Full screen vs. wide screen [Archive] - Movie Fan Central Discussion Forums

thekmac

11-13-2003, 10:53 AM

Bought the DVD, did not read label, got the full screen version,
watched it , loved it, I wanted the wide screen version
so I bought it as well. (My mistake for not reading label.)

Did anyone notice the different view of the sequence
of the female terminator walking to the car just after she
appeared in the bubble?

The full screen version is much more revealing.

William_Shatner

11-13-2003, 11:15 AM

you are talking aobut t3 right???

thekmac

11-13-2003, 11:19 AM

Yes t3

William_Shatner

11-13-2003, 11:20 AM

K only saw the widescreen version at this time.

i8pineapple2day

11-13-2003, 12:09 PM

Originally posted by thekmac
Bought the DVD, did not read label, got the full screen version,
watched it , loved it, I wanted the wide screen version
so I bought it as well. (My mistake for not reading label.)

Did anyone notice the different view of the sequence
of the female terminator walking to the car just after she
appeared in the bubble?

The full screen version is much more revealing.

the full screen version will be more revealing because they zoom
in to make it full screen. Widescreen movies show how the movie
was really filmed full screen zooms in to fill the screen

did you see her tities??

ZombieMonkey

11-13-2003, 02:01 PM

Yeah it's good to specify what movie you're talking about in the post.

Really classy i8pineapple2day.

I heard you can see more of the females nudity (nothing really showing for the pervs, sorry) since it's improperly framed and going off side. Always go with widescreen, but if you're that hard up then I guess you're going to get fullscreen anyway.

#1dvdfan

11-14-2003, 06:45 PM

Buy the fullscreen to see more of the TX I got widescreen. Love her fucking ass!!!!!!!

Jon Lyrik

11-14-2003, 07:14 PM

You wacky pervs! ;)

Ripper1888

11-15-2003, 04:13 AM

Well T3 sucked ass,and whenever I saw the T-X(Kristaana Loken) I was tempted to start barking,so with this flick I could care less saw it for the first and last time,but with movies that are actually good I always go with the widescreen.

bondish

11-15-2003, 04:58 AM

I like widescreen so much better than Full screen. You can see much more.

rilocay

11-15-2003, 08:20 AM

Full screen is chopped down from widescreen. You miss out on sometime more then 50% on what goes onto the screen and plus why buy fullscreen when in a few years time only widescreen tv's will be sold (due to widescreen only on digital tv).

SuperSoulMan

11-15-2003, 07:19 PM

I refuse to buy full screen dvds anymore. Widescreen is the wave of the future!!!!

Moviefan1234

11-16-2003, 11:06 AM

Originally posted by SuperSoulMan
I refuse to buy full screen dvds anymore. Widescreen is the wave of the future!!!!

Ditto. It's plain and simple ignorance when people buy full screen DVD's. They simply aren't educated to the facts or know what the future holds.

ilovemovies

11-16-2003, 12:45 PM

The only times I ever bought Full Screen was completely accidental. I didn't see I was picking up Full Screen and I was pissed about it especially for Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones.

Otherwise, I too will only buy Wide Screen.

i8pineapple2day

11-17-2003, 12:09 PM

Originally posted by Moviefan1234
Ditto. It's plain and simple ignorance when people buy full screen DVD's. They simply aren't educated to the facts or know what the future holds.

very well said

HeavyK

11-21-2003, 10:57 PM

Lloyd Christmas

11-24-2003, 06:41 PM

Flame me hate me whatever but I HATE widescreen! I always will! IDC if I'm missing SOME of the picture. Wow I might be missing a lamp on the table BIG DEAL! I hate it when some DVDs only come in widescreen. EVERY DVD should atleast have both cuz people have mixed reactions. Everyone where I live feels the same way but it's probably diffrent where you people live. It's just those black-cut-offs just annoy me! I can deal with the 1:85:1 or whatever widescreen if there is no full screen...

Neesh

11-24-2003, 08:16 PM

I havent seen T3 yet, but its interesting (but not surprising) that the full screen shows more than widescreen version. The full screen pan& scan version of T2 also is more revealing, which is typical of most of James Cameron's movies.

Its also funny how some people read this thread, completely oblivious to what was being said, and then say things like:
I like widescreen so much better than Full screen. You can see much more.

Well, not in this case.

Movieguy16

11-24-2003, 09:21 PM

I simply prefer OAR, or the Original Aspect Ratio.......whatever that may be, 2.40:1 to 1.33:1.....if it was shown in theaters the way that it is presented on the dvd, I have no problems.

Neesh

11-24-2003, 10:09 PM

Some directors prefer one aspect ratio for theatre viewing, and a different one for home viewing...

Movieguy16

11-24-2003, 10:15 PM

Originally posted by Neesh
Some directors prefer one aspect ratio for theatre viewing, and a different one for home viewing...

Which are those, I know Kubrick prefered 1.33:1 but the STUDIOS matted them to 1.85 for theaters, except for 2001, Spartacus and a few others. James Cameron uses Open-matte when filming, but then frames it to meet the final "image in his head." And then again there's the strange occurences of the first Austin Powers movie where instead of 2.35:1, the dvd was presented 2.0:1, also The Recruit was opened up. But I can't remember any director preferring his film get butchered for home video. You should know this if you buy Criterions (as I do) that the directors in that collection all prefer one aspect ratio that they use to be presented not only in theaters but also on home video.

Neesh

11-24-2003, 10:25 PM

Originally posted by Movieguy16
But I can't remember any director preferring his film get butchered for home video. You should know this if you buy Criterions (as I do) that the directors in that collection all prefer one aspect ratio that they use to be presented not only in theaters but also on home video.
Who said anything about getting butchered? Your last sentence contradicts what you said in your first sentence... when you gave the Kubrick example. He's a great example. Also, he was pissed when Criterion cropped Dr. Strangelove to 1.85:1, because thats not how he wanted it to be seen, ever.
And thanks for also mentioning James Cameron, the other best example. He perferred pan & scan full screen for home viewing, and released 'director approved' pan & scan versions of several of his films (including T2). Whooda thunkit?

Movieguy16

11-24-2003, 10:56 PM

Originally posted by Neesh
And thanks for also mentioning James Cameron, the other best example. He perferred pan & scan full screen for home viewing, and released 'director approved' pan & scan versions of several of his films (including T2). Whooda thunkit?

Im sort of confused then, why haven't we seen many "pan and scan" versions of his movies on dvd? if he has director approved ones, I would think the studios would use them. But so far i can only think of a few that aren't only inwidescreen.....Terminator(ws), True Lies(ws), Titanic(ws), The Abyss(just recently had one disc full screen version), Piranha 2 had only fullscreen(but not so sure that was even meant to be seen by the public..haha) And when they are released in full screen versions, nowhere does it say, director approved. I know that he supervises the transfer, as there is a great segment on the T-2 ultimate edition dvd on the open matte process. But that seems to be the case only w/VHS? I don't know, maybe im just crazy.

But I didn't know that Criterion released the laserdisc of Dr. Strangelove, as the dvd brought out by Columbia/Tristar is 1.66:1. I learn new things everyday:)

But I do know Kubrick was po'd that his movies were matted down to 1.85 in theaters, withholding the exceptions of 2001 and Spartacus(which he didn't control anyways).

And about my butchering line, I only say that about Pan and scan, because the whole process zooms and pans around. Now, I have less qualms with Open Matte, which loses nothing on the sides but gains on the top and bottom.

Neesh

11-25-2003, 12:19 PM

Originally posted by Movieguy16
Im sort of confused then, why haven't we seen many "pan and scan" versions of his movies on dvd? if he has director approved ones, I would think the studios would use them. But so far i can only think of a few that aren't only inwidescreen.....Terminator(ws), True Lies(ws), Titanic(ws), The Abyss(just recently had one disc full screen version), Piranha 2 had only fullscreen(but not so sure that was even meant to be seen by the public..haha) And when they are released in full screen versions, nowhere does it say, director approved. I know that he supervises the transfer, as there is a great segment on the T-2 ultimate edition dvd on the open matte process. But that seems to be the case only w/VHS? I don't know, maybe im just crazy.

I dunno ... like you say, The Abyss was released on DVD in pan & scan.... dont know why the other ones werent. But, I own the T2 uber-edition laserdisc, which clearly says on it, "Director approved Pan & Scan version". In the liner notes, he goes on to talk about the whole process, and there are some visual aids on the laserdisc as well. This has all been discussed ad nauseum here before, search the boards for possibly more info. I think it might be possible that Cameron has backed off his love for pan & scan, with the advent of bigger, and widescreen televisions that are becoming more common in peoples homes. But I'd guess that if you have a normal to small sized, full screen ratio TV, then Cameron would prefer his movies to be seen in full screen.

But I didn't know that Criterion released the laserdisc of Dr. Strangelove, as the dvd brought out by Columbia/Tristar is 1.66:1. I learn new things everyday:)

Its actually in multiple aspect ratios... 1.66, 1.33, maybe some others. It changes. Kubrick preferred it matted to 1.66 in theatres though.

adamjohnson

11-25-2003, 03:49 PM

BTW: do widescreen TVS help even more?????/ Im thinking of buying one.

Movieguy16

11-25-2003, 06:24 PM

Originally posted by adamjohnson
BTW: do widescreen TVS help even more?????/ Im thinking of buying one.

It depends, I've had my widescreen for a year and a half and I love it. In what ways do you mean help even more? if you mean the black bar issue, they are still there for 2.35:1 wide movies, but are non existant for 1.85:1.

mr_gamecube

11-26-2003, 01:57 PM

I buy everything in fullscreen, I don't like seeing those black bars. I like having the whole movie on the screen.

Moviefan1234

11-26-2003, 02:55 PM

Originally posted by mr_gamecube
I like having the whole movie on the screen.

But that's where you're being screwed. You're not getting the whole movie! You're losing about 40% of it in full screen. I don't understand why people only want to see 60% of the movie. Besides, in the future the widescreen televisons are predicted to take over the TV market. If you don't start buying for the future you're going to have to deal with black bars on the sides of the screen, or you will have to replace your entire collection. Think of the future, mr_gamecube.

CanadianVampire

11-26-2003, 03:06 PM

Whats the point of getting widescreen tvs if the black bars are still there on most dvd versions?

C-Desecration-

11-26-2003, 03:34 PM

I never really reply in the DVD forum, but this . . .

Ditto. It's plain and simple ignorance when people buy full screen DVD's. They simply aren't educated to the facts or know what the future holds.

. . . just irked me the wrong way. What the hell? Ignorance? Aren't educated enough? I, for one, always try to get fullscreen. I have a 'regular' television that is fairly small, so widescreen get irritating after awhile (it's so darned tiny). Now I'm not the kind of person who really gets into 'technology', and will probably have my crappy little tv forever (even if it doesn't have any form of cable and gets things on reception). I'm well aware that if I ever get a widescreen TV my fullscreen movies will be useless, but that'll be so long down the road that I'll surely be sick of the movies by then.

Again, I can see if you're someone who 'collects' DVDs or a big tech buff that widescren would be the only option, but calling those who enjoy fullscreen ignorant isn't entirely true. As I said, I'm well aware of the technological advances regarding televisions, but I'll still be getting fullscreen whenever possible.

Moviefan1234

11-26-2003, 04:40 PM

Originally posted by CanadianVampire
Whats the point of getting widescreen tvs if the black bars are still there on most dvd versions?

They are much smaller and are considerably less noticeable. And with a good chuck of DVDs, there are no black bars at all. Another reason for getting them is what I've already stated: They are the future.

Originally posted by C-Desecration-
. . . just irked me the wrong way. What the hell? Ignorance? Aren't educated enough? I, for one, always try to get fullscreen. I have a 'regular' television that is fairly small, so widescreen get irritating after awhile (it's so darned tiny). Now I'm not the kind of person who really gets into 'technology', and will probably have my crappy little tv forever (even if it doesn't have any form of cable and gets things on reception). I'm well aware that if I ever get a widescreen TV my fullscreen movies will be useless, but that'll be so long down the road that I'll surely be sick of the movies by then.

Again, I can see if you're someone who 'collects' DVDs or a big tech buff that widescren would be the only option, but calling those who enjoy fullscreen ignorant isn't entirely true. As I said, I'm well aware of the technological advances regarding televisions, but I'll still be getting fullscreen whenever possible.

First off, please don't be offended, that came out too strong and I apologize. I can get too opinionated sometimes, but it is what I believe.
However, watching the widescreen version on a small televison is still better than than losing 40% of the film by buying the full screen version. Something else that bothered me about your post was your statement about not watching the films you have now years down the road. A movie you enjoy is a movie you enjoy however new or old it is.

Movieguy16

11-26-2003, 05:49 PM

I used to watch widescreen VHS tapes on a 13 inch VCR-Combo.
It wasn't bad. But just think about it, VHS looked grainy at times and sometimes it looked strange. But DVD's are ten times clearer, so it would seem that it would look better. I never complained about widescreen though because my dad taught me at an early age what widescreen was and how it was beneficial. From the age of 7 till about 13 I had that tv. Then i took the 27 inch sony that we had lying around and used that. Finally a year and a half ago i upgraded to full widescreen HDTV. My story might be different than most because I was brought up to love widescreen and film in general. But my main reason is to say that if a 7 year old can watch a full 2.35:1 wide movie on a 13 inch, then a 20 year old can watch widescreen on at least a 20 inch.

But this is just my opinion, take from it what you will

FeverDog420

11-27-2003, 09:59 PM

Originally posted by Moviefan1234
Ditto. It's plain and simple ignorance when people buy full screen DVD's. They simply aren't educated to the facts or know what the future holds.

Are you fully educated when it comes to widescreen? 'Cause if you are then you know all about the Super35 process that Cameron prefers, which is why the term "pan and scan" doesn't apply the same way to it. I posted this pic before, but it applies again when it comes to Terminator sequels:

http://widescreen.org/images/super_35_example.gif

And, yes, I know that Cameron didn't direct T3, but Jonathan Mostow used the same film process (like he did with Breakdown). David Fincher and Peter Jackson also use it a lot.

So, yeah, sometimes you really do see more in full frame (but I myself always prefer OAR). And since you're the expert, Moviefan, I'm sure you realize that CGI effects are too expensive to replicate in Super35, so all fx shots are real "pan-and-scan" (everything from the fantasy sequences in Heavenly Creatures to Leo and Kate's cold breath during their post-sinking pep talk in Titanic).

Moviefan1234

11-28-2003, 01:37 AM

Did I miss something? When did I claim to be called an expert? But, using that picture as an example it seems to me that you miss more using full screen. As for the CGI comment, I didn't know that about Super35. But since it doesn't seem to be that popular among directors (in terms of numbers), it probably isn't that much of a problem.

C-Desecration-

11-28-2003, 05:56 PM

Something else that bothered me about your post was your statement about not watching the films you have now years down the road.

Yeah . . . that didn't make a lot of sense, although it sort of came from logic (all movies you'll eventually get sick of . . . except Fight Club) . . . sort of. That was mainly just there to try and back my point up.

And about the fact that fullscreen with be useless years down the road, I have to say 'huh'? Don't all TV series come out in fullscreen? So what would people do if all future televisions didn't have some kind of support for them? Toss them in a trash? If that's the case, and this revolution of widescreen will happen pretty quickly, why on earth would you buy Family Guy, Simpsons, Buffy DVDs, etc. if they came in fullscreen?

night prowler

11-28-2003, 06:20 PM

Widescreen if it is in 1:85 format.... but it sucks when it is in 2:40 format.

Moviefan1234

11-29-2003, 05:50 AM

Originally posted by C-Desecration-

And about the fact that fullscreen with be useless years down the road, I have to say 'huh'? Don't all TV series come out in fullscreen? So what would people do if all future televisions didn't have some kind of support for them? Toss them in a trash? If that's the case, and this revolution of widescreen will happen pretty quickly, why on earth would you buy Family Guy, Simpsons, Buffy DVDs, etc. if they came in fullscreen?

I'm assuming you'd have bars on the sides of the screen. I'm not sure about that though.

rilocay

11-30-2003, 07:13 AM

For shows like Simpsons, Buffy, etc there IS black bars on the side, but with some tv's you can stretch the image to make it what i like to call "fucked".

Too people who prefer Fullscreen over Widescreen when the feature is originally Widescreen, i have something to tell you. A process of steps.
1.Buy the widescreen version of the movie you want.
2. Look at your DVD player remote control.
3. Find the button labelled "ZOOM".
4. Use it. :eek: :p

Problem solved, u get ur show full and as a plus u dont need to buy the film again in widescreen when you eventually get a widescreen tv. (and you will, its basically going to be forced in Australia, as all shows on tv now are broadcasted on widescreen digital if they are widescreen (majority)). :D

Jon Lyrik

11-30-2003, 09:31 PM

Originally posted by rilocay
For shows like Simpsons, Buffy, etc there IS black bars on the side, but with some tv's you can stretch the image to make it what i like to call "fucked".

Too people who prefer Fullscreen over Widescreen when the feature is originally Widescreen, i have something to tell you. A process of steps.
1.Buy the widescreen version of the movie you want.
2. Look at your DVD player remote control.
3. Find the button labelled "ZOOM".
4. Use it. :eek: :p

Zoomed-in films look really shitty, at least on my player.

C-Desecration-

11-30-2003, 10:31 PM

Well this is all well and good, but I'm one of the - few - people who doesn't have a DVD player. I did, however, get a Playsation 2 awhile back, and lo-and-behold it plays DVDs. Works fine, so I obviously didn't feel any need to get a player (I'm not really into the whole upgrade to the latest technology thing).

So I don't have a remote, I have a controller. I can play, stop, ff, rr, and that's about it. I know I know, that's sad.

Widescreen doesn't bother me much though, I rented X2 and blockbuster only carries widescreen . . . didn't even notice after a few minutes. It's just fullscreen gets the edge.

Moviefan1234

12-01-2003, 07:12 AM

Originally posted by C-Desecration-
It's just fullscreen gets the edge.

That's certainly your choice. I'm just hoping you realize that most likely, in the future full screen titles will be near useless.

Prime Suspect

12-01-2003, 01:04 PM

WIDESCREEN BABY!! ALL THE WAY!! I own no Full Screen titles. I'm a REAL man. LOL. J/K

....no wait, I am....a real man I mean....oh forget it.

i8pineapple2day

12-02-2003, 10:49 AM

Movies should be watched just as the director intended them to
be if the director filmed it in widescreen there shouldn't even
be a fullscreen disk. But with shows like buffy and others that
are filmed full frame that's what the director wanted them to
be

Originally posted by night prowler

Widescreen if it is in 1:85 format.... but it sucks when it is in 2:40 format.

dude 2:40 is the best casue you get to see so much more
picture

rilocay

12-14-2003, 01:34 AM

Okay, here is the point of ws vs fs. 98% of the time, movies are filmed in widescreen, and then is formatted into fullscreen (meaning they zoom in on the main bit of the screen, losing watever else is going on to the sides) but as with T-2 and T-3, they are filmed using both respectives. EG for t3

WIDESCREEN
http://members.fortunecity.com/oops157/kristanna_loken1112015.jpg

FULLSCREEN
(download the pic - and no, if u wanna see tit take the red pill and get out/buy the bloody movie!)

But as i said, most of the time, full screen is zoomed in from widescreen.

AgentSmith

12-14-2003, 10:20 PM

The only FullScreen movies I own are:

The Land Before Time
The Shadow

That is because neither exists in Widescreen :(

Andrew Tom

12-15-2003, 04:01 AM

Originally posted by AgentSmith
The only FullScreen movies I own are:

The Land Before Time
The Shadow

That is because neither exists in Widescreen :(

The R2 disc of The Shadow is in Widescreen, if you have a multiregion DVD player.

gspawn

12-16-2003, 03:32 PM

People's REAL complaint is that TVs and monitors of the day are square, which is changing as we speak, as ALL new entertainment devices are soon going to be widescreen.

So widescreen has already won out, why not prepare?

movieguy1021

01-06-2004, 04:42 PM

I think I only own one movie that's only fullscreen, but a lot I own are either. I think the best way to go about it is to either have it be a flipper or just have a choice. Example: I watch DVDs on both my 27" and my 5" portable. It seems that the 1.85:1 fits perfectly on the screen of the 27"--no black bars. For 2.40:1s, though, there are small bars, but it's really, really hard to see on my 5". That's why a choice is good-I like widescreen a lot, but sometimes it's just so damned hard to see with a small screen!

osdia

01-10-2004, 02:14 AM

I prefer OAR, however widescreen IS the future, but in widescreen TV's you can still watch movies and tv series that were intended to be seen in fullscreen.

Most of the movies are cropped in fullscreen, some use other methods in which you loose image from the sides but you gain from above and down.

In the end its just a photographic process, if you want to see the movie the way you saw it in the theater, then get always widescreen.