Movies on tv aspect ratio?

Question

do movies (widescreen and fullscreen) fit to fullscreen tv's or widescreen tv's originally (which one do they fit without distortion)? How can you tell?

Answer 1

Nearly all movies will NOT fit a widescreen TV without distortion or cropping.  Movie aspect ratios are much higher than the 1.85:1 you get with a widescreen TV.  They vary, but most movies now use 2.39:1.  Some DVDs and broadcasters will crop the sides of the picture to fit, others will "letterbox" (leave black areas top and bottom) even on a  widescreen TV.