What's the skinny?
 

I just finished watching Star Wars: AOTC again, and I noticed in the last scene that the screen and the characters went all skinny-like.
I've seen it used in older movies more so than nowadays' films.

Do any of you movie aficionados know what the skinny effect was used for?
Is it to signify the ending of the tale?
If so, why use it in this instance?
There's one more movie to go in the SW series, so that can't be correct, could it?
Maybe it's used for something else.

Anyway, I think it looks cool the way they use it.
It gives a certain something to the picture, in my opinion.

What do you think?

A lot of movies that are in full-screen format go back to widescreen at the very last scene, especially if there is a reason to see the whole picture. My guess is that in this case instead of making it widescreen, they just crammed the widescreen into the full-screen size, distorting the picture.

That seems a strange kind of reasoning, if that's the case.

Thanks for responding, djtestudo. :)

Any other possibilities, people?

It's not an 'effect' that is used in films (older or not). It's just the result of trying to fit a wide picture on a TV screen.

Movies shot for theatres in Widescreen format are reformatted for TV using Pan & Scan techniques. Interesting discussion and examples of <b>Widescreen vs. Pan & Scan here.</b> This works fine until you get to the end of the flick and the credits roll. Can't pan & scan text that covers the whole wide format screen, so the picture is squished making everything seem tall and thin.

I haven't seen AOTC in awhile, so I don't remember if the scene you're asking about is near the beginning of the credit roll or not.

Thanks, platypus.
Though, I must say I'm disappointed.
I thought they did it on purpose to give the film an added dimension.
*sigh* Another childhood belief shot to hell. :)

true, but another argument to help rationalize buying a wicked expensive widescreen TV.

Don't I wish. :D

My wife's too savvy to fall for that one. I gotta think up some better arguments. :)

Actually if you watch a movie called "Crooklyn", don't buy it, the movie's stupid. Rent it. But anyway it's done in standard pan&scan, it's an older movie made before widescreen became even remotely popular, and halfway through the movie it goes to squished screen. No reason for it, no great cinematography, no point. I think somebody sat on the wrong button when it was recorded. But the whole last half of the movie is like that. It's actually really annoying.