Please excuse me if this info is something that has already been established as true; I haven't exactly been keeping tabs on the Watchmen trailer and IMAX and all that jazz. That being said, a Cinematical scooper who wants to remain anonymous for certain reasons tells us that not only will the new Watchmen trailer be attached to IMAX prints of The Dark Knight, but the film itself will also be released on IMAX screens in 2009. In fact, our source says (and I quote): "Watchmen WILL be an IMAX movie in '09."

Is this news that's already out there? Am I spacing and in desperate need of a nap? I was at a Bon Jovi concert last night till wicked late, getting my '80s groove on with a little Bad Medicine and Prayer -- so my mind has been playing tricks on me this afternoon. Regardless, hearing how awesome the Watchmen trailer is -- and knowing the film might open on IMAX screens -- has to make fans just a little bit happy. Maybe. A little bit? A lot a bit? We'll let you know when we hear more ...

P.S. Have you seen our Watchmen gallery yet? Pssst ... look down.

How hot is The Dark Knight? So hot that we've done eight (8) posts about it in the last nine days. So hot, moreover, that in some markets, a frenzy of sales for July 18th midnight shows have prompted theaters to add 3am shows and -- I kid you not -- 6am shows.

Why would anyone go at six in the morning instead of just waiting for a freakin' 10am show? I can think of two reasons: 1) they can't get into the earlier shows, have to go to work on July 18th, and refuse to wait until the weekend, and/or 2) the rest of Friday's shows have already sold out. The latter is certainly true if you want to see the film in IMAX -- the New York Times reports that tickets for all of the first week's showings in Manhattan's Lincoln Square are gone, with the exception of some 6 am shows. Chris Nolan, what hast thou donst?

Though I'm usually itching to participate in fan frenzies, the funny thing is that I have no desire to see The Dark Knight in IMAX. What's more, I'm surprised that people who are familiar with Batman Begins are this eager to do so. Does no one remember the quick-cut visual assaults that were that film's action scenes? Are people dying for a ride on the Vomit Comet? No thank you. Anyone with me?

UPDATED: Okay, okay! I admit I hadn't read (or maybe read and forgot) about Nolan making IMAX-specific adjustments for The Dark Knight. I stand by my comments to the extent that I think seeing any movie for the first time in IMAX is often a nauseating and confusing experience. But by all means have fun.

Is Digital 3D really the future (and savior) of movie theaters and moviegoing? Or is it, like theatrical releases in general, merely a preview of what's to come out soon on home video? As much as I have championed the new technology -- with some exception -- and touted it as a sort of new hope for the exhibition industry, I have had some minor doubts that I've been trying to hide away and ignore. But it may finally be the time to acknowledge and address the facts: Digital 3D is not here to save cinemas and it isn't exclusively the future of movie going. It's the future of movie watching as a whole. And since we're already prone to choosing our living rooms to auditoriums, it's mostly the future of home viewing.

There have been 3D processors available for your home theater for years, courtesy of Sensio, which I actually wrote about way back in 2006. However, the expenses required to equip your home with the technology were enough that it didn't seem too threatening. And such products aren't exactly that well known, probably for that reason that they aren't reasonable for the masses. Meanwhile, the new 3D technology for cinemas has since been given a whole lot of exposure, mainly because they are available or are becoming available all over the globe. 3D movies are also more expensive than regular movies, but they're still relatively affordable to just about anyone. So, obviously in the last two years, it has been easy to forget about Sensio and go on being excited about Real D and the other companies making Digital 3D equipment for movie theaters.

Just in case you thought a "big" screen might not fit all of the wonder of the upcoming Speed Racer movie, which is set to hit theaters on May 9, it looks like they're going to get big-big screens as well. First Showing's Alex Billington was talking to his local theater manager, who said that the upcoming race flick was one of the big movies that would be popping up on IMAX.

It makes perfect sense. Have you seen the trailer? I'm not so sure about the storyline bits that pop up, but this film is going to be one sweet, color-infused, comic-like race fest, and IMAX is the natural place to throw it up.

That being said, I'm slowly growing weary of the whole IMAX and IMAX 3D trend. These screenings are great if you have a good seat, but man, get something less-than ideal, and the experience plummets. (And this is coming from someone who will sit anywhere as long as it's not those ridiculous ground-floor seats 2 inches from the screen.) What they need to do is a get a theater like the Terminator one at Universal Studios Florida, where every seat feels like the center, and then I think it would all be smooth sailing.

Nevertheless, get ready for some huge, funky eye candy -- we've only got a few months left to wait.

Most people have a favorite place to sit when going to the movies. Some people like the back row; some people like the centermost spot (middle seat, middle row); some people like to sit near the front so that they can stare up at the screen and let the picture fill the limits of their peripheral vision.

I figure that last preference made more sense fifty years ago, when Cinerama and CinemaScope presented vast, expansively shot epics and westerns that were made to surround our senses and engulf our whole eye-span. Nowadays, most movies are too fast-cut and often the camerawork is too shaky to really work for close viewing. Have you ever been forced to sit in the first few rows when a movie is sold out? Wasn't it hard to tell what was going on most of the time?

Personally, I like watching movies close up, when it's appropriate. Unfortunately, it rarely is. But movie theaters can't just start removing those front rows because they aren't good for the moviegoer's eyes. No, that would mean a lot fewer tickets sold, a lot fewer popcorns sold, and a lot less money going to both the theater owners and the movie distributors. So, moviemakers should go back to making movies that are more accommodating to the theatrical audience, right? Yeah, that's not going to happen.

UPDATE: The Dark Knight full-length, crystal clear trailer is now online and available right here. Check it out! Looks nice.

In crappy, YouTube boot-legged video! First came The Dark Knight trailer, and now someone has cleverly put that six-minute IMAX clip online as well. Ya know, part of me understands why Warner Bros. didn't release the two clips online the same day they were in theaters with I Am Legend, and I'm sure those folks who watched the pirated copies are still going to watch the new, HD versions when they're finally released to the online world, but it still sucks to see it for the first time in this kind of quality. Of course, you can argue that I or we shouldn't watch it. Valid point. But how can you not watch it? It's like asking a little kid if he'd rather open up his Christmas gifts now or later. What do you think he'd answer?

I have to say, though, unlike Ryan I really liked both the trailer and the IMAX footage. They're calling this a Joker prologue, but we don't see him actually becoming the Joker -- this is more of a setup to show you how badass the guy is. Before everyone in Gotham City knows his name. And William Fichtner's cameo as the bank's boss is awesome. Love Fichtner! Love the tone. Love the idiotic baddies. And the Joker's entrance is pretty damn cool. If this is the way The Dark Knight begins, then I'm sure we're in store for one helluva sequel. Cannot wait. The Dark Knight arrives in theaters on July 18, the full-length trailer will most likely arrive via this link later on today, and you can see the six-minute IMAX clip after the jump (though I'm sure it will be taken down soon). Let us know what you think.

I absolutely love this new still photo from The Dark Knight (seen above, courtesy of Comics2Film). Doesn't look like a shot from the film, but look closer and check out the mask in that guy's hand. From what I know about the film, I assume that's Heath Ledger in the picture either before or after he robs a bank in Gotham City as The Joker. And I assume that shot is part of a scene which is also part of the new IMAX footage (which will screen before IMAX prints of I Am Legend). Of course I'm not positive because I skipped an invite to attend a screening of the new IMAX footage last week. As part of the insane Dark Knight promotional nonsense, I was sent a Fed Ex package with a Gotham Times newspaper, a Gotham Times press pass and a note with instructions to show up at a certain IMAX theater in NYC. Since my fat ass was too lazy to travel all the way into the city for seven minutes of footage, I bailed on the invite. Sorry folks.

But when I was trolling around online, I saw that I had received the abbreviated press package. Perez Hilton (of all people) was actually sent a cake -- a real cake -- and was asked to call a phone number. When he did, a phone inside the actual cake started ringing. And so he had to dig through the cake, uncovering a package buried deep in the middle. That package contained an actual cell phone (I swear, I'm not kidding about this sh*t), and he was asked to call yet another number which gave him instructions on a place to go. I believe that place was a location in Los Angeles where they were also screening the IMAX footage. A f**king cake with a cell phone inside it! I'm still laughing about this. And if you can somehow suffer through Hilton's awful shtick, you can watch video of the entire thing over here.

Additionally, a couple more photos from the film were just released. After the jump, you can check out a pic of Batman riding his BatPod (via Slashfilm), as well as a pic of Batman on the cover of Cinelive magazine.

Here's some great news for all those who felt left out of the Beowulf IMAX 3D experience: 100 new IMAX screens will be installed in cinemas throughout the U.S. over the next three years. According to the Hollywood Reporter, IMAX made a deal with AMC Entertainment to put its digital projection systems in 33 of the theater chain's locations. The first 50 will begin installation next July, with 25 more installed in 2009 and a final 25 installed in 2010. Apparently this will double the amount of IMAX 3D screens in the country. Had this happened prior to the release of Beowulf, the movie could have been twice as popular -- and twice as big a hit (currently it is just barely a success).

This is a big deal, considering I always just imagined IMAX screens were a luxury. Now more people will be able to see the IMAX 3D versions of Monsters vs.Aliens and Avatar if they are available in the format (I don't see why they wouldn't be). I didn't even really like my recent experience with IMAX 3D, yet I did promise to give it another shot. Unfortunately, it seems IMAX is more interested in broadening its reach rather than concentrating on my own satisfaction. Yeah, I'd be pretty stupid if I thought they'd spend money on fixing the problems I alone have with the format, but I will optimistically imagine the company will at least try to make the new locations as close to perfect as possible. Since AMC will be in charge of reconstructing its existing auditoriums, I hope that they fix the usual seating arrangement so all viewers have the same optimal experience.

Well, I did it. I saw Beowulf in IMAX 3D. It cost me $17.50, which included the Fandango service charge (I knew it would sell out, even for a 1:45 showtime on a Monday afternoon). And guess what? I don't think the price was worth the experience. Maybe it would have been worth a regular ticket price ($11), but I'm not even sure about that.

Now, here is not the place for me to discuss the actual movie. Both Scott Weinberg and James Rocchi have already delivered you their reviews, and I think their thoughts were sufficient. This is also not the place for me to discuss the box office -- which was relatively disappointing considering its budget, yet relatively successful in terms of the per screen average of its 3D screens (I may comment on the 3D box office later).

Instead, this is the place for me to comment on the experience of Beowulf's exhibition in the IMAX 3D format. First, I'd like to apologize for not being able to afford the money or the time to see the regular 2D version, or even the non-IMAX 3D presentation, either via Real D or Dolby Digital's technology. I can just barely compare this to my prior experience with Real D 3D, which I've raved about and have honestly championed as a possible future for the success of cinemas. Fortunately it's the non-IMAX technologies that will end up in most theaters, since not every screen in the world can be an IMAX.