U2 3D

Proof that Bono and his bros don't need a giant lemon to dominate the stage

Comments (0) By Jim Ridley Tuesday, Jan 15 2008

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U2 3D
Directed by Catherine Owens and Mark Pellington
National Geographic Entertainment
Opens January 23

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Three dimensions seem scarcely enough to contain the messianic impulses of the world’s hardest-rocking humanitarian aid project, and in this concert extravaganza U2 finally gets a format scaled to their ambitions: the four-story IMAX screen, with 3D technology tossed in to boot. Except for the eerie moment when Bono pleads “Wipe your tears away” directly into the camera—an unsettling gesture of simulated intimacy—directors Catherine Owens and Mark Pellington seldom use 3D to create the illusion of physical proximity: the filmmaking rarely synchs up with the innate tension and release in the songs (one reason: The directors favor dissolves, which look more impressive than cuts in 3D but dissipate excitement.) But the performances, culled from seven shows on the “Vertigo” tour from Mexico City to Buenos Aires, burn with the old unforgettable fire. The supernova choruses of “Pride (In the Name of Love)” and “Sunday Bloody Sunday” can still stand your hair on end, and the band—guitarist The Edge, bassist Adam Clayton, drummer Larry Mullen Jr. and their ramparts-storming frontman—proves it doesn’t need a giant lemon to dominate a stage. Oddly, the Hubbell Telescoping of the IMAX 3D somewhat diminishes the group’s visual presence, as the format forces them to share the spotlight with every dust speck and heightened detail. (Hey, Mullen’s drumming—whoa, is that a Kleenex box?) The crowd scenes, though, are astonishing, even moving, in their egalitarian pinpoint clarity. Here band and audience are indivisible—with visual proof that cell phones have officially replaced the lofted lighter.