TRON LEGACY in IMAX will Feature Five Sequences in Extended Aspect Ratio

As we reported back in September, Disney's high-tech 3D adventure Tron Legacy, will simultaneously be released to IMAX theatres in IMAX 3D -- coinciding with the December 17th, 2010 Disney Digital 3D wide release. Well there's another treat for those of us willing to pay the extra cash for the more immersive experience the IMAX Screens have to offer!

While at the Tron Legacy Trailer Premiere Event in Los Angeles over the weekend, our friends from FirstShowing and /Film learned from director Joseph Kosinski, that five action sequences from Tron Legacy will be shown in 1.7:1 aspect ratio, exclusively in IMAX Theatres.

If you've seen a theatrical 3D film on the IMAX screen, you would have noticed that -- unlike the trailers for documentaries shot with IMAX cameras -- the movie doesn't fill the entire screen. Much like how the sequences Christopher Nolan shot with the IMAX cameras for the Dark Knight were presented, where the screen image switched aspect ratios and filled the entire IMAX screen, most of Tron Legacy be presented in widescreen, 2.35:1 aspect ratio, and will switch to the 1.7:1 aspect ratio that the five special action sequences are being rendered in.

Here's a comparison that Peter Sciretta put together to give us an idea of the difference between the two:

Though not 100% to spec, this gives us a basic sense of what to expect during those sequences, and how much of a difference the up to eight stories of screen will make when filled.

I'm sure there's gonna be some mind blowing visuals for those five sequences, and I wonder how much of a an "awwwwwe" we'll get whenever it switches back to 2.39:1. If you're still not convinced that this is the way to go, Disney will also be releasing a special IMAX trailer online to show moviegoers the difference.