With 3D on the way out, cinema chains are desperate to find something they can use to upsell tickets. One of the more successful and impressive is IMAX, gobsmackingly gigantic screens that genuinely add something to most films.
I got to see the original Jurassic Park on its IMAX re-release a couple of years ago, and it was like watching it for the first time all over again. So, it’s no surprise that Marvel Studios are trying their best to convince audiences that the absolute best way to see Avengers: Infinity War is on the biggest screen possible.
Just last week, they celebrated a decade of partnership with IMAX by sharing a video featuring the MCU’s most well know stars and directors singing its praises. Now, they’ve really hammered the point home by showing precisely how much more you’re getting with the format: 26% more. Have a look for yourself up above and compare the Infinity War trailer on a boring old 2.35:1 ratio cinema screen against the super beefy 1.43:1 IMAX Standard.
And for once this isn’t marketing BS – you actually can see more of the film on IMAX. Granted, the ‘more’ is bits of scenery and at a push, bits of the character’s costumes that’d be cut out of the frame on a regular screen, but I’m not complaining. Plus, you get an amazing sound system to boot.
Given that IMAX is so expensive, I usually only reserve it for films that feel like a special occasion. Right now, it’s looking like Avengers: Infinity War is going to be one of those. Sure, I might have to sell all my meagre possessions to scrape together the astronomical prices they charge at London’s BFI IMAX (the largest in Britain), but I can’t think of any better way to experience what looks to be the ultimate in superhero mayhem.