Netflix Is Cropping Your Movies

Hey, film fans: If you're using Netflix, you may be missing out on what's happening at the edge of the frame. Apparently, the service is bowing to those viewers who want films to fill their screens, even at the risk of chopping some off. The movies in question are those filmed in the "Scope" format, Flavorwire notes. Normal widescreen has an aspect ratio of 1.85:1, while Scope offers 2.39:1.

That means, without cropping, even a widescreen TV would show black bars at the top and bottom of the picture. Netflix is cutting off the sides of such films, and it's doing so without telling viewers, Flavorwire complains, offering several visual examples via What Netflix Does. "This may sound like nitpicking, but these are issues that matter for those who care about movies," writes Jason Bailey. (More Netflix stories.)