Over the years, there has been a growing decline for 3D movies. Most major television manufacturers, like Sony and Samsung, have moved away from the technology this year with a stronger focus on higher resolution 2D offerings. Now IMAX, which initially pushed the trend, will slowly be doing away with the tech too.
For some, this is really bad news. For others, it’s really really great news. 3D has always been a source of controversy. Some complain of headaches and disorientation after watching. Others are put off by the cheap clunky glasses that darken the picture and the higher price point. It’s probably a big relief then that IMAX will do away with the technology and refocus their cinemas towards high-quality 2D films instead.
IMAX Entertainment CEO Greg Foster confessed that the success of Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk proved that consumers in North America have a stronger preference 2D rather than 3D:
“It’s worth noting ‘Dunkirk’ was showing exclusively in 2-D, which consumers have shown a strong preference for… The demand for 2D films is starting to exceed 3D in North America.”
Like many of Nolan’s other films, Dunkirk was filmed exclusively on high-end IMAX cameras>. It had a really good domestic opening weekend, with its IMAX screenings drawing in an impressive $11.7 million.
Ironically, this news comes one month after Michael Bay announced that he wants to keep 3D alive shot Transformers: The Last Knight entirely in native IMAX 3D, spending the extra “ten to fifteen million dollars” to do it right.
Still, the people have spoken.
