Now in the year 2010, audiences can just throw on a pair of glasses and can get an instant feeling of being inside of a movie. Movies from all genres are beginning to go 3-D, but are they really trying to enhance the cinematic experience, or do they just want a reason to sky rocket ticket prices?

Years ago, only special movies would be shown in 3-D, and they would be a nice treat here and there. For many years, 3-D movies would appear only a few times a year. However in 2009 and 2010, the amount of 3-D films tripled. Now 3-D movies have became the latest trend in Hollywood, giving us everything from horror flicks to children’s movies, to virtually anything under the sun.

The real push behind the recent trend of 3-D formatted movies was the release of James Cameron’s “Avatar;” seeing the world of Pandora in IMAX 3-D stunned movie goers around the world. James Cameron threw a curveball at Hollywood, leaving after effects to its market. “Avatar” is the highest grossing film of all time, and after its success, the trend has spread like wild fire.

Horror movies have adopted this experience, as more and more scary movies want the audience to feel the true terror of the frightening scenes. The most gruesome movies of our time, “Saw,” “The Final Destination,” and many more decided to go 3-D, making the movie harder to watch, and proving horror movies do not belong on this new frontier.

A successful genre of movie where 3-D is flourishing is animated films. A few popular 3-D animated hits include “Despicable Me,” “Megamind,” and “Toy Story 3.” This enhances the experience as these animated characters come to life before us. The 3-D experience will continually flourish in this genre, as we see many future blockbusters in animated 3-D like “Cars 2,” “The Smurfs,” and a new “Ice Age” sequel.

If 3-D provides more entertainment for the viewer, what’s the problem? The problem is as people throw those 3-D glasses on, wallet’s become a lot lighter. If movie prices aren’t already high, 3-D films are making prices sky rocket. Statistics show about a 20% or more rise in prices if people view the movie in 3-D or 3-D IMAX. Prices for a 3-D movie can be over 15 dollars, and are gradually increasing as more 3-D blockbusters are successful.

Will everything be converted to 3-D? In local movie theaters today, their 3-D movies will be accompanied by a regular viewing version for normal rates. However, with the success of 3-D movies, these regular versions are put on the back burner. Some movie goers can only hope this is a fad, but one thing is for sure, the 3-D trend will be strong the next few years.

Many 3-D blockbusters are already in production for the next few years, most popularly, the re-release of all of “Star Wars” movies in 3-D format. However, with some hold-outs from the 3-D trend, like “Harry Potter” and “Twilight,” regularly viewed movies will always remain.

Is the 3-D movie just another Hollywood trend? Only time can tell, however, with the production of other 3-D technology like 3-D televisions, one thing is for sure. The sky is the limit for the 3rd dimension.