I've said before that I think this whole 3D fad will burn out eventually. It always does. Even if studios are raking in some extra dough charging exorbitant amounts for tickets right now, eventually it'll start to even out. We've already seen some trending towards that this year, especially in light of Green Lantern's opening last week. My biggest complaint about the format is that it's simply too dark. Too many films are shot that way and 3D only exacerbates the situation. So when you get an already murky film like Pirates of the Caribbean and throw 3D glasses on, it looks like refried beans. You see those trailers for Harry Potter? How do you think that's going to turn out in 3D? Not so good. Well, Paramount knows audiences are starting to turn, and in a bid to stay ahead of the curve are releasing
Transformers: Dark of the Moon to over 2000 screens in a special "brightened" 3D format.
Blame Michael Bay if you want because it seems to be his brainchild...
Bay:
“We want the best presentation possible. We have created a special version with extra sharpening, color and contrast. It is a superior look in the format. The brighter the image, the brain processes in a different way and the result sharpens and makes it more vibrant. We did many studies on the formats for presentation and I found this to be the best result.”
Without getting too geeky and technical, the special digital print should deliver twice the brightness of the typical. At least they don't appear to be charging more money for it. At least not yet. It's possible this is also just a ploy to keep Transformers in as many 3D screens as possible, especially with
Cars 2 and Harry Potter on the horizon. [
Variety]
