Hi Def TV VS Special Effects

[palitoy]

So I finally got an HD TV and I love watching movies that now look like they were shot on Video. It's like everthing is made by the BBC!

One thing I have noticed is, some movies and TV don't take to it as well as others:

The Black Hole- Now I can finally see Old Bob's wires!

Space:1999- Some of the second season effects sequences now look really shabby, the picture quality is never better though.

Ultraman- I think the show is more fun to watch on VHS

Any 90s attempts at CGI- Watching "Escape from LA" (I know) and Snake's sub looked like it came out of an Activision 2600 game. Don't get me started on the "Xena/Hercules" shows....

[madmarva]

To me, miniature models in even well made films fail to hold up well on HD televisions as they do on the screen or standard definition set. I don't know if it because the screens (even a 65 incher) are so much smaller than the bigs that the models look even moretoylike to me, or if its because in the theater I'm seeing the movie for the first time and my eye isn't as picky as it is upon second viewing at home.

I've been recently watching the regular DVDs of the first seasons of $6 million Man and Space 1999, and I've really been taken by the quality of the images (not so much the effects) just because the last time I saw them the reception was through an antenna.

What's really rough is watching older, cheaply produced DVDs of movies on HD. The issues just explode in your face.

But, blu-ray discs really look great in HD. It's kind of the old information in = equals information out. The crappier a DVD is the crappier it's going to look in HD and vice versa.

[megoapesnut]

I don't know how I lived without HDTV and Blu-ray. Sorta like, how did I ever function with a DVR? I have a tough time watching anything that isn't Hi Def anymore. I actually like to see the FX idiosyncrasies in Hi Def. Kinda adds to the charm of older movies, IMO.

[MIB41]

Brian are you talking about a high def television or a 3D television? From what your saying it sounds more like the effects a 3D TV gives off. My father-in-law has a 3D TV and I watch movies that now look like they were filmed like live soap operas. It completely destroys the cinematic effect.

[mego73]

If you want to moderate the "video/soap opera" effect you can disable your TV's Motion interpolation settings that smooth the motion in the picture by generating additional frames. It takes away from a film like look. Same for you MIB41. They are called different things on different brands of TV that have 120hz or higher.

motion interpolation

On my TV, that is usually turned off and the blu ray supplies HD video in 24p (24 frame progressive) and using those settings the motion is very filmlike.

So I finally got an HD TV and I love watching movies that now look like they were shot on Video. It's like everthing is made by the BBC!

One thing I have noticed is, some movies and TV don't take to it as well as others:

The Black Hole- Now I can finally see Old Bob's wires!

Space:1999- Some of the second season effects sequences now look really shabby, the picture quality is never better though.

Ultraman- I think the show is more fun to watch on VHS

Any 90s attempts at CGI- Watching "Escape from LA" (I know) and Snake's sub looked like it came out of an Activision 2600 game. Don't get me started on the "Xena/Hercules" shows....

[palitoy]

I don't know how I lived without HDTV and Blu-ray. Sorta like, how did I ever function with a DVR? I have a tough time watching anything that isn't Hi Def anymore. I actually like to see the FX idiosyncrasies in Hi Def. Kinda adds to the charm of older movies, IMO.

Agreed, it's totally worth it for me, I just found it funny how some effects fair better than others.

Brian are you talking about a high def television or a 3D television? From what your saying it sounds more like the effects a 3D TV gives off. My father-in-law has a 3D TV and I watch movies that now look like they were filmed like live soap operas. It completely destroys the cinematic effect.

No I wouldn't buy a 3d anything.

[Gorn Captain]

So what you're saying, is that for the kind of older movies that I most enjoy, I'd better not upgrade my TV. Just what I thought.
It's a bit like looking at an old painting: if you're going to look at it with a super microscope, all you're going to see are smears and dots, and not the beautiful art...

But I can imagine that HD TV and Blu-ray work really well together. Maybe I should have two TV sets, one for old movies, one for Blu-Rays...

[cjefferys]

If you want to moderate the "video/soap opera" effect you can disable your TV's Motion interpolation settings that smooth the motion in the picture by generating additional frames. It takes away from a film like look. Same for you MIB41. They are called different things on different brands of TV that have 120hz or higher.

motion interpolation

On my TV, that is usually turned off and the blu ray supplies HD video in 24p (24 frame progressive) and using those settings the motion is very filmlike.

This. My HDTVs don't have this feature so all the movies I watch look really nice and film-like in high definition, but whenever I go to the store and see a TV with the motion interpolation setting on playing a movie, I can't believe how unnatural and "soap opera"-like they look.

[Earth 2 Chris]

I notice that my HDTV sometimes interprets rapid movement differently than a normal TV. I don't know how to describe it, but it has a bit of that "video tape" feeling to it. It actually makes it feel more real to me. It does jar me a bit when I watch something that I know from repeat viewings on normal TVs.

Another thing I noticed on my HDTV combined with my Blu-Ray player: the make-up artists on Smallville didn't do a real good job of blending. Erica Durance sometimes has an orange face and pale neck!!!

chris

[mego73]

Motion interpolation. It's usually set to on because it makes sports look better but it can be turned off

I notice that my HDTV sometimes interprets rapid movement differently than a normal TV. I don't know how to describe it, but it has a bit of that "video tape" feeling to it. It actually makes it feel more real to me. It does jar me a bit when I watch something that I know from repeat viewings on normal TVs.

Another thing I noticed on my HDTV combined with my Blu-Ray player: the make-up artists on Smallville didn't do a real good job of blending. Erica Durance sometimes has an orange face and pale neck!!!

chris

[mego73]

No, I think older movies look great in HD.

So what you're saying, is that for the kind of older movies that I most enjoy, I'd better not upgrade my TV. Just what I thought.
It's a bit like looking at an old painting: if you're going to look at it with a super microscope, all you're going to see are smears and dots, and not the beautiful art...

But I can imagine that HD TV and Blu-ray work really well together. Maybe I should have two TV sets, one for old movies, one for Blu-Rays...

[cjefferys]

No, I think older movies look great in HD.

Absolutely. My oldest film on Blu-ray is Buster Keaton's "The General", from 1926. It's the best I've ever seen it look.

[mego73]

I was pre advised about the "soap opera effect" so I knew what to do to turn it off. So, except for some times seeing how it looked, I never really watched something with the motion interpolation engaged.

So, inspired by this thread I watched a Star Trek episode from blu ray with it engaged to full. Man that was odd. It looked like a soap opera alright. Motion appeared to be subtly faster too. Also, turned up to full, it has trouble handling very rapid movement (such as the reverse zoomed titles which had artifacts). I could not put up with that overly smooth look unless it was video tape to begin with. But things in the show didn't look any more phony then they already did. Some people say that the effect makes movies look more phony. It could be the quality of that TV's interpolation.

I really relish how I get a film like movement flicker with 24p blu ray video. I do notice that with motion interpolation set to low on 24p material, it smooths the flicker a bit but still retains a film like motion. However, DVD and HD films off the cable box or netflix box will gain the soap opera effect with the MI just set on low. I think that is because you are still dealing with a 30 or 60 hz frame rate that the movie's 24 frame frame rate was 3:2 pulled down to (while the blu ray can output at a true 24 frame rate).

but I am so glad MI has an off switch.