Posted by Downtown at i020-100.nv.iinet.net.au on August 17, 2001 at 02:00:21:
In Reply to: Ok, I'm confused posted by Menlo Park Rat on August 17, 2001 at 00:34:47:
: I thought the original aspect ratio of Clerks was 1.85:1? That's the way it is on the DVD...so how could that be the same as a regular TV screen? Sure, maybe there wouldnt be any actual panning and scanning, since it wasnt shot in Super 35 and the picture doesnt have much scope, but you're still losing some of what's going on when you watch the P&S TV version, right? Or do I simply have no fucking clue what I'm talking about? (which is a distinct possibility)
AFAIK, Clerks was shot on 16mm which has the same ratio as a television screen (1.33:1 or 4:3, otherwise known as fullscreen). Ditto for Super 35. When films are shot on either of these, they are padded with the black bars at the top and base of the picture to produce a widescreen ratio (commonly either 2.35:1 or 1.85:1) for theatrical release. When it comes to the video rental release, it'll be unwise to pan and scan the widescreen image, since a fullscreen image is already available.
Essentially, you get more picture. An example is the original DVD release of Dogma. Both the widescreen and fullscreen versions were available on this disc. If you compare the two, you can see a lot more in the fullscreen version. One scene on the train with Rock when he's talking with Linda, you can easily see the Mooby logo on his shirt, whereas in the widescreen version, it's not visible.
I hope this makes some sense. ;)