Monsters vs. Aliens tops weekend box office, is this the big break for 3D?

by Richard Lawler posted Mar 30th 2009 at 9:22AM

After a massive promotional push, Monsters vs. Aliens early results are promising, with an estimated $58.2 million box office take over its opening weekend, 56% of that from people viewing the movie in 3D. Still, after dropping $175 million on worldwide promotions alone, you can bet Dreamworks Animation is expecting a bit more in the future to justify its investment, and carry over to its future films, which, if you haven't forgotten will all be in 3D. Early reviews gave the 3D effects a much better rating than the Super Bowl ad, so let us know, was it enough to get your family in the theater this weekend or anytime in the future?

Filed under: Industry, Misc

Tags: 3d, dreamworks, dreamworks animation, DreamworksAnimation, monsters vs. aliens, MonstersVs.Aliens

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

kevin @ Mar 30th 2009 9:32AM

We saw the trailer for it while at Coraline 3D a few weeks ago (in a RealD theater), and it looked pretty good. I'll probably end up checking it out, but it's not a priority.

Neutral

williambuckley @ Mar 30th 2009 9:54AM

Yes. Took my son to see it in Imax 3d. great effects and it wan about as enjoyable as a Dreamworks movie can be. Looking forward to seeing "Up" when it comes out in 3d.

Neutral

DEEZNUTZ @ Mar 30th 2009 10:06AM

Saw it in 3D and it looked pretty good. I wasn't blown away, but the 3D effects are definitely better than "gimmicky". I could see this trend picking up.

Neutral

Mattemer @ Mar 30th 2009 10:40AM

The 3d was definitely much better than anything i've previously scene (saw it at an imax though). g/f jumped a few times when stuff would "pop" out, and she ended up getting a little dizzy from it honestly, i had to keep yelling at her to put her glasses back on lol.

Highly Ranked

ryaninc @ Mar 30th 2009 11:37AM

This was the first 3D movie I saw and I really enjoyed it! The glasses didn't give me a headache and the effects were pretty darn cool. We'll definitely be checking out more 3D movies in the future.

Neutral

Andrew @ Mar 30th 2009 12:02PM

3D movies are nonsense in my opinion. Sure it ads something to the experience, but it's not worth the $3 surcharge levied by my local theater. I'm already paying $8.75 to watch the movie. Who in their right mind would pay $12 per person to watch a movie in a theater?

If this keeps up, I'm probably going to stop going to theaters altogether.

Neutral

Trevor @ Mar 30th 2009 5:50PM

I frequently tell people who complain about prices at cinemas: vote with your wallet.

The only way cinemas will change their pricing is if the customers stop going and stop buying refreshments. Since my career is directly related to the cinema business, I am happy to see that has not happened yet.

BTW, Bank of America was giving away free upgrades that would allow you to see the 3D presentation at no extra change. It is always a good idea to search the internet for special deals on any product.

Neutral

lferguson @ Mar 30th 2009 12:16PM

Andrew, I would. Actually I would pay $15 to see a good 3D action movie, $20 to see a football/basketball game in 3D, and $30 to see a championship game like the NCAA Finals or Superbowl.

3D will help a lot of people feel like they're right there even though they aren't anywhere close. To complain about paying $9 begs the question of why you'd see it in a theater anywhere when you could have watched it online for free, or wait until it's available as a DVD through netflix, blockbuster, or redbox.

People pay for entertainment. Period. I know this will work because the movie theaters need help, and people need a reason to get out of the house.

Chance Stevens
Editor, http://www.tvlampsnbulbs.com

Neutral

Ahmed @ Mar 30th 2009 12:59PM

Watched the movie with the family this weekend. Thought the 3D was great! Not as good as Disney, as they raised the bar with Bolt in my opinion. Dreamworks should continue on its present path without a doubt. My 5 year old was happy with the effects, which for me, is all that matters.

Neutral

burndive @ Mar 30th 2009 1:25PM

Yep, the wife and I went and saw it in 3D.

I loved it, and I thought that the 3D added a lot to the experience.

Unfortunately, what it added to my wife's experience was nausea. That alone will probably preclude future family 3D outings, but I may go with friends.

Neutral

Iridium @ Mar 31st 2009 6:14PM

The 3D effect was good but there were a lot of problems with it. If you did not sit very close to the screen and could see the screen edges it really affected the 3D viewing experience.

The major problem was that the movie was edited for 2D as well so many scenes involved characters whose heads were cut off by the screen. You get a nice 3D effect of hlaf a head coming out at you. It is kind of 3D inside a box. Nothing can project outside the edge of the screen.

Also many theaters with DLP projectors use curved screens. The curvature of the screen throws off the 3D effect on the sides. Since the 3D effect depends on the relation of the two projected frames this caused a few instances where the 3D effect did not work properly. The projection also had a small keystone problem from improper calibration. A 3D movie needs to be projected perfectly, many theatres simply do not care enough to make sure the equipment works properly.

The 3D was neat but not worth the extra $2 per ticket.

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