A Running Commentary

U23D
Directed: Catherine Owens, Mark Pellington
Starring: Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton, Larry Mullen Jr.
Rating: 4.5 of 5

Unlike U2’s other theater release, 1988’s art-styled Rattle & Hum, U23D is neither pretentious nor protracted. Produced in conjunction with National Geographic, the movie is as much jaw-dropping Discovery channel fare as concert experience. Captured with the largest collection of 3D camera technology ever used on a single project, U23D easily redefines not just concert film but second-person entertainment as a genre.

Director Catherine Owens uses 3D technology to explorer new territory for live music. U23D spurns the typical, embracing neither the standard documentary nor traditional concert DVD format. There are no behind the scenes interviews or glimpses of life on tour. It is all about the concert experience.

Typical concert films attempt to supplement the emotion of the first-person experience with multiple camera angles and fancy editing. While superimposed shots and exceptional editing are certainly utilized here, the 3D aspect allows for longer, plainer and more personal shots. This writer has seen U2 live dozens of times, in arenas and stadiums, from the front row, the catwalk, and the cheap seats. This is truly what it looks like in person.

Some would say it’s even better than the real thing. Eye-popping 3D moments abound, like when Clayton swings his bass from right to left and the instrument’s headstock appears inches of your face. Bono is often but an arms-length away. Much like sporting events on TV allow one to see more than being at the game, many shots bring the viewer closer than could any ticket.

Of course, it is not better. NOTHING is like being at a U2 show. The main reason for this, aside from the sense of physical presence, is Bono. Critics may find Bono’s melodrama a bit heavy at times. But what film cannot translate is how the singer’s every action in performance is part of his unparalleled ability to make a stadium feel like an intimate theatre. The mastery and mystery of Bono and U2 as a live band is the way they create a unified personal experience for an entire audience. It is doubtful film can ever replicate that true experience; though U23D is such an astounding leap forward one must wonder.