BOLT in 3-D

BOLT written by Dan Fogelman and Chris Williams; Directed by Byron Howard and Chris Williams; Winner of the Kids' Choice Awards 2009; Walt Disney Animation Studios.

Contributed by Mike Fishman

3-D animation has come a long way, particularly if one looks back to Superman Returns (2006) which had a total of four scenes in 3-D, requiring the viewer to go in and out of the 3-D experience, putting on and removing the glasses. Things picked up considerably with Beowolf (2007), the entire film being in 3-D and the filmmakers wise to the fact that 3-D didn’t just have to be fantastical effects; in fact, some of the most successful scenes simply involved landscapes and halls filled with people in which a sense of depth felt real, bringing the viewer into the scene. While the 3-D glasses and technology have improved greatly (no more headache-inducing glasses requiring the eyes to work separately), Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008) was a great disappointment and felt like a step back, as the filmmakers used the 3-D technology mostly for predictable effects such as falling and objects coming at the viewer rather than to create a real sense of space. This was particularly lamentable given the opportunity to create a unique world unlike any viewers would have seen before.

Happily, Bolt in 3-D makes excellent use of the technology, not only to enhance action scenes but, more crucially, to create real perspective between the viewer and the space depicted on screen and between characters within that given space. Even the fur on Bolt and Mittens (the cat) seems real and alive. Coupled with an exciting, fun story, this makes for animation that delivers on visual and dramatic levels.

Bolt, voiced by an excellent John Travolta, is a dog who was raised as a pet actor in a fictional TV show, each week saving the day for his beloved “person” Penny, using heat rays generated from his eyes and his “super bark.” The fictional element of Bolt’s world is kept secret from him, as in The Truman Show, although other animals he comes in contact with are well-aware of the make believe aspect. OK, Bolt is not the sharpest doggie in the world, but viewers are encouraged to keep in mind that he was raised in this environment since he was a puppy, so why would he question the camera, etc? In fact, one funny scene involves the show’s director flipping out when a boom mic is visible on-screen; if Bolt doesn’t believe, the director states, the viewers won’t believe. Threatened with cancellation unless he can increase ratings, the director has Penny kidnapped and for once, the danger is not resolved within a given show. Bolt, believing Penny to be in real danger, escapes from his studio-home and embarks on a journey to save her.

And thus our story begins.

Along the way Bolt enlists the help of Mittens, a cat voiced wonderfully by Susie Essman (Curb Your Enthusiasm), one of the most intriguing characters seen in animation in a long time. Feline in the finest sense: slinky, sensual, sarcastic, and jaded, but de-clawed, making her sympathetic as well as extremely likable. Of course, there is the prerequisite comical sidekick, in this case a hamster named Rhino, voiced by Mark Walton, who is saved from expected annoyance by surprisingly witty dialogue. The film is a ride that never lets up but what sets it apart from so many recent feature-length animations is the fact that it is rooted in reality, in the sense that Bolt can talk to other animals but not to humans. While Ratatouille is superb on many levels, and Bee Movie and The Tale of Despereaux have their relative merits, the simple fact that the protagonists in those films could converse with humans made those films that much more unrealistic. And the fact Bolt comes to learn that he is not in fact a superhero but merely an actor, creates a more rounded, complex, interesting, and sympathetic character than we usually encounter in animation.

And, while The Tale of Despereaux (in the theaters at the same time as BOLT) is certainly more beautiful visually, BOLT is simply more interesting, more fun, and the kind of animated film fans of animation can live in, and connect with. It delivers everything one could hope for from a 3-D animation. And there is good reason to believe we will be seeing more 3-D animated films, albeit at a slightly increased price, the only unfortunate aspect. But, it they turn out as satisfying and gimmick-free as BOLT in 3-D, this may be just what the theatrical business needs.

The following excerpts from an interview Newsarama conducted with Dreamworks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg, addresses this very issue.

From the Newsarama website:

“In the entire history of film, there have been two revolutionary events,” says Katzenberg, “the transition from silent movies to synchronized sound in the 1920s and arrival of color in the 1930s. Now, seven decades later, the movie industry is entering the third period of revolutionary change with the arrival of 3D. The first two, sound and color, were about bringing a better film experience to audiences. This one is about bringing audiences into the film experience. At DreamWorks Animation, we believe so strongly in 3D that we have completely re-tooled our studio for this medium. Beginning next year, every one of our releases will be produced – from the first storyboard to the final release print – using proprietary technology we are calling InTru3D.

“Working with our partners at Intel & HP, we have developed authoring tools that take full advantage of all the immersive storytelling possibilities of stereoscopic 3D. These tools allow us to approach filmmaking in a whole new way. Until now, most 3D animated releases have actually been produced in 2D and then converted to 3D during post-production. This is somewhat analogous to taking a black-and-white movie and colorizing it. By contrast, our 3D films are being created for this medium from the very first storyboard. We have entered a whole new creative world.”

For the record, this process has been around before. In fact, Katzenberg cites another hit animated film for his current zealousness.

“In terms of 3D, I guess the Eureka moment was when I saw Polar Express in IMAX 3-D,” says Katzenberg. “I was riveted by the experience of the film. I don’t remember having seen a film that was as immersive and involving an experience. Even though it was a 2D movie converted to 3D, I felt the potential of it wouldn’t disappear. I literally left that theater, and it was on a Saturday, and called all the senior people at Dreamworks Animation to tell them they got to see this. This is our future. That was really the breakthrough moment.”

Not that Katzenberg is making an audience’s introduction to this development easy. In fact, most experts, Katzenberg included, are warning there will be a $5.00 additional cost to the MvA ticket to offset the extra costs associated with the experience.

“The answer is this may not be for everybody, but that’s why we’re here today,” he said. “I give a lot of credit to people like Zemeckis and Disney for making these earlier generations of movies. I see us as the next step up in the evolution of 3D. It’s a tremendous step both in the making of movies.

“It would have cost us $150 million to make Monsters v. Aliens. By adding this extra step we are adding an additional $15 million to the cost, making it $165 million. These are very, very expensive movies. Also, for the theaters, they are investing a lot of capital in converting theaters to project in 3-D. It requires a premium charge. My feeling is if you offer people a better product, with a higher and more reliable quality, they will pay a premium for it. They will feel they will get value for their money.”

What does this mean as far as the movie experience?

“Let me give you an example of what I mean,” says Katzenberg. “Ever since D.W. Griffith started moving the camera, the pan shot has been a tool for filmmakers to track across the screen, most notably in a film like Lawrence of Arabia, to suggest the vastness of the desert, or in Star Wars to take us from a sky full of stars down to battling starships.

“Now, for the first time, filmmakers can use a pan shot to track into the screen. This is more than just a new camera move because it can also be an important storytelling device. At a moment of high intensity, the camera can bring the audience in closer. At a moment of human isolation, the camera can suddenly back off. This is what the ‘D’ of ‘3D’ is all about: dimensionality. Not just visual dimensionality, but emotional dimensionality.

“It’s important to note that when I say 3D, we’re not talking about what I like to call my father’s 3D ... which used these kind of goofy cardboard, red and blue, anaglyph glasses,” says Katzenberg. “It was pretty terrible. The technology was primitive, the film was blurry, people got headaches and some even got nauseous. It really wasn’t much more than a cheap exploitation gimmick.

“Here’s the difference, even with these most recent movies, 3D was used to make very self-consciously, not for the audience itself. The problem with that, and this goes back to storytelling, first and foremost when it was used it didn’t have to be a very good movie. It was unfortunate, but it was successful. So Monster v. Aliens has to be--first, second, third, fourth and fifth—it has to be a really great entertainment. We had an offering an exceptional way to experience that filming in its 3D presentation. With the old movies, what it actually does is break a convention. When one of the 3D scenes happened, it breaks outside of the story. It stops in the narrative. It makes you think, ‘Oh! There’s a spear coming right at my face!’ or ‘OH! It looks like I can touch that!,’ which is great, but it breaks up the narrative. You’ve broken the wall.

“What you’re seeing here is completely the opposite of it,” Katzenberg claims. “The audience is actually immersed into the world itself. Their feelings are amplified into it, because this is much closer to how we actually see. We see in color and in three dimensions. It really is a total rethink of the means we make movies. The original 3-D movies were B-market crap. I hated a lot of them. The actual point of those movies were to engage the audience into the effects. With our 3-D we are going for exactly the opposite. The moment we just go for the effects, we have broken the bond.

“Look at it this way, when we go to a good theme park ride, we experience them in three dimensions. I should know because I helped make four or five of them. I really feel that’s really the closest experience we have to 3-D.”

Not that there aren’t glasses involved.

“The glasses use state-of-the-art polarized lenses and they’re so comfortable you quickly forget you’re even wearing them,” says Katzenberg. “Projection used to require two side-by-side projectors that were nearly impossible to synchronize; ergo, all the headaches and nausea. Now, a single projector is used that delivers pristine, bright digital images on the screen in perfect sync and flicker-free. Indeed, the key to all of this progress is in the single word: digital.

“Just as digital technology has drastically altered special effects, allowing audiences to feel they’re sailing on the Titanic, leaping buildings with Spiderman or coming face-to-face with King Kong, so too has it completely transformed 3D into a medium that can replicate the most remarkable human sense of all – the sense of sight.”

“To appreciate the magnitude of this accomplishment, consider what has been achieved with the sense of hearing,” Katzenberg continues. “In just a few decades, we’re gone from vinyl to 8-track to cassette to CD to digital. Today, we can capture, store and replay sound with near perfect fidelity to our ears.

“Current 2D movies are still in the visual equivalent of the vinyl era. Many of them are outstanding works of entertainment and even art. But they do not capture the essence of being there. 3D does. 3D represents the opportunity to re-energize audiences worldwide about the film medium by offering a dramatic new visual experience that can only be had at their local cinema.”