U2-3D: A Review

I just got back from seeing U2-3D at the local IMAX here in Dallas, and I can't help but feel that I have witnessed history. I am not one of those ecstatic U2 fans who worship everything they do and say, think Bono is the God and Edge the Son of God, but as I left the theater, I couldn't stop singing "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own".
First, let me say that if you can make it to an IMAX anywhere that is showing it, GO. NOW.
Second, I must say a few words about the power of this movie (or concert film, or whatever), and why it will take its place as one of the great rock films of all time.

How long will we sing the praises of U2? They seem to just keep getting better and better. It was said that they would fade after 2004's How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. It was said that they were simply trying to find a new audience instead of continuing to progress musically. It was said...but it is no more said. This film has put to rest (for awhile at least) U2's daemons of progress. They have found a way to re-invent a medium and propel their genius all in one fell swoop.

It is not simply that they have re-established themselves as the "most popular band in the world", but that they have created a film which in itself is simply unbelievable. The opening sequence of "Vertigo"and "Beautiful Day" played back to back in front of 80,000 screaming Buenos Aires fans is one of the most powerful things I have ever seen on screen, ranking up there with this year's magical Heima documentary by Sigur Ros.

The true power of course lies in Bono's ability to draw you in and capture you in a feeling of enchantment, of pure exhilaration, or weightlessness, while The Edge, Larry Mullen Jr., and Adam Clayton cement your entry into their otherworld. With the spectacular 3D effects, the draw to the stage is intensified to almost unbearable proportions. You want to be there, you want to feel it...then you realize that you are feeling it, right there in your seat. In the immediacy of lies its greatest triumph. You do not feel you are there, you are there.

The only flaw of the film is in its failure to include some of the absolute cannon songs of the U2 catalog. There is no "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For", no "40", no "Mysterious Ways", no "Desire", no "Walk On", no "Elevation". It is difficult to overlook some of these omissions, yet it does no real harm to the film as a whole or the visual experience, which is the focal point of the entire project.

The visual experience is truly stunning in the highest degree. It is indescribable to those haven't seen it, as it is with those who have.
Bono's hands, literally reaching out to you,
the sweat of the electric crowd flying up in your face,
Adam Clayton's trademark strut right into your lap,
Larry Mullen Jr.'s pulsating drums sparkling in the stage lights,
The Edge's guitar neck bursting through the screen,
the massive backdrop of colors and lights overwhelming your eyes and the music assaulting your ears.
They have gone, with you in tow, as producer Catherine Owen's remarked, "somewhere magical".

In conclusion, I have to say that the experience from this exquisite film is unlike anything I've ever been a part of in a theater. The songs of U2 burst to life in color and light in ways that were beforenow unimaginable.
And that is why I give U2-3D a:

10 out of 10.

U2:(from WAR, my personal favorite album)

mp3: "Sunday Bloody Sunday"
mp3: "New Year's Day"

Let the bells ring out!