Movie in 3D

The Avengers review

Marvel’s “The Avengers” brings together a team of super heroes comprised of Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), The Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Captain America (Chris Evans), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson). The history is based on a comic series of the same name first published in 1963 by Marvel, the comic was created capitalizing in earlier Marvel characters. Avenger’s director Joss Whedon did an excellent job at bringing a comic to the big screen, as in previous stand alone Marvel super heroes films the script includes big egos, sarcasm and heroes hurling insults at each other in a comical way, gathering a bunch of superheroes that do not belong together adds to the entertainment and it is at the heart of the plot.

Filming began in Albuquerque (New Mexico), followed by Cleveland (Ohio) where they used the city’s East 9th Street as a double of New York’s 42nd street in battle scenes with real US Army Reserve soldiers featured in background action, ending in New York City where aerial footage was taken for three days, the images were used as framework to create computer generated CGI scenes.

The Avengers 3D film

“The Avengers” was re-titled “Avengers Assemble” in some countries because a UK 1960s series, and 1998 film, with the same name appear to hold some of the rights to the name, the film is distributed by Walt Disney, it was converted to 3D in post-production, the director Joss Whedon pointed out that although not all films should be done in 3D being “The Avengers” an action film the scenes tend to race out of the screen and he was 100% behind the idea.

The first half of “The Avengers” while the super heroes team is gathered and action builds up is a little slow, once that is over everything evolves into a fast paced explosion blasting adventure with 3D bringing to life terrific special effects that position the viewer inside the action but it doesn’t appear as if the computer animated CGI images superimposed on real footage properly blended and some scenes look too fake, this can not be appreciated in 2D.

Overall it is not a bad 3D conversion but nothing flabbergasting taking you aback, I am on the neutral side slightly upwards about paying premium to watch “The Avengers” on its 3D version vs 2D, it is an awesome experience to feel the debris and explosions around you but not a must see in 3D film, the film itself is awesome in any format and one of the best Marvel productions.

Synopsis: The director of the international peace keeping agency, S.H.I.E.L.D, persuades a team of super heroes to fight for planet’s Earth survival when an unexpected enemy threatens global security with an alien army.

Director: Joss Whedon
Written By: Joss Whedon, Zak Penn
Starring: Stars: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson
Rated: PG-13
Runtime:  2 hr. 22 min

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Wrath of the Titans 3D review

“Wrath of the Titans” is an epic fantasy film sequel to “Clash of the Titans” (2010) released in 2D and 3D. I was disappointed to find out that “Wrath of the Titans” is post-converted, the first film was so badly converted to 3D that people quickly associates an awful 3D conversion with “Clash of the Titans“, qualified by some as an attempt to fleece the viewers taking advantage of the Avatar 3D effect which had been released by around the same time.

The South African director Jonathan Liebesman first announced that “Wrath of the Titans” would be shoot in real 3D to later retract a few months later saying that he wanted the film to have a better texture than digital cameras can offer and therefore it would converted to 3D after using 2D cameras. On the good side “Wrath of the Titans” was designed as a 3D film from the ground up and the producers learned from their past mistakes.

Wrath of the Titans 3D

Filming took place in the UK and Spain, using various studios around London and on location in Surrey, South Wales and the Mount Teide, home of an inactive volcano in the Canary Islands (Spain) surrounded by a national park. The director’s preference for handheld cameras is felt during the whole film with some scenes are very shaky making it hard to know what is exactly going on, not surprisingly this is the same “Battle Los Angeles” (2011) director, a science fiction film full of shaky action scenes handheld camera style. There isn’t too much cohesion on the action timeline either, somewhat chaotic, with a consolation prize of spectacular special effects.

The film places a stronger emphasis on the characters than the story itself, a very feeble one, the ideal public for “Wrath of the Gods” are those who like impressive action scenes, greatly enhanced in 3D. The dialogue is nothing to be proud of and it comes with a mix of British, American and Australian accents, a big major blunder is that Perseus speaks with Australian accent while his son does so with British accent. I would not personally recommend this film to anyone who likes to have a proper plot, if you all you care about is fighting then sure, go for it, the 3D version would also be worth in that case, but not imperative, the conversion was pretty decent.

Synopsis: A decade after his heroic defeat of the monstrous Kraken, Perseus is attempting to live quietly as a village fisherman and the sole parent to his 10-year-old son. But unbeknownst to Perseus, a struggle for supremacy has been raging between the gods that will come to threaten his idyllic life.

Director: Jonathan Liebesman
Writter: Dan Mazeau
Starring: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Rosamund Pike, Bill Nighy, Ralph Fiennes
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 1 hr. 39 min.

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Titanic 3D effects review

An American epic romance film based on a fictional account of the sinking of the R.M.S. Titanic on April 15th 1912 in the Atlantic during her maiden voyage from Southampton (UK) to New York City (US). The 2D version production began in 1995, with a reconstruction of the Titanic built at Playas de Rosarito, Baja California (US), scale models were based on real blueprints and computer generated imagery was used to recreate the sinking scenes along with underwater sequences from the real shipwreck, filmed using a 35mm camera in a titanium case mounted on a remotely operated Russian submersible. The detail in which the ship and sinking scenes were reconstructed gives the film some historical merit.

Titanic 3D film

At the time of release in 1997 it was the most expensive film ever made, costing $200 million, it was also a hugely successful film at the ticket box and film festivals, winning a record 11 Academy Awards (Oscars), including the Best Picture and Original Song awards, the famous track “My heart will go on“, performed by Celine Dion, has become an icon of the Titanic soundtrack.

Titanic remains one of best love stories ever told, the 3D post-production was overseen by James Cameron ,the original director,  the beginning of the film isn’t too different from the 2D version, it is once the disaster hits the ship that you can fully enjoy the 3D effects,  the scenes under water are particularly spectacular, but you might become a little desensitized after three hours of film thought. While some post-conversions are disappointing, this is not the case with Titanic 3D, you will not notice any green shades or ghosting, the 3D effects bring the thrilling experience up another level. Titanic appeals to all audiences, male and female, young and old, it is a movie that you can enjoy with all of your friends and family, soundtrack, acting and script are all as wonderful as ever, 3D facilitates the extra encouragement needed to watch this film once again.

Synopsis: A penniless passenger meets a girl from a higher social background in the RMS Titanic, they fall in love and find themselves fighting for survival after the ship they travel in suffers a big disaster.

Director: James Cameron
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet and Billy Zane
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 3hrs. 15min

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The Lorax 3D

The Lorax is based on a seventies children’s book by Dr. Seuss, a Lorax is a tiny little fluffly animal with a moustache, the advocate for the forest, not only the trees, but also the creatures living in it. This movie from the makers of Despicable Me (2010) keeps intact the environmental message twisting the original history by adding modern cultural lifestyles.

The film colours are very vivid with all of the forest elements popping out of the screen, everything is nicely rendered, action scenes are thrilling and the woodland creatures cuddly and soft-hearted, this is a nicely made 3D film. I don’t know how you feel about 3D, but children are likely to have fun with the CGI cartoons popping out of the screen, and this is after all a kids movie.

The Lorax 3D movie billboard

A family friendly 3D film full of humour, music and sweetness with anti-corporate satire quietly promoting that the destruction of the environment for greed is bad for the world. The Lorax film is aimed at young audiences but parents will enjoy the humorous parts of the movie. If you would like to indoctrinate your kids with ecological messages Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax can do that from an early age, but do not forget that this is a capitalist film that has been used to sell “fuel efficient” Mazda cars, Universal Studios is not a charity and they want to make profits like everyone else.

Synopsis: A preteen 12yo boy needs something very special to gain the affection of the girl of his dreams, in order for him to find what his girl wishes most he must discover the history of the Lorax, a grumpy charming creature fighting to save this world.

Cast: Danny DeVito (The Lorax), Ed Helms (Once-Ler) , Zac Efron  (Ted), Taylor Swift (Audrey)
Director: Chris Renaud
Runtime: 1hr. 26min
Rating: PG

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Star Wars 3D review

Thirteen years after George Lucas “ Star Wars Episode I” was first released someone had the idea of attempting a nostalgic 3D remake, the film is obviously post-converted. It is a half decent sharp 3D movie but you will find many parts look flat, and like other 3D remakes it also looks a little too dark at times. The producers replaced Yoda, originally a puppet, with a 3D computer generated version, and a couple of action scenes like the podracing show amazing ground level rugged terrain with the always great Star Wars soundtrack on the background, the light sabre fighting scenes are also enhanced but there isn’t much more to accelerate the viewer.

My main issue with Phantom of Menace in 3D is having to pay extra when parts of the film appear to be flat, it could have been great if back in those times the technology had existed and everything had been filmed in 3D cameras, but it wasn’t and this film was never intended to be a 3D.

Star Wars 3D - Episode I Phantom of Menace

A remake of “Star Wars Episode I” in 3D is not something I would recommend to Star Wars saga die hard fans, they will probably feel that this is a sacrilege, only if you have never seen the film it might rock your boat, or if you intend to buy a Blu-Ray copy as long as the price difference isn’t huge, maybe go for the 3D version.  

If you have already seen this film, it still holds great for sci-fi fans and the 2D version will marvel you nearly as much. I don’t think converting this movie to 3D was a good idea from the beginning, a long way off Avatar 3D.

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Family friendly 3D film

Walt Disney classic “Beauty and the Beast” (1991) returns to the big screen following a series of Disney Digital 3D releases, based on old remakes of successful family friendly films, the original “Beauty and the Beast” is still the only animated film ever nominated for a Best Picture Award in the Oscard nominations.

This movie has been converted to 3D using the same methods “The Lion King” was last year, with “Finding Nemo 3D” coming next. The film features an exclusive 3D sequel to “Tangled” (2010), named “Tangled Ever After“, a very hilarious short animated film to entice people doubtful of paying for something they have already seen in 2D, juxtaposing both films you can clearly notice the huge technical advances in animation.

This movie is a classic, with six Academy Award nominations and winning a well deserved Oscar to the best song,  3D adds shine to what already was a great film, fans of “Cinderella” and “SnowWhite” shouldn’t miss “Beauty and the Beast“.

Beauty and the Beast 3D at the cinema

“Beauty and the Beast” 3D is full of of elegant animations and choreographed songs that will charm adults and kids alike, the 3D post conversion nicely pops out of the screen the characters without throwing out the objects in the background, the 3D effects greatly enhance the landscape and the castle with most of the film giving the impression of a huge pop-up book. Disney’s conversion of the “Beauty and the Beast” into 3D has been brilliant, ghosting is nearly unnoticeable if at all. Children will possibly love the history and marvel at the special effects, these kind of films benefit geatly from the cinema experience, with a bigger more colourful, funnier and magical screen, I believe it is money well spent.

Synopsis: An beautiful young village girl enters a castle where his father is being held prisoner by a Beast and offers herself in exchange for her dad’s freedom, during her captivity she befriends an enchanted tea pot and clock, ultimately discovering that under the skin of a horrible monster there is the hidden soul of a prince and she begins to draw him out of his isolation.

Director: Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise
Writter: Linda Woolverton
Music:  Alan Menken, Howard Ashman
Duration: 1hr 24min
Rated: PG

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 The Darkest Hour 3D

The Darkest Hour is a science fiction filmed with real 3D cameras, its special effects are truly amazing and I really recommend this film is seen in 3D, as long as you like the script and the storyline, which lack substance. This USA film with a budget of $40 million, is centred in Moscow, Russia, rather unusual for American films, maybe the Kazakhstan born producer Timur Nuruakhitovich Bekmambetov (Wanted, Night Watch) might have something to do with it. This is an added bonus as you get to appreciate the beauty of the city which features prominently in the film.

The whole movie looks like a remake of Skyline and LA Invasion, a low quality “Independence Day”, if you enjoy that kind of films with little plot where the characters spend their time attempting to survive, you might like “The Darkest Hour” too. I can predict however that they will not be winning any movie of the year award, this is a highly predictable movie with very few thrills, which is the entire point of action, sci-fi, horror stories. You might want to watch it if you have nothing better to do and you long for even more alien invasion films, just do not expect too many twists, the only thing that The Darkest Hour has over other similar movies, are the 3D effects which are very well done, it could have been a great film if it didn’t look like a remake of an over baked topic with poor acting skills. I quite liked the short free digital comic in The Darkest Hour film homepage, you might want to read it, it serves as an introduction to the film.

The Darkest Hour sci-fi 3D film

Synopsis: Five young travellers are stranded in Moscow, their lives will change for ever after a worldwide devastating alien attack destroys most of the city leaving everything in the dark with the youths emerging from hiding to start a fight for survival against an enemy they don’t know.

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Immortals 3D movie

Immortals is an Universal Pictures epic film available in 2D and 3D (Real 3D and Digital 3D), this movie from the makers of “300″ is set in a world of sword fighting and sorcery in 1228BC, the huge amount of violence makes it unsuitable for children, the action sequences are very well done, shot in slow motion with lots of blood and guts, quite enjoyable if you like detailed fights, the 3D CGI effects are nothing out of the ordinary, brightness is pretty good but colours can get slightly muddy at times, Immortals is post-converted, not filmed in 3D. I would not bother with the extra money, in a way it remembers Clash of the Titans because of the low 3D quality, but it doesn’t take away the great fighting scenes and settings.

The film incorporates classical Greek mythology, playing the dichotomy in between good and evil, it is easy to get a little lost in the plot but also a great way to learn about Greek history.

Epic 3D film Immortals (2011)

Immortals doesn’t have excessive originality, like in “300″, you will be delivered an epic history of treachery, vengeance and destiny, starring Golden Globe winner Mickey Rourke and various Academy Award nominees like John Hurt (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows), Kellan Lutz (Twilight Saga), Luke Evans (Clash of the Titans) and Freida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire). Produced by Gianni Nunnari and Mark Canton(300) and directed by Tarsem Singh (The Fall), runtime is 110 minutes.

Synopsis: A murderous army lead by power hungry King Hyperion is rampaging through Greece in search of the long lost Bow of Epirus, an invincible weapon capable of overthrowing the Gods of Olympus, a young villager with a small bunch of followers raises against the King to win a battle that will decide the future of mankind.

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Tintin 3D film review

Tintin was a legendary popular comic book character in Europe through the seventies and eighties made by Belgian artist Georges Remi, aka Hergé, several live action Tintin films were produced in the sixties and a hugely popular animated TV series, The Adventures of Tintin come to the big screen from the hand of Steven Spielberg (director) and Peter Jackson (producer), this is the first Steven Spielberg animated film, made with GGI using motion facial capturing performances from real actors like Jamie Bell, starring Tintin, Andy Serkis as Captain Haddock and Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as Thomson and Thompson. The CGI method allows for the characters to look cartoonish type near photo quality, an effect impossible to accomplish with make up alone, the downside is that the facial acting skills can not be fully appreciated.

The film is full of the kind jokes that any Tintin comic reader is used too, funny and witty, sometimes subtle, The Secret of the Unicorn contains eye popping fast paced action with scenes that would be prohibitively expensive to film for real and suspense until the end, the few gun battles have raised some criticism as this is meant to be a family friendly film, but nothing too harsh is showed that should be of concern. The 3D effects are stunning, fully immersing the viewer into the film, high action 3D without fear of a head ache, gorgeous graphics, textures and landscapes of exotic locations, kids and parents will enjoy Tintin’s fun night out and if Tintin is successful at the box office, there are two proposed sequels.

The Adventures of Tintin release date: Western Europe 27th October, Middle East 03th November, Latin America January 2012 and North America (USA&Canada) 21st December.

Synopsis: A young Belgian reporter called Tintin discovers the location of a sunken ship lost at sea centuries ago, he, his dog Snowy and the ancestor of the captain’s sunken ship, Captain Haddock, race to find the treasure before the malevolent Red Rackham advances them to it.

The Adventures of Tintin 3D film

Director: Steven Spielberg
Genre: Action & Adventure, Animation, Kids & Family
Written By: Hergé, Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright, Joe Cornish
Runtime: 1 hour 40 minutes

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The Three Musketeers filming location

This 3D film adaption of Alexandre Dumas 1844 novel was shot in Bavaria (Germany), the Bavarian’s film fund as well as the German Film Board all contributed millions of Euros to produce this movie, British pop band ‘Take That’ recorded the official single, called “When we were young”, The Three Musketeers feels like a Hollywood action and adventures movie set in Europe against a backdrop of historical locations for which it was real challenge to get a filming license due to the problems that intense shinning lights cause to tapestries and centuries old paintings, the filming crew had to adapt to these restrictions, as well as the prohibition in some places against the presence of naked flames and candle lights.

The film was shot in real 3D using a very modern Arri Alexa camera which is light sensitive, since it was impossible to illuminate huge filming locations due to its size and the constraints on intense lights, the director had to shot The Three Muskateers old school style guessing where the light would come from.

The Three Musketeers in 3D

The movie squeezes the best out of the book, keeping the values of friendship and love intact as well as the fun characters, they are brought into line with a contemporary action movie. There is little setting this film apart from other movie adaptations besides the 3D effects, the fine historical locations in 3D will enhance the film experience, special effects wise, 3D only greatly intensifies this film during the dogfight airship scenes, which did not exist in the 19th century, the rest of the movie did not have to be filmed in 3D, but doing so did not harm it, overall, a pretty average adaptation of The Three Muskateers with 3D being only favorable to the film and not indispensable.

Synopsis: Young D’Artagnan joins forces with three out of luck former legendary Muskateers to defeat the evil Cardinal Richelieu and the Duke Of Buckingham whom are using a beautiful double agent for seizing the French throne and engulfing Europe into a war.

Director: Paul W.S. Anderson
Screenwriter: Andrew Davies, Alex Litvalk
Starring: Logan Lerman, Milla Jovovich, Matthew Macfadyen, Ray Stevenson, Luke Evans, Mads Mikkelsen, Gabriella Wilde, Juno Temple, Orlando Bloom, Christoph Waltz
Runtime: 110 minutes
Rated: PG-13

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