Region 4 Winners and Losers

There have been a number of standard DVD and high definition releases of Tideland worldwide but in respect to extras and Terry Gilliam’s approved aspect ratio the Region 2 (UK) release is the clear winner on DVD.

The PAL Revolver 2 Disc UK (R2) release includes the feature film in 2.10:1 16x9 enhanced widescreen, with an optional video introduction (which can also be viewed here).

The extras on this 2 Disc release include:

• Audio commentary by director Terry Gilliam and screenwriter Tony Grisoni.
• Getting Gilliam.
• The Making of Tideland.
• Deleted scenes reel with forced commentary by director Terry Gilliam.
• Filming Green Screen with forced commentary by director Terry Gilliam.
• Interview with producer Jeremy Thomas.
• Interview with director Terry Gilliam.
• Hay Festival Q&A with Tideland author Mitch Cullin and Terry Gilliam.
• Theatrical Trailer.
• Bonus Trailers.

Tideland was also released on HD DVD in Germany.

In regards to the 1.78:1 aspect ratio on the R1 ThinkFilm release here is Terry Gilliam’s response (originally sent to Dreams-The Terry Gilliam fanzine):

"The US/Canada DVDs are 16:9, also known as 1.78:1. They were supposed to be cropped to match the UK version which, for reasons I won't go into at the moment, is 2.10:1 but, for reasons known only to ThinkFilm the instructions from the UK were ignored. From what they have written they seem to have a lack of understanding of how a 2.35:1 is created from a 16:9 at the digital stage or even from the original filmed material.
When I shoot I leave an open gate in the camera to capture as much image as possible above and below the intended final framing which, in the case of Tideland, was 2.35:1. It's useful because I can adjust shots later. Sometimes, due to the speed of shooting, the frame is not as good as it should be. Having extra image top and bottom, I can raise or lower it bringing it into the 2.35:1 area. When we reach the release print stage I put a hard mask on the film to exclude everything outside the desired proportion. Same goes for the digital stage. It's a very simple, straightforward procedure. Usually. Unfortunately things have gone arse over tit this time. Some of the keener eyes have spotted the fact that the sides have been cropped on all the DVDs. They have been sharper than I have been, And they are right. And we are in the thick of sorting it out."

For an image comparison between the two aspect ratios view this article.