An extra dimension; students enjoy thrill of 3D flicks

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Watching a movie is one thing. Being a part of the movie is another.

St. Jones freshman Jesse Capp enjoys 3D movies because they give him a chance to be a part of the action.

“(A 3D movie) is more than just a picture on a screen,” he said. “It actually comes right at you.”

Chris Couling, general manager at Celebration! Cinema, 4935 E. Pickard St., said the presentation of movies offered in 3D is a huge selling point for audiences.

“It’s a unique way to watch a movie,” he said. “You can just see special effects presented in a unique way. It’s just something new and different.”

Couling said the amount of attendee for any given 3D film depends on the film itself.

He said movies that are made specifically to be shown in 3D have larger audiences than those that don’t.

“Avatar” was shot specifically for presentation in 3D, and generated a larger audience than “Clash of the Titans,” which was converted post-filming.

“There was actually a lot of negative feedback about (‘Clash of the Titans’),” Couling said. “People didn’t like the 3D in it; it looked cheap.”

Many of the movies selected to be filmed and screened in 3D depends on consumer demand, said Couling.

Though demand for 3D movies is fairly high, the demand does come with a price.

At Celebration!, that price is an extra $3 for a 3D movie ticket.

Couling said the price increase is to help foot the bill for the extra technology needed to shoot a film in 3D.

“A lot of people think it’s just for the glasses, but it doesn’t matter if you bring back your old glasses,” he said. “There’s still the $3 upcharge and it goes to pay for the investment in the technology that theater owners had to take on to bring movies in 3D to theaters.”

Some moviegoers, like Capp, think the $3 is more than worth the experience. To others, such as Bay City junior Meg McCarthy, the extra money usually isn’t worth the cheap thrills.

McCarthy said she enjoys 3D movies in some cases, but in others, the films should be left two dimensional.

“I think if it’s a really imaginative movie like ‘Avatar’ or ‘Tron,’ or something that is not really realistic, then a 3D movie just helps you get involved with it,” she said. “But I think when they try and take more serious movies and make them 3D… it makes them kind of cheesy.”

McCarthy said she frequents movie theaters every week, and thinks the $3 upcharge is too expensive for average 3D films.

Couling said as 3D movies become more common, many movie theater frequenters are beginning to have the same mentality as McCarthy.

“I think people, especially the savvy movie-goers, are starting to know whether it was made for 3D or not,” he said.