The Last Samurai

Jayson Crothers · May 8, 2005

This may be stupidly simple, but I'll ask anyways. Tonight on HBO they were showing "The Last Samurai" letterboxed in 1:85, except it's an anamorphic film.

Why, when they typically just show a pan and scan version of films, would HBO go to the effort of showing a letterboxed version in the wrong aspect ratio?

Mike Donis · May 8, 2005

Perhaps it was a 16:9 letterboxed image, downsampled from an HD full-frame master?

Couldn't tell you really. Many people would probably complain about 2.35 letterboxing anyways...jerks :lol:

Boone Hudgins · May 10, 2005

AMC letterboxes their commercials, by matting black bars over a pan & scan movies. It drives me nuts.

David Mullen ASC · May 10, 2005

Yes, it's probably a downconversion of their 1.78 (16x9 full frame) master for their HBO HDTV channel.

Well, at least scope photography letterboxed to 1.78 is better than a full pan-n-scan job to 4x3 full-frame, although I think it's a shame that movie channels, even the HDTV ones, don't always show movies in their theatrical ratios. But at least with 1.78 broadcasts, they are CLOSER in shape to the way that most movies are now shot to be presented...

Saul Pincus · May 10, 2005

Well, at least scope photography letterboxed to 1.78 is better than a full pan-n-scan job to 4x3 full-frame, although I think it's a shame that movie channels, even the HDTV ones, don't always show movies in their theatrical ratios. But at least with 1.78 broadcasts, they are CLOSER in shape to the way that most movies are now shot to be presented...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes, we're winning battles...but losing the war! <_<

The odd thing here is that it would be cheaper for everyone involved just to deliver one pan and scan version (the 4:3), or none.

Saul Pincus.

David Mullen ASC · May 10, 2005

Yes, we're winning battles...but losing the war! <_<

The odd thing here is that it would be cheaper for everyone involved just to deliver one pan and scan version (the 4:3), or none.

Saul Pincus.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'm not sure why that's cheaper but one could just make the 16x9 pan&scan version and make the 4x3 version off of that instead of a separate 4x3 pan&scan transfer.

Raffinator · May 14, 2005

AMC letterboxes their commercials, by matting black bars over a pan & scan movies. It drives me nuts.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It drives me nuts too. Why tease us like you are showing a letter-boxed version (with a pan and scan, nonetheless) and then not show it? It's doubly wrong.

More and more commercials use letter-boxing (i.e., IBM, Microsoft), which leads me to believe it has gained acceptance. If their precious advertising can be letter-boxed, why not the movies that they broadcast?

Raffi

Saul Pincus · May 16, 2005

I'm not sure why that's cheaper but one could just make the 16x9 pan&scan version and make the 4x3 version off of that instead of a separate 4x3 pan&scan transfer.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

True, but either way you're paying for more time in the suite to produce another version. I just think we're in the overkill phase right now as far as delivery formats are concerned. But these days that applies to audio as well as picture, I suppose.

Saul.