3D Movies Are Now Truly Enjoyable

Why am I suddenly on a mission to grab every 3D Blu-ray I can find, especially after 3D was labeled one of the biggest tech flops ever? The truth is, the technology has finally caught up, allowing 3D movies to truly shine, more than 15 years after James Cameron’s Avatar blew my mind in theaters and became the highest-grossing film of all time. Video glasses are now delivering the immersive experience I’ve always craved.

I’ve always had a soft spot for 3D films, but the viewing experience was often clunky. Walking into a theater with polarized glasses meant sacrificing resolution and brightness, as those glasses split the image between my eyes. Most 3D tech compromises something important, whether it’s resolution (looking at you, Nintendo 3DS) or the refresh rate and flicker from active shutter glasses.

But what if you could have a full screen for each eye? That’s exactly what video glasses can offer.

Last year, I started testing a pair of Xreal One Pro glasses, which provide a massive flat screen, akin to having a private theater for whatever you connect. But the screen doesn’t have to remain flat. By pressing and holding a button, Xreal allows for independent left and right views for side-by-side (SBS 3D) content. With the right material, you get a full 1080p view for each eye.

Popular video player apps for VR headsets like the Meta Quest and Steam Frame also feature SBS 3D toggles, and devices like the Apple Vision Pro and upcoming Meta VR Glasses will let you stream 3D films natively.

The results are stunning.

The water in Moana, a glass-covered clock in Zootopia 2, the helmets in Gravity, suiting up in giant robots in Pacific Rim, light cycles in Tron: Legacy, comic book panels springing to life in Into the Spider-Verse — the depth is incredible.

When the ocean parts for Moana, it transforms from a flat wall of water into a vibrant, living ocean teeming with life. The Lego Movie shifts from “wow, those are some realistic CG Lego bricks” to “I feel like I’ve been transported into a Lego diorama.” In Avatar, the holographic displays in the ops room are jaw-dropping, with even the flat monitors revealing 3D layers.

Cockpits, helmets, and light cycles in Tron: Legacy, along with the convoy of vehicles in Mad Max: Fury Road, are a visual treat. You can see intricate details on faces behind glass, structures outside, beads of water, and even reflections of the world around them, depending on the film.

Billie Eilish’s new concert film, shot by James Cameron with 16 twin cameras, looked phenomenal in the Meta VR Glasses during a demo. It felt intimate, unlike most VR concert recordings. In another demo with the Google / Xreal Aura, I was captivated by the interactive nature documentary Galapagos: The Last Eden, mesmerized by the adorable baby seals and the fine details of their fur.

Regardless of the hardware, the depth makes it feel like I can reach out and touch a character’s face, experiencing their emotions and features more vividly.

In Werner Herzog’s cult-classic 3D documentary Cave of Forgotten Dreams, I could appreciate how the world’s oldest surviving art isn’t flat — the 32,000-year-old cave paintings come alive on their three-dimensional canvas. “A bulging rock is now a bulging neck of a bison that attacks you,” Herzog explained earlier this year.

When I decided to watch Gravity for what I thought would be a quick test late at night, I ended up glued to the screen for the entire film. It reminded me of the first time I bought a decent set of headphones — I had no idea what I was missing, and now I want to revisit all my favorites to experience them in a new light.

Not all 3D content is created equal. Few live-action films have been shot with twin cameras in recent years. In poorly converted 3D movies, you often see a “billboard” effect, where characters and objects appear flat rather than having true depth.

But the biggest hurdle is that 3D movies aren’t easy to access. While 3D films are still being released in theaters, streaming or purchasing high-quality copies can be a challenge. 4K Blu-ray doesn’t support 3D, and 3D Blu-rays were the last discs to offer this feature. As noted, most physical 3D movies are stuck at 1080p, 24fps, without HDR.

Finding 3D Blu-rays isn’t straightforward either. I had to snag a copy of Cave of Forgotten Dreams on eBay and paid a premium to ship a rare copy of Into the Spider-Verse from Thailand.

The good news is that leading headset manufacturers are starting to persuade Hollywood to stream their 3D collections.

In 2024, the Apple Vision Pro launched, offering the best 3D movie experience yet, complete with 4K, HDR, spatial audio, some films (like Avatar) at 48fps, HEVC encoding, free 3D upgrades for many previously purchased 2D films, and exclusive access to the largest catalog of 3D films on Disney Plus. Modern Disney animated films are natively rendered in digital 3D, and many Marvel films received 3D conversions to enhance their theatrical appeal.

Soon, you won’t need a $3,500 Apple headset to enjoy these films or convert them from old discs — you’ll be able to stream them with a $350 Meta Quest 3S or $600 Quest 3, as well as the new $1,300 Meta VR Glasses, as confirmed by a Meta director of entertainment.

Meta’s headset will provide access to 3D movies through apps like Disney Plus, HBO, Paramount Plus, and Peacock, with some content rolling out later this fall.

By the time the Meta VR Glasses launch in spring, there will be “hundreds of 3D films available” for rent or purchase through Meta’s TV app, along with some free 3D content. They’re expected to be priced similarly to traditional movies: “Our 3D movies will also be in line with typical pricing for 2D Ultra High Definition (UHD) films.”

In case you’re curious, the Meta VR Glasses’ three-hour battery life should cover a full 3D movie “watched in Theater mode if starting with the device fully charged.”

In the meantime, I’m experiencing 3D the DIY way: by ripping discs. Every time I step into a thrift store, I search for a 3D Blu-ray or two. I load them into an old external USB Blu-ray reader, then let MakeMKV work its magic for about half an hour to create a 30-to-40GB multi-view (MVC) file. I then use BD3D2MK3D for another 50 minutes to produce a high-quality 3840 x 1080 “Full-SBS” file that’s half the size of the MVC.

I transfer that onto an SD card, pop it into the Steam Deck, connect the Xreal glasses, fire up VLC Media Player, and switch the glasses to 3D mode. It’s a bit of a hassle, but for me, the payoff is worth it.

Even though I’m mostly revisiting older films, it feels like a glimpse into the future. But as they say, everything old eventually becomes new again.