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Sara_Paris

Star says IMAX is a sham

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Back in the day, when a comedian got angry about something, he would tell a crowd in a comedy club about it. Now, thanks to the internet, if you make one funny guy mad he can let the whole world know. That's what happened when comic Aziz Ansari went to last weekend's big movie and found it to be not nearly as big as he expected.

 

The star of NBC's "Parks and Recreation" and Judd Apatow's upcoming "Funny People," bought a ticket on Monday for "Star Trek: The IMAX Experience." Though it cost an extra $5 over a standard admission, he thought it would be worth it at the time. What Trekkie wouldn't want to see Kirk and Spock on a six-story screen? Instead, Aziz found himself in a theater with a screen only slightly larger than normal. He felt wronged and decided to channel his anger into a furious, obscenity-laced blog post that has spread like wildfire. He has even called for a boycott of the theater chains involved, writing, "REGAL, AMC, AND IMAX - YOU ARE LIARS!"

Find out more about Aziz Ansari >>

Apparently, IMAX rolled out a digital projection system last year that can be easily installed in a normal movieplex and doesn't require those huge film reels of a traditional IMAX projector. The downside is that the screens of these "Fake IMAX" theaters -- as Aziz calls them -- can be as much as a quarter of the size of standard IMAX screen. The size discrepancy between them is shown here:

But the real problem is that the IMAX Corporation along with its partners, theater chains AMC and Regal Cinemas, are refusing to distinguish between the two formats. Moviegoers will not know what kind of IMAX experience they will have until their tickets have been ripped. The theaters however, are charging the same price for "fake" digital IMAX as they do for "real" film-based IMAX.

IMAX co-CEO Richard Gelfond argued that such a distinction is unnecessary because, "People don't say 'The 3 isn't a real BMW because it's smaller.'" As the LF Examiner -- a journal devoted to "large format" film -- points out, this is an illogical analogy: car buyers would be plenty upset if they paid around $120,000 for 7-series Beemer and instead received 3-series worth only $30k.

Gelfond also voiced concerns that older film-based theaters might be seen as "second-class citizens" when compared with their newer, cooler digital siblings. That seems unlikely, however. Though resolution for the digital IMAX is good -- slightly better than normal digital projection -- it still is a far cry from the resolution found in a film-based IMAX theater.

Confusing matters, filmmakers are now shooting sequences in their movies using IMAX's proprietary large-format cameras, designed specifically for a "real" IMAX experience. The first production to do this was "The Dark Knight," filling the entire frame with crystal-sharp clarity. This summer's "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" also has giant action scenes shot on IMAX film.

When asked about Aziz's internet screed, Gelfond was dismissive. He told MainStreet.com, "The overwhelming majority of comments on that guy's blog this morning, more than 90% of them, are vehemently disagreeing with him. And consumers are confirming this with their continued purchases of tickets."

In an apoplectic rebuttal on his blog, Aziz retorted: "WHAT A SURPRISE ANOTHER IMAX LIE. Who did those numbers? The same guy who measures your [expletive] tiny IMAX screens???" He then challenged Gelfond to a televised debate on the matter. As of writing this, Gelfond has yet to respond.

"Star Trek" will be on IMAX screens for another week, and then "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" takes over. To see all IMAX theaters in the U.S. -- both "real" and "fake" -- check out this list: http://www.lfexaminer.com/theaUSA.htm.

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We have an IMAX downtown that is a *real* IMAX. You lean back in a chair and they show the movie on the ceiling dome. You also have speakers in all corners of the theater (well, as many corners as a round theater can have anyway). THAT is IMAX the way it is supposed to be. If you see an IMAX movie in a regular movie house with an IMAX screen all you really get is a slightly larger screen.

 

Do some research before you pay the extra money.

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I agree with the complainants, it's all true.

 

Not a single scene of Star trek was shot with an IMAX camera so they should not be able to tout it as an IMAX experience because unless it is shot with an IMAX camera it is NOT an IMAX experience at all.

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I've never seen anythinng in IMAX. I didn't even know the screens were supposed to be bigger.

This should give you an idea of a real IMAX screen...

 

 

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Yeah, and when a film or scenes in it are shot with an IMAX camera that screen is completely full; that is IMAX.

 

Since no scene in Star Trek was filmed with an IMAX camera no scene ever fills it completely, it always has black bars at top and bottom.

 

You do not get what you paid extra for.

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I've never seen anythinng in IMAX. I didn't even know the screens were supposed to be bigger.

This should give you an idea of a real IMAX screen...

 

 

Fake by my standards.

What you're talking about though isn't a screen though, it's a celing lol.

 

I actually don't think I'd want to watch a movie on the celing, but that's just me and of course I've never seen one likt that so I don't know.

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So is it really not worth it to see Star Trek on the IMAX, then? There's an AMC theatres with an IMAX screen near me that I was planning on hitting up this weekend. But from what I heard here, it wouldn't be a real IMAX screen, and the movie wasn't shot with IMAX film anyway. If it's really not worth it, I'd rather go to a theater closer to me with cheaper tickets to see the movie again.

 

You owe it to yourself to see an IMAX film if you haven't seen one. Hit up a science museum: they usually have the best films. The first IMAX movie I ever saw was also the best one I ever saw. It was at the Smithsonian air and space museum and it was about very small and very large things, taking you inside an atom and out into the universe. It was QUITE AWESOME. I also saw one at a science museum in Kuwait about roller coasters, and it took you on several rides. You seriously get the feeling that you are riding on those rides because the screen is all around you. It was really funny to catch myself bracing in anticipation of going over a hill or taking a tight turn.

 

Now this is IMAX:

 

IMAX_theater_dolphins_1024_768.jpg

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So is it really not worth it to see Star Trek on the IMAX, then? There's an AMC theatres with an IMAX screen near me that I was planning on hitting up this weekend. But from what I heard here, it wouldn't be a real IMAX screen...

 

What I'd do is call them and ask them how big the screen is in comparison to a regular screen. Or even ask the usher if, before you buy a ticket if he or she would walk you into the theatre to see what it looks like because you want to see if it's worth your time and money.

 

That's what I'm going to do before I pay.

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Now this is IMAX:

 

IMAX_theater_dolphins_1024_768.jpg

Now THAT is IMAX!

 

And yes, if you can find an IMAX that is part of a museum, exploratorium, or science center those are better.

The first commercial movie I seen in IMAX was Attack of the Clones about a year after the regular theater release. The local chapter of the 501st Legion (a very large Star Trek fan club) held a trivia contest for those in line, I won the contest, and got to see Attack of the Clones again in IMAX. The next movie I saw in IMAX was Batman Begins, then Superman Returns. All these at the San Jose Tech Museum of Innovation. I saw The Dark Knight in IMAX, and had to drive 45 min away to do it, and it was a ripoff. Some scenes were pretty good, but would have been even better on the ceiling.

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Thanks for the suggestion! I did call them and the woman I talked to couldn't find out how big the screen was, but she did say it was a screen on the wall and not one of those all-encompassing IMAX screens. So I decided to forgo the longer drive and $13.50 price tag to go to a closer theater with tickets for $2.50. Awesome.

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There's a local IMAX theater here, but they never got Star Trek. The only "real" movie I saw there was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, they had The Dark Knight, but every time they had a showing, I was busy. It's a real IMAX screen too.

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I have never been to one but if the one at Six Flags in New Jersey was one I wouldn't know. It was a crescent shaped room with the screen covering half the wall and they did a helicopter ride thru the Grand canon, a roller coaster ride, Which gave you the feeling of being on it. Yes people where grabbing the rails and holding on. Me i learned a long time ago how to stand on a boat that was rocking back and forth. But right now from reading this post I have missed out on something big. From whats been said you haven't lived life until you include an Imax experience.

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From whats been said you haven't lived life until you include an Imax experience.

 

Haha, I'd say that's a bit of an exaggeration! :roflmao: But it definitely is a really cool thing to do.

 

This theater at Six Flags... is it one of those where you sit down and the seats move and stuff? I love that!

Edited by ensign_beedrill

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