sfboy101

I am lucky to have seen a beautiful print of "Kiss Me Kate" shown in 3D at the Stanford Theater in Palo Alto in June of 2000. It was shown in dual-projector format which resulted in a clear, bright picture. The 3D was accomplished with gray polarized glasses rather than the blue/red ones, so there was no weird chromatic aberration. It was spectacular. The dance numbers were a riot of talent, color, and depth!

Tell your local art-house theater that you promise to pack the house if they will put on a 3D festival, especially if the 3D print of "Kate" is the centerpiece, and they can do the dual-projection. Sad that "Kate" was never released in its true 3D glory. "Kate" was directed and shot with an image for each of your eyes -- seeing the flat version is like seeing only half the movie!

Other comments have covered how poorly this Disney made-for-tv cowflop reflects the thoughtful and emotional children's novel on which it was based. Keeping in mind that films and books are independent mediums, with different requirements for developing characters and advancing plotlines, it is sad to see how little care went into this piece.

Watch the dolphin sequences. They were obviously shot in a waterpark or aquarium, and then intercut with shots of the actors in the real sea. The water changes color from shot to shot. Clumsy. Much of the rest of the film follows suit, with bad dialogue and confusing action sequences.

Going back to the book as an adult, I am amazed that a novel aimed at young readers explored the topic of death with both directness and sensitivity. This film explores how cool it would be to have a boyfriend with a speedboat.

This was a great way to bring the novel to the screen. Think two- or three-episode "Batman" -- just enough time to tell a longer story, and still aimed at kids just old enough to follow a more intricate plot. Heinlein's juvenile novel "Red Planet" wouldn't make much of a film, but was very well adapted into a rarely-seen form, the animated miniseries. I would like to see more of these!