Tuesday, May 5, 2026, 5 p.m., UCI Luxe East Side Gallery. The first performance of “Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard And Soft: The Tour Live In 3D” in Germany. In the iSense Premium Hall, which according to the slogan is specially designed to literally draw the audience into the film with an “Immersive Cinema” experience. However, the speakers are apparently being spared on this day and only seem to be running at just above room volume; Unfortunately, there is hardly any real concert feeling in the hall, which is two-thirds full. It’s a shame for the Billie Eilish super fans present, but I’m playing with my cards open at this point, because otherwise you’ll soon notice anyway: Of course I also noticed “Bad Guy” – as well as the Oscar wins for “No Time To Die” and “Barbie”.
Nevertheless, I’m probably the only one on this Berlin afternoon who didn’t come for Billie Eilish, but for her co-director. Less than six months after “Avatar 3: Fire And Ash”, James Cameron is returning to the cinema – and even if it is “just” a concert film this time, he still has something to make up for in my opinion. By the way, it’s his own fault: After such groundbreaking pioneering works as “The Abyss”, “Terminator 2” or “Avatar”, at a certain point you always expect new technological revolutions – and while “Avatar 2” once again delivered completely, the step in “Avatar 3” wasn’t big enough to console the repetitive narrative. So now the next attempt – and in this respect “Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard And Soft: The Tour Live In 3D” definitely made up for me.
Billie Eilish doesn’t just perform on stage – she is also co-director of the film alongside James Cameron!
The first scene worried me right away. The time-lapse of the construction of the massive stage for the four sold-out performances at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester directly fulfills one of the concert documentary clichés – and yes, the film ends as a bracket with a corresponding shot of the dismantling and clean-up work. But after the exhausted introduction, Cameron immediately shows what he’s really capable of: I’ve probably never seen such sharp 3D shots before! As soon as Billie Eilish appears on stage, thousands of fans instinctively point their cell phones at her – and when the camera captures the crowds of fans looking at the stage from behind, you get the feeling as if you can still see the video app’s record button on every single display.
Anyone who was in the arena that day definitely has a good chance of seeing themselves in the film at some point – and that doesn’t just apply to those lucky people who got a seat in the first few rows. In some settings you can still clearly recognize individual faces, even in the rank. James Cameron is setting new standards – once again – and his co-director is providing the creative spark: When planning the filming a few hours before the concert, Billie Eilish suggests crazy camera angles for almost every song. And when she is “smuggled” onto the stage in a narrow box at the beginning, unnoticed by the fans, she films with a small hand-held camera from a narrow slot into the huge arena – and even that doesn’t detract from the breathtaking depth of field.
Down-to-earth star, bombastic technology
Between songs, the film repeatedly jumps back to points in the previous 24 hours – with a time display that is accurate to the minute: Billie Eilish does her own hair and make-up, warms up her vocal cords on a Facetime call with her voice coach Doug. Anyway, she wants to be a star that she would have liked to have been a fan of before. That’s why she throws herself into the endless line of disembodied arms of her fans from the front rows – even if she knows that not only her limbs will then be covered in shockingly deep scratches because everyone wants to hold on to their star for as long as possible.
Once Billie Eilish looks out of a window below at the fans, some of whom have been waiting in a kind of tent city for days – and sends them a photo on social media. One of the girls immediately looks up – and just a little later, whole hordes come running across the parking lot. It’s hard to help but think of the zombie classic “Dawn Of The Dead.” All of this remains fundamentally likeable. There are the usual fan confessions that it was only thanks to the singer that they made it through difficult puberty, dark times or mental crises – but with Billie Eilish you are definitely much more inclined than with many of her colleagues to accept this as more than just the usual PR testimonials.
Two world stars together: James Cameron and Billie Eilish go over the filming schedule for the concert the following evening.
James Cameron also speaks to her about this in the short interview snippets – for example in a relaxation room full of puppies from a local animal shelter. But most of the questions are so basic that you could easily imagine that James Cameron met the artist by chance at one of the many Hollywood awards parties that they have attended in recent years.
The “Titanic” mastermind sometimes mixes an analogue graininess into his ultra-sharp images, almost as if he wanted to suggest a distant grunge vibe. But overall, it still doesn’t necessarily come through what exactly attracted him to Billie Eilish – beyond his technical gadgets, which are worth the price of admission in themselves.
Conclusion: After the film, I’m still not sure whether Billie Eilish and James Cameron are really a perfect pairing – when the “Titanic” director himself appears in the middle, it has a certain grandfather-at-his-granddaughter’s-school-play vibes. But it’s definitely likeable, and two things are definitely certain, independently of each other: Billie Eilish develops a unique chemistry with her fans on stage – and James Cameron delivers a tech demo that only raises our future expectations of Hollywood 3D productions.