DVD Talk Forum - Evil dead question

Quote:

Originally Posted by QuiGonJosh

No it was not.

:sigh: Here's the relevant quote from the book djtoell mentioned.

Quote:

Apart from the title, the movie shown that night [during the premiere] is the movie you see today, with only one other difference -- Sam had composed the film for a 1.66:1 aspect ratio (that is, the image was 1.66 times as wide as it was high; 1.85:1 is today's standard), but 16mm occupies the full 1.37:1 'Academy Standard' aperature, the way films were projected up until the early 1950s. The Redford Theater accommodated the old ratio, so that's how Book of the Dead was projected for the premiere, and it's never been shown that way again.

The very last part isn't entirely accurate as many of the revival screenings have been at 1.37:1. Raimi always intended for the movie to get a theatrical release, and even then, hardly anyone was exhibiting films at 1.37:1. 1.66:1 is a common aspect ratio directors shooting in 16mm use, even though most theaters, as djtoell mentioned, almost certainly overmatted to the more traditional 1.85:1.

Yes, they did approve the Elite DVD at 1.33:1. That has no bearing on whether or not they tried to compose for 1.66:1 during principal photography.