed fairly heavily on usenet's laserdisc group. One of the people who weighed in had been a projectionist when the film first came out. Seeing that scene, he went in and checked the film itself. It was, in fact, framed to the edge so that the nose would 'continue off into the next theatre.'
He pointed out a couple of other things that were off-center, seemingly intentionally. If I remember right, the "may the schwartz be with you" at the end was off-center, but it's been a while since (a) I've watched the Ld, and (b) I read the thread.
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Michael Reuben

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"Not quite sure what you mean there, since the disc isn't 16:9-enhanced"
That's why I said "horizontal" resolution
Sorry, my question was poorly framed. I don't see what "resolution" -- of any kind -- has to do with the issue, which is primarily one of framing. From subsequent posts, it appears that this may indeed have been the intended framing. If so, the choice seems questionable, since (as noted) theatrical projection can suffer from a form of "overscan" just like video monitors. But, hey, that's the filmmakers' prerogative . . .
M.
[Edited last by Michael Reuben on August 14, 2001 at 08:29 AM]
 

Lannie Lorence

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One of the ways of fixing the problem would have been to slightly windowbox the right side of the frame. You would then be able to see the nose better. However, you would have suffered a slight lose in resolution due to the smaller picture area. That's what I meant but didn't really explain.
[Edited last by Lannie Lorence on August 13, 2001 at 07:52 PM]
 

Michael Reuben

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One of the ways of fixing the problem would have been to slightly windowbox the right side of the frame.
Interesting point, which I hadn't thought of. A lot depends on whether the original film frame has any additional image at the right. If not, then windowboxing would be the only way to fix the problem.
Time to start lobbying for Spaceballs: The Ultimate Edition!
biggrin.gif

M.
 

Andrew Radke

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I know this topic's about 2 years old now but I just bought the DVD of Spaceballs today and just finished watching it. I noticed the error in the scene as well, but after reading all of these replies, I guess I'm sort of relieved that it was the way it was originally filmed. I also noticed at the end when the screen flashes "MAY THE SCHWARTZ BE WITH YOU" that it was somewhat off-kilter. Was wondering if anyone had any comments about this. I only paid $13 (CDN) for it so I'm not overly-concerned, but still, if it was an error in part of the people who put it together, I'd love to see a fixed special edition perhaps in the forseeable future.
 

Lord Dalek

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htf_imgcache_15887.jpeg

Looks pretty "fixed" to me. This thread is almost seven years old. Move along.
 

Radioman970

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It's interesting that some don't get the joke reguardless of how it is framed on the DVD. This kind of nose joke is pretty standard. Rich girl...nose job. That's always gone together like peas and carrots, for me anyway.
 

Haggai

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And it's not just a rich girl getting a nose job, but a "Druish princess" getting one...:laugh:
 

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