The Nintendo 3DS: Bring us 3D movies already!

On launch day, I went out and bought a Nintendo 3DS. I'm sort of love-hate on the current 3D fad in film, but I was impressed by the system enough to want it immediately.

Currently, the system doesn't have every feature I want. There's no online shop for games, no Internet browser, and most importantly to this blog, no way to get 3D videos. (A firmware upgrade included a 3D OK Go video, but there's only so many times I want to watch that.)

Thankfully, Nintendo wants to bring all of that on board. Personally, though, I have a big wishlist of what should be available eventually on their video shop.

Trailers

This one is such an obvious idea that Nintendo has already said they're trying to bring 3D movie trailers on board. This would help me decide whether going to see Movie X in 3D is worth the extra ticket price or not. Personally, though, I don't just want upcoming movie trailers in 3D; I'd like to see trailers for older movies, too. Now for more specific stuff...

Looney Tunes

Warner Bros. has made a couple computer-animated 3D Road Runner shorts for showings with movies like Legend of the Guardians and Cats and Dogs 2 (yeah, I'd forgotten about those movies, too). Obviously, those would be an asset. Also worth looking into, however, is "Lumber Jack-Rabbit," a hand-drawn 3D short from 1953; it's probably nowhere nearly as advanced as the recent stuff, but it'd be a neat curiosity.

Music videos

Of course, the OK Go video is a start (although I think the Japanese musicians playing the "Super Mario Bros." theme seemed a lot cooler). But when you go to Best Buy, you see other 3D music videos playing to show off the overpriced 3D TVs. I don't think there's been any really cool bands using it yet (I'd love to see Lady Gaga or Beck playing with 3D), but that would be awesome to see--and it could introduce people to lesser-known bands.

Pretty scenery

The Grand Canyon. The Golden Gate Bridge. The view from the Empire State Building. The Paris skyline. How awesome would it be to see these in 3D without actually having to pay airfare? It's another thing you see on 3D TVs for demoing. (Note: These may require special 3D rigs to capture far-off images without looking 2D, with the cameras further apart than usual.)

Now, onto the actual movies.

Drive Angry

I saw this in 2D at a dollar theater, and it was fun; it's the kind of cheesy "grindhouse"-style action movie we only get every year or two. But watching it in 2D just made the lack of a third dimension glaring; it seems like it'd be a lot more fun to see it with all the bullets and shrapnel flying out at you, like the director intended.

Creature from the Black Lagoon

Maybe it's not as scary as modern horror movies. (I say maybe, because I've never seen it.) But reportedly, the 3D is very well-done, especially for the 50s.

Robot Monster

AKA "The Gorilla with a Diving Helmet movie." Again, done in 3D; again, reportedly well-done in 3D (less so in other places like costuming and plot). This, sadly, is probably the one least likely to appear; it's an obscurity, a bad movie, and few existing releases are in 3D.

Cat-Women of the Moon

Can you tell I have a thing for terrible B-movies?

Beowulf

You would not believe how obvious it is that this was made for 3D. Seeing all the bodies flying through the air, all the swords pointing right at you, all of it just looks less interesting in 2D. (And, for the pervs, Angelina Jolie's curves would probably look a little better, too.)

I'm sure there are more I'm forgetting, but you get the point. The 3D on a 3DS looks very good, and I think it could be a great way of watching 3D movies (and everything else I've mentioned) for people who can't afford 3D TVs.

Restarting my blog on film

So I've decided to try blogging again. (Or, as I'd prefer to call it, "writing a public journal that nobody will find.") Clearly, since my obsession is film, I decided to restart "Movies About Steak Sauce."

But first, I looked over what I had done before, and... you know how you'll write something and think it's really good, then you'll come back to it years later and be utterly ashamed of it? That's my reaction to several of my earlier posts. Unfortunately, this included the first post, which I felt had a real snobby air to it.

So this is the new first-ish post. Hurrah.

Now I have to explain the name again. It's based on a piece of trivia I read on the IMDb for "AI: Artificial Intelligence." Initially, the name was just "AI," but in marketing surveys, people thought it was "A1," so they added the subtitle to keep people from thinking it was a movie about steak sauce.

Originally, I used that anecdote to look down on the "general public," saying they were morons. But first, what the hell is "the general public?" Is there such a thing? Second, looking at the logo, it's kind of an understandable mistake. Third, this is the trivia page on the IMDb, which is not exactly as reliable as Wikipedia (which never brings it up).

So what can you look forward to me writing about? Lists of stuff I want to see! Reviews and think-pieces! Lots of words! Heck if I know!