So much for 3D being the savior of Hollywood.
The major trend of summer 2011 has been the decreasing impact of the third dimension. Most every major release available in 3D this summer actually made more money from 2D presentations. Movie tickets aren’t so cheap anymore, and the added price of 3D isn’t exactly a premium most can afford in this economic climate.
Most movies just don’t benefit from the added attraction, either. Nothing about “Thor,” “Captain America” or the latest “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Harry Potter” entries required the premium dimension. The technology works best in brightly lit sequences, like the final hour of this summer’s “Transformers,” or animated fare like “Kung Fu Panda 2.”
What was once a rare treat for moviegoers has become too common of an option. Just last weekend in Coeur d’Alene, audiences had the choice to see “Fright Night,” “Conan the Barbarian,” “Spy Kids,” “Final Destination 5,” “Glee: The Concert Movie” and “Harry Potter” in 3D. That’s a pretty oversaturated market, and who really wanted to see a remake of “Conan” in any dimension?
Critics always gripe about the lack of quality during the summer season. While few entries will survive to garner Oscar consideration at the end of the year, summer 2011 offered some excellent popcorn fare. “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” came out of nowhere to revive a long-dead franchise, and J.J. Abrams’ monster-movie throwback “Super 8” is the first movie in a long time to earn positive comparisons to “The Goonies” and the early directorial efforts of Steven Spielberg.
Like every year, audiences were inundated with superhero movies. Surprisingly, most delivered a fresh experience, with “X-Men: First Class” camping it up in the 1960s, and “Captain America” playing like a good old-fashioned, rah-rah World War II movie. Only “Green Lantern” felt like a bit of a rehash, even with its outlandish premise of aliens and green supersuits.
Summer 2011 had its share of mediocrity though, with the latest “Pirates of the Caribbean” lacking the Johnny Depp magic of previous installments and “Cowboys & Aliens” not giving the great Harrison Ford enough to do. And perhaps it’s best not to open the wound of “Transformers: Dark of the Moon,” a loud, overlong and extremely dumb movie that boasted a few neat 3D effects.
If you tried to save money this season by staying home and watching the latest on DVD, you were punished by the early 2011 films that make “Transformers” look like a Shakespearian experience. Movies like “Sucker Punch,” “Red Riding Hood” and “I Am Number Four” are such soul-crushing experiences, they might convince audiences to abandon moviegoing altogether.
And be sure to stay far, far away from the worst movie of 2011 so far: The abysmal Disney Animation effort, “Mars Needs Moms.” For all the negative reviews “Cars 2” received this summer, Pixar should be happy that even their worst-reviewed movie is 100 times better than a humorless “kid’s movie” about aliens that kidnap and murder parents to power their nanny robots. What?!