Is Cinema going to go HD?

[Hangedman]

I'm wondering, are we ever going to see HD movies in theaters?

I don't know if the movies you guys see in the states are great.. but here in Quebec, when i go see a movie, it's barely dvd quality. It's quite okay, but now since i own a great hdtv 1080p and a blu ray player, i can hardly go back to basic quality.

[Goodguy818]

Originally Posted by Hangedman

I'm wondering, are we ever going to see HD movies in theaters?

I don't know if the movies you guys see in the states are great.. but here in Quebec, when i go see a movie, it's barely dvd quality. It's quite okay, but now since i own a great hdtv 1080p and a blu ray player, i can hardly go back to basic quality.

+1 thats why i usually dont go to movie theathers anymore. Its just not the same experience and more expensive. Ill just save my money and buy the blu-ray at half the cost.

[WickyWoo]

35mm is far and above 1080p resolution

Your theater just has horrible projection

[aristotles]

Originally Posted by WickyWoo

35mm is far and above 1080p resolution

Your theater just has horrible projection

Before the the age of digital projectors, your local theatre would have received a 35mm copy of the film however the quality of the copy would depend on what generation of copy you were getting. I doubt most small towns in the US let alone in Quebec would have received a good copy.

Unfortunately, the picture has not changed much for the better with digital projectors in smaller markets where most screens might be 2k (just barely better than 1080p).

I'm sure the picture is really good in larger markets that either still receive a really good 35mm copy or have 4k screens but not everyone has that luxury.

I've screens that looked worse than 1080p as they were probably 2k and out of focus.

Finally, I've heard that some modern movies have been shot digitally at 1080p resolution and then upscaled. Crank comes to mind as one IIRC.

[hardcore_canadian]

Actually, it depends where in Quebec you are, in Montreal, the have what can only be called the single best Cinema in North America, professionally upkept, the projectors are replaced every year, and people from all over watch movies there, they constantly play foreign films, and it's great.

Vancouver has an amazing Famous Players as well, they never dissapoint

[docjan_uk]

Originally Posted by hardcore_canadian

Actually, it depends where in Quebec you are, in Montreal, the have what can only be called the single best Cinema in North America, professionally upkept, the projectors are replaced every year, and people from all over watch movies there, they constantly play foreign films, and it's great.

Vancouver has an amazing Famous Players as well, they never dissapoint

Which cinema is that? Are you talking about some small private one or one of the big ones?

[NutsAboutPS3]

Originally Posted by aristotles

I'm sure the picture is really good in larger markets that either still receive a really good 35mm copy or have 4k screens but not everyone has that luxury.

I've screens that looked worse than 1080p as they were probably 2k and out of focus.

This is the problem with cinemas - they still have to manage to focus it properly, even with a digital projector. I haven't been to the cinema for years, having got fed up with looking at a badly focused film image that was sub-DVD quality, and listening to an appallingly over-stressed and distorted sound system compared to mine at home.

[LynxFX]

I hope not. HD is much lower res than film, and DLP theatres are either 2k (just above HD and don't look that great IMO unless it is a smaller screen which in that case, what is the point) or 4k.

The lessson? Learn to pick your theatres better. There's only a handful that I will go to now and only if the movie is playing on certain screens at that theatre.

[Goodguy818]

Originally Posted by LynxFX

I hope not. HD is much lower res than film, and DLP theatres are either 2k (just above HD and don't look that great IMO unless it is a smaller screen which in that case, what is the point) or 4k.

The lessson? Learn to pick your theatres better. There's only a handful that I will go to now and only if the movie is playing on certain screens at that theatre.

Maybe thats my problem, lol. Im kinda lazy and tend to stick to to the theatres that are nearby and umm yea they are kinda ghetto

[bmr76]

I go to a cinemark theatre out here in phoenix, az. It has one digital theatre. so Ive seen superman returns, spiderman 3, 300 and national treasure 2 in digital. Basically its a gigantic hd dlp front projector playing some sort of digital version of the movie. The picture is fantastic, and makes regular movie theatres look like crap. I always check out whats in digital every week before I go to the movies. Look into it, they might have one digital showing where you live. Its definatley on par with blu ray I hope that it slowly takes over in the future, kinda like the transition from dvd to blu.

[Hangedman]

Humm, that weird, why do we see all those ugly lines and dark spot in theaters then?

[scragham]

Originally Posted by Hangedman

Humm, that weird, why do we see all those ugly lines and dark spot in theaters then?

if they haven't bothered taking care of their projection equipment and/or their film stock, they get crappy results.

[LynxFX]

Originally Posted by Hangedman

Humm, that weird, why do we see all those ugly lines and dark spot in theaters then?

Because your theatre sucks, no offense. That is general wear and tear on the film as it gets played over and over. Dirt, burn marks, hairs, and complete frames cut out are the result. You also have poorly maintained projectors, or ones with lamps that are near death causing a dim picture. Then you got focus problems. 2nd run theaters are the worst because they are taking film that has been run through a projector probably 300-400 times.

I had the privilege of watching The Two Towers at a brand new theatre. First time the film was run through the project (QA test before hand which they probably did) and the projector was brand new. I have never seen such an amazing picture before in my life. Absolutely stunning. No DLP theatre that I've seen has matched that quality yet, other than being scuff/dirt free.

[tofur69]

Originally Posted by Hangedman

Humm, that weird, why do we see all those ugly lines and dark spot in theaters then?

The lines are scratches and the dark spots are probably dirt. Those are caused by projections that cannot tell their arse from a hole in the ground. If the managers gave a damn, the pictue would be perfect by actually hiring and training people to work in the booth that cares instead of some monkey trying to get through the day without touching himself. That truly sucks that your local theatre is a total crapfest. I have said this before in other threads here, properly run projection will run circles around digital projection and home theatres. The only thing that actually may rival 35mm is 4k digital projection but Sony cannot seem to get all of the kinks out of their projectors and I do not see that hitting the home theatres for some time.

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by Hangedman

I'm wondering, are we ever going to see HD movies in theaters?

I don't know if the movies you guys see in the states are great.. but here in Quebec, when i go see a movie, it's barely dvd quality. It's quite okay, but now since i own a great hdtv 1080p and a blu ray player, i can hardly go back to basic quality.

The simple answer to your question is yes. Manufacturers like Sony have developed projectors for this purpose. Check the following URL:

http://bssc.sel.sony.com/Broadcastan...RD/cinema.html

[LynxFX]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

The simple answer to your question is yes. Manufacturers like Sony have developed projectors for this purpose. Check the following URL:

http://bssc.sel.sony.com/Broadcastan...RD/cinema.html

The answer is no, that's not HD, that is 4K projectors. As you can see on that page, 4K is 4096 by 2160, HD (as we know it) is 1920x1080. BIG difference.

HD like Blu-ray blown up to 60-100' looks horrible. It is like looking at your tv from 2 feet away.

[seto]

All this talk about film and poor upkeep of the films that are repeatedly projected in the movie theaters reminds me of Tyler working in the theater with his special "splices" in kid's films in Fight Club. Haha.

How I wish that would come to blu sometime soon. ^^

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by LynxFX

The answer is no, that's not HD, that is 4K projectors. As you can see on that page, 4K is 4096 by 2160, HD (as we know it) is 1920x1080. BIG difference.

HD like Blu-ray blown up to 60-100' looks horrible. It is like looking at your tv from 2 feet away.

Sorry, I did not mean HD as defined by 1920x1080. I meant digital projection.

[Blu-Beard]

Dang I thought movie theaters just sucked, but now I realize that it's just the ones I go to that suck I can't wait 'til I move back to a thriving metropolis

[Neil_Luv's_BLU]

Originally Posted by Hangedman

I'm wondering, are we ever going to see HD movies in theaters?

I don't know if the movies you guys see in the states are great.. but here in Quebec, when i go see a movie, it's barely dvd quality. It's quite okay, but now since i own a great hdtv 1080p and a blu ray player, i can hardly go back to basic quality.

I'd recommend you visit a theater with 4k Digital Projection. It's mind blowing.

I've seen Spider-Man 3, The Simpsons, Transformers and American Gangster at my local multiplex on the biggest screen they have... And i mean huge. They were all presented at 4k resolution, I can't go back to watching Film's on 35mm now. The dirt and scratches are too much of a distraction.

Transformers was the best by far. Stunning!

So i'd say look around and try and find a theater near you with a 4k Projection system