Have geek, will boldly travel.
In a move calculated to tick off the 3D evangelists of the world, nerd warlock J J Abrams has announced that his sequel to “Star Trek” will shoot in 2D and be post-converted to the 3D format. And possibly IMAX, too. Maybe even Super-8?
I admire Abrams for sticking to his guns and shooting in the format which he feels most comfortable with but I do find it disturbing that studios are now so devoted to the idea of having a 3D version of a blockbuster that they’re quite happy to have the original film retro-fitted in post production to have another box copy element to tick off.
Either make it stereoscopic or don’t – the halfway-house model of converting a film after the fact very rarely ends up doing anything other than piss off the devotees and annoys the less passionate section of the audience who just want to see a film and end up having to pay more for the privilege, wearing a crappy pair of knock-off Raybans into the bargain.
I’m all for 3D when it’s done well – “Avatar“, “Resident Evil-Afterlife” – so I’m not dead set against the format. What I am dead set against is taking something and mis-shaping it so that it fits into a marketing strategy.
The idea that Abrams wants to post-covert to 3D and IMAX, citing the example of “Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows” as a good use of the process fills me dread as that film was a complete and utter train-wreck in IMAX 3D. Badly ghosted images, out of focus and wholly destroyed compositions, a lifelessly dull, bleached-out picture which obscured details – this is not what you pay a price premium for and if the evidence of “Deathly Hallows Part 2″ in IMAX tells me anything it is that I will never again step through the door of any cinema which offers this kind of craven money grab and tries to pretend that they’re offering a premium experience.
