NASCAR 3D: The IMAX Experience Review

by Ron Morgan (rmorgan7 AT austin DOT rr DOT com)
April 13th, 2004
NASCAR 3D: THE IMAX EXPERIENCE (2004)
Rated PG; running time 42 minutes
Studio: Warner Bros
Genre: Documentary/Short
Seen at: Celebration Cinema IMAX (Lansing, Michigan) Official site: http://www.imax.com/racing/
IMDB site: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0353774/combined Visual Effects by: Steve Emerson, Daniel Rapo Cinematographer: James Neihouse
Director: Simon Wincer
Narrated by: Keifer Sutherland

My office is across the street from an IMAX theatre, so it's pretty convenient for me to run across there during a lunch break and check out the latest big-screen flick. In this case, NASCAR 3D.

This won't be a long review.

Let's face it: people don't go to IMAX 3D movies to watch dry, technical documentaries and camera-in-the-face interviews. They go for the visual action and, well... FUN. Unfortunately, NASCAR 3D gives us too much of the former, and very little of the latter. Do they REALLY think anybody walked into this movie thinking, "hey, I'm really looking forward to some interviews with mechanics!" Um, no.
What's the first expectation that goes through your mind when you think of an IMAX 3D movie about NASCAR racing? For most people, it's the view "behind the wheel," seeing and feeling what it's like to drive a race car 200 mph. This movie has a total of, maybe, 30 seconds of this, and even these are very limited, where the camera is apparently mounted up near the roof, looking DOWN on the dashboard and hood - you can't even see down the track.

What happens is, you'll get a nice 3D shot of a grease monkey's face as he turns a wrench, or a crowd of spectators in the bleachers, and then it switches to the behind-the-wheel shot, the one you've been waiting for. And it lasts for all of 5 seconds. Over and over, you hunker down in the seat and think, "ooooh, boy this is gonna be... HEY! WAITAMINNIT! GO BACK!!! I DON'T WANNA SEE THAT STUPID MECHANIC!!" Sorry, but that little dollop is all you're going to see. This experience is repeated several times in the movie, and that's it. All the rest is various NASCAR people talking into the camera, shots of the crowds, pit crews, cars being unloaded from trailers, etc.

In all fairness, NASCAR 3D is an excellent documentary on what could be described as "the history and business of NASCAR auto racing." It's very well done in that respect, and just about anybody who watches it closely will walk out of the theater being a relative expert on the subject. If that's what you're looking for, you'll love NASCAR 3D.

But if you're going in there with the kids looking for some good, Saturday-afternoon, oh-boy, hunker-down-in-the-seat 3D thrills, NASCAR 3D is about as exciting as watching paint dry.

I give it 1 out of 5 stars.

Ron Morgan

More on 'NASCAR 3D: The IMAX Experience'...

---

Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.