Greetings, To 3D or Not To 3D readers! This outing of your favorite premium cinematic experience has been enhanced thanks to a fictional sponsorship by Universal Dynamics - creators of Rozzum 7134. Though you would know her better as The Wild Robot, voiced by the one and only Lupita Nyong’o! In honor of that film’s 3D/4DX evaluation, it’s time to get a little bit high-tech!
So for this rundown, feel free to call me Miker 1117! That’s because my current task is to complete this evaluation on how DreamWorks Animation’s latest stacks up in the wilderness of premium effects. If you’re looking for our own Eric Eisenberg’s The Wild Robot review, that can be found elsewhere. For now, it’s time to boot up, and see just how wild the perils of Roz can get!
Overall Fit Score - 5/5
Both the 3D and 4DX fields couldn’t have picked a finer film to become attached to. As director Chris Sanders’ stunningly beautiful landscape has shown in The Wild Robot’s first trailer, the visual canvas is one of wide open adventure on a desolate wooded island. That alone makes perfect sense when applying 3D alone, as Sanders has had some experience with this form of premium exhibition, through his work on the How To Train Your Dragon franchise.
Thanks to How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World’s 3D experience, The Wild Robot is another movie upholding the DreamWorks tradition of animated thrills set to pop out at the audience. As for the 4DX experience, that’s something else the studio has had experience with, as this year’s release of Kung Fu Panda 4 had these atmospheric bells and whistles added.
Overall Planning & Effort - 4/5
As I mentioned before, DreamWorks Animation has quite a history of experience with both 3D and 4DX experiences. So the planning and effort on both ends of The Wild Robot’s premium execution is rather well rated. If there was going to be a winner crowned in this two-facet race, it’d have to be the 3D.
While the visual piece to this puzzle is planned and executed flawlessly, the 4DX side of things lacks some of the punch one would hope for. The resulting point deduction isn’t a significant loss though, as The Wild Robot still used 4DX to its advantage in rather spectacular ways, especially in the field of motion.
3D Before The Window - 5/5
As naturally as you could imagine The Wild Robot cast, including Ving Rhames as the voice of an owl named Thunderbolt, Roz’s lushly animated world knows how to throw things out at the audience. That wise flight instructor is a great example of nature projecting into the audience, as his pointed wing is one of the perfectly sold illusions in the third dimension.
Similar to what we saw in last week’s Transformers One 3D/4DX evaluation, there are definitely some robotic cannons and weapons pointed into the audience. At the same time, there’s more fun to be had with creatures lunging at the screen, and Roz’s detachable features also flinging through certain scenes.
3D Beyond The Window - 5/5
Depth can be used to really immerse the audience into a 3D presentation. On paper, The Wild Robot has a lot of potential, as it feels like it’s a picture built to deliver such an illusion throughout the entirety of the action presented. That’s due to a majority of the action takes place in nature, and another portion uses high flying life action to tell an emotional tale of Roz raising runt Brightbill (Boone Storme/Kit Connor).
I can safely say that after observing my 3D/4DX screening of The Wild Robot, the Beyond the Window factor is just as excellent as the Before the Window segment. Gorgeous flight scenes looking down on land and sea alike keep drawing the audience’s eye further into the visual canvas throughout the running time. But even in more intimate scenes, like the moment when Roz and Fink (Pedro Pascal) gather their friends in an enclosed dwelling, the ensuing fight never devolves into a confusing mess where characters can't be visually separated from their environment or each other.
3D Brightness Score - 3/5
For the second evaluation in a row, the brightness in 3D/4DX seems to be a bit dimmer than one would want or expect from something as colorful as this. That responsibility doesn’t solely fall on the shoulders of The Wild Robot’s 3D conversion team though, as the mileage will vary in this segment due to how well a theater maintains and calibrates its 3D projectors.
Seeing as this is the same location I saw Transformers One at last week, I think I may have to politely inquire with management about whether or not this is the case. But much like the origin story of the Autobots and Decepticons, The Wild Robot isn’t visually muddied to the point of being unwatchable. I’m sensing a pattern, and I’m hoping it can be corrected, as I rather like this location’s setup.
3D Glasses Off Score - 5/5
If you’re going to cry as much as I did during The Wild Robot, evaluating the Glasses Off score isn’t going to be a chore at all. Slipping off your 3D specs, you’ll notice that traditional blur that takes center stage when removing those special glasses. As the last singularly 3D aspect to grade in this evaluation, you can chalk up another perfect score in this section!
The blur is a nice, constantly shifting field of almost double vision for wide shots, with more 2D styled anchor points helping focus the eye on specific aspects. Now dry your eyes, as we’re about to get bumpy with the 4DX portion of the program.
4DX Water Effects: 4/5
There isn’t a constant deluge of sprinkler effects during The Wild Robot, which only sticks out in certain sequences throughout the picture’s running time. As the film opens with a rumbling storm of wind, rain and lightning, we’re not really hit with too much of that magic at the start.
Throughout the movie, the 4DX water effects do tend to be used to great effect, with light sprinkles coming from the stormier moments included. Also, this is the first premium spectacle I can think of that actually used the snow feature in the auditorium! It may have been limited, but it actually happened, so now I’ll have to pay attention to whether where you sit in the auditorium effects how much snow you get during the show.
4DX Scent Effects: 3/5
The type of scents used in The Wild Robot are limited to either floral or earthy notes spraying out at intermittent moments. Unfortunately, this is where the point deductions come into play, as there are several moments that could have used this feature to elevate things even more.
The Wild Robot contains moments like a running gag about being sprayed by a skunk, a huge battle in a futuristic orange grove and some seaside moments of reflection that could have been enhanced by this feature. I will say that when the scent canons are engaged, it does manage to boost the fun. I feel like there's a learning experience here, as I'd like to discover the true range of the 4DX scent spectrum for future evaluations.
4DX Light/Air/Smoke Effects: 3/5
Heading back to that opening storm scene, another surprising lack of effects I noticed was the absence of 4DX strobe lighting. Lightning is a perfect time to trigger those flashes, much like moments of Alien: Romulus’ 4DX experience had. Come to think of it, I don’t remember seeing any strobes going off, and there’s a whole scene where geese are being attacked by lasers.
Smoke didn’t play too much of a factor in The Wild Robot’s picture, but at the same time, the climactic forest fire set piece could have benefited from some more of that effect. Yes, folks, we do want that smoke. Last, but not least, air effects predictably work like a charm throughout DreamWorks Animation’s would-be blockbuster. You will believe a squirrel has just been beaned by an acorn thrown its way.
4DX Motion Effects: 5/5
The Wild Robot LOVES its motion effects, and it’s not afraid to show them off at any given moment in time. Not wasting any time, Roz’s initial sojourn through her island home puts us through our paces, as she imitates the gait of several animals in quick fashion. And for an adventure that includes a lot of flight training, you’ll definitely feel like you’re preparing for takeoff!
“Wild” doesn’t even cover the motions that you’re going to go through with this delightful romp in the woods, though it’s not as rough as Twisters’ 4DX experience. One final note of importance is the fact that The Wild Robot has leveled up my understanding of vibrational effects in the seats provided. The “imprinting” sequence between Roz and Brightbill is even more delightful when the sensors in your chair make it feel like you can sense the change coming over her.
Overall Audience Health - 5/5
For an adult moviegoer who can handle motion simulators, The Wild Robot is not going to cause you to vomit. The 3D side shouldn’t trigger any adverse reactions either, as the visuals are smooth and without any visual wonk. The only advisory I’d offer in this category is that if you’re bringing the kids to see this one, I’d check out Regal’s safety regulations as a good benchmark as to whether that’s a good idea or not.
Final Verdict: 47/55
Get ready to find your “Awoooooo” in The Wild Robot, as the 3D/4DX experience is quite the crowd pleaser. For us nitpickers, there are a couple things here and there that need addressing, but the audience at large is bound to consider this a well deserve upgrade from a standard theatrical presentation.
Having said that, I can now say I’ve officially completed my task of helping you decide which ticket you should by for The Wild Robot. I’m not sure if we’ll be evaluating Joker: Folie à Deux’s 4DX experience just yet, but if you’re feeling a particular need to see that happen, please let us know! Until next time, please feel free to rate the quality of your To 3D/4DX or Not To 3D/4DX evaluation experience. And remember, a Miker always completes his task!
