Billie Eilish and James Cameron’s 3D Concert Experience Falls Short of Its Lofty Promise

We have a new entry in the category of unlikely pairings: James Cameron and Billie Eilish. These two titans of industry have teamed up to present Billie Eilish—Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D), in which the directorial duo set out to “reinvent the concert experience,” as the film’s marketing claims. Though there is great fun in watching Cameron and Eilish collaborate, it may take more than flashy camera moves and a screaming arena to achieve that feat.

The film covers a single show of Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft tour, which ran for over a year following the 2024 release of her album of the same name. The album, which garnered seven Grammy nominations, is only her third studio album and was released when she was just 22 years old—two things that are hard to wrap your mind around when watching this film, as Eilish showcases her skill as a once-in-a-generation performer and vocalist.

The work, which is about 90 percent concert film and 10 percent tour documentary, relies heavily on 3D tricks and the show’s impressive production. The 3D element makes you feel at different moments like both a fan (with really good seats) and the performer through interesting point-of-view shots filmed by Eilish herself. It was exciting to see the inner workings of a tour like this, running around beneath the stage with Eilish sneaking water breaks and fixing her hair midshow. But about two-thirds into the film’s two-hour runtime, the camera tricks and the cuts to crying fans lose their reverence and start to feel more repetitive than innovative.

Directors Billie Eilish and James Cameron. Paramount Pictures

I would’ve liked to see more of the relationship between Cameron and Eilish and how that translated into the making of this film. The two seem to have a great working relationship, but the film offers no insight into how they met or what drove them to make this project together. It is clear that Cameron respects Eilish as an artist and collaborator, and I most enjoyed the bits of them chatting about rescue dogs and eyeliner techniques. I just wonder how we made the jump from Avatar: Fire and Ash to a Billie Eilish concert film, you know?

We briefly get some insight into Eilish’s emotional state on the tour as she tearfully describes embarking on performing without her collaborator and brother, Finneas O’Connell, for the first time. If you’re a fan of Eilish’s work. you know that these two wunderkind siblings are never without the other when it comes to music. However, as Finneas branched off into new solo work, he decided to not attend the Hit Me Hard and Soft tour with his sister. Toward the end of this particular show, though, he surprises the audience and joins her for a few of their classic songs like “Ocean Eyes” and “Happier Than Ever.” It is a nice moment that could have had a better payoff if we had gotten just a bit further into Eilish’s inner experience of this new chapter of her career performing without him.

Courtesy of Paramount Pictures

One of the most poignant aspects of the film is how it explores Eilish’s relationship with her fans. Her deeply confessional and honest music connects with these young listeners in a way that feels equally unique and heart-wrenching. Many of these fans are quite young, detailing their connection to the music that got them through middle school or helped them feel more comfortable expressing themselves and their feelings. There isn’t a dry eye in the stadium, with swaths of Gen Z girls crying into their iPhone as Eilish belts to an unrequited love, “I just wanted passion from you/Just wanted what I gave you.”

There is no question that Billie Eilish is an incredible, dynamic performer with great music that touches a lot of people. There were moments watching this film when it felt hard to stay in my seat as I watched thousands jump around to songs like “Guess” and “Birds of a Feather.” And if you’re a fan of her music, I can’t imagine you’d walk out of this film disappointed. I wouldn’t say that we have reached a point in concert film technology—impressive though this is—that entirely replaces the experience of live music. However, I do think that something as innovative as this is a cool tool to have as concert tickets grow more expensive and harder to get with each passing day.

Courtesy of Paramount Pictures