Reasoning for 3-D cinema push hits home
By Stuart Kemp
December 21, 2007

LONDON -- In Michel Gondry's "The Science of Sleep," the main character Stephane, played by Gael Garcia Bernal, expresses a wish to make a living as an inventor. He tells Stephanie, Charlotte Gainsbourg's character, that he has invented 3-D vision glasses for everyday life. "Isn't that how we see life anyway, in 3-D?" comes the swift response. A slightly sheepish Stephane maintains his invention is fun and speedily takes back the cardboard shades.

For 2008, exhibitors and distributors alike across the globe are hoping the coming year is the year we all become reacquainted with the new-look 3-D cinema. Report after report after report is pushing 3-D cinema as the next "theatrical experience," billing it as the great rejuvenator for moviegoing. Distributors, marketeers and exhibitors are all saying it's "a seeing is believing" movie experience, and top-notch talent from James Cameron, Robert Zemeckis, Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson are donning the not-so-ridiculous eyeware to make films in the format.

Part of the attraction is that you can't replicate the experience in your own home. For years now, audiences have been splashing the cash on home entertainment systems with digital surround sound, high-definition televisions and upscale DVD formats before turning front rooms into mini-auditoriums. Hell, folks can even get a popcorn maker and buy confectionary from the local store to save money and ensure the carpet has bits trampled into it.

The Hollywood Reporter
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