More Than Rock ’n’ Roll: U2 on Tour in 3-D Images
By Matt Zoller Seitz, New York Times
January 23, 2008

The musical documentary “U2 3D,” which stitches together three performances by
this Irish rock band during a recent tour of South America, is not merely a technical
landmark — shot entirely in digital 3D — but also an aesthetic one, in that it’s the first
Imax movie that deserves to be called a work of art.

The person most responsible for the film’s vision, Catherine Owens — one of the
movie’s two directors, who is also in charge of production design for the band’s live
shows — has brazenly ignored the usual stipulations about making a 3-D film. She
favors quick edits and slow dissolves rather than long takes and hard cuts.

Throughout, she layers the screen with multiple planes of information: long shots and
medium shots of the musicians, images of the crowd, close-up details of graphics
from the big screen that the band performs in front of that make the designs abstract
and merge them with the performers.

The result is not a confusing mishmash of images but a musical/experimental work
that visually simulates the sensation of thinking. The very idea of self-contained
screen geography is thrillingly reconceived.

The style of the film dovetails with the international, humanistic vision that U2 has
presented in songs and public statements for more than 20 years. When the band
performs its hit “One,” the lyrics take on new meaning.

Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company

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'U2 3D': Lifelike rattle and hum
TBy Edna Gundersen, USA TODAY
January 22, 2008

From Woodstock to The Last Waltz to Neil Young: Heart of Gold, concert films historically
leave viewers tingling but with a regretful twinge that they've missed the party and settled for
a souvenir snapshot.

U2 3D (* * * * out of four) in many ways delivers an experience that's even better than the
real thing. It brings U2's dazzling rock spectacle to the multiplex with VIP comforts, allaccess
viewpoints and telescopic close-ups.

Shot in early 2006 on the fourth leg of U2's Vertigo tour, the film condenses and explodes the
Irish quartet's potent show into a rapturous virtual reality ride of 5.1 surround sound, stuntpilot
camera work and judiciously applied 3-D effects.

For this first live-action digital 3-D film, crews shot five stadium shows in Mexico, Brazil,
Chile and Argentina, plus a cameras-only performance staged before the Buenos Aires dates.
More than 100 hours of footage were distilled into a seamless 14-song powerhouse of sight
and sound.

Avoiding the cheese of Michael Jackson's Captain EO, U2 3D's 3-D imagery creates startling
depth and crispness, immersing the viewer in Vertigo's flavor and fervor rather than
distracting with gimmickry or inducing lower-case vertigo.

Giant screens beam kaleidoscopic patterns and saturated colors while cyclopean-scale Bono,
The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. whip up delirium in the stadium crowds.

It's U2 writ XXL, not just visually and sonically but emotionally and theatrically. In keeping
with the band's tech-savvy tours, high-def never overwhelms high drama, nor does the razzledazzle
drain the ritual of its intimacy or fraternal spirit. Cinematic science serves the songs,
elevating the visceral kick of Vertigo, the ecstatic buzz of Beautiful Day and the poignancy of
One and With or Without You. Bono's outstretched arm, which seems to reach the theater's
sixth row, pulls us into the pathos of Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own and the
communal vibe of Love and Peace or Else, a raucous highlight further enhanced by
animation. The audience adulation and undulation during Pride (In the Name of Love) are
contagious, and if there's a disconnect in U2 3D, it's the irresistible urge to stand, cheer and
sing along, actions that might irk patrons less inclined to shake their Jujubes.

Of course, U2's audio-visual marvel wouldn't be nearly as intoxicating without an
impassioned performance of indestructible songs. Miss Sarajevo, low on 3-D rattle and hum
but ignited by Bono's operatic turn, is a tour de force. In that regard, U2 3D has the power to
transport and excite even those fans who never open their eyes.

Copyright 2008 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc

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U-should-see U2 in 3D
By Paul Reynolds, Consumer Reports
January 23, 2008

C onsumer Reports doesn't usually cover movies, but "U2 in 3D," which opens today in select theaters,
deserves attention for breaking new ground in both 3D technology and the concert-film genre.

This 85-minute film, the first concert performance to be shot in 3D, represents a perfect marriage of
artist and technology. The Irish rock veterans specialize in ambitious stage presentations sized for
giant venues (like the Sao Paolo and Mexico City soccer stadiums in which the film was shot) and
employing cutting-edge technology. The three-dimensional images, captured by a crew of 140, enhance
the physical expansiveness of the Irish quartet's performance. An example: The extended shot that
captures bassist Adam Clayton in the foreground on one mid-stadium stage and singer Bono on
another, with an undulating mass of U2 fans between them. Other footage is shot from behind the
musicians, offering panoramic, enveloping views of the crowd in all in its enormity.

The band performed in front of a towering LED screen that displayed mosaic-like patterns, words, and
images. (Click on image at left for a closer look.) The film frequently plucks content from the screen
and subtly layers it over images of the musicians, creating 3D pastiches—as when a portrait of Martin
Luther King floats in the right foreground of the screen as the band kicks into the opening riff of "Pride
(In the Name of Love)," their tribute to the Civil Rights leader. (Click on the image, below right, for a
closer look.) Similarly, images of the far flung musicians are sometimes integrated on a single screen.

Such layering is just one of the cinematic breakthroughs in this film, the first live-action digital 3D
movie. Such editing was all but impossible in the analog 3D era of Vincent Price et al, as was the use of
zoom, which required the unfeasible coordination of two separate cameras. For U2 3D, integrated 3D
cameras captured both the left- and right-eye stereoscopic images, which you view through a pair of
mirrored, squarish glasses that look very much like the stylish shades favored by Bono himself.

But the movie is no gimmickfest, which is part of its artistic achievement. Virtually every other 3D
movie has overused gasp-inducing shots solely intended to capitalize on three-dimensionality. The
recently released "Beowulf," for example, featured lots of swords brandished toward, and projectiles
flying past, the screen. Here, the technology is more artfully integrated, literally adding an extra
dimension without distracting from the band's superb performance. The only moments that even
approach gimmickry are a few in which Bono writes in the air and fanciful line drawings appear—of a
TV set and control knob, in one instance. (The band re-performed some songs without the audience, in
order to capture these and other close up shots; the resulting shots balance the dizzying, full-stadium
shots with an equally thrilling intimacy.)

This is one film that you can't plan to see later at home. Although 3D video for HDTVs is advancing,
there are as yet no plans to make "U2 3D" available in any household platform. The film is playing in
about 60 theaters in the US and Canada this week (the complete list is at U23Dmovie.com) and goes
into wider release in mid-February. No one who loves U2, concert movies, or the latest in cinematic
technology should miss it.

Copyright © 2004-2008 Consumers Union of U.S., Inc.

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'U2 3D': It's Almost Like Being There
By Desson Thomson, Washington Post
January 23, 2008

T here may be no substitute for the firsthand experience -- jostling elbow to elbow, for instance, with
ecstatic fans at a U2 concert. But "U2 3D," which renders the popular band in startling, threedimensional
immediacy, shows how closely technology can match that kind of natural high.

Billed by its producers as the first film to be totally shot, edited and presented in digital 3-D, "U2 3D"
doesn't just reprise 14 great tunes from the band's Latin American tour of 2006. Co-directors
Catherine Owens and Mark Pellington practically put us behind the mike with Bono. And when we're
not experiencing that electric primacy, we're huddling with his devoted followers as they wave, sing
and raise their cellphones in LED reverence. In many ways, watching the movie is better than
concertgoing. We can enjoy that buzzy feeling of community without the fist-pumping biker obscuring
our view. And we can pound our feet to "Sunday Bloody Sunday" without anticipating the post-gig
trudge to Parking Lot Hell.

Most of all, we can enjoy the pristine, almost tactile quality to the images. (The print that begins
showing today -- and that was used to review this film -- is actually presented in Imax format, but you
can still witness the digital qualities. The film will expand to theaters with digital presentation
capability next month.) In the analog dark ages, we experienced the likes of "Creature From the Black
Lagoon" wearing those goofy, colored glasses that left us woozy and dizzy. But with digital 3-D -- and
the polarized glasses we don for it -- we feel as though we're poking our heads through the window of
another world. No more film scratches on the screen. No vague sense of nausea. Just direct access to
this exciting para-reality.

Of course, we've sampled the potency of "3-dig" before, in recent Hollywood releases such as "The
Nightmare Before Christmas 3D," "Beowulf: Digital 3D" and "Meet the Robinsons." But with "U2 3D,"
we can appreciate it on the virtual road. At times, the onscreen figures seem so tactile, we feel as
though we could reach out and give the Edge an electric shave without our leaving our seats or him
putting down his guitar.

Seen here in stadium shows recorded in Mexico City, Sao Paolo, Brazil, Santiago, Chile, and Buenos
Aires, U2 demonstrates why it has remained at the forefront of popular music for more than 30 years.
The songs, including "Vertigo," "Beautiful Day," "Pride (In the Name of Love)" and "Where the Streets
Have No Name," are some of the greatest of their time. And the band has always stayed abreast of the
zeitgeist, in terms of its timely lyrics, bold production methods in the studio and technical wizardry on
the road.

We see that latter quality in abundance: the digital "bead curtains" behind the band, which send out
illuminated catchphrases, pictures of fighter jets and even the text of the U.N. Universal Declaration of
Human Rights. And we see what a charismatic statesman Bono has become: a U.N. goodwill
ambassador who has reached many with his anti-hunger and peace missions, an Irish singer who
doesn't just entertain audiences with dramatic stage presence and soaring melodies anymore.

Here, he turns "Sunday Bloody Sunday," originally a protest against the slaying of Irish civil rights
demonstrators in 1972, into a stirring anthem against all political injustice. There's something
culturally compelling about watching these Latin audiences lip-syncing to his songs and cheering his
political sentiments. From behind our glasses, we can almost feel the frisson of world peace waft over
us like a subtropical evening breeze.

© 2008 The Washington Post Company

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U2 larger than life in new 3D concert film
By Michael Rechtshaffen, Hollywood Reporter
January 6, 2008

LOS ANGELES - When U2 returned to South America in 2006 after eight years, the Irish rockers
decided to bring along some high-tech goodies to mark the occasion.

The resulting souvenir, "U2 3D," takes the well-traveled concert film genre to exhilarating new heights.

Billed as the first digital 3-D, multicamera, real-time production, this feature-length feast for the eyes
and ears (thanks to the all-enveloping 5.1 Surround Sound), re-creates the U2 live experience without
interruptions by the intrusive, talky backstage filler that seems to have become obligatory in the
recorded "live" genre.

Instead, the documentary serves up prime U2 in a startlingly rendered, state-of-the-art arena that
truly raises the bar for headache-free 3-D technology.

Previewed last year at Cannes in a version that was about a half-hour shorter, the finished edition will
ensure both the fans of the band and the high-tech geeks will find what they are looking for when it
follows its January 19 Sundance screening with a limited release through National Geographic
Entertainment starting January 23, exclusively in 3-D digital and Imax theaters.

From the opening one-two punch of "Vertigo" and "Beautiful Day," both the band and directors
Catherine Owens and Mark Pellington effectively set the elevating tone.

Blending performances from Vertigo Tour stops in Buenos Aires and Sao Paulo as well as Mexico City
and Santiago, the filmmakers rip down that wall between and stage and the audience, and, in the
process, create a team atmosphere that's perfectly in keeping with the band's "we're all in this
together" philosophy.

Even with those sky-high Jumbotron screens and those fully dimensional mike stands that appear to
take on a life of their own here, the mood is remarkably intimate.

Pellington (who previously helmed U2's "One" video) and Owens are careful not to overplay the 3-D
card -- utilizing advanced technology developed by 3ality Digital -- too early in the game.

They reserve the best effect for what is arguably the film's centerpiece, in which the band's early hit,
"Sunday, Bloody Sunday" becomes an impassioned prayer for world peace with Bono (in fine vocal
form) extending an outstretched arm over the crowd and, seemingly, through the screen, hovering
right in front of the theater viewer in a plea for Christians, Jews and Muslims to put aside their
differences.

In lesser hands, what might have come across as overly theatrical, packs a quietly potent impact.

Somehow, after experiencing "U2 3D," the old iPod starts looking a little yellow around the edges

© Reuters 2008.

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'U2 3D': Best concert seats ever
By Peter Howell, The Toronto Star
January 25, 2008

It's often been said that 3D is the future of film.

That remains to be seen for most movies. But one thing is certain after viewing U2 3D, the
film that puts Irish rock band U2 into the third dimension: this is the future of concert
cinema.

A tour de force of music and technology, it's finally opening today after dazzling both the
Cannes and Sundance film festivals. It's going to be hard for conventional 2D rock flicks to
make a splash after people get a look at this.

Filmed during the band's 2005-'06 Vertigo world tour during stops in Mexico, Brazil, Chile
and Argentina, U2 3D is at once understated and in your face.

There is no narration, subtitles or pompous statement of purpose. There is no 3D heaving of
TVs out of hotel room windows. Just straight music from the Irish band that ranks behind
only the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin for global rock acclaim: vocalist/guitarist Bono,
guitarist/keyboardist The Edge, bassist Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen Jr.

Opening with tour theme song "Vertigo," the film immediately delivers the same spinetingling
feeling you get at live shows. The band proceeds in a workmanlike fashion through
songs drawn from a career that now spans more than three decades.

The set list includes "A Beautiful Day," "Sunday Bloody Sunday," "Sometimes You Can't Make
it on Your Own," "Miss Sarajevo," and the anthemic show closer "With or Without You."

The band members make good use of the extra dimension, moving toward the camera in such
a way that it seems they are literally standing before you. It feels like you could snatch Bono's
shades right off his face. The technique works particularly well during the acoustic part of the
show, when the four musicians move separately around the stadium.

But it doesn't stint on the political messages. There's a powerful moment when Bono dons a
headscarf bearing the word "Co-exist." The same word appears on the giant screen behind
him.

In many ways, U2 3D is superior to a real concert. This time, I didn't have to put up with the
rowdy drunks blocking my view.

© Copyright Toronto Star 1996-2008

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