TF Issue 197: Is It Just Me? Stop moaning about 3D...

[Lizhawkins]

On page 145 of TF issue 197, Hugh Langley asks:

"Is it just me... or should people stop moaning about 3D?"



Here are a few excerpts:

Like Coldplay, Twilight and Simon Cowell, 3D has truly earned itself a place on the ‘cool to hate’ list. Just go online and search the words ‘3D’ and ‘crap’ – it’s clear that if the jury went out after James Cameron’s Avatar rebooted the 3D machine, it returned with a resounding “No thanks, this sucks.”

True, the last few years have seen their fair share of stereoscopic offenders. But for every Piranha 3D, there’s been a Prometheus; for every Clash Of The Titans, a Toy Story 3. Donning a pair of 3D specs has transformed these films from being merely sumptuous pictures into rich, tangible worlds that we’re not just peering at, but part of. OK, so there will always be films in which 3D is used in a gimmicky way to send objects whizzing out of the screen into the audience’s laps. But the ‘gimmick’ has grown up; we’ve reached a point where 3D set-ups can be skillfully composed for depth and realism. And yet it’s still dismissed by cinemagoers like an unloved child...


...

...But he’s hardly the only one pushing the agenda. Scorsese, Spielberg, Ridley Scott… one by one, the big names are pledging the future to 3D, which surely tells you something. Hell, Hugo would’ve had half the impact if it hadn’t been stereoscopic; the fact that Marty chose to present his ode to cinema in 3D spoke volumes about its future.

But never mind tomorrow: 3D is what cinema needs right now. At a time when piracy and on-demand services are threatening the art of quality cinemagoing, 3D is putting bums on seats. Not to mention that it’s given a new generation a chance to see classics revived on the big screen, and for others to relive them from a whole new perspective. For me, that’s worth the ticket price alone. The sooner we accept that progress is good, the better. The future of cinema belongs to 3D and its champions, and that can only be a good thing. Or is it just me?

Check out the full article in Issue 197 - on sale 3 August 2012.

Agree? Disagree? Have your say below - a selection will be printed in the next issue...