Like many people, I’m a big fan of The Hunger Games franchise. I’ve read the books, seen the movies, and I’m anxiously waiting for the upcoming Sunrise on the Reaping. Since I’m a huge physical media fan, I’ve picked up each of the movies on 4K Blu-ray. While I don’t have any issues with the quality of any of these releases, there is one movie in particular that leaves me scratching my head.
You might’ve seen the clip from The Hunger Games: Catching Fire where Katniss is being lifted into the games for the first time. As that happens, the aspect ratio shifts from 2:40:1 to fill up your TV screen. It’s a really cool feature, but it might shock you to know that it’s exclusive to streaming. That’s right, the Netflix version of Catching Fire has an exclusive feature that’s not included on the 4K disc. No, it’s not a total deal breaker, but it’s a bizarre omission that could be a big selling point of the physical release.
A feature that’s trapped on streaming
What a puzzling decision
Physical media has a lot of benefits, and usually those benefits come in the form of superior audio and picture. In many cases, that’s true, but not with Catching Fire. Yes, you get the full 4K resolution and a nice Dolby Atmos audio mix on 4K Blu-ray, but you don’t get the changing aspect ratio that’s included on many home releases. Christopher Nolan films are a good example of this, because if you pop in the disc for Oppenheimer, you’ll see the aspect ratio shift whenever you get to an IMAX shot.
In a world where Disney+ is holding that back for streaming, it’s nice to see it included in home releases. From that point of view, it’s understandable why this decision was made, but I’m still not buying it. The Catching Fire disc came out in 2016, before Disney+ even existed, and it’s a movie that hops around from service to service. It’s not like this has to be an exclusive feature to sell Prime Video or Netflix subscriptions, but it feels like it gets treated as one.
It’s little decisions like this that go under the radar but make a big difference when you know about them. It’s one of the reasons I don’t like watching Nolan movies on streaming anymore, because I know I get the shifting ratios on a disc. It’s also the reason I let out an internal sigh when I put the Catching Fire disc in, knowing I’m not going to see the transition into the games. Fortunately, there aren’t a ton of examples other than the Catching Fire one, so it’s not something I need to worry about for the most part.
I already know the majority of MCU movies don’t have the shifting aspect ratios, but I’ve already given up on that, and it feels like a business strategy. I don’t know what Lionsgate is gaining from holding back the shifting aspect ratio, so that’s why that decision is more confusing to me.
Maybe it’s to sell new versions
I wouldn’t put it past them
Many companies like to put out multiple copies of the same movie, and it’s easy to get confused. A recent example of this is Jurassic Park, where the latest 4K UHD version comes with a Dolby Vision scan that’s missing from older versions. There’s nothing particularly separating the two if you’re just looking at the cover, so you need to know what year each one was released to know if there’s a real difference between the two.
I suspect future releases of Catching Fire could include this aspect ratio shift. I don’t think I watch this movie nearly enough to double dip on another 4K release, but I know there are some people who would be more than happy to buy another copy. I rarely upgrade my movies from Blu-ray to 4K, so I don’t think I’d pull the trigger on an aspect ratio change. I do hope it does become available at home, however, because people deserve to have the best possible quality from the comfort of their own couch.
New versions of movies come out all the time, so I wouldn’t put it past them at all for cashing in on the release of a new movie to create a box set including all of the films so far. For new collectors, it’d be an excellent way to grab a bunch of movies all at once, so I can’t fault a company for making a set like that. I just hope they listen to the vocal fans out there who’d like to see that expanding aspect ratio escape the clutches of streaming and make it to the home media market. The Hunger Games popularity is only climbing, so it’s only fair to get the best versions possible on the best possible format.
