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MGM Midnite Movies DVD wrong aspect ratios?

posted 17 years ago by retromaster2000
2 replies | jump to latest

I was curious about the original theatrical aspect ratio of this film & The Vampire (1957) with Kenneth Tobey. I recorded both films off TCM this morning Friday Oct. 5, 2007 on DVD+R. Return was in 1.85:1 Widescreen but The Vampire wasn't. But the review on DVD Drive-Inn says they are both in Widescreen 1.85:1 on The New MGM Midnite Movies DVD Double Feature. Now TCM showed The Vampire in Fullscreen it doesn't specify the aspect ratios on TCM's Website for either movies. imdb.com says regular Full Screen 1.37:1 which means they both should be Windowboxed exposing a little more picture on the sides. Which means u get little black bars on all four sides. Which u should be seeing the whole image then. I have The Cheezy Flicks DVD for The Vampire it is like that. Does the MGM DVD have a fake Widescreen for The Vampire? I was upset cause TCM didn't show it in Widescreen. Or is TCM right? I was maybe gonna buy the DVD I aint till I get the low-down maybe someone can help me. I am just puzzled here.

[–] oldblackandwhite 14 years ago

I don't know for sure about this, retro, but I think 1.85:1 is a generic term. One of the yahoo websites I read up on aspect ratios says so. On this DVD or any other calling its aspect ration "1.85:1" if you freeze the frame with the movie showing in letterbox, I think when you expand the picture so it fills the whole wide screen, you'll find you are not losing anything. Since a 1.85:1 aspect ratio is achieved by shooting in standard 1.33:1 frame with deep focus, then masking down, if the DVD producer has an unmasked print or negative, he can just go ahead and mask it or "letterbox" it to 1.78:1 so it will fit the screen perfectly when expanded, and most do. But he still calls it "1.85:1". I think it says that somewhere in the avalanche of info on this subject you can get if you google "movie aspect ratio".

I hope this helped some. I am an old man who used a mechanical typewritter for years, has only had a computer for six months, not totally comfortable with the keyboard, and writing this has worn me out finding the colon key.

He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good... St. Matthew 5:45

[–] rollieri 13 years ago

Nobody shoots in 1:33 anymore. Even most TV shows and add are 1:85. 1:78 isn't the correct masking for 1:85. It was the ratio for Vistavsion.