Last night, J and I went on a “dinner and a movie” date night: a delicious meal at Red Lobster (I swear that their commercials are targeted for pregnant women!) and a late-night show of Inception (GREAT movie btw…perhaps the best I’ve seen all year!).

While sitting through the previews, we couldn’t help but take special notice at the way the Harry Potter trailer ended:

“2-D Available in Select Theaters.”

Eh? So the last two HP movies will be more widely released in 3-D…and if we want to watch it in regular 2-D format and pay considerably less money by choosing to do so, we’d need to actively seek out theaters that are offering it in the old format?

Let’s get one thing out of the way: I have never been a big fan of 3-D. The novelty was fun when I was a kid, and it became a bit more exciting as 3-D technology progressed. That being said, I have yet to watch a movie that I felt TRULY benefited from being shot/converted to 3-D format.

Besides, as I’ve stated above, 3-D movies cost a heckuva lot more. The last 3-D movie we watched was Toy Story 3, and only because the 3-D showing was at a more convenient time than the 2-D. However, both our jaws literally dropped open when the cashier said, “That will be $36, please.”

$36 for two tickets, people. If you add in items from the concession stand, that movie trip alone cost us about $50!

(I should note that this is NYC prices where everything seems to be overpriced, so the cost is probably less in other parts of the country.)

I actually feel similarly about IMAX movies. There are some IMAX films, particularly documentaries, that I believe to really benefit from being showcased in the wide-format presentation…IF they are being presented on a true IMAX screen, as is the case at many museums and early IMAX theaters. Most of the newer movie complexes that tout IMAX theaters are not true IMAX, in my opinion. And I know I’m not the only one who thinks so.

It’s no secret that Hollywood is, and has been struggling for a while now with overall ticket sales down (well, the fact that they keep releasing crappy movies may have a lot to do with that). And they seem to repeatedly shoot themselves in the foot with ill-received ideas such as $20-$30 “home theater on demand,” as well as being caught red-handed fudging profit numbers in order to save the studios extra cash.

But will embracing 3-D and IMAX really help increase profits?

What do you think? Do you enjoy 3-D and IMAX movies over the old format? Do you think that eventually, ALL movies will be released in 3-D and/or IMAX?

And because I never like to end a long post without adding a funny picture or some interesting facts, here is a nice illustration on how 3-D works, courtesy of OnlineSchools: