The last few movies I’ve watched in an actual movie theatre have been in 3D. Whenever I see the opening sequences, I still can’t help but think, “Wow. The future is here.”

It seems that most 3D movies are kids’ movies, which is perfectly all right with me because I like watching those too. Today, we watched “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.” If you haven’t guessed by now, I have a soft spot for nerds. Nerds in love? Even better.

As it turns out, watching a 3D movie with lots of kids in the audience was actually quite fun. The sheer wonder they couldn’t help but share made me smile. This was perhaps the first 3D movie for many of them, and there’s something magical about seeing _into_ the screen for the first time.

Even though I’ve watched many movies in different formats, I’m still amazed by it all. I appreciate it for different reasons than I did as a kid. Now, I think of moving pictures and the persistence of vision; of polarization, depth perception and 3D images; storytelling and plot devices. I see the advances in computer animation overlaid with different cinematic techniques. Over time, I may learn to appreciate movies within genres and place films in the context of the director’s work.

But today, when the 3D movie started, I still closed one eye, then switched to the other, and then went “Wow.”