When Marietta resident Carla Morgenstern, 21, went to see Warner Bros. Pictures' "The Polar Express" in 3-D in Columbus, she felt as though she could reach right out and grab the train as it whipped around mountains and soared through tunnels on its way to the North Pole.
"It was pretty amazing with the technology and what they can do with it," she said.
The release of movies in 3-D is a growing trend. Disney's "Alice in Wonderland" and Warner Brothers' "Clash of the Titans" are among those most recently released in 3-D, as well as Twentieth Century Fox's "Avatar." Dreamworks' "Shrek Forever After," the final installment of the films about the green ogre, is currently in theaters in 3-D.
On Friday, Disney and Pixar's "Toy Story 3" will hit the big screen in 3-D, and Dimension Films' "Piranha 3-D" will be released in theaters Aug. 20.
Morgenstern said "The Polar Express" is the only film she's seen in 3-D, but she wouldn't be opposed to watching another 3-D movie.
"It would depend on what the movie is," she said. "I think I would like to see more cartoon movies in 3-D instead of anything else."
Fact Box
Upcoming 3-D movie releases:
June 18 - "Toy Story 3"
Aug. 20 - "Piranha 3-D"
Recent 3-D movie releases:
"Avatar"
"Alice in Wonderland"
"How to Train Your Dragon"
"Clash of the Titans"
"Shrek Forever After".
Marietta resident Mahria Hall, 19, said she wished the recent horror remake "A Nightmare on Elm Street" had been released in 3-D.
"Scary movies should be in 3-D, too," she said. "I think it'd be awesome."
The film was released in theaters April 30.
Hall noted that she's never seen a 3-D movie, primarily because of the cost of a ticket for such a film. According to Regal Cinemas' www.fandango.com, "Shrek Forever After" is being shown at Grand Central Mall in Vienna, and the cost of an adult matinee ticket is $10.50. The cost of an evening showing is $12.50 per adult.
While some people enjoy the special effects of 3-D movies, others are adamantly against them. Chicago Sun-Times movie critic Robert Ebert said on the newspaper's website, www.suntimes.com, that he's "disenchanted" with 3-d movies and calling them unrealistic.
There is also a debate over the manner in which 3-D movies are filmed. According to The Hollywood Reporter's website, www.hollywoodreporter.com, "Avatar" was shot in 3-D, while "Alice in Wonderland" and "Clash of the Titans" were converted to 3-D after being filmed. Some people argue that when this conversion takes place, the quality of the final product suffers.
Still, others argue that during live-action production, filmmakers have room to be more creative if they convert a standard film to 3-D rather than shooting in 3-D.
While there's a debate over 3-D movies hitting the big screen, controversy has also been brought about by the recent release of 3-D televisions. Panasonic, Samsung and Sony are among the companies that currently have 3-D televisions on the market, and they start at around $3,000.
Additionally, ESPN rolled out its 3D cable and satellite channel Friday, where a number of World Cup soccer tournament matches were aired.
According to the Digital Trends website, www.digitaltrends.com, the televisions won't be immediately successful because there's not a demand for 3-D television, they're impractical and they're expensive.
Vincent resident Danielle Maddox, 23, said she likes the idea of 3-D televisions, but she doesn't intend to purchase one.
"It seems kind of cool, but I probably wouldn't run out right now and buy one," she said.
