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Aspect Ratio decision 2010-09-01

Reviewer: Rolf V

Although Joe Beirne tries to lay to rest the aspect ratio troubling this dvd release he isn't right about the original release format for this movie.
He may be right on the decision making for the aspect ratio of the current release and the fact that pan and scan would be an awful method to transfer the original image to 1:1.85 aspect ratio but that doesn't mean that there isn't any problem with the chosen aspect ratio for this release.
The original theatrical release was in the 1:1.33 aspect ratio mentioned and that was the ratio used when screened at the cinema.
He implies that the current release has the original aspect ratio at which the film was shot and that now finally it has been released in it's full aspect ratio.
If that is true then there would be more to see in the images presented on this new dvd version, mainly left and right of the image frame would show more and additional picture information. and therein lies the problem of this release, there is no more information there to be seen but the picture looks like a cropped version of the original 1:1.33 release. Cropped in this instance means that the picture has been zoomed into to fit a different screen format than the original format for this movie. It shows up like there is a portion missing at the lower and upper sides of the original freme of the picture as is the problem with this release when compared with the older versions of this release on dvd and vhs videotapee and the way it was screened in the cinema. On the other hand there are no black bars on either side of the picture when viewed on a widescreen display that were unavailable when the movie was originally released for the home market.
But that doesn't mean that the print used for this release was shot in 1:1.85 aspect ratio! When I compared the new release with the original IRE release of this dvd and the older vhs tape it became very clear that the frame has been cropped to fit the 1:1.85 screen.
This is clearly to be seen at the approx. 10 minutes into the movie when there is a rock face to be seen that fills the original frame with just the top of the facia at top of the screen and the base of the rock with it's sediment lines at the bottom. The new version doesn't show either the top of the facia nor the sediment lines at the bottom but it does fill the tv screen from left to right without black bars. So there is a substantial portion of the picture frame missing when compared to the older version and there isn't more or new sights to be seen in the newer version on the left or the right hand of the new picture frame versus the old picture frame.
I hope when the Blu Ray version will be released, that they make it available in the old aspect ratio because there is nothing more being added to the picture by cropping the originl frame format just to loose the black bars in the screen, I can live with those perfectly.
If you can't, well, change the aspect ratio of your tv to make the image fit your tv screen and loose those black bars when you want to.
Something that should have been left to the costumer to decide instead of cropping the original picture in the first place.

I wanted to like it 2010-08-21

Reviewer: Citizenfitz

Koyaanisqatsi made an artsy splash when it came out in 1983, but for reasons now lost I couldn't make it to a showing. Twenty seven years later I finally got my wish.

I wanted to like Koyaanisqatsi, but was forced to realize it hasn't aged well. Godfrey Reggio shows a very good eye for dramatic shots, but then works them to exhaustion. The time lapse scenes of people scurrying around like harried ants grew wearisome after two minutes, let alone ten. The movie's metaphor of modern life as a type of hotdog highway, with people as the product, was soon made clear, but Reggio, seemingly uncertain of his audiences' intelligence, resolves to pound this thought into their group brain.

Likewise, Phillip Glass's score became an exercise in repetition that eventually began to grate on my ears. To be fair, Glass honestly captures the atmosphere of the movie and the repetition in the score is a faithful reflection of the cinematography. Given the singularity of Reggio's vision it's likely any other musical approach wouldn't have worked.

Koyaanisqatsi would have been great as a fifteen minute short subject, but like a guest who overstays his welcome, I was relieved to say farewell.

If I could rate this a 10... I would 2010-07-22

Reviewer: Thembi

AHMAZING, this film really makes you think about life, and how we live it. I went into watching this film without knowing anything about it includind the no words thing. But the music really makes up for it, and the breathtaking scenes last a lifetime. At first the opening scenes were a little hard for me to watch, especially since I thought it would break out into a scene like traditional moveis. But as I soon realized... it didn't matter. There are not enough great things or words I could say to describe this. All you have to do is leave behind your barriers and open the seal of consiousness, and you soon too will realize, we are only what nature allow us to be. See for youself the sped up and slomo scenes, better than any special effect I have ever seen, because it is real life.

An Important Feast For A New Generation 2010-07-14

Reviewer: Joseph L. Laws

I have read a number of reviews of Koyaanisqatsi and more often than not reviewers have placed this film in the praise category. I, too, have to agree. This film from 1983 continues to be a landmark achievement regaleling the state of our planet and what 'we' have done to ravage it, even if only a slice of the entire. The seamless beauty of the southwest is comparable to none. We are treated to vistas, mountains, peaks and valleys, awe inspiring clouds and then the reality of man, milling around as a colony of ants to all we create and all we destroy. An important lesson in our just realized eco-climate world. I've also read the bad reviews concerning it's supposedly bad 'aspect ratio', and 'sound' issues, and others saying "what a waste of time." To them I would have to wonder just how cultured and intelligent they are. Even in it's "bad" widescreen presentation it is a sumptuous and thought provoking piece of film history. Things may be somewhat 'cropped', but you only have to envision what you don't see to get the full meaning of what Koyaanisqatsi brings to the heart, soul and mind. I would not only highly recommend this film, but to challenge the viewer to take what is on screen, project what you feel, widen what you feel, and expand this to encompass the entire globe. I personally love this film because with each viewing I come away with something knew and even more thought concerning. There are other films that create the visions of our reality and they are all excellent in their nature, Koyaanisqatsi just prequels them, encouraging future visionalist to share that what we see, feel and hear concerns us all. So there, Koyaanisqatsi is what it is and so much more. An introspective journey of thought.

talking about Nostradamus 2010-06-27

Reviewer: Jimmy

The best example of Hollywood smartness. I say this movie 30 times before get the obvious: this is all about 9/11 event.

I have to say that seeing the United Airline plane scenes and seeing the the buildings falling down... had a profound effect on me. This movie makes Nostradamus looks like he wasn't even in kindergarten. It served to remind me of the main theme of the film, that the world of humans is overlaying nature, and that our world is out of balance. Some times viruses (terrorism) are the wild variables in a system that can destroy it and return things to balance.

Hollywood is many things... but stupid is not one of them.