Most likely culprit there was a sound format cue in the wrong place between the last trailer and the beginning of the feature. Once DTS is playing in digital and the cinema processor is switched out, it takes an interruption and resumption of the DTS playback to cause the system to switch back to digital, unless the digital button is manually pressed. (exception here would likely be with the DTS-6AD)

Aaron: How much do you want to bet that every show is playing in SR now because of this wrong cue?

Projection: Program started 5 minutes early with one rolling stock ad (can't remember name), and several previews New James Bond, Minority Report, etc.) Ceiling light stayed on during previews gently flooding the center of the screen. Lights at this theatre always start dimming AFTER the Pacific snipe, and take at LEAST 30 seconds to dim all the way out.

The projection had a good steady brightness and was extremely steady. However, it was not uniformely focused. The left side of the image was slightly out of focus. The theatre has recently cleaned the portal glass, so the usual diffusion didnt' take place.

Print quality: I also noted the white spreckles, but only during the scenes in the robot manufacturing plant. There were several reels, however, that appeared to have black scuff marks, quite a few actually. Since it was spread over several reels, I'm attributing it to the theatre. Small dirt flecks were also showing up here and there, not bad yet, but give it time

The sound was excellent. Full bodied, with plenty of bass. Dialog was exceptionally clear, with no peaking or "boomy" low-end. EX was used quite a bit more this time out.

Note: While the color was pretty rich on the CG images, the humans exhibited the more limited fleshtone range I've seen in other DV productions (yes, I know this is DVCAM, not consumer DV). Also, they tended not to look as sharp as the CG-generated characters and effects. Is it possible that these were produced at the usual 2k resolution level instead at the HD level used for the taped segments?

I should note this theatre is ALSO showing the film in their smallest (99 seat) theatre, featuring a very small 22 foot screen. I peeked into this auditorium and the image was flickering quite a bit (didnt look like a shutter problem, just a poor xenon lamp). The theatre was at least honest enough to have multiple signs over every Boxoffice window stating that the showtimes in this house were showing a "No Large Sccreen" presentation.

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As many have noted here, one of the first things I noticed was the difference in focus between the live action and cgi scenes. I also noticed some of the "graininess" and digital artifacts in the darker scenes. Beyond that, the image quality on the film was good.

The print that I saw had picked up some dirt, but was scratch free. The print was printed from a clean negative. I didn't see any of the white specs that many others have noticed. The focus was a touch soft on ths right side of the frame, but just a bit. The sound mix and reproduction was great. Good use of the EX system, but I agree that the lack of directionality in the dialog was even more noticeable with an otherwise well-mixed soundtrack.

It does sound like a malfunction of the "new" CAP Code being used on some prints.

REVIEW #1
Mesa Dellow Feligates

I have now seen AOTC at the DLP in Legacy and at the UA Galaxy.

The DLP had SUPERIOR video over the Galaxy (and I'm sure any other 35mm print). I mean the DLP was almost TOO crystal clear. I will say this: I'm willing to chalk up the 35mm prints grainy/fuzz picture quality to transfer from digital.

HOWEVER!!!!!!!!!

THX AT THE GALAXY IS ABSOLUTELY OUT OF THIS WORLD!!!!!! I'M NOW OFFICIALY DONE SEEING AOTC AT THE LEGACY. It was good one time for the "experience it the way Lucas intended" thing, but NOTHING ABSOLUTLEY NOTHING BEATS THE THX SOUND IN THEATER 5 AT THE UA GALAXY 9.

My goal is to see AOTC at least 10 times in the theater. I've now seen it twice. I have 8 more trips to make to the Galaxy. Yes that's right THE GALAXY!!!!!!!!

REVIEW #2
Ok guys. I have to agree with Eric on this one. We (Eric D., Eric S., Kenley, Kevin, and I) made our second viewing of AOTC today, and we trekked all the way out to the Galaxy and......

IT IS ABSOLUTELY WORTH IT!!!

You definately need to see the movie at least once or twice on the DLP at the Legacy for the picture's sake. But nothing can beat the feeling you get when the Force (read: THX) flows thru you and all your surroundings. Everything was vibrating: the concrete, the chairs, our clothes, even the little hairs on your arms and back of your neck.

I personally think the very best sequence to hear in THX was the Slave 1 vs. Jedi Starfighter duel in the asteroid belt, but the opening sequence with the Naboo ship approaching Coruscant was pretty good as well.

Please do yourself a favor and take a trip out to the Galaxy to treat yourself to one helluva ride in good ol' theater #5!!

REVIEW #3
We went to the Galaxy tonight for the 7:30 show and I'd have to say it was way better than the Legacy. Picture quality was noticeably worse than the DLP when I was looking for hte difference but the THX sound was just so much better. I'm definitely going back to the Galaxy to see it again and again.

REVIEW #4
I will agree with eric as well. DLP was perfect too perfect. You can see the difference in the prints, but the sounds makes any imperfections in the print disappear very quickly. One thing is for sure the 35mm gives the film an older feel like the original Trilogy. And that with THX made it all the better.

I do say this see it in DLP first and you will appreciate both more. The CG on the DLP was some times impossible to differenciate. Where as in the THX Galaxy you could see the differences a lil bit more clearly. Even still it was Stunning. Sound does make for a better movie. Either way see it both ways DLP and THX. you will not be disappointed...

Red 5 Out

REVIEW #5
well, last night I took my family to view it at the galaxy in theater 5 and all I can say is WOW!, that is such a better experience than the Legacy. The digital picture was impressive and all but it just doesn't compare, not even close to the galaxy. Between the the huge screen and the thx sound, which to me made all the difference in the world, the experience is a no brainer. The galaxy wins hands down. The sheer size or the screen makes up the difference for the clarity, but you can't match the sound anywhere and that is what I love. I have to drive quite a ways to see it any ways so what is 15-20 more minutes for the better experience. It is the galaxy for me. I hope next time we choose the theater with the best total experience and not just the best picture.

COMMENT from a hard-core "digital is always better" guy who has not yet been to the Galaxy
Someone from Cinemark (I'm guessing) told her that the sound for OPENING Night WAS NOT calibrated right off of the DLP. Thus it WAS NOT heard the way their system was capable of playing inside Theatre 13 at Legacy.

REVIEW #6
I went tonight to the Galaxy and I will have to say the sound is outstanding! But I liked the visual of the DLP much better. The only thing that was better on the film was when Ct Dooku steppped into the shadows, you can see the door behind him better, but thats IT!

The frame rates just didnt look like it was right on some of the shots, Especially the pans, and several of the Cloning room shots in paticular, seemed alot clearer on the DLP.

Of course, I havent fully made up my mind yet, I'll have to see the DLP once again with the improved sound to see if that will help win me back to the Legacy.

REVIEW #7
Okay, as mentioned I've seen it at both now, and with the sound ramp-up at the Legacy, they get my vote unequivocably!

The depth and clarity of the digital image, combined with the almost alive colors everything had, has spoiled me...plus I dig the shot in the digital version, where Padme grasps Anakin's mechanical hand in the wedding scene.

DLP all the way on this one!!!

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It is important to note that the "comment" and "review #7" came from two people who previously voiced their strongly opposed opinions to watching the movie any way other than DLP because "that's the way George Lucas intended it to be seen". As such, I don't put much consideration into their reports, for they are biased going into it, but I posted all the reviews here to be fair.

Why in the world would Cinemark supposedly not have their system tuned properly for opening day of Episode II in their DLP auditorium? I'm not buying that one. (I think the guy just doesn't want to admit he was wrong after all of his pro-DLP babble before the movie opened.)

See George, size DOES matter and sound can count more than 50% of the experience. At least that's what your loyal lightsaber carrying fans are saying.

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14:30 Screen 13 Ster Centuary Cinemas, Leeds

According to the Website
This screen is Dolby EX. (All the screens are SR*D, and the two largest 12 and 13 are also EX).

There is top masking, which lowers to scope after the flat adverts/trailers.
There was a copy of the SR*D (Aurora i think) tag played infront of the film.

Carlton Screen Advertising plays with lights on about half. Lights go down for trailers and film. Trailers were, Minority Report, Bond 20, Scooby Do (was a short 30 sec teaser)

I sat on the 3rd row back from the front (Row L) The rows are numbered from back to front - Row A being the back row.

Pretty Good.

There was grain noticible in a few scenes. (There were a few scenes in the middle which looked like it was snowing)

The print didn't seem to be dirty ect.

The sound was ok. At first i thought the sound was just a bit too low. But during the end lightsiber scene the volume seemed ok. Good bass. The surround channels weren't used a lot, (music seemed to come from just the front) but there were some scenes in which the surrounds nicely jumped into life.

Good splices. Most of the reel changes went through without me noticing.

Date/Time: 2002/05/20 19:00
Theatre: Regal River Oaks Cinema 8, Decatur, AL
Auditorium: 6
Format: Scope
Sound: DTS
Auditorium width: 52 feet.
Screen width: 40 feet (scope mode) [adjustable side masking]

Image: Excellent. No scratches or dirt noticeable. Print was very clean, as typical for this theatre. I'm confident I could go back in a month or two and this print would still look great at this particular location. I did notice a couple of lab splices and one "CAP code" frame during the movie.

Audio: Excellent. Before the show, I asked the manager if both of his prints arrived without defects and he said no, that one reel of one print had a defective DTS time code. A replacement was ordered and the new reel was in place. A one to two minute period during the arena fighting played in analog, and I'd be willing to bet that it was due to a print defect. I say this because this was the first time I'd ever heard the DTS default to analog during a movie in this theatre and due to the seemingly high defect rate on these prints. I did not deduct for that dropout in my rating system. The analog sound was well calibrated so the dropout was not noticeable to most people.

Other: The image seemed to be well-focused and if I had not known the movie was shot digitally, I doubt I would have ever known. During the credits, I walked up to the screen and could not see any pixelation of the letters in the credits. I was a bit surprised by this.

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Evans A Criswell
Huntsville-Decatur Movie Theatre Information Site

Contained trailers for Goldmember, Minority Report, MIB 2. I wasn't impressed with the way they looked, the fleshtones seemed a bit too purplish/pink in color. Minority Report had dirt on the image.

The Clones was a mixed bag to me. I wasn't impressed with dark scenes, like the part where the bugs are on Amidala's bed while she's sleeping and the guys come in and kill them. That part had lots of digital artifacting. Also, I noticed alot of digital shimmering that I notice alot while watching dvd's. The fleshtone's of Amidala, Anakin and several other characters had a purplish/pink hue to them, but Im not sure if that was the intended look or not. Plus, I thought alot of the picture was not as sharp as it could've been.

Also, I noticed something which I called digital platter wear. Three times during the last half of the movie, a small white line appeared, similar to some lines on VHS (which would be a grey shiny line), if the tapes been played too much or is old or whatever. Anyone know what kind of defect this is?

May 20, 2002
Showtime: 10:15 pm
Regal Entertainment Group
Mall of Georgia 20 and Regal IMAX
Screen 2

Trailers:
FBL, Fandango, Nestea, Minority Report, MIB 2, three other previews (can't remember all of them), Regal policy trailer.

Auditorium/equipment:
Stadium seating, about 200 or so seats, screen was approximately 45 feet wide. The top row of seats was so high that anyone walking by crossed in front of the projector (only at the bottom of the image). Projector was a Simplex Millenium, on a Super Highlight console. Strong Alpha platters. There were two types of digital sound available, SDDS and Dolby EX. It was hard to say which format the feature was played in, but my guess would be the EX.

Presentation/feature:
The show started with the projectionist hanging out of the booth and looking around to see what was going on. The house lights stayed up all the way until the feature started. After that, smooth sailing, except for the occasional pixelation in some of the background animations. Also, in one fight seen (in the droid factory), as the camera "panned" the entire picture became extremely blurry, and came back to excellent focus when it stopped. There was apparently a bad splice (very rough) at the beginning of the ending credits. It looked like there may have been film missing as the Lucasfilm logo didn't fade in smoothly. After the splice (or whatever), the sound dropped out completely for almost a full second.

Overall, I'd say that I enjoyed the experience. Except for the little glitch at the end, the presentation was excellent. The movie could have used a little more Padme wearing her white spandex, but that's something for another review.

Please see my earlier DLP review.

Theater: SilverCity Coquitlam, screen #8, 7:50pm showing. 300 seat theater or so, sold out.

35MM.

Image Quality.

I have some mixed emotions about the picture quality. The film was very clean, and almost no visible dirt. The was one in frame splice, but it was quite clean, and I don't think it was a lab splice. There were a couple of very, very long scratches. One was dead center in the frame and lasted about 4 reels or so. Fortunately, it was very, very thin, and I doubt many people noticed it. The other one was about one quarter of the way from the right side, and was a bit thicker than the one in the centre, but it only lasted a reel and a half. I would guess that most people would have noticed it, but it was very consistent (didn't weave or change position or thickness very quickly), so it wasn't too distracting.

Another problem I saw was related to the actual theatre. There were several speakers behind the screen that appeared to be missing part of the black masking, and they were reflecting some light through the screen. Fortunately, it looked like only small pieces were missing, and the reflections were easy to ignore. On a side note, screen #2 at the same location has a speaker behind the screen completely missing it's black masking, and it is much harder to ignore.

The film overshot the masking on the left side of the screen by a large amount, so much so the movie was almost projecting on the side wall of the theatre. There was a little bit of overshot on the bottom, but the top and right side were perfect.

The colour was quite good, but not nearly as rich and vibrant as the DLP showing I saw. Still, it was quite good, with one exception: the darks. In every dark shot, the darks had red and blue chroma errors to a varying degree. Sometimes, it was very evident, and then in the same scene from a different angle, it would be almost gone (but not quite). I never saw this during the DLP presentation, and I suspect it might be part of the print process from digital to film.

I believe that this was caused by a combination of things. When you have lossy compression, you get a lot of these chroma errors, but they tend to be very small. If you then increase the colour intensity in the image/video, you increase the visibility of the chroma errors. I was able to achieve the exact same effect by taking a picture of my cat, converting it to jpeg, and then increasing the intensity to a point where the colours were much more vibrant, but still acurate. My guess is that they cranked up the colour at the expense of the contrast.

One thing that I didn't have a problem with was the resolution. Unlike the DLP show, I didn't walk out with sore eyes. Without the previously mentioned chroma problem, I don't think I would have known this was shot in DV without being told. Even with the image problems I've mentioned, I much prefered the film image over the DLP image.

Sound:

When my wife and I got to the theatre, we were a good 40 minutes early. So, popcorn and drinks in hand, we moseyed (is that a word?) over to the theatre (hey, no line up! cool!), only to find it about 85% full already. So, we ended up 3 rows from the back and I was right up against the wall, directly under a surround. Damn.

And then the movie started. The sound was no problem. In fact, everything was quite good. The surround effects were a little off due to my location, but they still seemed accurate enough, surprisingly. The audio was nice and clean, no pops, and unlike my first viewing, the low end was nice a strong without any distortion. The wall next to me was shaking quite nicely during the explosions. I personally would have liked a teeny bit more low end, but I know not everyone is a glutton for teeth rattling explosions.

General:

The show started bang on time, after a nervous female employee under a spotlight attempted to annouce the show to everyone and remind the people to turn off their cell phones. A few misc. ads and trailers, nothing special. My seat turned out to be much better than I first thought it would be, and I really enjoyed this showing more than I did the DLP.