"anatomy of a murder"

[Dan Adlerstein]

Does anybody out there know for sure the original theatrical aspect ratio of this film? I've read it was 1.85:1 but the dvd says it is presented in its original format of 1.33:1. Does anybody know if the dvd is pan & scan or if the film was shot open matte, and there is thus additional info. on the top and bottom of the images on the dvd?

 

Thanks.

[Louis]

It's not always the best source for this type of information, but the IMDb says that it was shot with a 1.85:1 aspect ratio. If I'm not mistaken, full frame for standard 35mm is 1.37:1, so there is no way that 1.33:1 could be the original aspect ratio. I could be wrong though.

[John Pytlak RIP]

By 1959, the 1.85:1 aspect ratio for "flat" theatrical films was fairly well established in US theatres. For any wide release non-anamorphic picture, that would have been the likely aspect ratio.

[David Mullen ASC]

It's not always the best source for this type of information, but the IMDb says that it was shot with a 1.85:1 aspect ratio.  If I'm not mistaken, full frame for standard 35mm is 1.37:1, so there is no way that 1.33:1 could be the original aspect ratio.  I could be wrong though.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Full Aperture (Silent) is 1.33 and Academy (Sound) is 1.37. Many movies composed for 1.85 projection expose 4-perf 35mm Full Aperture even though the lens is optically shifted for sound aperture projection, other movies have used camera with 1.37 Academy gates, others with 1.66 hard mattes, even if the compositions were for projection masking to 1.85.

 

Basically just try and watch the movie in the theatrical matting (1.85 in this case) because then it doesn't matter if the camera gate was Full Aperture, Academy Aperture, 1.66, etc.

 

But if they transferred using the 1.37 Academy area, then the headroom in medium close-ups would look a little excessive if composed for 1.85. If they made a transfer from a hard matted negative (1.66 or 1.85) then the headroom in the pan & scan version should look OK but the sides should seem a little too tight.

[Louis]

Full Aperture (Silent) is 1.33 and Academy (Sound) is 1.37.  Many movies composed for 1.85 projection expose 4-perf 35mm Full Aperture even though the lens is optically shifted for sound aperture projection, other movies have used camera with 1.37 Academy gates, others with 1.66 hard mattes, even if the compositions were for projection masking to 1.85.

 

Basically just try and watch the movie in the theatrical matting (1.85 in this case) because then it doesn't matter if the camera gate was Full Aperture, Academy Aperture, 1.66, etc.

 

But if they transferred using the 1.37 Academy area, then the headroom in medium close-ups would look a little excessive if composed for 1.85.  If they made a transfer from a hard matted negative (1.66 or 1.85) then the headroom in the pan & scan version should look OK but the sides should seem a little too tight.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

So are you saying that with 4-perf 35mm Full Aperture, the aspect ratio is 1.33? Or is it 1.37?

[David Mullen ASC]

So are you saying that with 4-perf 35mm Full Aperture, the aspect ratio is 1.33?  Or is it 1.37?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

How could I have said it any simpler?

 

To repeat (!) 4-perf 35mm Full Aperture (Silent) is 1.33 : 1 and Academy Aperture (Sound) is 1.37 : 1.

 

However, full-frame 4x3 TV is 1.33 : 1, so all 1.37 Academy movies are slightly trimmed on the sides to 1.33 when transferred to 4x3 video. Sometimes head credits are "windowboxed" on all sides to retain 1.37 Academy within TV overscan so that no words are trimmed off.