I don't know the last time I felt like a kid at the movies, but while watching Journey to the Center of the Earth 3-D this past week, I honestly reverted to my 8-year-old self. That isn't to say the movie is necessarily as good as the movies that astonished me as a kid -- because of the subject matter, I'd think about comparing it to Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and The Goonies, both of which came out when I was around that age, and neither to which this film holds up in terms of originality or storytelling craft. But as far as holding onto my sense of wonder, Journey is up there.

Of course, it's necessary to point out that Journey would be nothing without the digital 3-D factor. It's actually the first live-action narrative feature to be shot and released in the new format (the non-fiction concert films, U2 3D and Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour were technically the first live-action 3-D features), and while it's far from perfect, it is a terrific pioneer. I shall continue favoring the look of animated 3-D films, especially those directed as well as Monster House, and I anticipate that James Cameron's Avatar will blow away all live-action 3-D films released prior to its arrival. For now, though, I'm telling you, with the utmost cinemaphilic urgency: you need to see this ASAP.

Despite the slower-than-expected installation of digital projectors into theaters, yet another movie is slated to be released in digital 3-D (which of course requires digital projection plus additional equipment such as a special screen). According to The Hollywood Reporter, New Amsterdam Entertainment plans to re-release George Romero's 1978 zombie classic Dawn of the Dead into theaters after the film is modified, or "dimensionalized," to be shown in stereoscopic 3-D. The transition from 2-D to 3-D will be handled by In-Three, the company that handled George Lucas' presentation of a segment of Star Wars in 3-D at ShoWest back in 2005. The project is expected to be finished within the year. Romero's Dawn of the Dead, which New Amsterdam remade in 2004, will likely be only the second film to be re-released with a 3-D version, the first being The Nightmare Before Christmas.

As wonderful as it is, the original Dawn of the Dead seems like an odd choice for 3-D, which often capitalizes on the gimmick of having objects jump out at the audience. With this film, we'll instead get to see zombies ever-so-slowly coming towards us as we nonchalantly continue eating our popcorn without fear. Perhaps we'll even have time to head to the restroom before the zombies actually seemingly make their way out into the space of the auditorium. See, that was part of the humor of Romero's Night of the Living Dead sequel, that the characters had time to run in circles around the undead mallrats. It would be much more frightening to see a dimensionalized version of the remake, which featured much quicker zombies. Presently there appears to be no set release date for the re-release, but depending on how crowded the 3-D marketplace is a year from now, I'd guess New Amsterdam is hoping for a 2009 bow.

I admit that cheesy dance flicks are a guilty pleasure of mine -- everything from Fast Forward to You Got Served; I've seen them all. But even I'm not so sure about this one. Variety reports that Disney is planning a third installment in their dance franchise, Step Up, but with the added bonus of 3-D.

Its no surprise that there is going to be another flick, especially with box office totals equaling $28.7 million on President's Day weekend alone. Not to mention the sequel only cost about $20 million to make -- once they cash in on DVD sales, it is going to make a tidy profit for the mouse. Throw in the spectacle of 3-D, and Disney is banking big that the current dance movie craze holds long enough to get them another good return on their investment.

Producing partners Adam Shankman and Jennifer Gibgot will also produce the third film and Jon Chu is expected to return to direct. Since it is still early days for the flick, a script has yet to be written, so there is no word on whether the third film will be a stand-alone (like the first two) or a continuation of the sequel. Although, let's be honest: it's going to be some variation of the same old theme. Either a girl, or boy, from different sides of the proverbial tracks, somebody learns to dance 'street', and so on and so forth. I don't want to belittle the work of the writers, but the story line for these flicks always takes a back seat to the choreography ... so does it even really matter? The film is still in development with Disney, but will probably arrive in theaters sometime next year.

In 2006, Joe Dante told us it was coming.

In 2007, we learned of the French connection.

in 2008, I'm telling you that it will be in 3-D.

In 2009, we will have a new movie called ... Piranha!

According to the rotten one over at STYD.com, Dimension's remake of the Joe Dante / John Sayles mini-classic is now scheduled for release on July 24, 2009. And I'm sure that date will stick because the Weinsteins never change release dates over and over on their aquatic horror movies. (Seriously, where the hell is Rogue already?) But the news gets even campier...

3-D! Yes! The plot -- "a tremor causes Arizona's Lake Havasu floor to open, setting free scores of prehistoric piranhas" -- will be in service to that awesomeness known as 3-D exhibition! Hundreds of gross, ugly, scary, ravenous piranhas ... in 3-D! The spirit of William Castle is alive and well and living in the Weinsteins' attic. I refuse to let the fact that one of the co-writers penned Good Luck Chuck deter me: A 3-D Piranha remake from the guy who directed High Tension: Bring it on.

It seems a bit late, but New Line has finally joined the animated film business. Fortunately for them, they've avoided the attempt to set up something in-house, choosing instead to acquire something already in the works. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the studio has picked up Planet 51, which is being produced by Spain-based Ilion Animation Studios. Scripted by Shrek and Shrek 2 co-writer Joe Stillman, the film is about the titular planet, which is visited by an "alien" from Earth. I guess it's kinda like a reverse E.T., where NASA astronaut Chuck Baker befriends a young native of Planet 51 and must avoid capture. According to the film's IMDb page, in which it's titled Planet One, Stillman is co-directing with Jorge Blanco. However, The Hollywood Reporter lists the co-directors as Blanco, Javier Abad and Marcos Martinez, all of whom apparently worked together on a video game titled Commandos.

Planet 51 is currently in production but doesn't seem too far along. Ilion hasn't yet cast the voices, which typically come first. Considering that at first glance I thought the promo image was of Toy Story's Buzz Lightyear (yeah, my eyesight is bad), I suggest they just go ahead and get Tim Allen for the lead. And then they should cast Henry Thomas as the alien kid, because all animated films these days need to be full of referential jokes. I also have to add another suggestion to New Line and Ilion: make the film in 3D. With an expected release date of March 2009, Planet 51 is teetering on the edge of the future, as Dreamworks Animation has already declared 2009 to be the year it begins releasing all its films exclusively on 3D screens. It's first, Monsters vs. Aliens, is even set to come out that same month. Now, Planet 51 may not need to be too competitive if it can hit theaters a few weeks earlier (MvA is set for end of month), though chances are audiences will forget about a lame-old 2D release once the real attractions arrive. With a budget of $60 million, Planet 51 probably can't afford to be so easily dismissed.

I don't believe the hype that 3-D will dominate the movie world in the near future, but it does seem like a lot of movies are using the technology these days. The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Disney will release the animated feature Bolt, (once called American Dog) in Digital 3-D next year. Bolt features the voices of John Travolta, Woody Harrelson, and Susie Essman (who had better curb her Curb Your Enthusiasm language!). It tells "the story of a TV star dog named Bolt (Travolta) who is accidentally shipped from his Hollywood soundstage to New York, where he begins a cross-country journey through the real world." Chris Williams directs the film.

Disney has been one of the biggest supporters of 3-D. In recent years, Chicken Little, Meet the Robinsons, and the sweet, sweet Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas were all released in the format. Speaking of Nightmare, as Monika told you earlier this month, Tim Burton has signed to produce and direct 3-D versions of Alice in Wonderland and his own terrific short film, Frankenweenie for Disney. On the opposite end of the cool spectrum, Disney's next 3-D release is the Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert Tour, which will play in theaters Feb. 1-7. Start scalping those tickets now!

The New York Times is reporting this week on a new wave of 3-D movies that Hollywood thinks will forever change the future of cinema. Christopher and Scott brought you stories about the 3-D "Tintin" trilogy that Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson are planning. A U2 concert film called U2 3D premiered footage at Cannes this weekend (I love U2, but I find that thing where Bono shoves his face into the camera obnoxious without 3-D technology). And James Cameron, who made the 2003 3-D IMAX documentary Ghosts of the Abyss, is shooting the highly-anticipated Avatar in 3-D using both computer animation and motion-capture technology. Avatar's producer, Jon Landau says: "This is a different experience; it's much more voyeuristic. The screen has always been an emotional barrier for audiences. Good 3-D makes the screen go away. It disappears, and you're looking at a window into a world."

3-D technology was fairly big in the 1950's, but aside from a few sad attempts to revive it (Jaws 3-D, anyone?), it never really hit the mainstream. Recent movies like Monster House, Chicken Little, Meet the Robinsons, and Spy Kids 3-D have attempted to make that happen, and we're about to see a whole lot more. Robert Zemeckis' upcoming adaptation of Beowulf will be screened in 3-D wherever possible. Trouble is, it's not possible in that many places. Digital projection is only in roughly 2,300 of the 37,000 theaters in America, and 3-D projection is only in 700. Theater owners have been hesitant to install the projectors, because it is unclear whether moviegoers will pay extra to see a 3-D film. Jeffrey Katzenberg, chief executive of DreamWorks Animation, thinks that they will, saying "I believe that this is the single greatest opportunity for the moviegoing experience since the advent of color. It has been more than 60 years since there has been a significant enhancement or innovation to the moviegoing experience." Katzenberg predicts that starting in 2009, "a significant percentage of the big mainstream films will be made and exhibited in this format."

I must admit that I don't know much about this Tintin character, but I do know that his stories are pretty darn adored all over the planet. Plus now that I know how much Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson love the series, I'm definitely just a bit more interested. If you're like me and know Tintin only peripherally, get ready for a crash course: Variety just announced that Spielberg and Jackson will team up to produce a trilogy of Tintin flicks -- and yes, they'll be directing the films too!

Based on the very popular series of (23) books by Georges "Herge" Remi, the trilogy will re-introduce Tintin (and his pup Snowy) to popular (American) culture -- and probably help to sell a lot more books in the process. Apparently the character is an adventurous reporter who flits around the globe skirting danger and relying on a gang of colorful sidekicks. The movies will be created through the magic of digital animation, 3-D and state-of-the-art motion capture technology, but don't worry about the flicks losing that "personal touch."

Needless to say (because if you can't trust Spielberg and Jackson, who can you trust?), both filmmakers are adamant about being faithful to the source material. Says Mr. Spielberg: "We want Tintin's adventures to have the reality of a live-action film, and yet Peter and I felt that shooting them in a traditional live-action format would simply not honor the distinctive look of the characters and world that Herge created." Regarding the way in which the beloved characters would hit the silver screen, Mr. Jackson had this to say: "We're making them look photorealistic; the fibers of their clothing, the pores of their skin and each individual hair. They look exactly like real people --but real Herge people."

Variety speculates that this project could get rolling as early as next year, right after Spielberg finishes Indy 4 and Jackson finishes burying his Lovely Bones. Looks like each director will be helming their own movie in the Tintin trilogy, which is very exciting news, but it does lead to an interesting question: Who'll be directing the third chapter? Might I recommend Brett Ratner?

To be honest, I have yet to be truly wowed by an IMAX experience. Lately the trend seems to be to format high profile films, and I am all for that, but made-for-IMAX content has always seemed a little lacking. The one genre that still seems to work well on the "really big screen," though, is the nature documentary. The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Warner Bros. has joined with longtime partner IMAX to produce a sequel to the 2006 film Deep Sea 3D, titled Deep Sea-quel. This will be the second 3D feature for the filmmaking trio of Howard Hall, Toni Myers and IMAX co-founder Graeme Ferguson, and the film will capture the "life aquatic" of New Guinea and Southern Australia. The film is set for release in 2009, but there has been no mention of whether Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet will be returning to provide narration this time around.

IMAX and WB have worked together before on 3D productions; unfortunately one of which was NASCAR 3D: The IMAX Experience, which played more like a corporate video than a heart-stopping thrill ride -- and let me tell you, a filing cabinet 52-feet high and in 3D is still just a filing cabinet. Luckily, the ocean is a far more exciting locale than a NASCAR boardroom, so there is still hope for me yet -- I might just be wowed this time around. Here's a question for ya: In your opinion, what looks better on the IMAX screen: The latest summer blockbuster or a beautiful nature documentary? And, which do you prefer seeing?

The 2007 summer movie season hasn't even begun yet, but we're already receiving news about release date competition for 2009. Yes, 2009. It wasn't enough that we saw such premature territorial battling over Memorial Day, 2008 (Indiana Jones and the Fourth Installment vs. Speed Racer); the studios had to go and start the claim for that kick-off holiday of a whole two years away. There is something more significantly different about this battle, though. Both of the movies scheduled for release on Memorial day in 2009 will only be exhibited in the new 3-D format. 20th Century Fox has James Cameron's Avatar duking it out against Dreamworks Animation's Monsters vs. Aliens, which is being planned as that studio's first release to play exclusively in 3-D.

The reason that this is such a noteworthy conflict is that in 2009 there may not be enough 3-D-equipped screens to handle simultaneous 3-D releases. The expected amount of screens that will be able to accommodate a 3-D movie at that time is 5,000 (currently there are only 700 screens able to do so), which doesn't even meet the demands of Dreamworks' Jeffrey Katzenberg, who claims he needs 6,000 screens for Monsters. And since Cameron's film is now being said to have a budget close to $200 million, it is assumed that Fox will have a similar demand for its own title. Obviously one of the films will need to move, and it will likely be Monsters. With Avatar being Cameron's first film since Titanic, it is certainly the more eagerly awaited picture and is therefore the most powerful. Expect an announcement sometime in the next year that states that Monsters will relocate to June.