DVD R1 - America - Inspector Gadget UPDATED

[Christian_Bütikofer]

http://www.dvdcompare.net/comparisons/f ... ?fid=518#1

Subtitles: English HoH only
AR: 1.85.1 - anamorphic
Runtime: 78:19
Extras:
"Go Inside Inspector Gadget" featurette (22:05)
Youngstown Music Video (3:31)
Theatrical Trailer (1:17)
Film Recommendations (2 pages) (no trailers, just the pictures of the dvd covers)
- George of the Jungle
- My Favorite Martian
- Mighty Joe Young
- Air Bud
- The Santa Clause
- Mr. Magoo

[Anthony_DiPaola]

I'm reading a couple of reviews and they say the DVD is non-anamorphic:

https://www.hometheaterforum.com/commun ... ity.16816/
https://www.remotecentral.com/dvd/inspectorgadget.htm
https://dvdizzy.com/inspector.html

[Christian_Bütikofer]

Well... this looks non-anamorphic to me:

[Anthony_DiPaola]

I'll take your word for it, but are you sure your settings for that TV or the player are correct? Because people can modify/adjust the presentation by zooming in, I'm not saying you did but maybe you did for another non-anamorphic DVD and just forgot?

Because it wouldn't make sense for a DVD people have stated is non-anamorphic and suddenly find out it's the opposite.

[Christian_Bütikofer]

I didn't do any tweaking. In fact, my player (Panasonic DP-UB450) and TV have very limited features for that anyway. Could it be that there exist different versions for this release? I remember something like this happened with other releases too (first pressing non-anamorphic, second anamorphic without a clear declaration). On the bottom of the cover it states: "Inspector Gadget is presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio, aproximately 1.85:1". This seems right, since it has in fact a little black rim all around (also left and right). So it is not "really" 1.85:1 anamorphic but way closer to an anamorphic format than pictures I saw that were non-anamorphic with big black bars all around.

[Christian_Bütikofer]

Something other is odd too: My release has no French subtitles. But in the link from DVDDizzy there it's written that the release has French subs. It could be a different release from Disney...

[Anthony_DiPaola]

It could be...

Odd no one else was aware of it...

Could you share me pictures of the cover and disc art? And if possible, put the disc in the computer and see the dates for the digital files?

[Christian_Bütikofer]

I did another check now: In PowerDVD (Version 19) it is non-anamorphic if I choose to use the original setting.

It's very odd: I own the non-anamorphic Universal release of "Two-Minute Warning" (http://www.dvdcompare.net/comparisons/f ... fid=8008#1). It is shown in a non-anamorphic format, like I want it: My equipment is supposed to play everytime the original format, no tweaks. Then why does it show non-anamorphic "Inspector Gadget" "blown up" but "Two-Minute Warning" non-anamorphic?:

Btw, I have the same issue with the movie "B. Monkey". It was released by Miramax/Buena Vista at the time. It is from the early dvd days, like Inspector Gadget. On PowerDVD it is clearly non-anamorphic, but in my player, it is the same as Inspector Gadget. It has the same disclaimer "... aproximately 1.85:1..." on the cover.

[Anthony_DiPaola]

Anamorphic on one player and non-anamorphic on something else. That is the weirdest thing I've seen a DVD ever do.

Well, I can add the specific (runtimes on the film and) extras, but the video and audio specifications have to still stand. Is that alright?

[Christian_Bütikofer]

Yes, this is the best solution, I guess. Also correct the subtitles: There are no French subtitles.

[Anthony_DiPaola]

Many thanks and for your cooperation throughout all of this! Updated.

Incidentally, this is an underrated movie (never saw the whole thing in full myself, but I didn't think it was bad). I remember going to McDonald's on a regular basis to get all the toys to build Inspector Gadget. Ironically, all the pieces are now missing!

[Christian_Bütikofer]

Hey, no problem. We here in Switzerland never had the hype about Inspector Gadget ,-) - actually I knew about it but only as an animated series. I like Broderick as an actor, that's why I bought it in the first place . What really wonders me is this phenomenon about the non-anamorphic thing. Maybe James knows something about it? I swear: The settings are the same in my tv and player. And I did every precaution that my player and tv don't do any unwanted "optimization"... It is startling for me that as I said: Inspector Gadget is not the only movie where this happens. I have two examples, which I wrote, both from ultimately Disney factories: In PowerDVD on the computer: Yes: non-anamorphic. On my screen: Full screen, or say practically 1.85:1. With this same note on the back cover. Every other non-anamorphic release I own - from Universal (US release, R1 for Two-Minute Warning) and other companies (Germany): It is non-anamorphic, as declared. Since I am only a "user" and lack knowledge about technical details: Maybe I am missing something? As said, I guess James Masaki-Ryan knows more about this? If you have the time: Ask him about this, it would interest me a lot.

[Christian_Bütikofer]

btw: Both movies "Inspector Gadget" and "B. Monkey" have this "Wide Screen" claim on the spine:

[James-Masaki_Ryan]

I'm not sure if it's a similar issue, but I have the Warner Charles Chaplin DVDs, which all films are non-anamorphic 1.33:1. But the discs seem to be mistakenly flagged to "zoom" on widescreen monitors so the image looks cropped from top to bottom. Not sure what is going on with "Inspector Gadget" here.