Will we ever be able to see Apocalypse Now in it's true OAR?? (1 Viewer)

[Christina_V]

I just bought Redux for $17 & while i don't have time to view it right now. I did check out the trailer & then a couple brief scenes to see what ratio it was in.
Wow.......it looked like 1:85,only slightly wider. yet the trailer was in 2:35 & when comparing the two......such as the scene where Willard is being escorted by harrison ford & another guy. They are slightly cropped offscreen in the film,yet in full veiw in the trailer!
What gives? I could've sworn the video i rented released by Paramount years ago in WS was close to 2:35,though slightly "wider" where the bars didn't take up as much of the screen as usual.
Is the the first dvd the same ratio as this? I never had a chance to view it + don't own it(yet).
So will this awsome movie ever get released on video in it's real OAR??

 

[TonyD]

the first dvd ratio was 2.0:1 as it seems thar the cinematographer prefers that now. theatricly i think it was 2.35:1.
don't know what this new one is.
thew remasterred laser from a few years ago was 2.35:1.
anyoneplease correct me if i'm wrong.

 

[Rain]

Apocalpyse Now is, as I understand it, presented in an AR of approximately 2:1.

This is a deliberate choice of cinematographer Vittorio Storaro. The same is true of the first Apocalyse Now DVD as well as Tucker: The Man and His Dream.

As far as I know, only the films he did for Coppola have been reformatted that way.

I think it sucks, as do many others, but I think it is unlikely we will ever see it any other way, except theatrically.

 

[Robert George]

No video version of Apocalypse Now has been framed at or near 2.35:1. Previous laserdisc and DVD editions have been framed at approx. 2:1, the same as the new DVD edition of Redux.

 

[Michael Reuben]

thew remasterred laser from a few years ago was 2.35:1

No, its AR was like that on both DVDs: 2.0:1.

M.

 

[Patrick McCart]

The movie was filmed in 2:1 on a frame of 2.35:1.

Everything was composed to fit the 2:1 ratio for 70mm showings. 70mm is 2.10:1, so that's close enough.

You're not getting the wrong presentation. You're getting what was intended for the small screen.

 

[TonyD]

theatricly i think it was 2.35:1. the remasterred laser from a few years ago was 2.35:1

thanks for fixing that part for me.

 

[Neil S. Bulk]

You're not getting the wrong presentation. You're getting what was intended for the small screen.

I don't know if it was a conscious decision in 1979. In those days, letterboxing was not a common practice (if used at all). So I don't think Storraro and Coppola decided back then to frame for 2:1 when it came time to show this film on TV. Also, keep in mind that those men are filmmakers. They should not be concerned with how the film plays on television while they are making it. The theatrical version should not be compromised because of the demands of the small screen.

As I understand it Storraro prefers 2:1 because he feels home video cannot resolve the details when the picture is shrunk down to 2.35:1. I think the majority of us disagree with him.

Neil

 

[Rob Gillespie]

I think the majority of us disagree with him.

And some of us think he's just talking crap.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Will we ever see this film again in its true OAR? you ask. As opposed to its false OAR?

 

[Mick Wright]

You're not getting the wrong presentation. You're getting what was intended for the small screen.

James Cameron once had a problem with the limits of NTSC video, so he released the super35-filmed The Abyss in both LBX and P&S laser disc box sets. Included was a note from Cameron which detailed why he chose to offer a P&S, and that he actually preferred it. I didn't agree with him, so I bought the OAR version. What if he had released P&S only, and eliminated my choice, would anyone defend that? What Coppola and Storraro have done is offer only a modifed version of their film. That's a travesty IMO.

 

[Edwin-S]

I never realized that they had modified the AR for release on Laser disc. It would be nice to actually see the movie like I originally saw it in the theatre. That being said, it is still better to see it at a 2:1 ratio than P&S. I remember AN being one of the first movies I rented when I first bought my Betamax VCR. I remembered it being a pretty decent film when I saw it theatrically, so I was anticipating a memorable watch. It was memorable alright....memorable for being completely boring. The movie was completely ruined, everything looked cramped and the cinematic scope was totally lost. I shut the thing off without even finishing it and never rented it again until I got a laser disc player. The laser disc version reminded me a lot more of what I had seen in the theatre and it all of suddenly became a good movie again. That is why I know that P&S is butchery.

I cannot believe Coppola is allowing Storaro to do what he is doing. What is worse is that with the 2:1 ratio watching it on TV is probably closer to 1.85:1 because of overscan. Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[Hendrik]

"...Also, keep in mind that those men are filmmakers. They should not be concerned with how the film plays on television while they are making it...
...now there's a naive statemen if ever I saw one...
. . .

 

[Mick Wright]

C'mon Hendrik, surely you could see what Neil was getting at. Coppola and Storraro couldn't have possibly been thinking about anything other than a theatrical release when they made this film, home video was barely on the radar.

 

[Dharmesh C]

I agree with Neil all the way on this one. Cop and the cinematographer didn't have home video in mind. It boggles the mind why they've chosen 2.1
The framing is too tight in certain sequences.
Still a great film :star: :star: :star: :star: :star:

 

[Hendrik]

"...when they made this film, home video was barely on the radar...
...well... ahh... SONY's BETAMAX had been around for quite a while, and MATSUSHITA's VHS was introduced a couple of years prior to the original release of AN...
http://www.hypernova.co.uk/total_rewind/vhs.htm
. . . . . .

 

[Michael Reuben]

when they made this film, home video was barely on the radar

But presentation of films on television was already common. In fact, Coppola prepared the first two Godfather films for network broadcast while he was still in the Philippines working on Apocalypse Now.

M.

 

[Dharmesh C]

I watched Apoc Now again this afternoon. The framing is too tight in some scenes.

I'm certain that he had 2.35:1 in mind when shooting it. 70mm blow-up was an after thought.

 

[RobertR]

Will we ever see this film again in its true OAR? you ask. As opposed to its false OAR?

Good one, Jack
Kind of like another "favorite" of mine, "free gift".

 

[Mick Wright]

But presentation of films on television was already common. In fact, Coppola prepared the first two Godfather films for network broadcast while he was still in the Philippines working on Apocalypse Now.

Fair enough. But do either of you really believe that when this film was shot they "protected" for 2:1? I see things cropped out of every shot.