? about watching non-anamorphic dvd on 16 x 9 tv
 

I picked up the scream trilogy box @ BB today and was surprised/angry to find out only scream 2 &3 are anamorphic and the original is not. I thought they all were 16 x 9. (poor research by me!!!). I really want the set because of the SE of 2 and the bonus disc and I wondered how any of you folks watch a non-anamorphic title on a 16 x 9 set as this is the only title I have now that is not 16 x 9. ? Do you use the 'zoom' feature and if you do , how much picture info do you loose on a 2:35 to 1 letterboxed picture. Should I just sat the heck with it, return it ,and do without until an anamorphic version becomes available, if ever! I have 2 zoom settings on my widescreen set, 14 x 9, and 16 x 9. Will one of these be better than the other? Any help anyone could throw my way would be definately appreciated.
smurr

I don't watch them I sold all my non anomorphic DVD's as soon I got my HDTV

with my player, if you put the 16x9 mode in auto, some 2:35;1 non anamorphic titles, turn into anamorphic with no bars on the side (most look like shit though like true lies, my god that title looks terrible on my tv. please tell me they are rereleasing that one soon.

You don't lose any picture information when zooming a non-anamorphic letterboxed disc. The movie image will be blown up to fill the screen with only the black bars cut off (a 2.35:1 movie will still have smaller bars on the top and bottom). The picture quality will not be nearly as good as an anamorphic transfer, though.

I know it's not the same, but my dvd player has x,y scaling and the image can be stretched up to look anamorphic. Surely it's better than doing a zoom.

I usually view a non-anamorphic DVD intentionally as is, without using the stretch mode feature, and just wait patiently for a new anamorphic transfer to be re-released.

The exact reason why I sold my Scream set when I got my HDTV.

Step 1: Get a region-free player
Step 2: Get the first Scream film from Korea (it's inexpensive and anamorphic)
Step 3: Sell you Region 1 Scream disc, and replace it in the case with your new R3 edition.

Done! :)

Seriously... the region-free player is probably the best tool for you to have with an HDTV. Non-anamorophic transfers are now (mostly) easy to replace with discs from other countries.

EDIT: And, it looks like you can scoop up a player for less than $20 shipped (after rebates) at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...lance&n=172282

Like others, I just zoom the pic. My player has a 1.5x zoom, which brings any non-anamorphic dics into the 'right' aspect ration for the TV. The player I have also does a pretty good job of keeping the quality on a small zoom like that.

I use a scaling DVD player (home theater PC) for my non-enhanced titles, and while the results are not on a par with those of state-of-the-art 16x9-enhanced transfers, they're still very watchable (and often better than some enhanced transfers, too).

I've had a 16x9 TV for over five years, and can state from experience that there are more important factors in image quality than 16x9-enhancement.

:up:

Also, instead of the Korean release, the DTS from Australia is a favorite of mine!

I just watch the film in its original aspect ratio. I don't see any reason why I shouldn't watch something in its OAR.

My TV (Toshiba has a Zoom 2 Function) which blows the whole thing up proportionaly. It looks acceptable. I prefer enhanced, but I don't freak out when a catalog title is not enhanced.

If you zoom it height and width proportionately, it is still in its OAR.

:hscratch: No one is talking about watching the film in a different aspect ratio.

on my Toshiba 34" HDTV, I use the different modes as follows:

Full
For any DVD that is 16x9 enhanced. Keeps all anamorphic DVDs in their proper aspect ratio.

Natural
For any full frame (1.33:1) DVDs, or DVDs that are 1.66:1 or narrower and are not anamorphic. I also use this for watching standard-definition cable television. This mode ALWAYS has grey bars on the sides, and has black bars on the top and bottom if the image is not 1.33:1. This keeps them in their proper aspect ratio and doesn't chop off any of the image.

TheatreWide 2
For any non-anamorphic DVDs that are 1.78:1 or wider. This mode zooms the image so a 1:78 image fills the screen perfectly, and anything wider has black bars, but they all stay in their proper aspect ratio.

Between these three modes, I watch anything and everything in their proper aspect ratio.

It's hard to explain each mode to my family / girlfriend. But they're learning... I think I need a flow chart or something.

many thanks to for all the advice/suggestions. I am leaning towards taking bboisverts reccomendation as I have been thinking about a region free player for a while now. this may put me over the edge and do it. Aren't the other regions versions of Scream also the uncut version as well?

On my RCA TV, I have a 16 x 9 Zoom selection, and it looks like you are watching an anamorphic movie, but the detail of course isn't as good. But I don't have a real problem watching it in this mode, I watch The Abyss and don't have a problem. It depends how picky you are.