Avatar hit's 3D legacy

There's a new terror stalking the gold encrusted streets of Hollywood and it's name is 3D. Spurred on by the success of a little film called Avatar, which has earned over $1.3 billion and garnered rave reviews, movie executives are now scouring their production slate to see where the next 3D success could be lurking.

Get ready for Tron Legacy, Alice in Wonderland, Toy Story 3, The Princess and the Frog, Battle for Terra and even a sequel to 80s B-movie horror Piranha in the shape of the imaginatively titled Piranha 3D, with more to come.

If reports are to be believed, Ridley Scott is trying to turn his soon-to-be-made $200 million Robin Hood epic into a 3D version and Zombieland 2 is also going to be tinkered with so that the blood and guts of the undead can appear to splatter over your popcorn next time around.

It also seems that we could soon be bombarded with a raft of re-releases from the archives if the money men get their way. George Lucas wants to show us the Millenium Falcon eluding the Imperial Starfleet once again in 3D and there have been rumours that other classics such as The Wizard of Oz, Superman and Jurassic Park could be 3D-ified.

While the huge success of Avatar is a godsend for the cinemas is it as good for audiences?

My own experience of Avatar is that it looks nice enough but that the plot is so simplistic it's virtually My First Sci-fi, though maybe that's vital if James Cameron is going to get the largest possible audience through the door to see it.

What really bothers me is that all the effort that has gone into making the film look so good is dulled by the viewer having to wear sunglasses for the duration. The gorgeous colours are muted and I find myself lifting my specs at regular intervals to see what's really going on up there.

Just this week I watched recent 3D film Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs on Blu-ray, in a standard 2D version. The script was funny, the picture clear, the plot great fun. And I didn't miss 3D at all.

Then again, if a high grossing 3D movie brings more viewers into the cinema and means smaller films can be made with the profits, maybe it's not all bad.

I'm waiting to be convinced.

Avatar preview coming tonight - updated

In case you missed the announcement, today is Avatar Day: cinemas around the world are screening 15 minutes worth of footage from Terminator director James Cameron's latest 3D blockbuster Avatar as excitement surrounding it grows to fever pitch.

Yesterday saw the first trailer appear online, which, while pretty action packed, doesn't really do the film justice.

I saw a few minutes of 3D footage last week and it looks impressive on the big screen - I'll report back tonight after I've seen the new footage with more details about what to expect come the release date of 18 December.

Updated 10.20pm: I'm pleased to say that the scenes I saw at the weekend weren't just a flash in the pan - Avatar does look great in 3D.

The colours are vibrant and Cameron has clearly put his time and money on the screen with the action scenes. The 3D isn't obtrusive but offers depth to the picture missing from traditional films.

The depiction of the lead characters - Jake Worthington and Sigourney Weaver both play human characters and CGI "Avatars" - is still sketchy so I won't go into detail about them here. It'll be interesting to see how much of the flesh and blood versions we see in the finished film.

So all in all I'm positive about the picture, even if I can't quite agree yet with the "future of filmmaking" label being attached to it.

This being a James Cameron film I have very high expectations - here's hoping it meets them this December.