On The "New" 3-D Movie Craze

If you've been following movies recently, you know that there have been a lot of 3-D films lately. I'm not talking about computer-animated films, although some of those are included in that category; I'm talking about ones that actually require you to wear special glasses to properly watch the movie. I've actually seen four 3-D flicks in the past two years, so I know what they're all about. I could delve into the history of me and 3-D media, but that would involve me going all the way back to the mid-'90s, and it has little to do with the topic I really want to get into. So, instead, I'm going to start with the first 3-D movie I saw, which was only two years ago.
In 2008, my parents and I saw an IMAX movie about the Grand Canyon. Based on previous experiences, I didn't think it would look 3-D to me. (Long story short, an eye doctor said back in 1999 that I had some vision problem that caused me to only see with one eye at a time. To this day, I don't really understand it.) My parents explained to me that the IMAX movie would have things coming out of the screen at you that would look like you could touch them. I was still doubtful...until the movie started. When I saw those bubbles coming out of the screen, it was so different than anything I'd ever seen. I'd been to IMAX movies plenty of times, but not 3-D ones. Naturally, I expected other 3-D movies to be the same way as the one I saw that day.
The next 3-D movie I saw was Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. I actually got to see a sneak preview of it on Father's Day weekend. Although the movie was funny, and the animation was great, it really seemed to me that the 3-D part was unnecessary. I honestly thought it could have been just as good if it had not required the special glasses. When I got to see the Jim Carrey Christmas Carol film, as well as the box-office smash Avatar, I felt the same way: they were great movies with amazing special effects/animation/etc., but the 3-D seemed unneeded. The only thing I remember coming out of the screen during any movie besides that Grand Canyon one was a cable in space, but that was during a preview for a NASA documentary before Avatar! Some other people who saw those movies agreed with me.
So, here's what I think: I think that this 3-D craze has gone way too far, because now it seems like they're making them 3-D just to get people in the theater. Movie studios need to face the facts: one day, movie theaters as we know them will die out. So many people these days have big screen TVs and surround sound systems at their houses that they don't need to pay 8+ bucks to see a movie at a theater. Now, I will admit that sometimes the audience can make a movie great; for example, I loved The Incredibles the first time I saw it, partly because of the way the audience around me was having such a great time. However, when the DVD came out, and I watched it with my mom, I just found it completely boring. It was like I was watching an entirely different flick. Still, some people don't like audiences, because at times they can be bothersome, like when kids cry or people sit there and talk through the movie. So, the movie studios need some gimmick to get people into theaters. It works for most people, but I'm not buying into it.
Truth be told, there have been 3-D films well before this recent crop. An article in one of my Bathroom Readers said that 3-D movies existed not only in the 80's, but even during the black-and-white days! Why did they stop making them? In at least one case, it was because the movies started to become dreck. That's part of why I believe this latest 3-D movie thing is just a fad. It won't be too long before the whole thing will lose its charm, and 3-D movies will fail. At least, that's what I think; what do you think?