"U2 3D" - U2

Film

Track Listing:

  • “Vertigo” (Live, 2006) – U2 (04:39)
  • “Beautiful Day” (Live, 2006) – U2 (05:22)
  • “New Year’s Day” (Live, 2006) – U2 (05:06)
  • “Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own” (Live, 2006) – U2 (05:22)
  • “Love and Peace or Else” (Live, 2006) – U2 (05:08)
  • “Sunday Bloody Sunday” (Live, 2006) – U2 (06:06)
  • “Bullet the Blue Sky” (Live, 2006) – U2 (05:22)
  • “Miss Sarajevo” (Live, 2006) – U2 (04:22)
  • “UN Declaration of Human Rights” (Live, 2006) – U2 (01:33)
  • “Pride (In the Name of Love)” (Live, 2006) – U2 (03:58)
  • “Where the Streets Have No Name” (Live, 2006) – U2 (06:13)
  • “One” (Live, 2006) – U2 (08:26)
  • “The Fly” (Live, 2006) – U2 (06:52)
  • “With or Without You” (Live, 2006) – U2 (06:03)
  • “Yahweh” (Live, 2006) – U2 (Live, 2006) – U2 (03:45)

Cannes Edit

  • “Beautiful Day” (Live, 2006) – U2
  • “Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own” (Live, 2006) – U2
  • “Sunday Bloody Sunday” (Live, 2006) – U2
  • “Bullet the Blue Sky” (Live, 2006) – U2
  • “Miss Sarajevo” (Live, 2006) – U2
  • “The Fly” (Live, 2006) – U2
  • “With or Without You” (Live, 2006) – U2

Background Information

U2 3D is a 3D concert film, shot during the Vertigo tour in 2006. The film is directed by Catherine Owens and Mark Pellington, and includes a shortened set list of 14 songs to fit time constraints of the 3D film. The film was released in conjunction with National Geographic Entertainment. Special glasses are required to view the film due to the special effects, which are touted as a step forward in 3D technology.

The film was officially announced on April 19, 2007 in advance of showing at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. The film debuted at Cannes at Midnight on May 20, 2007. The premiere at Cannes ran 55 minutes in length, while the cinema version runs 85 minutes. All four band members were in attendance at Cannes, and U2.com gave away two tickets to the screening for fans. The film was not part of the competition at Cannes.

After the edited version at Cannes, it was the full version shown everywhere. On January 8, 2008 the film was shown twice at the Luxor IMAX Theatre in Las Vegas as part of the 2008 CES. The world premiere for the film was held on January 19, 2008 at the Eccles Theatre as part of the Sundance Film Festival, attended by the band. The band were also in attendance at the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival on February 20, 2008, where the film had its Dublin premiere at Dublin’s Cineworld on Parnell Street. Commercially, the film opened in 3D IMAX theatres in limited cities on January 23, 2008. The wide release was held on February 22, 2008, where the film opened in 600 digital theatres.

The press release for the film shared, “The first-ever live-action digital 3-D film, U2 3D is a unique cinematic experience that places viewers within the pulsing energy of a stadium concert given by the world’s most popular band. Marrying innovative digital 3-D imagery and multi-channel surround sound with the excitement of a live U2 concert – shot in South America during the final leg of their ‘Vertigo’ tour – it creates an immersive theatrical experience unlike any 3-D or concert film that has come before. Ushering in a new dimension of filmmaking, U2 3D takes viewers on an extraordinary journey they will never forget.”

Footage of the show was made up from nine different concerts. The concerts filmed included:

In Mexico the band filmed medium-length shots exclusively, mid-field. In Brazil, they used two cameras to capture additional mid-distance shots. In Santiago, an overhead camera was used, focused on Larry Mullen’s drum kit and overhead shots.

Buenos Aires was the main focus of the film, starting with a 10-song dress rehearsal filmed entirely at sound check on February 28, 2006, to allow for the team to get close up shots of the band without blocking the view of the audience at a full show. The concerts in Buenos Aires were filmed with 9 cameras in use during the shows, with a focus on mid and long distance shots, as well as shots of the audience themselves.

Reviewing initial edits of the film, it was determined that more close ups of the band and shots from behind the stage as well, and these were done during concerts in Melbourne. Footage collected in all of these cities was used in the final film, edited first in 2D, before completing the work in 3D. The 2D cut of the film was used to mix the sound in 5.1 surround. (An indoor show in Anaheim was also shot with a single camera to test the concept, and gain buy in from the band, that footage was not used in the final film.)

When first debuted, there were talk of home video options in a 3D video format. However no release has ever materialized even with the technological gains in 3D technology for home cinema. A 2015 release to coincide with U2 appearing in Spain shared that the film is “licensed exclusively for cinemas, so it has not been seen, and will not be seen on television, online or domestic formats.”

The film was released with a G rating.

Liner Notes

Director: Catherine Owens, Mark Pellington
Cinematography: Tom Krueger, Peter Anderson
Editing: Olivier Wicki
Sound: Carl Glanville

Related Promotional Videos

Related News

Catalog of Releases