3-D movies: Are they worth the extra price?

http://today3d.blogspot.com/2010/04/3-d-movies-are-they-worth-extra-price.html

Did Mount Olympus forget to pay the power bill?

That was the question rippling through a recent screening of "Clash of the Titans" at Hollywood's Arclight Theater. Many in the audience periodically removed their 3-D glasses, some ditching them altogether, because the movie's picture quality was so dark and murky.

"Clash of the Titans" has performed well enough at the box office, earning more than $130 million domestically. But the movie, hastily converted to 3-D in postproduction to take advantage of the format's new-found popularity (and higher ticket prices), has been a public relations disaster for Warner Bros., prompting a level of torch-and-pitchfork outrage and candor rarely seen in Hollywood.

"You cannot do anything that is of a lower grade and a lower quality than what has just been done on ‘Clash of the Titans,'" Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of DreamWorks Animation, fumed to Variety. "It literally is ‘OK, congratulations! You just snookered the movie audience.'"

Business has been brisk for this year's 3-D movies in the wake of "Avatar's" record-breaking box-office success. And yet, there is already a slight sense of 3-D fatigue in the air, as well as a debate about the quality of movies converted to 3-D compared to those that were initially created and shot for the format. Katzenberg clearly senses it, which is why he has gone public with his contention that 3-D conversions like "Clash" will kill the format with the moviegoing public.

Nobody's suggesting that 3-D moviegoing has jumped the Kraken. But for a general audience, one question seems especially salient: Have this year's 3-D movies been worth a premium price? We decided to look at "Alice," "Clash" and "Dragon," both in 3-D and 2-D formats, to see what moviegoers are actually getting for the extra few dollars they're paying per ticket. According to interviews with randomly selected audience members, the films played just as well, if not better, without donning the glasses.

‘Clash of the Titans'
3-D pedigree:
Shot in 2-D, converted to 3-D in post production.
Added value:
Only to the bank accounts of Warner Bros. and movie exhibitors.
In the debit column:
It had been suggested that the Arclight's "Clash" screening was marred by a problem with the battery-powered 3-D glasses, so we decided to give the movie a second chance at the Edwards Long Beach Stadium 26. It was 90 minutes wasted. The film's color palette displayed six shades of gray, neutralizing the fiery oranges of the cosmos in a way that would make the gods weep. In 3-D, actor Sam Worthington's sunburned skin looks like ground beef left out all day on the kitchen counter. And good luck guessing what happens whenever the sun goes down.
Comments from customers:
Three teenagers at an opening-day screening of "Clash" in Long Beach couldn't have been more primed for a trip into the third dimension. After the film, their enthusiasm extinguished, the three offered some choice comments about the value of their $14 matinee experience, including Nicolas Grayson's opinion that "even the Kraken (stunk)."
‘Alice in Wonderland'
3-D pedigree:
Shot in 2-D, converted to 3-D in post-production. "I didn't see the benefit of shooting in 3-D," director Tim Burton says. "We were trying to do it faster, and at the end of the day I didn't see any difference in quality."
Added value:
Burton's disinterest in the 3-D format is evident in the unimaginative layering of the technology into Lewis Carroll's crazy-quilt world. Two exceptions: The moment after Alice finds her size fluctuating after taking a swig from the "Drink Me" bottle and munching on the "Eat Me" cake; and the grinning Cheshire Cat, whose floating presence and slow fades seem tailor-made for the 3-D format.

 

In the debit column:
The added screen depth doesn't do much to make the imagery any more interesting. If anything, it's a distraction.
Comments from customers:
Chris and Leslie Heuer took their daughter, Emily, her three siblings and five of Emily's friends to see "Alice" in 3-D for Emily's 10th birthday. The thinking: It'd be a less expensive alternative to a more elaborate party at home. "So we go to the matinee and for 10 people, it's $145," Chris says. "Seeing it in 2-D would have been just fine."
‘How to Train Your Dragon'
3-D pedigree:
Created in 3-D. DreamWorks also brought in celebrated cinematographer Roger Deakins as a consultant to pick his brain about camera work and lighting.
Added value:
Young protagonist Hiccup's vertigo-inducing first flight on Toothless, the black dragon, rivals the banshee aerial sequences in "Avatar."
In the debit column:
The Deakins-influenced naturalistic lighting works better in the 2-D version, particularly scenes featuring interiors warmly lit by torch or glowing candlelight. This is also true of the sections that take place in the canyon where Hiccup bonds with Toothless.
While not flat-out conceding this point, Katzenberg does say that the darkened imagery produced by wearing 3-D glasses is something DreamWorks continues to fine-tune with its films.
Comments from customers:
"It's perfectly fine in 2-D," says Nicole Jones, following a screening with her two kids at the Arclight in Sherman Oaks. Pointing at her 7-year-daughter and 5-year-old son, she adds: "They don't care. They're just happy to go to the movie theater."