Continue reading »]]> The other day, my favourite director, Ridley Scott, wrote an article in a paper about his thoughts around watching films and the format that this takes place in. Not surprisingly as a film-maker, he states that the best way to watch a film is at the cinema, the way it was intended to be viewed. There is no doubt of this, its a submersive experience with its large screen and powerful surround sound. Each generation of cinema technology has made it better and better. So much better in fact, that special effect make-up designers worry that their art might be visible thus diminishing the effect, which has brought in a debatable use of digital masking. 3D is also a far superior experience in the cinema and I do wonder how itll fair in the home.

I digress, the cinema is the best place to watch a film, there is no question. Scott carries on and muses that the next best thing is to experience a movie in Bluray, the high definition DVD that, until recently, was the subject of a format war with HD-DVD, reminiscent of the more famous battle of VHS and Betamax. This time Sony won and Bluray is the high def disc format. It took me a long time to decide to make a move to Bluray, but having done so, the quality really is superior and the sound matches that. The few discs I have watched have been astonishing. Alien is like a new film, Scott spent so much time ensuring he used the best grade film in 1978 that its transferred fantastically on to this new format. The Thing is similarly stunning, bring out the best in Rob Bottins make-up.

I follow technology a lot, I enjoy watching it and using it for practical applications and creating new pieces of work, whether that be this blog entry, or a new film or website. So, naturally, Ive tried streaming a good few films. I think there is a difference here between streaming a film from the internet and downloading a film to watch on TV. I dont like watching films on a computer, sure they have nice displays, but I want the comfort of my lounge, though I watch shorts this way. Downloaded films are not bad. They are compressed but Ive found that the quality is pretty good. The leading place to download films is iTunes and from what Ive heard, they dont do a simple disc transfer, they actually use the best quality version from the studio before making it available in the store. Casino Royale sticks in my mind as a very good transfer, as does The Big Blue. Though not true HD, they are comparable to DVD in a lot of cases.

Streaming is a different layer again. Streaming is when the film is available on the internet and a computer can play it directly. This involves a fair amount of compression and you can see this particularly in the shadows, where compression appears as blocks. I am a member of Lovefilm and they are constantly promoting their streaming service complete with free samples and Ive never been tempted. I do watch the odd bit of television via BBC iPlayer which is fine, but Im not going to start to watch films this way. Ridley Scott is right, one day itll work and the quality will be acceptable. Even now, fibre based broadband is populating across the country. I think it comes down to the technical detail of compression of the image and the audio. I’ve watched stunning films on Vimeo in HD that I would never have seen in the cinema or on disc as they have been made by smaller independent film-makers and this is the most efficient method of delivery. Again though, compare YouTube to Vimeo, the quality difference is quite profound.

So, in conclusion, I absolutely agree with Scotts article but am mindful that things move on and one day streaming will be the norm. I dont think itll ever replace the need for cinema. Cinema has a nostalgia associated to it and a social element that isnt easily replicated. There are networks that do this, but a real life conversation following a movie is hard to beat. Cinemas will have to change and perhaps be a little more welcoming and encourage their patrons (and staff) to participate further, giving a more rounded experience, rather than simply making up profit loses by selling overpriced concessions. Another digression, but the next few years are going to see change in the picture houses, in the home and on the internet.