3-D Movies: the Next Big Thing?

Features | December 23rd, 2009 by Staggs

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Fashion Forward!

Entertainment companies are trying to push 3-dimensional video into theaters, full force. With an average of a new 3-D movie coming out every few weeks, it seems, the trend is going to continue. Is it really worth it?

First, images popping straight out of the screen and onto the faces of the audience is coming at a higher price to many consumers. Moviegoers are now being charged with extra surcharges, on top of a ticket into movie, for the use of 3-D glasses even if you have your own pair from a previous movie. Many people are unaware though, that the reason for this is mainly for the theater to use the 3-D technology and actually has little to do with the special glasses. Of course, you are able to recycle your glasses at the end of the movie if you so choose, which is probably a good idea to be happy given a fresh pair the next time you see another 3-D movie. Regardless of whether you keep your glasses, surcharges will stay for the theater to cover their costs.

Of course I’m all about the entertainment factor, but does 3-D take away from the experience? I would say it depends on the film. An action movie that is meant to “wow” you will be good candidates, but I hope to never have to sit through a 3-D romantic comedy because the technology would be too distracting. These are likely limitations to the 3-D trend. I will cry if there is a romantic comedy showing in 3D…

The technology is coming to the Blu-Ray player in your home, too. The Blu-Ray Disc Association (BDA) has approved a new specification on delivering 3-D content via disc that will begin to be implemented soon. The PS3 will likely have a firmware update to allow this specification. Whats even better about this, it is also backwards compatible for 2-D movies. Therefore, if you don’t have a 3-D capable display, it’ll just play in 2D.

Wait… 3-D capable device? Yes. As I said, this trend is coming at a great cost to consumers. Since we’re moving from DVDs to Blu-Ray now, 3-D is the movement of the future. Once the life span of your LCD or Plasma television has reached its limit, you’ll probably be looking at new 3-D capable displays to replace the old. More money to spend, more to look forward to in the future, we hope. I don’t think that 3-D is that important for people to be bending over backwards to consume, especially for new, potentially more expensive televisions.

Oh, and did we mention that 3-D imagery is likely also an answer to the much debated piracy issue. Since movies are to be in 3-D, people are more likely to want to go see it in the theater rather than settle for just a 2-D pirated copy. That is why Fox is not concerned with the leak of Avatar into BitTorrent — they argue that it will not impact revenue because people are seeing the movie in 3-D instead of pirating it. Sounds like a good all-around money maker to me, whether or not consumers really want 3-D movies.

It’s only a matter of time before we start seeing uber-”High Definition 3-D glasses!” selling for a fortune at Best Buy and stores alike. Are you ready for 3-D to come in the next generation of technology?