I took a look at the Season 1 box set of E.R. today, and noticed that it stated something to the effect of (and I’m paraphrasing) “Presented in a matted widescreen format that displays a theatrical aspect ratio.”

Does this mean that E.R.’s original 4X3 aspect ratio has been “cropped” on the top and bottom to accommodate a 16X9 ratio? Or, was the show originally shot with the intention to compose a 16X9 frame (much like Babylon 5)?

"Presented in a "matted" Widescreen format preserving a theatrical exhibition aspect ratio. Enhanced for widescreen TVs"

IGN.com states that it is Anamorphic Widescreen..
http://dvd.ign.com/articles/435/435230p2.html

Um... what the hell?

Truly a sad state of affairs it is, when a TV show gets chopped down to 1.78:1, and many theatrically-released films can only dream of widescreen transfers...

From our very own REVIEW

Well, they just lost a sale here. I don't care how the composition looks, the OAR was 4:3 and that's how it should be here.

I'll probably still pick it up, I've got enough of an interest in this show to shell out the $34.99 for over 1000 minutes of entertainment. While I agree that the differing aspect ratios are inconsistent with how the first season aired, it will make the later seasons flow better I think, since they'll now all look the same.

Just because it didn't air 16x9 doesn't mean it wasn't filmed in 16x9

Of course, it could just be cropped, but I'm saying that's not always how it is.

E.R. was one of those NBC shows that was actively composed for widescreen from the beginning, even though the network did not begin airing it in that format until several seasons later.

Interesting. Good for whoever made that decision. A shame more weren't bright enough to do that. Do you have a list of shows that were composed for widescreen from the beginning that you could share?

Can we be sure it was intended for 16X9? It seems odd that a television show would be composed for such a ratio so far in adavnce, and this is a Warner release - remember what they did to the TV-films It and V.

I know ER has had a lot of cinema directors, but it still doesn't sit right with me.

And they did absolutely the right thing with regard to the first V miniseries, although it's unclear whether they presentation of the 2nd miniseries was correct (although it certainly looks OK to my eyes).

DJ

I don't have a definitive list, but I know that the D.P. for Law & Order has stated that he had been composing exclusively for 16:9 well before NBC started its HD broadcasts of the show. He prefers that ratio and doesn't give a damn what the cropped 4:3 version looks like.

"Presented in a "matted" Widescreen format preserving a theatrical exhibition aspect ratio."

I never knew that E.R. was shown in theaters...

presented in A "matted" widescreen format..... Usually if the thing came in theaters, then it would say "presented in the matted widescreen...."

That's Warner's default note whenever a DVD has an aspect ratio of 1.78:1/1.85:1, regardless of how it was shot and regardless of how it was released.

I have to respectfully disagree. True, "V" was shown in theatres overseas after it appeared on US television, but "V" was concieved as a TV mini-series, not as a theatrical presentation.

Maybe Kenneth Johnson really did shoot the thing with a widescreen ratio in mind like he said, but I suspect that was so he could insure the movie would look okay if a foreign cinema sale was made (to insure against the kind of horrendous framing that plagued the cinematic version of the Galactica pilot movie, which wasn't composed with theatrical exhibition in mind), not because he intended the widescreen composition to be the true one.

To me, this is the opposite evil of pan-and-scan: cropping a TV show to fit those new-fangled widescreen TVs. I expect most TV after about 1998 to have been filmed for widescreen, but if it wasn't filmed in widescreen, I'd prefer it to be left in 4:3, even if I do buy a "wide" set someday in the future.