Do We Really Need 'Iron Man 2' in 3-D?

The jury is still out on 3-D. It got a big pat on the back this weekend, thanks to The Final Destination, so maybe the answer is as simple as making a movie people really want to see anyway. Avatar is a special case, designed specifically to raise the bar, but in most other instances, 3-D is probably going to be perceived as a mostly empty gimmick that will add a little stuffing to the studios' coffers because of the excitement built around any opening weekend. Ain't It Cool News reports that Iron Man 2 may step into the third dimension, although it would be the upconverted variety; the film was not shot in 3-D. Apparently, Marvel brass is looking at a very short demo to determine if it's a sound move. The first one didn't need it, so I can't imagine the second one being aided greatly by 3-D technology. Of course, if Marvel or Paramount wants a best-case-scenario movie to experiment with it, Iron Man 2 would be the one. They are kind of playing with house money on this sequel. Lots of goodwill and a favorable release date make it hard to imagine the Iron Man sequel going south next summer. There are a couple of considerations, but I think this is primarily a money chase. Iron Man 2 will kick off a blazing hot summer and the added ticket prices for 3-D will look even better nine months from now because there will be more available theaters. Suddenly, a $125 million weekend becomes $140 million for the same film, and the process of making it three-dimensional has paid for itself is short order. The other bullet point is what this could mean for Marvel down the line, whether or not The Avengers would be produced in 3-D. That depends on the box office, obviously. But there is not a significant reason to do it to see if the 3-D "works." The process is well-established by this point. Harry Knowles says, "Watching Iron Man, Whiplash, War Machine and Black Widow in 3-D would be an unbelievable experience next summer," although I doubt that's true. It will be a couple bucks more expensive, but seeing Up in 3-D wasn't unbelievable, and so far, only My Bloody Valentine has had fun with the artificial saddling of things popping out of the screen. If Marvel decides to go down this road, there's also talk that the first Iron Man would be re-released in 3-D, which is again rather a moot point.