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3-D Movies Turn 50 ... Sort Of

Posted by chrisd on from the red-plus-blue-equals-three dept.

jonerik writes "The Associated Press has this article on the 50th anniversary of the release of 'Bwana Devil.' Released on November 26th, 1952, the film would be largely forgotten today if not for the fact that it's generally regarded as the first full-length 3-D movie, kicking off a burst of 3-D filmmaking which lasted into the mid-'50s and which still takes place today, particularly in the adult film industry and on the IMAX circuit where this year's 43-minute 'Space Station 3-D' has brought in about $33 million so far. 'Bwana Devil' utilized the Polaroid method, which used two lenses filming, and involved lightwaves passing in perpendicular planes to the other lens. However, considering that a long string of 3-D films were made as far back as 1922 using more primitive processes, the claim that 'Bwana Devil' was first can be regarded as open to question. Either way, Robert Stack, who starred in 'Bwana Devil,' is somewhat ambivalent about his small part in movie history, saying 'I'm not sure it was anything to be proud of. It's an honor like being the world's tallest midget.'"

5 of 132 comments (clear)

  1. Not Polaroid...polarized! by i22y · · Score: 3, Informative

    Devil' utilized the Polaroid method, which used two lenses filming, and involved lightwaves passing in perpendicular planes to the other lens.

    This is incorrect...light is polarized...has nothing to do with Polaroid(TM).

    --
    Mike
    1. Re:Not Polaroid...polarized! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

      It's both. Polaroid developed the method.

      More information on this whole subject, including the adult films, can be found here.

  2. Hitchcock by colfer · · Score: 3, Informative

    Dial M for Murder, dir. by Alfred Hitchcock in 1954, is the best one I've seen. It was at a film festival, and they had the cardboard glasses. All 3-D movies at IMDB are here (215 matches).

  3. If you are really interested, read... by HotNeedleOfInquiry · · Score: 4, Informative
    "Foundations of the Stereoscopic Cinema" by Lenny Lipton, ISBN 0-442-24724-9

    A masterful piece of work full of history and technical details.

    --
    "Eve of Destruction", it's not just for old hippies anymore...
  4. Bwana Devil Was Not First by RainMan496 · · Score: 4, Informative

    Nat Deverich's "Power of Love" predates by thirty years. It premiered on September 27, 1922. Using an anaglyphic process developed by Harry Fairall, it starred Terry O'Neil and Barbara Bedford.