One of the chief criticisms of 3D movies up until now has been the level of dimness with which they are projected. With 3D tickets sales down this summer, some studios are starting to take notice of the complaints and are taking steps to correct the issue. Case in point: Paramount and Michael Bay have implored theater chains to play the latest Transformers film at brighter settings. Beyond that, Paramount has gotten strict, requiring theaters to play the film “in 3D next Tuesday night for the early screenings to spread buzz or they can’t play the film at all.” The studio says that if theaters have a digital print in house, they won’t even accept the 35mm Technicolor 3D release prints. Also, Paramount is telling theaters it is a four-week minimum in their digital theater.

With these requirements, Paramount is clearly attempting to cover all their bases with this release – and with 3D in its current state, who could blame them? Placating fans with better 3D seems more like a side-effect to earnings potential, especially with this particular film. It’s also worth noting that with the four-week minimum set up, Paramount will also be taking theaters away from other 3D releases like Cars 2 and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. I guess it’s every man for himself in the 3D release game these days.

I’ll admit that I am curious about the quality of 3D in Transformers: Dark of the Moon, even though I’m not a fan of the series. The creative team has seemingly shown a good deal more care with it than other releases of the past couple years and the brightness correction certainly highlights that. What do you think – does the brightness solution give you any more interest to see the film in 3D? Is Transformers going to be the shot in the arm that 3D needs?