Today, Cars 3 becomes the first Pixar film to be distributed in 4DX, the motion-based “immersive” film format from Seoul’s CJ 4DPlex. 4DX is one of a handful of formats that attempt to turn traditional, passive filmgoing into something more experiential: seats shake, tilt, and pivot, while environmental effects like air blasts, scents, sprays of water, and in-theater fog and strobe lighting echo what’s happening on the screen. Imagine Star Tours, only while you’re watching a movie, and you’ll get the idea.
4DX and its competitors have largely been focusing on bombastic superhero movies and action flicks, and while animated 4DX films are nothing new — Despicable Me was released in the format back in 2010, and last year everything from Disney’s The Jungle Book to Kung Fu Panda 3 got the treatment — it’s hard to not see the Pixar release as an inflection point. One of the most prestigious modern animated film studios, winner of 16 Academy Awards, is having its latest film released in a format that is arguably more of theme park experience than a cinematic one.
It’s symptomatic of an industry struggling to give audiences something they simply can’t get online or from their television at home. And whether it’s extra-large screens or vibrating seats, the concept of making filmgoing “immersive” has become the latest trend. But enveloping audiences in a fictional world requires more than just technological add-ons. And in the mad rush to entice audiences into theaters, these new formats could undermine the most important reason to go to the movies of all.
It’s not a big surprise that technologies like 4DX — like IMAX or 3D before them — are appealing to theater owners and studios. Movie attendance in the United States is shrinking, and increases in ticket prices are what actually drive the perception of a healthy, robust theatrical business. According to data from the National Association of Theater Owners, the average ticket price in the US has increased more than 30 percent over the last 10 years, while North American box office grosses have actually grown just 24 percent. It’s a war of attrition and Hollywood is losing. And with so many entertainment options available to audiences, these technology-driven theatrical experiences offer a dual benefit: they’re something viewers can’t re-create in their living rooms, and they simultaneously justify a more expensive ticket.