Warner Bros.’ original plan was to release the film direct to video. But late into production, they decided to release it to theaters instead—which meant the aspect ratio had to be adjusted from fullscreen to widescreen.
Great informative article on Mask of the Phantasm, Ted. BTAS' animation style was certainly good enough to deserve being seen on the big screen as far as I'm concerned, even if that may not have initially been the plan.
Great stuff, Ted! For my money, MotP is the best Batman film. I cherish my “Batman Animated” book I received for Christmas 25 years ago. And, though I’m ashamed to admit it, I was today years old when I finally noticed Batman’s silhouette in the negative space on the MotP poster!
Oh man, I love the animated Batman movies. I went to a Fathom Events screening of this one a few years back and it looked SO GOOD! I never knew it was supposed to go direct to video and I'm even more grateful now to have seen it on a big screen. That's such a cool note about Hans Zimmer!
Dec 29, 2023·edited Dec 29, 2023Liked by Jeremy Burgess
I really like this article and your look at the differences between the 4:3 and 16:9 versions of the film. But I must point out there are actually 3 aspect ratio versions of 'Mask of the Phantasm.' The original theatrical aspect ratio was not 16:9, but 1.85:1.
16:9 is the default widescreen ratio for flatscreen TVs. It was established in the late 90s or early 2000s (don't remember when exactly) as film and television technology was shifting to digital. Part of the rationale was to allow for widescreen movies, especially composed for 1.85, to better fit TV screens. Thus, 1.85:1-composed movies appear with thin black bars on the top and bottom of a 16:9 television.
Until the 4k Remaster, Phantasm appeared on DVD/Bluray with a reframed 16:9 Widescreen version that filled the entirety of the screen. The 1.85:1 Version is the one that is now available as the 'Widescreen Version' on the new release.
Thanks for reading, Mikhail! You are correct that the 2023 4K remaster was the first home video release to feature the 1.85:1 version, restored from the original cut camera negatives, while the 2017 DVD/Blu-Ray release was in the 16:9 standard widescreen format.
Interestingly, at least to me, the press releases list the DVD/Blu-Ray release as the "original theatrical aspect ratio" and the 4K remaster as the "intended theatrical aspect ratio," so perhaps the mystery deepens! Regardless, what a privilege it is to have access to several versions.
Oh, I wasn't aware of the press release difference. That's indeed an interesting detail! I admit I've found somewhat conflicting information online regarding the ratio history, but to me it seemed only natural that 1.85 would be theatrical ratio given the 1992 release date. But perhaps there's more to it there.
Great informative article on Mask of the Phantasm, Ted. BTAS' animation style was certainly good enough to deserve being seen on the big screen as far as I'm concerned, even if that may not have initially been the plan.
Great stuff, Ted! For my money, MotP is the best Batman film. I cherish my “Batman Animated” book I received for Christmas 25 years ago. And, though I’m ashamed to admit it, I was today years old when I finally noticed Batman’s silhouette in the negative space on the MotP poster!
My copy of “Batman: Animated” is a prized possession as well. Thanks for reading!
Oh man, I love the animated Batman movies. I went to a Fathom Events screening of this one a few years back and it looked SO GOOD! I never knew it was supposed to go direct to video and I'm even more grateful now to have seen it on a big screen. That's such a cool note about Hans Zimmer!
I forgot that Fathom ran the film a few years ago! I missed those screenings, but I’m sure it was amazing.
I really like this article and your look at the differences between the 4:3 and 16:9 versions of the film. But I must point out there are actually 3 aspect ratio versions of 'Mask of the Phantasm.' The original theatrical aspect ratio was not 16:9, but 1.85:1.
16:9 is the default widescreen ratio for flatscreen TVs. It was established in the late 90s or early 2000s (don't remember when exactly) as film and television technology was shifting to digital. Part of the rationale was to allow for widescreen movies, especially composed for 1.85, to better fit TV screens. Thus, 1.85:1-composed movies appear with thin black bars on the top and bottom of a 16:9 television.
Until the 4k Remaster, Phantasm appeared on DVD/Bluray with a reframed 16:9 Widescreen version that filled the entirety of the screen. The 1.85:1 Version is the one that is now available as the 'Widescreen Version' on the new release.
Thanks for reading, Mikhail! You are correct that the 2023 4K remaster was the first home video release to feature the 1.85:1 version, restored from the original cut camera negatives, while the 2017 DVD/Blu-Ray release was in the 16:9 standard widescreen format.
Interestingly, at least to me, the press releases list the DVD/Blu-Ray release as the "original theatrical aspect ratio" and the 4K remaster as the "intended theatrical aspect ratio," so perhaps the mystery deepens! Regardless, what a privilege it is to have access to several versions.
Oh, I wasn't aware of the press release difference. That's indeed an interesting detail! I admit I've found somewhat conflicting information online regarding the ratio history, but to me it seemed only natural that 1.85 would be theatrical ratio given the 1992 release date. But perhaps there's more to it there.