Another month, another trip to see Kylie’s Aphrodite – Les Folies spectacle. While the tour juggernaut rumbles on non-stop around the globe (currently in Australia), the UK had a chance to relive the spellbinding blitz of colour and Kylie songs in a one-night only, 3D screening of the show on Sunday. Showing in selected cinemas as well as television channel Sky 3D, Aphrodite – Les Folies 3D really did bring something else to the Kylie event party. And I didn’t think that was possible, seeing as the night out at the O2 Arena back in April was something of a very special evening.
But yet, the film screening offered something spectacularly different, but not necessarily better, to the live night. The 3D glasses worked for a start, and right from the word go, it was easy to see what the multiple 2D and 3D cameras had captured. The titles and overlaying graphics really did seem to float into the auditorium. Working best on wide shots showing the enormous and elaborate stage, the catwalk, and the audience, the 3D elements really did make you think that the cinema screen was sunk into the wall a long way back.
Sweeping and long shots worked especially well, too, and the sumptuous costumes were brought into even more life as they brushed past the cameras. And, as you’d expect from such a screening, Kylie literally was larger than life in front of your eyes, her sparkling costumes even more colourfully radiant than they were on that evening back in April. Filmed over 11 and 12 April at the O2 Arena in London (the week after I saw it), the edit cleverly tricked you into thinking it was one night.
Showcasing a Kylie concert at its absolute best, Aphrodite – Les Folies 3D was a cinematic triumph, but one that missed the atmosphere of the live night (you were never going to get an atmosphere from around 20 viewers). No cuts ensured all the hits were there, too – the TV version had four songs chopped out to fit the broadcast slot. And the water fountain finale was as stunning as it was on the night itself. All in all, a fantastic couple of hours of spectacular escapism – one of the things a Kylie concert is supremely good at.
[Image: Kylie.com]

