Timothée Chalamet is Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown.
IN A complete unknownTimothée Chalamet swaps the sandy scenery of Arrakis for (Dune, Dune: Part Two) about the streets, bars and bedrooms of 1960s New York in the biographical musical drama film of folk singer Bob Dylan. It’s also a change of pace for director James Mangold, whose previous work includes more exciting and action-heavy films such as Logan (2017), Ford vs. Ferrari (2019), and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023).
If you are interested in seeing and hearing the film about the singer’s legend, which cinema format is ideal to go to?
While blockbuster action films tend to have countless format choices, things are simpler for a more artisanal film such as A complete unknownand there are no choices like 4DX or ScreenX. Unfortunately, there also appears to be no Barco-grade HDR: it still feels like it’s early days for the format.
Should you go big?
Cinematographer Phedon Papamichael shot the film digitally on a Sony Venice 2 digital camera at 8.6K to create a 4K digital intermediate. As he explains in this Sony promotional video, Papamichael chose it in part for its low-light capabilities, enabling him to capture New York at night without requiring additional lighting.
The aspect ratio is 2.39:1 in all cinemas; a sure indication that it wasn’t shot with IMAX in mind. However, you can still “Experience it in IMAX” – to use the company’s marketing tagline. However, there are no enhanced aspect ratios on display here, and the film will be played in paper form on 1.90:1 screens, with black bars at the top and bottom.
One thing to be aware of is that not all IMAX screens are created equal. Older digital IMAX projectors use xenon lamps, which can suffer from loss of brightness, and are tied to six-channel sound, which, while still impressive, plays second fiddle to the upgraded 12-channel system in IMAX theaters featuring laser projection for brighter and more. vivid color images.
Rival in the market
IMAX’s rival premium format is Dolby Cinema. As with most major releases, a Dolby Vision grade of the film has been produced, meaning it will take full advantage of the format’s benefits – namely dual-laser 4K projection that delivers up to 108 nits of brightness, enabling it provide an extended dynamic range. with true blacks and intense whites in the same frame, which lends itself to a more immersive narrative.
The visuals are also supported with Dolby Atmos audio, which can match IMAX audio for power and detail, and surpass it for accurate positioning of sounds.
The third component of Dolby Cinema is the layout and decor, which is designed to maximize image quality and comfort, so expect dark walls, plush armrests and well-angled seats so you don’t have to poke your head around nobody. There’s also often an LCD wall as you walk in, which looks cool and helps set the mood.
If you like the sound of this, you should find a Dolby Cinema near you. In the US, AMC offers hundreds of format locations, but other countries are not so blessed. For example, there are only six in the UK and three of them are in London.
Great alternative
If there isn’t a Dolby theater near you, the good news is that there are good alternatives that are likely easier to find. These are the premium large formats (PLFs) offered by most major cinema chains, which, with a few exceptions, offer a larger than standard floor-to-ceiling screen, 4K laser projection, Dolby Atmos audio and seating comfortable.
You don’t get the extended dynamic range of Dolby Cinema projection, but, in my experience, it’s still a much better option than standard.
In the US, PLFs are the most popular Prime Minister at AMC, Regal RPX, Cinemark XD, Cineplex UltraAVX, AND Xtreme Xscape. In the UK, these are under the guise of Cineworld Superscreen, Odeon iSense and OmniplexMAXX.
This makes my preference ranking for A complete unknown HOW
– Dolby Cinema
– PLF
– IMAX laser
– Xenon IMAX.
