Spirited Away aspect ratio question

gasteropod · Post by **gasteropod** » 10 Nov 2005, 11:43

I've just received the R2 of Spirited Away and it is 2.00:1, like the American and Australian releases, but its original aspect ratio is 1.85:1 which is on the Asian DVDs. Why is it presented like this, with a thin black bar at the top of the image? Do we lose any picture information?

Thanks

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 10 Nov 2005, 16:08

I know that some releases of Spirited Away are shrinked to compensate for overscan. It is possible that the R2 is a 1:85 transfer, but with black bars on the side (that you can't see because of the overscan).

gasteropod · Post by **gasteropod** » 10 Nov 2005, 16:53

Hmm, if this is so, then great! Although the thin black bar at the top is kind of annoying...

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 10 Nov 2005, 20:07

Many of the other DVDs are 2.00:1 -

http://www.dvdcompare.net/comparisons/film.php?fid=2585

gasteropod · Post by **gasteropod** » 10 Nov 2005, 20:14

As I already mentioned

memetic · Post by **memetic** » 11 Nov 2005, 08:33

I remember hearing that Ghibli masters are generally underscanned (dunno why) and they're not the only Japanese company to do it. I'd say that's what it is and not a case of cropping or squashing.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 11 Nov 2005, 15:55

Isn't that so people with TVs won't lose any picture information, due to overscan?

I hear it annoys projection owners as overscan doesn't affect projectors.

memetic · Post by **memetic** » 12 Nov 2005, 00:21

Yeah that's true. Overscan was that area of disposable image that could be lost in those old and very curvy TV tubes. These days, TVs seem to overscan a lot less, particularly plasma screens. So on these screens and projectors you could see some pillarboxing (black bars on one or two sides).

From memory Dark Water is underscanned (you'd get it on the Tartan disc). In fact that one was weird as the aspect ratio changed slightly about two thirds into the movie.

gasteropod · Post by **gasteropod** » 12 Nov 2005, 00:26

My widescreen has overscan

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 12 Nov 2005, 02:16

gasteropod wrote:My widescreen has overscan

Mine too.