Ever since, it's been a long slog of lackluster 3-D experiences - crude conversions and dimly lit experiments that made me question whether "Avatar" would be a permanent exception to the rule.

But the answer to the great 3-D debate comes in the form of "Hugo," a 3-D accomplishment that in many ways dwarfs "Avatar." In "Hugo," Martin Scorsese has used his extra dimension to extend the real world. Unlike "Avatar," which was a computer-generated landscape, this is a live-action, 3-D adventure, using the visual device to add new layers of humor, empathy and weight to his visuals.

Not only is it the finest 3-D film made thus far in a purely technical sense, but it's also a 3-D creation with the most ingenious and infectious narrative at its center, all existing in the realm of realism. As such, there's very little here that feels like a gimmick. Unlike "Avatar," I am not left with an array of caveats - that to do 3-D well, you need to leave Earth.

Nope, let me say it plainly: "Hugo" isn't just a great 3-D experiment, it's one of the year's very best films. And it is living, breathing proof of how 3-D can be used to enrich realistic dramas and not just sci-fi escapes.

Based on Brian Selznick's thunderous novel "The Invention of Hugo Cabret," which straddles genres with a lively mix of literary prose, hundreds of pictures and graphic novel tendencies, it's the tale of a pioneering filmmaker, his library of films and an amazing array of supernatural characters spread out across his city.

Scorsese clearly gravitated to the project because of its love of early cinema (he has long been a restorer of old films), and he sets the action in 1930s Paris, using the 3-D technology to inject a heightened sense of surrealism into his palate - much as Selznick alternated between prose and illustrations in creating a diverse experience on the page.

For those who are unfamiliar with the story, I will not ruin its many surprises. What's key here is your devout love of cinema, the appreciation that technology is always changing the world - sometimes not for the better - and the unlimited potential of the artist's imagination.

It's a movie about the timelessness of the creative spirit, as viewed through the perspective of an orphan living in the walls of a train station. He has become infatuated by the true story of his dead father's life, and the mysterious surrounding a very unusual robot.

The story is mystical, exotic, fantastical and eye-popping, but what transcends the inviting narrative is the intoxicating facade. Scorsese has found a narrative to match his visual approach and has then proven that more important than what "Hugo" is about is how "Hugo" goes about its business. This is a movie that looks unlike any other, using 3-D to heighten not just dimension but reality. It's the daring cinematic achievement of the year - the 3-D triumph that has officially dethroned "Avatar."

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