OK Ive been reading here for some time and due to this forum my panny ae200 arrives tomorrow So I need to impress the wife as I have explaines the logic of why we need a projector above food and clothes etc...So what films are gonna look good and which ones should I stay clear of straight outa the box so to speak....
Thanks guys

[Mylo]

I would try Road To Perdition. It will test the black levels. It looks superb on a well set up CRT so a decent PJ should look ace ( I assume ).

Regards, Mylo

[powlest]

Show the wife Toy story, she'll be won over straight away

Originally posted by rizla
I have explaines the logic of why we need a projector above food and clothes etc...

That's dedication

For some , anything animated, Shrek, Ice Age (black level won't be a problem with this one ), Monsters Inc.,Toy Story etc..

For a "regular" film, anything in 16/9 should do the trick (always looks better than 2.35:1 when trying to impress).

Best of luck & welcome to the forums

[buns]

Originally posted by Kramer
For a "regular" film, anything in 16/9 should do the trick (always looks better than 2.35:1 when trying to impress).

Unless you have it properly masked in which case it doesnt matter!

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Nope, 16/9 still has more "wow" factor. Bigger picture (we're talking square footage here man ), more light hitting the screen.......

I reckon Monsters Inc. is THE one to get jaws dropping.

[buns]

Ah but there are more good films in scope....... guess it depends whether you simply want someone to say 'wow, show me something else!' or 'Wow' followed by settling back and watching!

I always thought vertical limit was pretty good 16:9 show off..... always feel that animation is a bit of a cheat, even an average machine can look pretty good with it.

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[tonytigerrr]

make sure its anamorphic 16:9 and not letterbox where you have to zoom like with some older DVDs - try four weddings and a funeral if you want to make you pj look really bad.

You cant get much better than the Band of Brothers box set for showing off you 16:9 big screen. More recently I thought the car crash scene in Final Destination 2 looked pretty impressive. If you like animation then try the first couiple of chapters from Titan AE....

[gandley]

id go with star wars attack of the clones.

the bit where obiwan jumps out the window to chase the asasin all the way to the bar.

with a pj the depth of pic is unreal.

[theritz]

K,

I reckon Monsters Inc. is THE one to get jaws dropping.

...................wouldn't have argued with this until 2 days ago - I reckon Finding Nemo is the new standard in animation movies for projector show-off - the colours are absolutely staggering, and the rendition of underwater environment, water surfaces etc. is brilliant. Won't discuss whether Monsters Inc is a better movie (as in storyline, gags etc. ) - to each his own.


Sean G.

Nice one Guys.....Seems a Pixar production will do the trick then....i

[Smurfin]

Sean

I thought Finding Nemo is the worst Pixar DVD I've seen...

[theritz]

Matt,

I've no desire to take this thread off-topic, but I don't agree with the "worst" tag - at the end of the day one's view of what represents good "show-off" material is purely personal - when giving a "demo" for others, I would normally veer towards "the usual suspects" - Fifth Element superbit, AOTC, LOTR (FOR and TT) etc. I'm also a fan of the Eagles' Hell Freezes Over and Eric Clapton both in DTS - decent transfers and wicked sound....... I thought that the transfer quality of Matrix Reloaded is super, and there is certainly a rich vein of demo material there.................

However, as far as Finding Nemo is concerned, the following quotes from Phil's review for the forum are interesting......

..............The under water scenes are breathtaking in their depth and realism, as a treat on this disc you can actually select from a number of backgrounds used in the movie as screensavers for your TV or Projector. The animation for the main characters is also spot on with the fish taking on human subtleties yet looking totally believable...................................... The animation is stunning and the story wonderfully told with good action and humour. This is a movie for the whole family and can be viewed on enough levels to keep every age group happy, highly recommended. 9/10

The picture is very nearly reference quality with the underwater world looking very realistic and with good detail on show. The backdrop to marlins home is stunning with the surrounding coral plants moving with the water and the light reflecting in a natural way. The characters do look animated and not as realistic animals but the facial expressions are detailed and look good. You soon forget you are watching computer generated images. Colours are rich and varied as we move through the ocean world, starting with rich tropical blues along with oranges and yellows which always look natural and do not suffer from any bleed. The open ocean takes on a deep mixture of blues to create a feeling of depth; you really believe you are far beneath the ocean.

The picture does however display some slight encoding problems, most noticeably in darker scenes with bright objects present such as the angler fish scene. The bright light looks good but the surrounding background gives into macro blocking effects around the edges. This however is the only problem I noticed of any interest, some of the slight edge enhancement seen on my display screen at over 7ft would probably not be seen on a standard Plasma or 32” CRT TV.

Overall whilst not perfect, you will be amazed with the realistic and natural images which are superbly detailed and coloured, very good indeed. 9/10

Overall

Well Pixar hit Gold again with this brilliant movie which can be enjoyed by anyone of any age. The AV presentation is also very good with some extras worth watching, recommended. 8/10

These quotes are selective, but I don't believe they are unrepresentative of the review, which is posted in full here . I haven't viewed the movie with the sufficient criticality to notice the encoding issues referred to above - I've watched it a couple of times and have only noticed a particularly "lurchy" layer change.

At the end of the day we all have different opinions etc. - this would be a dull and un-populated place otherwise


All the best,


Sean.

Just a thought but wouldn't something like Ocean's Eleven with George Clooney and Brad Pitt be more impressive to those of a female sensibility than a film with a well rendered clown fish or one-eyed pea?

[JUS]

I agree. I think FN is the worst movie Pixar have made as well. I'd only use it for a demo if the people I'm showing have seen the film already.

My favs for demos are

1. Phantom Menace - Pods race.

2. LOTR - Mines of Moira

3. Start of Toy Story 2

4. Clone wars - the clone wars.

5. The hulk - desert scene when he sorts out the tanks.

I've had a pj for nearly a year and the wife has watched about three films. I'd recommend for the wife...

LOTR

The boring singing one with Ewan McGregor.

Chicargo - which I haven't seem but the wife is keen to see it.

Amile. The enjoyable very French movie.

Jus.

As posted in another thread, I think Ferris Bueller's Day Off has one of the most detailed and sharpest pictures I have seen on DVD. The variety of locations in the film give ideal opportunity for a variety of colours ranging from the leafy suburb of Chicago, the stunning lake side sky line, the art gallery visit and street carnival towards the climax of the film. Anyone who has seen the film will know what I mean.

The film itself is also quite funny too and a blast from the past for anyone growing up in the 80's.

Always one I show for picture quality, however my copy is a Region 1 NTSC version, so in theory the Region 2 PAL version which was released many months later should look even better!

[Dak]

It has to be Oceans Eleven mate. If anything like mine, she'll be too busy drooling at all those males hunks to worry about the picture!

[gandley]

I thought the best thing to show the other half would be somthing with the worst pic.

that way she just gets in a huff and leaves and lets us to get on and enjoy with no interruption

[Seahorse]

You know your wife better than we do, slam on a film that appeals to HER. Personally if I am showing off, the options (victims personality taken into account) include:

Saving Pte Ryan (Beach Assault)
Star Wars Episode 2 (Sonic Mines or anything with a Light Sabre)
Gladiator (any fight)
Shrek (all)
Starship Troopers (First couple of minutes)
Die Another Day (any set piece)
5th Element (any bit you like)
LOTR (You shall not pass )
blah
drone
etc

my missus is not interested in the slightest,she popped her round the door and said "thats good,you look comfy,ill leave you to it"


no interest whatsoever

whereas my 2yr old was mesmerised by shrek on a 7ft screen