What is an anamorphic, or 16:9 transfer?
In a 16:9 disc (also called anamorphic disc) the picture is stretched vertically 33% (4/3*100-100), and when played back with a normal TV set you see this stretched image. When played with a 16:9 TV set or with a TV set with a 16:9 switch, the original aspect ratio is restored. Here in Europe at least all of the mid- and high-end Philips and Sony 4:3 TV sets offer this button, and this mode is available on all 16:9 TV sets that I know of. The advantage is this: in a normal 2.35:1 NTSC transfer you get approx. 273 active video lines (482*1.33/2.35), but with a 16:9 release, you get approx. 364 lines (273/(4/3)*(16/9)). This will reduce line flicker and greatly enhance vertical resolution compared to a non-anamorphic representation. The same numbers for a 1.85:1 film are 347 and 475 lines. And this is really interesting: with this film format the 16:9 version has to leave only 7 NTSC video lines unused. Thus, you get the full resolution of NTSC in a widescreen release! Naturally, to make
