This past year has seen a marked increase in the desire for 3D films in part due to the success of Avatar (2009) which has created a seemingly never-ending stream of studios wanting to cash in on the craze. USA Today has ranked the top four, yes only four, highest-grossing 3D films in this rather uninspired snapshot.
The graphic portrays only the top four highest-grossing 3D films domestically based on their earnings in millions. I found it funny that they depicted people with their mouths open in shock like 3D is an amazing or literally "jaw dropping" experience. Avatar, of course, takes the top spot with $595 million due to its innovative use of 3D. Animated films seem to attract a larger audience for their 3D versions than live-action since the other three films on this list are all animated. In second place is Up (2009) with $293 million which is a little less than half of Avatar's earnings.
The illustrations presented in the graphic are bland with simply the same four images displayed at differing heights to exhibit the earnings like a bar graph. The colors used are also very subdued with all of the text in black. Though I will admit it makes the graphic slightly more noticeable than a simple bar graph would have been. However, the price to see a film in 3D has increased in recent years which calls into question the accuracy of this graph. Are that many more Americans going to see films in 3D or is it the rising prices that make it seem that way? The graph is too simple because it does not give us any details behind the numbers.
This topic does not really have an impact on our lives, and as such isn't what I would consider a newsworthy edition to a supposedly "news" section of USA Today. Furthermore, the graphic wasn't all that effective in describing the rise of 3D films in America today or catching my attention.
Melissa Wesloski
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I thought you made a good point in this blog about the prices being a bit inflated for 3D movies due to the cost of 3D movies being higher. I wanted to see Avatar in 3D but I decided to save some money and watch the regular version instead after seeing how expensive the 3D version was.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with your point that none of this is really newsworthy. It's the same movie either way so it doesnt really matter who wants to see it with 3D glasses on and who doesnt. This seems more like something to look at just out of curiousity.