`This film has been modified from its original version. It has been formatted to fit your TV.” This now-standard video disclaimer seems a titanic understatement in the case of “Thrill Ride: The Science of Fun,” one of three IMAX films released on videocassette by Columbia TriStar Home Video.
“The bigger the film, the greater the impact on the audience,” notes “Thrill Ride” narrator Harry Shearer. IMAX is a singular cinematic sensation. Films are projected on a screen six stories high and 80 feet wide.
“Wings of Courage” and “Across the Sea of Time,” the other two films released on video by Columbia, originally were presented in 3-D (requiring audience members to wear special goggles). Not even the most sophisticated home theater could duplicate it.
But the videos are not meant as a substitute. “The experience of the large format is a remarkable, sensual, visceral experience,” said Paul Culberg, Columbia TriStar executive vice president. “We find these videos are a nice souvenir. They also promote (the IMAX) format rather than detract from it.”
Viewing an IMAX film on video does seem to defeat the purpose, but it is to “Thrill Ride’s” credit that size doesn’t matter. Much. The passenger’s perspective of breathtaking drops and “gutwrenching loops” can still evoke quite a rush.
“Thrill Ride” traces the history of the modern roller coaster. Using only gravity and momentum, roller coasters are, as Albert Einstein once observed, “a classic illustration of physics.”
We see how ride designers are taking roller coasters to new heights, as is illustrated by the Big Shot, which goes from zero to 60 m.p.h. in 2 1/2 seconds while shooting 160 feet straight up. It is perched atop the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas.
“Thrill Ride” could have used more of this “ride-along” footage. Where the film stalls is in a lengthy explanation of motion-simulator technology employed for the new generation of virtual roller coasters. A segment on advances in sound also is particularly wasted in the home environment.
Of the other two releases, “Wings of Courage” is notable for being the first dramatic IMAX film with a top-flight director, Jean-Jacques Annaud (“Quest for Fire,” “The Bear”) starring Craig Sheffer as a French mail pilot stranded in the South American mountain wilderness after his plane crashes.
Each video retails for $19.95. They are also available from Critics’ Choice (800-367-7765) or Movies Unlimited (800-4-MOVIES).
