The earliest 3D experiments weren't very successful. Audiences of the first 3D short films were baffled by the poor attempts at stereoscopic imaging. Back to the drawing board. Though there's debate about the first 3D film, it is often said that the 1903 L'arrivee du train, a short by the Lumiere brothers, led the pack.
The first feature length 3D film was Power of Love (1922), not to be confused with the Huey Lewis song. Power of Love was the first to use anaglyph glasses, the eye-wear with different coloured lenses that merge the dual images into something with depth. Over the next decade, the process was refined and by 1936, Nozze Vagabonde became the first 3D "talkie" (movie with sound). In 1947, the Russian film Robinson Crusoe was the first 3D talkie in colour. What was unique about this picture was that the typical blue and red lensed glasses weren't necessary; a different technique was used... a special corrugated metal screen reflected twin images separately to the right and left eyes of the viewers. But this difficult method never became as popular as the simpler and probably cheaper 3D glasses process.
Bwana Devil of 1952 spawned the Golden Age of 3D in the 50's. The first 3D feature film with stereophonic sound was House of Wax, released in 1953. Starring Vincent Price, this horror flick was a good vehicle for the depth trickery that would wow audiences. Price was attached to other 3D productions at the time, including The Mad Magician.
The Creature From the Black Lagoon and Dial M for Murder were two prominent 3D movies of the era. While the gimmick was fun for a while, the fad lost steam before the end of the decade. At the heart of the matter were issues with the 3D technology (high maintenance projectors) and waning popularity with audiences (citing eye strain and headaches). The final 3D film of the Golden Era was Revenge of the Creature in 1955, the sequel to Creature From the Black Lagoon.
3D films were produced only sporadically after that, the only one of note from the 60's being The Mask, a bizarre Canadian horror flick that was displayed in 2D until the moment the main character donned a cursed tribal mask. At that point the audience was instructed to put on their anaglyph glasses for the 3D effect. Not a very good movie really, but a curiosity.
New technologies were developed over the next decade or so, and by the 70's and 80's, a string of low-budget horror and raunchy comedy movies were released in Stereovision. Some of the films presented in this 3D format were Jaws 3D, Amityville 3D, and Friday the 13th Part III. The lowest of the low. As popular as this multi-dimensional shlock was, audiences, filmmakers, and theatre owners alike eventually lost interest. Again.
IMAX then stepped up and developed more highly polished 3D films. Through the 80's and 90's, IMAX 3D made great advances in the process, releasing not only documentaries and visuals for theme parks, but also spin-offs of cinema franchises, like Honey, I Shrunk the Audience and Jim Henson's Muppet-Vision 3D.
James Cameron took it a step further with Ghosts of the Abyss, using HD cameras and digital film to capture undersea wonders. In 2004, the CG animated The Polar Express represented a major turning point, as it was released in both standard and IMAX 3D theatres. The success in IMAX put the movie industry on its ear, and ever since, both venues have been frequently used to present commercial films.
Several new competing 3D technologies exist, all eschewing the traditional anaglyph glasses for either polarized or LCD glasses. Nowadays, we can choose betwen 2D and 3D versions of movies in theatres, which is nice for a purist like me. I've seen a few modern flicks in three dimensions, and I have to say that the gimmick doesn't impress me much. It actually detracts from the experience, distracting me from the story... or lack thereof.
Again, James Cameron upped the ante, developing more sophisticated and costly systems for 3D visuals. With Avatar, Cameron created the most expensive and highest-grossing film of all time. Great movie, but I chose to see it in 2D. Did I miss out? Maybe....
Hey, watch the claws, buddy!
And as for 3D TV, well, I sure hope I'll have a choice next time I shop for a new flatscreen. I have no desire to watch everything in that manner. Glasses are uncomfortable, annoying, and distracting. It is a fact that 3D is an imperfect and expensive technology. There's something "wrong" with the picture, I find... a lack of sharpness and something is off with the colour. Watch the 2D version to compare.
3D manufacturers are now working at the next frontier, autostereoscopic displays that display two images that are merged into one.... for viewing without the need of special glasses. I wonder if that might work for me. It'll cost a fortune, though, I'm sure. So far, this tech is only aimed at smaller devices like cell phones, for it demands that the person view from a direct and constant angle.
When I was a kid, I got a magazine with a cool spacey poster inside that was printed in 3D, and included a pair of anaglyph glasses. Man, I loved that thing. Then one day, I learned that a 3D movie (one of those 80's horror flicks, I think) was to be shown on TV. I wore my goofy glasses for that, but the results were less than great. Yes, occasionally a hand or chainsaw popped out of my TV screen, but other than that, there was simply a weird and unnatural look to the picture. Big screen, small screen, it doesn't matter. I'm not a fan.
I guess my only slightly cool 3D experience was when a local repertory theatre showed that classic oldie, The Creature From the Black Lagoon. Now that's a favourite Universal monster movie of mine to begin with, but a chance to see it in its original 3D form was something I couldn't pass up. Sadly, not much of the movie lent itself to the medium. Only once in a while did a clawed hand reach slightly beyond the cinema screen. But again, I found that much of the film would have looked fine, no - better, in 2D. A nice crisp, black and white image with no blurry, oddly-coloured lines. Oh well, I guess I'm a dinosaur just like the Creature....
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