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Star Trek in Widescreen on CBS Action (UK)

T

toonloon

Captain
Captain
I've noticed that a UK channel has widescreen versions of TOS. The zoomed in versions of the live action look pretty bad but I do enjoy the added detail at the sides of the new CGI effects and I wondered if it is possible to legally get these widescreen versions?

Does anyone have them and can let me know how I can buy them please?

I suppose I could use my TV box to record the ones on CBS but it's in SD and I want the HD versions to see Okuda's team in all their glory (or not in some instances).

Suggestions anyone? (and please don't use this thread to bash the CGI effects. There's plenty other threads for that)
 
Was this the only time the show was broadcast in widescreen?

(I always wondered why the BluRays don't include the widescreen version. I mean, they went to all that trouble to MAKE the show - well, the effects shots, anyway - in widescreen, so surely they'd want that version to be widespread? :confused: )
 
I imagine because they would have to include more discs which would make the set more expensive. Plus a lot of fans would hate the idea of widescreen versions because you have to lose information at the top and bottom of the screen. I'd love to me able to see some of these versions in HD. I enjoyed the effects in Shore Leave and The Menagerie in particular. Those I would love to buy in HD W/S for the effects only.

Does anyone know if the widescreen versions that stream on Amazon are the TOS:R and are 4:3 or W/S? - UPDATE. Looks like they are the 4:3 versions.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Man-Trap/...UTF8&qid=1456062353&sr=1-2&keywords=star+trek
 
toonloon said:
I had a look at the CBS All Access service but they don't allow you to have an account if you live in the UK.
Click to expand...
If that's the case we could have quite an issue next year. And did they ever release widescreen remastered TNG on Blu-ray?
 
toonloon said:
I imagine because they would have to include more discs which would make the set more expensive.
Click to expand...

Unless they use seamless branching. IIRC, the TOS BluRays do that anyway (so they could include the original effects as well as the new ones).

Plus a lot of fans would hate the idea of widescreen versions because you have to lose information at the top and bottom of the screen.
Click to expand...

Perhaps. But they could have just put the live action scenes in 4:3, and the effects in 16:9.

And does anyone know why they bothered to do the new effects in widescreen in the first place?
 
Mr. Laser Beam said:
And does anyone know why they bothered to do the new effects in widescreen in the first place?
Click to expand...

Probably in case they wanted to do a widescreen crop of TOS. Which they apparently did. It also aired in Japan in 16:9. I've looked and it doesn't seem like the widescreen versions are available anywhere on home video.
 
I seem to remember reading once that it's possible to actually re-frame the TOS live-action bits without cropping them. Is this true?
 
Mr. Laser Beam said:
I seem to remember reading once that it's possible to actually re-frame the TOS live-action bits without cropping them. Is this true?
Click to expand...

I would think that is physically impossible, unless they are just doing a straight stretch to 16:9.
 
^ Meaning, there is more image on the actual film elements than was actually used onscreen (so therefore even the 4:3 version would be cropped), so they could conceivably go back to those elements and create a completely new 16:9 image.
 
Mr. Laser Beam said:
^ Meaning, there is more image on the actual film elements than was actually used onscreen (so therefore even the 4:3 version would be cropped), so they could conceivably go back to those elements and create a completely new 16:9 image.
Click to expand...

I remember a special feature that showed them working with the film elements and they looked pretty close to 4:3. Not sure there's much to extract there.
 
Mr. Laser Beam said:
so they could conceivably go back to those elements and create a completely new 16:9 image.
Click to expand...

I wish that were true but they didn't protect it for widescreen so the information outside of the frame would be useless. Same happened with TNG. You can see light stands and crew members at the sides of the frame. The X-Files DID protect themselves even they shot in 4:3 they made sure that outside the frame was usable in case they decided to make widescreen versions. There isn't a great deal of information outside the 4:3 box but there is some with the X-Files so less cropping occurs and the image was composed to look fine in the a wider format.

None of this happened for TOS so the only way to create a wider image is to zoom it and create the new effects in a wider format (which is what they did).
 
To do a widescreen TOS, you'd basically have to do a vertical "pan and scan" treatment. Here are the types of compromises you'd have to make:

First, original full frame, showing the customary "safe area."

BOTActionSafe.jpg


Next, a straight center crop. Notice you'd loose Scotty's head.

BOT16x9Crop1.jpg


Finally, a crop panned to the top of the frame.

BOT16x9Crop2.jpg


This sort of decision would have to be made shot by shot. In some cases, it would really compromise the carefully planned original intent. I'd be curious to see someone try it, but unless they could give it the attention it deserves you'd end up with a lot of headless Scotties...

M.
 
Mgagen - that's a brilliant explanation and you're absolutely right about that. Ideally IF someone were to attempt it, they would first upscale a BD rip to 4.4k then zoom and crop the way you suggest and pan where necessary to avoid lopping characters heads off.

I really wish I could buy a widescreen version of The Menagerie so I could get the widescreen effects in HD.
 
I often don't notice the IMAX changes. Watch The Dark Knight on Blu-ray and see if you do.

I think you are right though. You would notice the cropping, but if it was done with care it could be gotten used to.
 
Hutchy01 said:
If that's the case we could have quite an issue next year. And did they ever release widescreen remastered TNG on Blu-ray?
Click to expand...
Actually if you live in another country - most likely you'll see the series broadcast on one of your TV/Cable stations. Only the first episode will be broadcast on U.S. Network TV - the rest will only be available via a CBS All Access subscription in the U.S. In the rest of the world CBS is offering it as a broadcast TV series.
 
MGagen said:
To do a widescreen TOS, you'd basically have to do a vertical "pan and scan" treatment.
Click to expand...
Which would make it "Tilt & Scan".

Also, for the curious here's an example of the cropping from that UK trailer...
2Oy64oI.png
 
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