When "Foolscreen" dvds are necessary... (1 Viewer)

[Jason*C]

Hey guys I just joined the forum and I had a question.

I've read articles from DigitalBits and such about the importance of buying animorphic dvds so your investment is at least somewhat protected for the future when most tvs are widescreen and the new formats come out.

I've noticed that on some series dvds such as Star Trek and the Battlestar Galactica set, that they are in fullscreen 4:3 since they didnt have the widescreen cameras back then?

Anyway would it be a waste of money to buy these dvd sets now? Will they figure out a way to stretch the picture to widescreen without a loss of picture quality?

Or are these collections fairly safe for future investment?

 

[MartinTeller]

Are you talking about the television series? Almost all TV shows are 4:3. Only a few from the past 5 years or so are widescreen.

 

[Chad R]

It's not that they didn't have 'widescreen cameras' it's that they were shot with the express intent of being on TV, and therefore widescreen wasn't a consideration. There were no widescreen TVs up until a few years ago.

Widescreen was up until recently the sole province of films, especially since the widescreen process (achieved through lenses, not special cameras) was ushered in specifically to combat television which was stealing away movie theater's audiences.

 

[Andy_G]

This sounds like a flame bait.

 

[Jason*C]

So all i'm asking is that its a pretty safe investment putting down $100 for a season of TNG for example since the only thing they can really do is put up a higher transfer rate on a disc later on?

I don't mean this to be flame bait, I just wanted to know.

 

[Todd Schnell]

Jason, basically the correct way to publish any movie, TV show, etc, would be as the director intended in the OAR (original aspect ratio). It doesn't matter matter if that ratio is 2.35:1 etc. widescreen or 1.33:1 (4:3) often called fullscreen. Star Trek for instance was shot at the norm for TV 1.33:1, & there is no need to crop the image just to make it "widescreen". Does that help?

Todd

 

[Michael Reuben]

So all i'm asking is that its a pretty safe investment putting down $100 for a season of TNG for example since the only thing they can really do is put up a higher transfer rate on a disc later on?

You will never see a release of TNG in anything other than 4:3. And if you did, you wouldn't want it, because it couldn't be done without cropping the image as it was intended to be seen.

M.

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

I stretch all my movies to fit my triangular-shaped television.

 

[Carlo_M]

Jason - I don't think this is a flame bait thread so I'm going to actually [try] to answer your question.

First of all, you must understand aspect ratios. Go to www.widescreen.org and click on "Aspect Ratios" and "Widescreen TV Q&A" and "What is Widescreen" on the left hand menu. Actually, just click around the whole site, it's quite an education.

What is important to understand is that we here at HTF (and the Bits) are not just "widescreen" enthusiasts, but OAR - Original Aspect Ratio - enthusiasts. We want things to be put on DVD as they were shown originally - thus some movies will be very wide (2.35:1 aspect ratio) some moderately wide (1.85:1 or 1.66:1_ and some in Academy (or TV) ratio (1.33:1 or what the common TV looks like).

The TV shows you are contemplating on buying *should* be in 1.33:1 (or TV) aspect ratio because that is how they were shown. Granted when you get a widescreen TV you will have bars on the sides, but that is to be expected. It is not a waste of your money, as that was how the picture was intended to be seen (just like widescreen movies are not a waste on a 1.33:1 TV nowadays).

There's an HTF Primer on aspect ratios I think, but I don't have the link to that.

Perhaps others can chime in on resources Jason can read up on to better understand the situation?

 

[Steve Schaffer]

Jonathan Perregaux,

That's not a triangular tv, that's an interrocitor--check out an old sci-fi movie called This Island Earth, or Mystery Science Theater, The Movie.

There are very few of these left in good working order, as they predate even the Philco Predicta. Some surmise that the interrocitor's design with the tube on top of the chassis box was actually the inspiration for the Predicta.

 

[MarkHastings]

I stretch all my movies to fit my triangular-shaped television.

Ah! But if you had a 3D tv like me, you'd not only have to strech the sides, but the depth as well

 

[Rob Tomlin]

You will never see a release of TNG in anything other than 4:3. And if you did, you wouldn't want it, because it couldn't be done without cropping the image as it was intended to be seen.

Exactly.

Let's tell this to Mark Cuban and HDNet! They show Charlie's Angels, Hogan's Heros (and others?) in High Definition, but in a 16X9 format!

 

[Clay-F]

To me the evil isnt in fullscreen.

The evil that we all are fighting is cropping (is it two 'p's?)

I dont want anything cut out of my entertainment. So I dont want widescreen movies "cut" to fullscreen just like I dont want full screen tv shows "cut" to widescreen.

It's just not natural!

 

[George_W_K]

OAR OAR OAR OAR OAR OAR OAR OAR!!!!!!'

I belive that it would be a safe purchase for you.

If you're looking for a good sci-fi show that's 16 X 9, check out the Babylon 5 boxed sets. They weren't cropped, they were originally filmed with the future format in mind. (Or so says the show's creator.) Very good show.

Enjoy the sets in their original format. If they do change them anytime in the future it'll only be because of all the Joe Sixpack's who don't like how their 16 X 9 plasmas have black bars on the sides!

 

[Nick T Robot]

Some shows are shown on TV both ways

Sopranos was shown on HBO and HBO2 at the same time, people could flip to HBO2 to see the 4:3 version of the show, filmed in 16:9 and shown that way on HBO.

I can't remember if 24 is shown 4:3 but it's filmed 16:9 anamorphic widescreen and looks fantastic on DVD, plus it's an excellent show. I HIGHLY recommend it. (Third Season starts tonight at 21:00 EST!!!)

 

[MarkHastings]

Sopranos was shown on HBO and HBO2 at the same time, people could flip to HBO2 to see the 4:3 version of the show, filmed in 16:9 and shown that way on HBO.

Yes, you can definitely tell that the extra info you get on the 16x9 image is only "Filler" - They still film everything with the 4x3 image in mind.

Not that I'm complaining, but it's funny to see how everything is still "centered" and the sides are 'unimportant'. Hopefully when 16x9 tv become the 'norm', this will change.

 

[Tony Whalen]

I stretch all my movies to fit my triangular-shaped television.

"Are you boys building an interrocitor down there? "

"No!"

 

[Steve Tannehill]

Let's tell this to Mark Cuban and HDNet! They show Charlie's Angels, Hogan's Heros (and others?) in High Definition, but in a 16X9 format!

But not cropped fully to 16x9. There are still small black bands on the side of the screen. Just guessing, I would say the shows are windowboxed to about 1.5x1 (about in the middle of 1.33x1 and 1.78x1).

Windowboxed or not, the HDNet presentations have amazing clarity...

- Steve

 

[Rob Tomlin]

But not cropped fully to 16x9. There are still small black bands on the side of the screen. Just guessing, I would say the shows are windowboxed to about 1.5x1 (about in the middle of 1.33x1 and 1.78x1).

If true, that's better than a full stretch to 1.78. But it's still not OAR!

I know I don't have any black bars on the sides on my Mitsubishi HDTV.

I agree that the quality of these shows in HD, especially considering their age, is very impressive.

 

[SteveK]

Perhaps slightly OT, but it would be nice if HBO would do with feature films what they do with The Sopranos...show it fullscreen on HBO2 and show it OAR on HBO. I would love to subscribe to HBO, partly for the various series they have, but I won't subscribe to HBO (or any other premium channel) because they show almost all movies in P&S. Why should I pay to watch a butchered movie?

I don't know why HBO (or some other premium network) can't dedicate at least one channel to OAR presentations. Surely HBO is aware of the growing popularity of widscreen, yet they continue to show most movies P&S. Yet their original series are usually filmed (and shown) in widescreen. It simply doesn't make sense!

Steve K.