A scene from QUO VADIS (1951)
A composite of full set and matte painting. This super production was quickly rendered 'outdated' after the release of THE ROBE (1953) and the introduction of CinemaScope. When viewing this film with today's widescreen TVs if one zooms in to fill in the entire screen, the top and bottom parts will be cropped out. And in this shot, the three actors, Robert Taylor, Marina Berti and Leo Genn, are all at the bottom and would be partially cut. Should films filmed in 4:3 aspect ratio be seen in their original format or cropped? It's a though call.
To fully appreciate a movie, I'm adamant that it should never be altered in any way from its original release, unless being restored in some way. The photography of the epic pre-cinemascope productions is just as carefully planned as their widescreen successors.
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ReplyDeleteI feel very strongly that all films should be viewed in their original aspect ratios.
The worst approach is to stretch films horizontally, thereby making every object (including faces) too wide.