Are moviegoers tiring of 3-D?

August 17, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

By Rafer Guzman

Long Island Newsday

Quick, name the year:

A new, improved 3-D technology is being touted as the future of movies. Theaters around the country begin converting their venues and adding expensive new equipment. The 3-D format, previously considered a gimmick, begins attracting some of Hollywood’s most respected filmmakers and actors. Soon the industry is cranking out 3-D movies: horror flicks, war films, thrillers, even musicals.

The answer: It was 1953, with the rise of the dual-projector Polaroid system. The fad still didn’t last, but today, nearly 60 years later, history is repeating itself.

This time, instead of the old-fashioned musical “Kiss Me Kate,” it’s the trendy teen dance-flick “Step Up 3D.” Instead of the Vincent Price chiller “House of Wax,” it’s the gore-fest “Piranha 3D.” That’s not all: An estimated 50 or more 3-D films are in the pipeline for the next two years, including the Taylor Lautner superhero vehicle “Stretch Armstrong,” the next two “Harry Potter” installments and — get ready — “Saw 3D.”

Yes, 3-D may be the biggest movie development since self-serve butter flavoring, but already the format is losing some of its rosy glow.

Well-known filmmakers such as Joss Whedon, J.J. Abrams and Jon Favreau have publicly expressed concerns about a 3-D glut. Box-office analysts are seeing weakness in 3-D ticket sales.

Most important, savvy moviegoers are beginning to demand more bang for their three-dimensional buck.

“Right now, there’s a real 3-D backlash,” says Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box-office division of Hollywood.com. “I don’t think it’s the savior of the industry as everyone thought.”

Ever since December, when James Cameron’s eye-popping “Avatar” proved that 3-D could do more than induce a migraine, Hollywood has been encouraging moviegoers to don those funny black shades. “Avatar” became the top-grossing movie of all time partly because about 80 percent of its $749 million in ticket sales came from more expensive 3-D screenings. Soon after, Tim Burton’s 3-D “Alice in Wonderland” grossed $334 million, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com.

The craze is officially under way. The number of 3-D screens in the U.S. has soared to 5,206, up 54 percent from last year’s total of 3,367 according to the National Association of Theatre Owners. By year’s end, the number of 3-D screens could rise to 7,000 (about one-sixth of the country’s screens).

What’s driving the trend? In a word, money. Official figures are hard to come by, but the average surcharge for a 3-D screening seems to be inching toward $4 over a regular 2-D show. Those pricier tickets have doubtless boosted this year’s box-office receipts, which have reached a total of $6.9 billion through Aug. 8, a 4 percent increase over the same period last year, according to BoxOffice.com.

Still, the novelty may be wearing off. The percentage of moviegoers who paid extra for this year’s big 3-D releases has been shrinking, according to Richard Greenfield, a media analyst at BTIG Research in New York. According to his figures, about 70 percent of moviegoers bought 3-D glasses for the March 5 opening weekend of “Alice in Wonderland,” but only 60 percent did so for the much-hyped “Toy Story 3” in June. “Clash of the Titans,” one of the year’s most poorly-reviewed 3-D releases, sold only 55 percent of its opening-weekend tickets for 3-D showings.