U2 in 3D – In Some Ways, Even Better Than the Real Thing

When we were invited to a sneak preview of U23D, U2’s live-action digital 3-D concert film (the first of its kind) – we were a bit nervous. Some of us are even loyal fans of the aging rockers (ok, just one of us), but even so, the idea of an hour-and-a-half concert video all in 3-D – and having to wear those silly glasses through the whole thing – seemed little more than gimmicky…and nauseating. Having twice witnessed U2 performances in real life 3-D, we were curious to see how the digital version would compare.

Our skepticism soon turned to appreciation, even awe, once the show started: the film, directed by Catherine Owens with production by 3ality Digital, is unlike any movie or concert experience we’ve had. Employing several cameras with 3ality’s Digital 3-D camera system (which had been successfully put to use during SuperBowl XXXVIII), the movie offers a swooping bird’s eye view of the performers and their 80,000 fans, but with every detail of their features and movements heightened, brightened, brilliantly clear. The 3-D effect is not limited to cheesy close-up shots of Bono’s hands reaching out towards the audience (though there are plenty of those). It’s used to make the viewer feel completely immersed in the performance – at one moment perched behind the Edge on stage, appreciating every contour of his guitar as he plucks and sweats, and at the next standing in the sea of squished Argentinian fans, dazzled by the flicker of thousands of cellphones and lighters raised in the air. U23D (actually a compilation of several of the band’s appearances in South America during their Vertigo Tour) doesn’t lie anywhere between a conventional 2-D concert video and a real-life rock show – it’s a genuinely unique experience of its own, one that relies on the precision of this relatively new 3-D technology to bring a sense of intimacy to the performance’s stadium-sized grandeur. The filmmakers and producers are optimistic that U23D has “the potential to revolutionize the way entertainment is produced and experienced” – and all hype aside, we think it might.

The film will be distributed worldwide by National Geographic Entertainment and opens in limited release tomorrow, Jan 23.