Incredibles DVD only Fullscreen available at Disney Direct

[Texowl2]

I got the following email from Disney Direct

Dear Valued Guest,

Thank you for your recent order. We appreciate your patience as you
await delivery of The Incredibles DVD, which will be available to own on
March 15, 2005.

While The Incredibles DVD will be released in both the wide and
full-screen version, Disney catalog and Disneydirect.com will be
carrying only the full-screen version. We hope that this meets your
needs and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

The Disney catalog and Disneydirect.com are committed to providing the
highest quality service to our Guests, and apologize if we have fallen
short of that goal. If you have any questions please contact our Guest
Relations department at (800-247-8996) or you may e-mail us at
guest.services@disneydirect.com. One of our Cast Members will be happy
to assist you with any other concerns you may have.


Very Truly Yours,

Disney catalog and Disneydirect.com
Guest Relations

I am buying the DVD though the catalog for only two reasons: (1) the lithographs which the Disney Store no longer offers on presales and (2)wanting to use my Disney Visa Dollars.

Yet another example of Disney falling apart. I will post any response that I get to my scathing email indicating that it is pathetic not to offer widescreen.

 

[Peachie158]

The Disney Store will begin pre-selling the Incredibles on Feb. 4th. The pre-sale includes the lithos as well as a 15% savings off your total purchase, excluding the pre-sale (and the other typical exclusions...passes, etc.).

 

[Macca1111]

The question is...why isn't Disney offering a DVD with both versions on it? Most of their other movie releases as of late have contained both full and widescreen viewing capabilities. Why make the consumer choose (or be forced into) one format when it's possible to provide both?

 

[Chuck S]

Actually, I like the idea of having both formats on one disc. I prefer the wide-screen versions of movies...but I worked in a video store for many years...and you'd be surprised how many people complain about the wide screen format on a "standard" TV screen. With HDTV hitting the market, maybe that will change as the systems become more affordable...but for now, the panned versions outrent wide screen by about 2 to 1 in our area. While I don't work in the industry anymore, I have a friend that still manages a video store and this is what he said last week.

 

[ErikdaRed]

Well for the other pixar releases they just extend the background up and down to make it 4:3, so the fullscreen isn't cropped at all.

 

[fristbytte21]

i work at a disney store and i am a big dvd person. every dvd i check we get in has either both formats ont he disc of just the fullscreen version [ie princess diaries 2, miracles] for some reason we never get the widescreen version in stock. now that i read this, i am wondering if i should even preorder the incredibles since i will recieve the FF when WS is what i want. hmmm what to do....

 

[DancingBear]

Well for the other pixar releases they just extend the background up and down to make it 4:3, so the fullscreen isn't cropped at all.

That's really interesting. So you actually get MORE picture (and no black lines) with the fullscreen version, not less.

 

[seashoreCM]

That's really interesting. So you actually get MORE picture (and no black lines) with the fullscreen version, not less.

True, you get more picture, but no action takes place in those areas. The extended background is just filler material.

Imagine for a moment that wide screen video editions were made with a border suggesting the inside of a movie theater, complete with silhouettes of people's heads at the bottom -- instead of just black at the top and bottom. Would anyone be complaining about the TV screen not being filled?

Does anyone know whether The Incredibles has the characters positioned in the sets differently for the wide screen vs. full screen editions as opposed to simply cutting the sides off for the full screen edition? Bugs Life has the characters positioned differently.

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

 

[DancingBear]

Does anyone know whether The Incredibles has the characters positioned in the sets differently for the wide screen vs. full screen editions as opposed to simply cutting the sides off for the full screen edition? Bugs Life has the characters positioned differently.

I'm confused. I thought you were saying that the only difference between the Bugs Life full screen and widescreen versions would be the background filler on the top and bottom.

 

[pkgman]

the 4:3 picture supposedly doesn't loose anything compared to the widescreen one. Pixar actually recomposed a number of shots so that nothing is missed - everything theoretically should fit into the 4:3 frame. There are occasions when this is not the case, but thankfully they are rare.

Simply, they repostioned everything on the screen - altering the depth of the scene if you will. When they pan/scanned the wider 16:9 shot everything was squeezed into center of 4:3 shot. You was able to see all of the action from a slightly different perspective.

 

[sapiendut]

Either way, if it's not in its Original Aspect Ratio, be it 4:3, 16:9, 2.35:1, it's a no-no to buy because it's not being shown the way the producers of the movie intended.

You're not going to add to the sides of Monalisa re-print just to fit your frame, would you?

 

[DancingBear]

Either way, if it's not in its Original Aspect Ratio, be it 4:3, 16:9, 2.35:1, it's a no-no to buy because it's not being shown the way the producers of the movie intended.

You're not going to add to the sides of Monalisa re-print just to fit your frame, would you?

But if the producers of the movie are the ones who did the reframing, at different angles even, maybe that's the way they intended for the movie to be seen at home on your tv.

Leonardo's not around to reframe Mona.

 

[nboicepardee]

The Disney Store will begin pre-selling the Incredibles on Feb. 4th. The pre-sale includes the lithos as well as a 15% savings off your total purchase, excluding the pre-sale (and the other typical exclusions...passes, etc.).

This is true. I work at The Disney Store as well. The 15% off makes for a great deal!

 

[sapiendut]

Leonardo's not around to reframe Mona.

Just like 99.99% of the "full-frame" movies out there, the full-frame versions are not the director's approved version. Stanley Kubrick is one of the extremely few exceptions.

 

[sapiendut]

This is true. I work at The Disney Store as well. The 15% off makes for a great deal!

Yes, 15% off the price, but about 40% off the movie frame.

visit Widescreen Advocate website

 

[DancingBear]

Do you know this for sure? Certainly the original filmmakers at Pixar are involved in the reframings for the home video versions. It's not clear to me whether the directors are involved or not, but since this reframing practice has been going on at Pixar for a while, and is an integrated part of its production process, maybe the directors are involved. Certainly Lasseter, the executive producer or director of these flicks, is there.

 

[sapiendut]

I know for sure that virtually all directors don't change the aspect ratio.

If they supervise at all, it's still the compromise of what they really have in mind. What they really have in mind, their actual creative decision WRT framing, usually based on where the product is going to be shown first.

So if the content is actually made for TV, then the OAR may be 4:3 (although more and more original TV OARs are 1.78:1 or 1.66:1). If the content is actually made for theatrical presentation (IMAX not included because IMAX is actually 4:3), then the OAR will be 1.78:1, 1.85:1, 2.25:1, etc, but (almost) never 4:3

Any conversion from OAR is just a compromise, under the director's supervision or not.

 

[DancingBear]

I know for sure that virtually all directors don't change the aspect ratio.

If they supervise at all, it's still the compromise of what they really have in mind. What they really have in mind, their actual creative decision WRT framing, usually based on where the product is going to be shown first.

So if the content is actually made for TV, then the OAR may be 4:3 (although more and more original TV OARs are 1.78:1 or 1.66:1). If the content is actually made for theatrical presentation (IMAX not included because IMAX is actually 4:3), then the OAR will be 1.78:1, 1.85:1, 2.25:1, etc, but (almost) never 4:3

Any conversion from OAR is just a compromise, under the director's supervision or not.

But as you say, the director's first framing decision is based on a theatrical release, on larger than life movie theater screens. As you say, a director making a movie to be released originally on tv would make different choices. At Pixar, they now they are also going to be doing a very large DVD release for home television viewing fairly quickly after the theatrical release. Is showing the theatrical cut and dimensions on a television really more pure than showing a full-screen version which has been made by the original filmmakers with the intention of being viewed on a tv? I'm not talking here about panning and scanning North by Northwest, where Hitch surely never contemplated folks watching that flick at home.

 

[sapiendut]

As long as it's not the "originally intended aspect ratio", it can't be called "Original Aspect Ratio" and the whole point of home theatre is to recreate the theatre presentation at home. Any alteration whatsoever, is no longer OAR but it's MAR (Modified Aspect Ratio).