Aspect Ratios - The Director's Vision

[Midnightsailor]

This is an in-depth thread on aspect ratios and how they should look on your tv.

PART I:
The Director's Vision

Have you ever come across a bunch of people screaming OAR at every turn? If you didn't know, it stands for Original Aspect Ratio. Why is this important? Well, because it allows you to see the full picture of a movie the way it was theatrically shown. Also, it preserves the intended vision of the director. There are those who will say, "who cares about the director's vision?" It's a good question. Why should you care? The director is the "painter" of a film. Below is an example of what happens when you "crop" the painter's work (also known as pan & scan):



Now, take a look at the original aspect ratio:


Lawrence of Arabia, 1962

As you can see, a great deal of footage was cropped away. Still not convinced? Well, how would you feel about this?



Instead of:


Mona Lisa, 16th century

Makes you think, eh?

PART II: . . .
Aspect Ratios on 4:3 and 16:9 Displays: . . . . . . .

Below are examples of how various original aspect ratios will look on your chosen TV. There are a few that have been left off, but I have listed the main ones that you might encounter at some point or another. The left image is how the aspect ratio will look on a 4:3 tv and the right, 16:9.

1.33:1 - 35 mm original silent film ratio. Analog video standard (4:3), used in standard definition television

Behind the Screen, 1916

1.37:1 - 35 mm sound film ratio; also know as Academy. Aspect ratio of 16 mm film.

Gone With the Wind, 1939

1.43:1 - also known as IMAX

The Dark Knight, 2008

Note: I'm going to add detailed information for them all but I thought I better start here. The reason why is because there will, no doubt, be a bit of confusion here. =) This is correct IMAX aspect ratio and the way, untrimmed, it would look on these tvs. However, it was decided that the IMAX scenes in The Dark Knight would be 1.78:1 to fill the entire 16:9 screen on Blu-ray.

1.66:1 - 35 mm widescreen standard used mostly in Europe early on; native Super 16 mm frame ratio

A Clockwork Orange, 1971

1.78:1 - Video widescreen standard (16:9), used in high-definition television

Heroes: Season One, 2006

1.85:1 - 35 mm US and UK widescreen standard for theatrical film.

Edward Scissorhands, 1990

2.20:1 - 70 mm standard.

2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968

2.35:1 - 35 mm anamorphic prior to 1970, used by CinemaScope ("Scope") and early Panavision.

Planet of the Apes, 1968

2.39:1 - 35 mm anamorphic from 1970 onwards. Sometimes rounded up to 2.4:1

Blade Runner, 1982

2.59:1 - also known as CINERAMA

How the West Was Won, 1962

Note: There might be a bit of confusion with this one, too. This is because How The West Was Won was released on Blu-ray with an aspect ratio of 2.89:1. The maximum practical aspect ratio for Cinerama is 2.59:1. As such, there is still some image area on the negative that is not shown on the screen. The DVD and Blu-ray discs show HTWWW with an aspect ratio of 2.89:1. There is no cropping of the top or bottom of the image beyond what is normally cut off by the normal projector aperture dimensions.

2.75:1 - UltraPanavision (Anamorphic 70mm). Used only on a handful of films between 1956 and 1964.

Ben-Hur, 1959

4.00:1 - Polyvision, three 35 mm 1.33 images projected side by side. Used only on Abel Gance's Napoléon (1927).

Napoléon, 1927


PART III:
How to watch your television

Note: I will be outlining how to correctly watch your television without destroying the director's vision. However, everyone is entitled to watch their own television anyway they please. This section is purely for your information.

As we move further into the 21st century, more people will start to get widescreen televisions. Widescreen movies were originally shown in theaters to lure people away from their homes, due to the emergence of television in the US. Widescreen movies would produce a more epic and grand experience. It is slowly becoming the norm, today, for movies to be shown in scope, due to widescreen tvs. So, if you're not a fan of black bars, I'm just warning you that they are here to stay. Black bars are our friends. They preserve the image the way the filmmaker intended. Black bars are for your own benefit. So, don't feel cheated. Feel happy.

What kind of "black bars" are there? There are a few, varying from aspect ratio.

Pillarbox preserves the 1.33, 1.37, 1.43, and 1.66 aspect ratios on a widescreen television:


Night of the Living Dead, 1968

Letterbox preserves any aspect ratio wider than 1.78 on a widescreen television:


The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, 2001

Windowbox preserves aspect ratios of movies that are not enhanced for 16x9 televisions:


Barry Lyndon, 1975

Incorrect viewing methods

If you watch a movie in the aspect ratio of 1.33 on a widescreen display, it should be presented like this:


The Wizard of Oz, 1939

However, many people watch 1.33 movies incorrectly using a few different methods. A lot of tv sets have a stretch option. This horizontally stretches the image so that it fills your entire tv screen. Don't do this:



Other people prefer not to have the stretched look, but still want to fill their entire screen. A lot of tv sets have a zoom option. Don't do this:



See how much image it cuts off? What about a movie in the 1.85 aspect ratio? This is how it should be displayed on a widescreen tv:


Jurassic Park, 1993

Now, I don't know who in the world would do this, but some people leave their televisions on stretch mode 24/7. It is a bad idea. This is what happens when you stretch an already-widescreen movie:



Just terrible. Now here's an 1.85 plus zoom:



Even worse! Please don't do this people. Not only for the director's sake, but for your own. Believe me, it gets worse.

Here's how a movie in "Scope" should look:


Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, 1983

Once again, I don't know who would ever do this but... here's a stretched Scope movie:



Some tvs and projectors have another option called vertical stretch. Don't want to lose picture, but want to get rid of those pesky "black bars"? Here's a terrible way to do so:



Eek! And now to kill the mood with zoom:



This, once, sentimental moment is destroyed.

MORE SOON! =P

[BACsader]

Very informatve thread. This should definitely get a sticky and will hopefully make it clear to people as to why the black bars are still there on certain movies.

[cinema725]

Very indepth and good perception. It's amazing how many people don't realize the difference between the many standards. In my opinion if your not watching a movie the way the director originally intended, your getting an entirely different experience that is quite sub par.

[richteer]

Originally Posted by BACsader

Very informatve thread. This should definitely get a sticky and will hopefully make it clear to people as to why the black bars are still there on certain movies.

+1!

[Johnny Vinyl]

Excellent post! I love the fact you threw in a bit of history.

[naturephoto1]

Thanks very much. Look forward to the updates.

Rich

[dobyblue]

Stickied - great thread, hopefully the pics will help people suss out AR's a little more, because lots of people don't understand them at all.

[jibucha]

Thank You

[SquidPuppet]

Thats all well and good....but cant they make the black bars go away? Why are directors so dumb? Dont they know how much I spent on my TV....blah blah blah blah....


Thanks OP. Very well done. Nice variety too.

[Blaumann]

excellent thread!

[My_Two_Cents]

Great thread.

May I make a suggestion? Is it possible to present the images "zoomed" to fill a 16x9 HDTV so that folks can see just what they are missing if they insist upon the film filling their screens?

[donaldheil]

Congratulations. Very informative. This is for those that still don't get it, and keep complaining about the black bars.

[Midnightsailor]

Originally Posted by Ricshoe

Great thread.

May I make a suggestion? Is it possible to present the images "zoomed" to fill a 16x9 HDTV so that folks can see just what they are missing if they insist upon the film filling their screens?

Great suggestion. You know, I'm actually working on Part III now, which will be all about overscan. So, I'll definitely try and include this. Thanks.

Thanks everyone for your kind words.

Edit: I've decided to move Overscan to Part IV. Part III will be How to watch your television. =P

[Midnightsailor]

New section up!

PART III: How to watch your television

Enjoy!

[mmunro2003]

wow awesome explanation and examples!!!

[My_Two_Cents]

Originally Posted by Midnightsailor

New section up!

PART III: How to watch your television

Enjoy!

Exactly what I was suggesting! You da MAN!

[dvcmember]

Excellent, informative post. This should be converted into a sticky.

[lpfan71]

I actually read somewhere that James Cameron actually likes the full screen version of T2 over the original aspect ratio. Weird huh?

[Abouna]

Excellent outline. You did a very good job on this.

I'm still pretty stymied though why this is needed. I know that it is needed, just not sure why people have such a hard time with these concepts.

Good job.

[Abouna]

Originally Posted by lpfan71

I actually read somewhere that James Cameron actually likes the full screen version of T2 over the original aspect ratio. Weird huh?

I believe there are also a handful of directors who prefer 1.33:1 also which is interesting. I think Kubrick is one of them.