This could well be the year that revives the fledgling genre of 3-D movies. Like the electric car, the 3-D process has been around for more than 100 years. First pioneered and patented by William Friese-Greene in the late 1890s, the process required two films to be projected at the same time while a viewer watched through a stereoscope.
The very first 3-D movie to be shown in front of an audience, The Power of Love, premiered at the Los Angeles Ambassador Hotel in 1922. But the process wouldn't gain wide acceptance by the mainstream until the ‘50s. Kicked off by the release of Arch Oboler's dual-strip Bwana Devil in 1952, the decade saw a flood of 3-D movies, including Man in the Dark, House of Wax, It Came from Outer Space, and Creature from the Black Lagoon.
But by the decade's end, the process was in decline due to the expense and the kitschy associations of obvious 3-D stunts like paddleballs bouncing off the screen or a monster reaching out at the audience. Although scattered 3-D movies have been released over the years, the antiquated genre is generally grouped with '50s cigarette ads, pet rocks, disco, and other laughable nostalgia.
IMAX 3-D has made some impressive headway over the last two decades, but its successes have primarily been short-form films focused around animals, space, and water exploration. Narrative 3-D film, it seems, had become a thing of the past, save the occasional kiddie release like Robert Rodriguez's Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over and The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl 3-D.
However, recent innovations in the process suggest a potential renaissance for 3-D movies in the near future. Led by James Cameron's hotly anticipated Avatar, 2009 could finally revive the genre, not to mention create a new reason for audiences to buy theater tickets instead of just renting or downloading movies at home. The 3-D releases headed to theaters this year include Coraline, Monsters vs. Aliens, Up, Final Destination 4, A Christmas Carol, and Shrek Goes Fourth.
This weekend gets the ball rolling with the bloody horror flick, My Bloody Valentine 3-D, so we thought it was a good to look back at some highlights of the 3-D genre over the years.
 |
The Power of Love (1922)
Notable solely for being the very first 3-D film projected for audiences, this film was produced by Harry K. Fairall and shot by cinematographer Robert F. Elder. Very little is known about the context of this movie, and the original negatives have since been lost.
|
 |
The very first feature-length 3-D movie, this silly thriller was based around the legend of the Tsavo maneaters. Starring Robert Stack, Barbara Britton, and Nigel Bruce, critics labeled the novelty pic "clumsy" and "a dog."
|
 |
Just a year after Bwana Devil started the 3-D craze despite its terrible reviews, Warner Bros. decided to counter with the aid of Vincent Price in this genre classic. Ironically, it was shot by a director blind in one eye and, thereby, unable to view the 3-D scenes. Wax is a bit of nostalgic fun, even if the most shameless 3-D moments do distract from the overall movie.
|
 |
This Cold War relic is a nice time capsule of a bygone era of science fiction, but it's hard to view with a straight face these days. Opening to mediocre reviews, the release simultaneously fanned the 3-D flames and fueled the quick downfall of its popularity. In retrospect, the film fares somewhat better, notable for Ray Bradbury's unique approach of featuring aliens NOT intent on world domination.
|
 |
Most people don't even remember that this Hitchcock classic was originally filmed for 3-D. By the time it was released, the format was already declining in popularity and it was rarely projected in 3-D. Years later, revival showings recharged the popularity of the 3-D version. All in all, it's not a radically different film when viewed in three dimensions, although Grace Kelly's scissors coming out of the screen before she plunges them into her would-be captor is pretty cool to see.
|
 |
One of the great classics of Universal's impressive monster-movie vault, Creature is arguably among the most respected releases of all 3-D movies, perhaps in part because the movie holds up well any way you watch it. Ben Chapman's suited Gill Man became an icon of popular culture, and the release spawned two sequels.
|
 |
It's the third movie in the series, so why not take the chance to use the title as a reason for 3-D, right? Much like similar stunt releases for Friday the 13th Part 3 and Amityville 3-D, this is also a turkey of a movie that is best viewed along with a Mystery Science Theater-style running commentary. Did I mention it opens with a shark attack at SeaWorld? Part of a brief, unsuccessful ‘80s 3-D revival, Jaws 3-D was nominated for five Razzie Awards.
|
 |
Yet another blight on the thankless 3-D movie genre, Robert Rodriguez spat out this second sequel to his low-budget kiddie trilogy just two years after the first movie. The 3-D is absolutely horrible and the movie is the worst of the trilogy. That, and sitting through this one with the classic red-and-blue paper glasses, gave me a massive headache -- but maybe it was just the movie, itself.
|
 |
This one wasn't as big of a hit as it should have been. But it's consistently being rediscovered on home video, albeit minus the 3-D effects. The release at least used 3-D as an enhancement to the viewing process, not as the crutch the release depended on. It's a good movie, and the computer-generated 3-D worlds look spectacular.
|
 |
Any way you stack it, 3-D alone can't save a release. Audiences showed only moderate interest in this ambitious retelling of the classic old-English poem. Directed by Robert Zemeckis and employing the same performance-capture techniques used by the director on The Polar Express, the main problem is that human CG characters still don't look quite right. Beowulf and films such as Final Fantasy have gotten closer, but the industry is awaiting Avatar with baited breath as proof that CG-generated humans (and 3-D) can properly sustain an entire movie.
|