Bwana Devil, the production that launched a brief vogue for 3D films in the 1950s, will be released on blu-ray this month, making its first appearance on video. Bwana Devil, directed by Arch Oboler, wasn’t the very first 3D movie—the first commercial release in 3D was The Power of Love in 1922—but it was the film that brought 3D into the mainstream.
US cinema attendance peaked in 1946, and quickly decreased, as GIs returning from World War II settled down in the suburbs, started families, and embraced the consumer lifestyle. That same period saw a rapid rise in television ownership, and the film industry sought to differentiate the cinema experience from domestic TV viewing.
Bwana Devil’s Natural Vision 3D process drew curious audiences back to the cinema in 1952, though the film itself is fairly underwhelming. Jack Arnold made more iconic 3D films, It Came from Outer Space and Creature from the Black Lagoon. Even Alfred Hitchcock directed a film in 3D, Dial M for Murder. But the 3D cycle lasted only two years, as widescreen formats (Cinerama and CinemaScope) offered a similarly immersive experience.
Oboler attempted to revive 3D in 1966, with The Bubble, filmed in a less cumbersome process known as Space Vision. (Flesh for Frankenstein utilised the same process.) The popularity of VHS in the early 1980s led to more 3D movies, and the most recent 3D cycle began after the commercial success of Avatar. As in the 1950s, prestige directors were again encouraged to experiment with 3D, hence Martin Scorsese’s Hugo. The intention was to lure viewers away from HD TV and online streaming platforms, though too many films were retrofitted with 3D (Jurassic Park, Toy Story) and ticket prices were too high.
3D, edited by Britt Salvesen, is an excellent history of all forms of 3D imagery. 3-D Movies, by R.M. Hayes, was the first book on stereoscopic cinema.
US cinema attendance peaked in 1946, and quickly decreased, as GIs returning from World War II settled down in the suburbs, started families, and embraced the consumer lifestyle. That same period saw a rapid rise in television ownership, and the film industry sought to differentiate the cinema experience from domestic TV viewing.
Bwana Devil’s Natural Vision 3D process drew curious audiences back to the cinema in 1952, though the film itself is fairly underwhelming. Jack Arnold made more iconic 3D films, It Came from Outer Space and Creature from the Black Lagoon. Even Alfred Hitchcock directed a film in 3D, Dial M for Murder. But the 3D cycle lasted only two years, as widescreen formats (Cinerama and CinemaScope) offered a similarly immersive experience.
Oboler attempted to revive 3D in 1966, with The Bubble, filmed in a less cumbersome process known as Space Vision. (Flesh for Frankenstein utilised the same process.) The popularity of VHS in the early 1980s led to more 3D movies, and the most recent 3D cycle began after the commercial success of Avatar. As in the 1950s, prestige directors were again encouraged to experiment with 3D, hence Martin Scorsese’s Hugo. The intention was to lure viewers away from HD TV and online streaming platforms, though too many films were retrofitted with 3D (Jurassic Park, Toy Story) and ticket prices were too high.
3D, edited by Britt Salvesen, is an excellent history of all forms of 3D imagery. 3-D Movies, by R.M. Hayes, was the first book on stereoscopic cinema.
