I really kicked myself after missing Coraline in the theatre. Everything’s better on the big screen, but the stop-motion animated feature, based on the book by Neil Gaiman and directed by Henry Selick (The Nightmare Before Christmas) was specifically acclaimed for its use of 3D, which is really much more of a cinema experience than a home viewing one.

Nonetheless, the other night I checked out the DVD of the film, which comes with a family-friendly four-pack of 3D glasses. I loved the movie, which made beautiful and wildly creative use of stop-motion in telling the tale of a young girl swept into an alternate universe that resembles her own, with a couple of creepy exceptions (like, for instance, the fact that everyone has buttons in place of their eyes). I even liked it more than another certain stop-motion kid’s-book adaptation everyone’s talking about these days. But I was mixed on the 3D.

See, in the theatres, audiences were given polarized 3D glasses—the clear kind—which is a technology not really ready for home use yet. Instead, with the DVD, you get the old-fashioned red/blue glasses, which dampen the colour palette and make the image look softer and sketchier. Though I found the glasses did “lock” me into the experience in a way, I felt like I was missing something. I’ll probably watch it again on the non-3D side of the disc. I really should have just gotten off my ass and seen it in the theatre.

Can I just say that Lost keeps on getting better and better? The fifth season, now out on DVD and Blu-Ray, continues the show’s awesome streak. The creators haven’t let up with their string of great surprises and reveals—who could have guessed it would end up basically set in the ’70s? Season six—the last one—begins soon, so you still have a couple of months to catch up.