The one thing I love about the DVD format is being able to get any and every film in delux widescreen- so I can watch it the way it was meant to be seen in the theater. Back in the days of VHS, studios only released some flicks in widescreen, while most movies were distrubuted pan and scan style.
That’s why this news is so aggrivating. Looks like MGM Home Video has been misleading us about the films they say are in widescreen, mainly those in 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Most films are filmed in a 4:3 aspect ratio, where the tops and bottoms are mostly tossed away- empty space not usually meant to be seen. MGM printed on a bunch of DVDs (with the diagram of the difference between widescreen vs. pan-and-scan) that these particular films were missing part of the shot- which wasn’t the case for these flicks.
Can you tell the difference? Probably not, but check out the list of films afffected, including: THE AMITYVILLE HORROR, THE DARK HALF, HANNIBAL, INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, THE ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU, JEEPERS CREEPERS, PHANTASM, SCANNERS and THE TERMINATOR.
For more info. on all the films that were misrepresented, as well as how to get your piece of the pie, as the lawsuite is in full effect, click HERE.
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