3D War...
I went and peeped the newest entry into the 3D craze last night at the midnight showing of Tim Burton's Alice In Wonderland. I liked the flick fine and had a good time watching it. The 3D looked good but not better or worse than all the other movies I have seen in the format over the last year or so. I'm a fan of the tech but I also don't compare it to the Second Coming, if you know what I mean.
But there is a war brewing out there on the internets over the massive push to have all the big movies in this 3D format. People are vocal over the fact they either hate or love it. With each new blockbuster we get a new wave of hate directed at the studios who they say are just trying to cash in on a gimmick. To this I say... Hollywood? Grabbing for cash? Say it isn't so!!!
Here are a few of the complaints...
IT'S STUPID - The worst of the complaints as it offers no information at all. This one comes mostly from the people who either haven't seen a movie in 3D recently or just truly have no idea how to verbalize a coherent thought.
IT'S BLURRY - True. Some of the backgrounds can be a bit blurry but that isn't due to the tech. It's added to the film to give a little depth perception. When you are focusing on a specific thing such as a character standing in a field then that person is clear as day but the scenery behind that person will be blurry because your eye is focused on the near object. Now in real life you can choose to look past the person standing in front of you and the scene behind them clears as you focus changes. But this is a movie and it just doesn't work like that.
IT'S JUST STUFF GETTING THROWN AT THE SCREEN - Again... these people either haven't been to a 3D film in a while or have been to only 3D horror movies like My Bloody Valentine or Final Destination. In those movies the makers are only concerned with throwing axes at the screen and hoping for a jump from the audience. Other films use it to enhance the visuals and depth to create a viewing experience that takes you into the film as a near participant rather than just a viewer.
IT'S TOO DARK - There are some that feel that the 3D glasses make the screen to dark and that when you take the glasses off during viewing you can see that the colors are much more vibrant. Duh. The people who do the 3D conversion color correct the film so that when wearing the dark lenses you are able to see the film as it was meant to look. This means they ramp up the brightness and colors. You put on the glasses and the lenses dim it down to how it's supposed to look. It's not rocket science. If you went to the 2D version of the same film it would look exactly the same. Just flatter.
The arguments are many and some of them can be written off as just plain ignorance but the tech does have it's flaws. Here's my thoughts on the biggest one...
I love seeing the movie in the theater with the 3D tech. It looks great and it's fun. But when I eventually buy the thing on DVD or Blu Ray I'm going to be getting the short end of the stick as that same 3D tech is not available at my house. Yes... there are 3D versions of these movies that come out but they are reduced to the old school format of the red and blue card board glasses. The colors are killed and the immersive experience is reduced to near nothing.
There is tech being developed to fix this but it isn't here yet and that's going to hurt when it comes time to grab my copy at the local store.
With all that said... I like 3D. I like that it's making the theater relevant again. People are wanting to see these flicks on the big screen and in the new format instead of waiting for DVD and a viewing in the comfort of your own home.
Is it a gimmick? Yes. But all film was a gimmick at some point in history.
Moving pictures? It'll never catch on.
But there is a war brewing out there on the internets over the massive push to have all the big movies in this 3D format. People are vocal over the fact they either hate or love it. With each new blockbuster we get a new wave of hate directed at the studios who they say are just trying to cash in on a gimmick. To this I say... Hollywood? Grabbing for cash? Say it isn't so!!!
Here are a few of the complaints...
IT'S STUPID - The worst of the complaints as it offers no information at all. This one comes mostly from the people who either haven't seen a movie in 3D recently or just truly have no idea how to verbalize a coherent thought.
IT'S BLURRY - True. Some of the backgrounds can be a bit blurry but that isn't due to the tech. It's added to the film to give a little depth perception. When you are focusing on a specific thing such as a character standing in a field then that person is clear as day but the scenery behind that person will be blurry because your eye is focused on the near object. Now in real life you can choose to look past the person standing in front of you and the scene behind them clears as you focus changes. But this is a movie and it just doesn't work like that.
IT'S JUST STUFF GETTING THROWN AT THE SCREEN - Again... these people either haven't been to a 3D film in a while or have been to only 3D horror movies like My Bloody Valentine or Final Destination. In those movies the makers are only concerned with throwing axes at the screen and hoping for a jump from the audience. Other films use it to enhance the visuals and depth to create a viewing experience that takes you into the film as a near participant rather than just a viewer.
IT'S TOO DARK - There are some that feel that the 3D glasses make the screen to dark and that when you take the glasses off during viewing you can see that the colors are much more vibrant. Duh. The people who do the 3D conversion color correct the film so that when wearing the dark lenses you are able to see the film as it was meant to look. This means they ramp up the brightness and colors. You put on the glasses and the lenses dim it down to how it's supposed to look. It's not rocket science. If you went to the 2D version of the same film it would look exactly the same. Just flatter.
The arguments are many and some of them can be written off as just plain ignorance but the tech does have it's flaws. Here's my thoughts on the biggest one...
I love seeing the movie in the theater with the 3D tech. It looks great and it's fun. But when I eventually buy the thing on DVD or Blu Ray I'm going to be getting the short end of the stick as that same 3D tech is not available at my house. Yes... there are 3D versions of these movies that come out but they are reduced to the old school format of the red and blue card board glasses. The colors are killed and the immersive experience is reduced to near nothing.
There is tech being developed to fix this but it isn't here yet and that's going to hurt when it comes time to grab my copy at the local store.
With all that said... I like 3D. I like that it's making the theater relevant again. People are wanting to see these flicks on the big screen and in the new format instead of waiting for DVD and a viewing in the comfort of your own home.
Is it a gimmick? Yes. But all film was a gimmick at some point in history.
Moving pictures? It'll never catch on.
posted by Jason at
9:47 AM
2 Comments:
i agree with what you say. people told me when i told them i am going to see a film in 3D 1 of the things you said in your blog. i tell them that not all 3D films are made that way or the tech is in its early years.
I've never seen a 3D movie. If Toy Story 3 has it, it will be my first one. I can't remember if it is going to be or not.
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