rjn@hpfcso.HP.COM (Bob Niland) (12/22/89)
WIDE SCREEN MOVIES
by Robert E. Carr and R. M. Hayes
A book review by Bob Niland
Copyright 1989 Bob Niland
Questions asked about letterboxing often reveal a misunderstanding about
what factors influence the aspect ratio of any given film. Such
misunderstanding is not surprising, since Hollywood, the theatres and the movie
review fraternity have done virtually nothing to educate the public about
aspect ratios, film gauges, frame rates and other matters of film technology.
Millions have been invested in processes like CinemaScope and Panavision.
These trade names appear in the advertising, but the general public (and even
movie fans) do not know exactly what they mean. Consequently, the public does
not clamor for them by name, and we often don't even know when the presentation
has been compromised by the local exhibitor, because the shape of his screen
doesn't match the image being projected.
However, for those wondering about the aspect ratio of the original movie,
some help has arrived. After reading a review in "The Perfect Vision"
magazine, I ordered up a copy of...
WIDE SCREEN MOVIES
A History and Filmography
of Wide Gauge Filmmaking
Robert E. Carr
and R. M. Hayes
1988, ISBN 0-89950-242-3 $39.95 McFarland & Co. publishers, 500pp, hardc.
WIDE SCREEN MOVIES covers the history of wide-screen (> 1.33:1 AR) and
wide-gauge (> 35mm) motion picture processes over the last 100 years. WIDE
SCREEN MOVIES is intended for readers who are fluent in the language of
cinematography. It uses, in their cinema connotations and without defining,
words and phrases like: anamorphic, spherical, and soft/hard-matte.
The first half of WIDE SCREEN MOVIES is historical narrative and technical
data on the various processes. Mention is made of at least 100 different
processes. For each process, a list is included of all the films made in that
process. The last half of the book is a filmography; a detailed credit list
and short narrative on over 200 technologically significant films.
Considerable space is given to the major processes: Cinerama,
CinemaScope, IMAX/OmniMax, Panavision, SuperScope, Technirama, Todd-AO, and
related formats.
The authors are clearly fans of large-gauge ultra-wide films, and lament
the passing of these technologies. They reveal that most "70mm" roadshow
prints these days are simply blow-ups of 35mm source material. They also make
pointed remarks about the shortsightedness of the studios, exhibitors and the
projectionists' union.
The index is extensive. Using it, you can quickly find out how any given
work was originally shot. For many, you can also pick up details on how the
distribution prints may have varied from the negative format, which is
significant on horizontal processes like VistaVision and Technirama.
In the video age, however, many films are being shot soft-matte
(full-frame spherical 35mm, but composed with a "letterbox"-like reticle in the
camera viewfinder). Distribution prints are either anamorphic wide-screen, or
flat and intended to be masked (cropped) to wide-screen in the projector. Not
all of these films are mentioned in WIDE SCREEN MOVIES. For the video
consumer, this is not a big deal, because the home video presentation is almost
always full-frame. You can "letterbox" it yourself.
Some small problems with the book:
* The photographs were improperly (or perhaps not) halftone screened, and
are nearly illegible.
* The authors' expertise lies in optical and mechanical areas. Their
comments about digital sound and matrix surround sound are just plain
mistaken, and compromise the veracity of the rest of the book.
* WIDE SCREEN MOVIES does not cover video production or video transfers at all.
Neither "letterbox" or "HDTV" appear anywhere in the book, although "pan and
scan" does appear in one comment about reduction prints.
* As the "Perfect Vision" review pointed out, WIDE SCREEN MOVIES includes
technical dimensional specs for all of the major processes except (!)
CinemaScope. Should anyone buy WIDE SCREEN MOVIES, and want that data,
mail a request and I can transcribe it from my 2nd edition ASC manual.
Regards, Hewlett-Packard
Bob Niland 3404 East Harmony Road
rjn%hpfcrjn@hplabs.HP.COM Fort Collins CO 80525-9599