Re: What Did You Watch? 2024-12-26 (Thursday)

On 12/31/2024 6:47 PM, shawn wrote:

On Tue, 31 Dec 2024 18:14:18 -0800, Dimensional Traveler
<dtravel@sonic.net> wrote:
 

On 12/31/2024 10:00 AM, Arthur Lipscomb wrote:

On 12/27/2024 2:50 PM, anim8rfsk wrote:

Arthur Lipscomb <arthur@alum.calberkeley.org> wrote:

On 12/27/2024 10:40 AM, Ian J. Ball wrote:
>
>
Barbarella (4K disc) - 1968 sci-fi movie based on a French comic and
produced by Dino De Laurentiis.  Yes, I know I just watched it last
year, but I got a brand new 4K upgrade that includes a new Dolby Atmos
soundtrack and a new audio commentary.  I was torn between listening to
the new Dolby Atmos track or the audio commentary but settled on the
Atmos track.  I did notice the surround sound, wasn't really surround,
but it did have a full sound coming out of the front speakers, which is
better than the mono sound from the old blu-ray.  There's a remake
starring Sydney Sweeney in the works, so I'll just have to sit through
it again with the commentary before the remake.   And thanks to the
subtitles, I now know that for all these years I've been saying there's
a kind of taco shell about you, when the line is actually  "There's a
kind of cockleshell about you."  Someone in this group also suggested I
watch Danger: Diabolik.  I didn't forget, but it wasn't available for
free on any of the usual streaming channels.

>
Jane Fonda hates that you watched this movie. Thank you.
>

>
>
Flash Gordon (4K disc) - 1980 sci-fi movie based on a comic and produced
by Dino De Laurentiis.  Flash! A-ah! saves everyone one of us from Ming
the Merciless.  This movie continues to hold up great and is a sight to
behold in 4K.

>
As always, I must apologize for my part in this.
>
>
FLASH GORDON
The Adventure Begins
>
It was long ago, in the before time.
>
Our favorite movie theater, the one with the big flat screen that ran
the movies right, but never got a blockbuster except for Star Trek the
Motion Picture, and opening weekend the transporter replica they left
running in the lobby (some say it was actually the popcorn maker) caught
fire and took the place down, but I digress, ran a BIG ad (in the days
when
the local fishwrap would have pages full of movie ads) for the SNEAK
PREVIEW OF A MAJOR SCIENCE FICTION MOTION PICTURE.
>
I recommended to my viewing accomplice that we attend. He was dubious,
and
wondered if I had any idea what the film could be. I pointed out we'd
go to
almost any science fiction movie, and almost any movie at the shiny good
theater, so where was the downside?
>
We got our preferred seats, 7th row center. The front rows were taped
off,
presumably for visiting VIPs.
>

>
I go see most movies, especially if they are in IMAX or Dolby Cinema.  I
mean, if the production company booked the IMAX or Dolby Cinema
screening room, then the movie *must* be good, right?  Right?  I've
recently realized that a lot of times when I don't go see a movie, it's
often because it's not playing in IMAX or Dolby Cinema.
>

You're just a HD snob.

 

True.  ;-)

I wonder if it makes that much of a difference. Only time I saw
something in IMAX format was at Epcot where it was clearly the right
format for that video. Isn't IMAX of a different aspect ratio than the
standard movie format so parts of the video are removed for IMAX that
are visible in the normal aspect ratio.

Your Epcot experience is *nothing* like modern IMAX cinema.  Yes, IMAX has a different ratio, but many blockbusters today are shot using IMAX cameras in IMAX ratio.  When you watch those in a non IMAX theater you are not seeing it in the intended ratio.  Also, IMAX screens can easily show movies in any ratio they want.  So if you're watching in IMAX you will always be watching in the proper intended ratio.  That being said, I prefer Dolby because the local AMC theaters have better seating and sound in their Dolby screening rooms, but the IMAX experience is a close second.
I like the big blockbuster movies.  Those movies are going to be playing in IMAX and Dolby Cinema anyway, so there's that overlap.  Then there might be a mid budget sci-fi or horror movie that I'm going to go see anyway even if it's in regular theater.  I think the ones I sometimes skip now that I might not have skipped in the past are the low budget or indy sci-fi or horror that aren't really advertised.  If I was on the fence and it was playing in IMAX or Dolby, yeah I'd just go see it, even if the trailer looked bad.  But if it's not and the trailer doesn't otherwise catch my attention, I might skip those.  Same goes for a drama that I might otherwise skip but may make a point to see if it's in IMAX or Dolby.