Video Asylum

Posted by SalD (A) on January 06, 2010 at 15:37:34

In Reply to: RE: Blu Ray is sheer magic... posted by newzguy53 on December 27, 2009 at 09:33:19

Not all movies are shot in an aspect ratio that perfectly fills a 16:9 TV screen. If you show a 16:9 movie on a regular old 4:3 set, you'll get black bars on top and bottom. If you show a 4:3 movie on a 16:9 set, you get bars on the sides. There is no way to get rid of the bars without compromising the geometry of the picture. You can stretch it or zoom it, both terrible options, but that's it. If you don't like the black bars, check that the movie is not shot in 1:33 or 2:35. Look for 1:78 or 1:85 (most movies), or the word "widescreen" or "anamorphic" on the box. Also make sure your player is properly set to 16:9. 16:9 was chosen as the standard TV size because most movies are shot in 16:9, but it isn't against the law for a director to choose a different size.