One would think that a concert film would be a preposterous and ridiculous idea for a three-dimensional film. However, "U2 3D" puts those qualms to rest.
Yes, Bono and the Irish lads can be seen in 3-D, thanks to the visionary technology of IMAX. Filmed in 2005 during the band's Vertigo tour, the venues include Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Santiago, Melbourne and, primarily, Buenos Aires. With a 14-song set that spans their entire career, from early ("Sunday Bloody Sunday") to popular pinnacle ("With or Without You") to current ("Vertigo"), "U2 3D" is both a audible and visual delight for both senses. The 84-minute film was cultivated from over 100 hours of video footage in the first film project to use the 3-D multicamera live shoot, as well as the most 3-D cameras used on a single film production (18, to be exact).
The sound in IMAX theaters is superior to no other. With 5.1 channel surround sound, the music of U2 has never been heard better. The immense enveloping of the audience transports them to the massive arenas hosting the Irish rockers. While some fans may be disenchanted by his overintensive philanthropy, Bono's most impressive vocal range is only exemplified more so in the superior sound quality of IMAX, most notably as he takes over the section that normally was reserved for the late Luciano Pavarotti. Powerful and operatic, Bono's voice soars higher than IMAX's six-story screen.
And of course, there is the 3-D aspect. With the extensive amount of footage filmed, directors Catherine Owens and Mark Pellington craft a visionary look into the future of concert films: you're not just there, but you freely flying about the venue, reaching down to every outstretched arm in the audience and touching the instruments that pulse and pound to the rhythm of the music. And U2 is a great start. Several great creative and technical parts live inside this movie.
From the faded close-up of guitarist The Edge and the audience is inserted in front of him-and you-on "New Year's Day" to the birds' eye view literally of the entire crowd jumping up and down just before the group starts "Where the Streets Have No Name." Most poignantly is Bono reaching his hand out above you during his quasi-sermon during "Sunday Bloody Sunday."
Perhaps the greatest of this 3-D trickery is drummer Larry Mullen superimposed next to a separate shot of Bono. In the Bono shot, a puff of smoke puffs up, enveloping the space in front of Mullen, making him disappear so realistically that one would think the special effects masters of "Star Wars," "Lord of the Rings" and "The Matrix" are behind it all.
"U2 3D" is a treat for the eyes and the ears of both the band's immense fanbase and technical fanboys alike, evoking a visual response to the awe-inspiring lyrics of U2's classics and recent hits.
Plus, you get to wear cool glasses like Bono does.
|
Top Stories
59 Comments
