The money in kid’s films is all in three dimensions. Taking the top spot at last weekend’s box office was Dreamworks’ HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON. And some reported 65% of its take came from 3D sales. But as theaters raise ticket prices as much as 8% for the 3D shows, audiences may choose to stay home. A night at the movies sure isn’t what it used to be.
As AVATAR proved, 3D event film entertainment can be profitable, but is it absolutely necessary that every animated offering be projected in that format? Consider MONSTERS vs. ALIENS, Dreamworks’ last animated movie opening wide in 3D. The movie’s story was weak, which made the 3D gimmick more important to the bottom line. And 3D was still, as it is now, growing and gaining acceptance. But with AVATAR’s wow factor wearing out, falling from the top 10 last weekend, the most important thing that studios could do now is focus on story and characterizations. And there’s always home viewing—3D TVs are coming.
My thought last week was that we could see 3 PG-rated films leading the box office, but DIARY OF A WIMPY KID fell to number 5, no doubt squeezed by DRAGON’s opening. Finding no HANGOVER magic, the R-rated HOT TUB TIME MACHINE failed to galvanize even its older male audience enough to pull ALICE IN WONDERLAND completely from its impressive run—fueled greatly by the 3D format. Note that like SEMI-PRO, HOT TUB wore its R rating as a badge of honor, which I think worked to its detriment.
What is obvious is that as 3D becomes more common, it is becoming less a crowd pleaser. My 6-year-old daughter doesn’t want to see a movie in 3D because she says it scares her. I doubt that she is alone. When I saw CORALINE in 3D, for example, at a press screening, I left the theater with a headache and was armed with the knowledge that my little one would be terrified of that film. Watching the movie later at home on DVD, it was not so scary. Sometimes, as CORALINE proved, the 3D technique can change the way the story works. I can’t imagine that AVATAR would be as entertaining and magical without 3D, and in the two times I saw it, both in 3D, I came away inspired.
3D should be used appropriately. But as the format takes over local metroplexes, is it possible that one day we’ll see a Woody Allen film in three dimensions? Can you imagine such a thing? Like the colorization of old black and white movies, will we one day see ANNIE HALL in 3D? Or, and this may not be too far fetched, but LAWRENCE OF ARABIA in 3D? Certainly an entire generation, even my daughter’s generation, are becoming so accustomed to it that watching a movie without the added dimension will be weird for them. For now, I’m content with watching most films in plain old 2D. Save 3D for the next James Cameron epic.
