WRECK-IT RALPH, Top Gun, and Despicable Me: 3D Releases-Reviews

Top Gun

This Tom Cruise film was the #1 box office attraction in 1985. Although it was a hit, it comes across as dated and lacking when compared to the more recent productions that are filled with special effects. The best part of the film is the opening sequence when jets are taking off from a Navy battleship to the beat of the popular “Danger Zone” music. The gawd awful point of the film is Tom Cruse as “Maverick” and his friends singing songs around a piano. None of them can sing the tiniest bit; however this is supposed to have the gals all swooning over the pilots. It is difficult to think much of Maverick as he is irresponsible in all respects however when he shoots up the bad guys in the final scenes all is forgiven. This reissued film is one of the bottom five 3D releases of all time. The 3D is not spectacular at all. ONE AND ONE HALF STARS

WRECK-IT RALPH

WRECK-IT RALPH was released at the box-office on October 29^th 2012 and became a hit with audiences and critics alike. The $165 million dollar budget shows in every scene as the settings and the action are first rate. There is something here for all audiences whether it is the eye-popping sets, the loveable characters or the engaging storyline. This could very well be one of the most imaginative animated films of all time.

Candy land will engage the children, while the Alien sci-fi arcade game will appeal to adults. The blend of the various arcade worlds is clever and never ceased to amaze this viewer how well it all came together. There is a racing sequence that compares to the race scene with Luke Skywalker in Star Wars I. In that the final scenes were spectacular and the story line came to a dramatic and heartwarming ending, I must give this FOUR STARS. Plan to view this one many times and enjoy the 3D that could not be more spectacular.

Despicable Me

Here is another top notch animated feature that is sure to entertain any audience. This was produced by Illumination Entertainment located in France. The Despicable character is a Frenchman who is determined to be the top villain in the entire world. He adopts three cute little orphan girls as pawns in a bizarre plot to steal the moon. As you would imagine the children capture his heart and as the curtain comes down he is a changed person because of his love for the children. This film had a $69 million dollar budget and brought in $543 million and was a box office smash. The critics loved it as well. The 3D is excellent as most every animated feature seems to be. It does lack lush settings like "Brave" and the nuances that $100 million dollar budgets can produce. This is much like “Arthur Christmas” where the settings matter much less than the engaging storyline. Three stars are well deserved for this wonderful animated film.

Dredd would have been better with a higher budget

The 3D video year begins with a low budget sci-fi film, “Dredd.” It has been released with the 2D and 3D on one disc. Without a 2D disc to sell off the purchase is expensive for those viewers who like to sell the 2D disc on eBay and recoup the costs. There are a few documentary shorts included and it helps to appreciate the effort that went into the film.

The $45 million dollar film budget resulted in box office receipts of only $36 million. The 1995 film “Judge Dredd” with Sylvester Stallone budgeted at $90 million took in $113 million and was not well received. If we were to compare the two films we could observe that Stallone did a better job in the lead. The higher production values of the earlier film could be one reason to wish this new version had a bigger budget. While the artists worked diligently to produce Mega City as best they could it does fall flat on the first viewing. They do have a few attempts to present a spectacular landscape, but one cannot help but compare the first scene to bigger budgeted Star Wars, Hugo, and others that have spectacular openings. We see a single aircraft flying around the cityscape when there should be a dozen or more.

For those of us who wish to view dynamic 3D, this film falls short in nearly half of the scenes and several scenes appear to be 2D. The 3D is only slightly better than ‘The Lion King” which is the worst use of 3D I have ever witnessed. There is a green tint in nearly every scene that gives the film a cheap appearance. The story is fairly good, although, it could have been better. This should have been a PG movie rather than R as they could very well have earned a profit. The audience is struck with unnecessary vulgarity in the opening scenes and it continues throughout the film. 1 ½ Stars of four is earned for the first 3D release of 2013. If you are a 3D fan and love violent films with no star power, this is for you. If the 3D had been up to par and the green tint not there, this would have earned 2 or 2 1/2 stars.

Read more about last year’s 3D releases and more here. Which films were big money makers in 2012?