The Hobbit

[aberro21]

When I first heard about I thought it's definitely going to bomb but I just read that it's a prequel so it might have a chance. i just hope it's not a weak plot with weak characters.

[greyhorse]

Yes I hope he does a good job and doesnt spoil a great story - loved the Hobbit.

[Corny]

warning .. huge image:

http://www-images.theonering.org/tor...BT-DWF-007.jpg

[Spiff]

The first official trailer was just released in theaters this week:



my precious. . .

[goldenmoth]

The trailer was superb. I love that they took the time to give all the dwarfs seperate identities. That's tough when you have a cast of 12.

It's not so much Ian McKellan's Gandalf as Blanchett's Galadriel that I think will steal the show.

[aberro21]

Dec 2012 is so far away. And the world might end by then!

But the trailer looks great. Martin Freeman looks perfect as Bilbo Baggins.

Can't wait to see it.

i was pissed when i seen the release date

[pelmmania]

i like the trailer, especially the song

and thorin, killi, and filli is handsome too ..

[palbert]

Very much looking forward to it.

[AbnormalDann]

Even with the addition of the female elf, I trust Peter Jackson to make it a great film!

[Harke the Boeotarch]

Why do I think this is gonna suck?

[Spiff]

Why do I think this is gonna suck?

Possibly because you might be a pessimistic person? The real question is, do you want it to suck?

PJ has been wanting to do this since the LOTR trilogy. I think we are in good hands with him taking this on.

[Harke the Boeotarch]

Possibly because you might be a pessimistic person? The real question is, do you want it to suck?

Not sure. I liked the LOTR trilogy because I thought turning these books into movies this was an acheivement.

Now that he has established a whole style will he keep delivering?

PJ has been wanting to do this since the LOTR trilogy. I think we are in good hands with him taking this on.

Is Del Toro still involved?

[Spiff]

Is Del Toro still involved?

He left the production in 2010. He did have input with conceptual stuff and screenplay early on. But the direction is all PJ and the bulk of the screenplay is by PJ, Fran Walsh, and Phillipa Boyens (the same team that did the LOTR trilogy). Award winning Cinematographer Andrew Lesnie and musical composer Howard Shore are also returning. So The Hobbit is on track to have the same epic quality and style as The LOTR.

The main difference this time around is the 3D. I've been following some of the production's vlogs and they are putting great care in the 3D filming. It's not likely they are going to fuck it up.

[tommy_2_0_0_0]

Even though Legolas was not in the book, I'm still excited to see Orli back in his elf ears. Has anyone seen pics of him yet? I searched online but haven't seen any yet.

[anchihiro]

Its going to be one of my most anticipated films this year along side Prometheus and The Dark Knight Rises.

[goldenmoth]

He left the production in 2010. He did have input with conceptual stuff and screenplay early on. But the direction is all PJ and the bulk of the screenplay is by PJ, Fran Walsh, and Phillipa Boyens (the same team that did the LOTR trilogy). Award winning Cinematographer Andrew Lesnie and musical composer Howard Shore are also returning. So The Hobbit is on track to have the same epic quality and style as The LOTR.

The main difference this time around is the 3D. I've been following some of the production's vlogs and they are putting great care in the 3D filming. It's not likely they are going to fuck it up.

I'm so glad Howard Shore is back. He was the dealbreaker for me when this film was being considered. I was so worried he wouldn't come back after the unpleasantness during King Kong. His "Knives in the dark" song is fantastic

[Spiff]

Rumors are saying early previews of the film are mostly negative. The 48 frames/second (vs. the usual 24) is said to be stripping away the cinematic feel of film. It is trying to fix what was never broken. People are saying it is like watching a live broadcast television show. People saying this are hardcore LotR fans too. Hopefully Jackson fixes it up and pulls off another epic. I would be crushed if this ends up sucking as much as people are saying it does. No word if they watched the preview in 3D or not.
'The Hobbit' 48FPS Footage Divides Audiences At CinemaCon

[MisterMajestic]

I saw the trailer before viewing Clash of the Titans....Hmmmmmm....I must say it looked Bland...I can only describe it as a Thanksgiving Festival of Hobbits coming of age.....The Studio needs to release a better trailer or add more clips to sell it a little better......It was good seeing clips of Gandalf the Grey, Frodo and Smeagol...

I'm there regardless...

[DocDar]

I can't wait...I love the "Misty Mountain" song the dwarves sing

[braex27]

Gorgeous Richard Armitage who plays Thorin Oakenshield is a trained stage singer and I think the lead voice in the 'Misty Mountain' song is his... So haunting.

[Spiff]

The Hobbit officially will now be a trilogy, third movie being filmed for 2014.
'The Hobbit 3': Peter Jackson Confirms Third 'Hobbit' Film Set For Summer 2014 Release

[braex27]

I am as big a huge Tolkien fan, but reading that just made me think:

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - 2012
The Hobbit: There and Back Again - 2013
The Hobbit: Milking it for all it's Worth - 2014

Sad.

Does anyone really think the Hobbit story will take three (presumably three hour) films to tell?

[Spiff]

Does anyone really think the Hobbit story will take three (presumably three hour) films to tell?

No, which is why PJ is getting his extra material from the LotR Appendices.

Why is this sad? If it turns out to be as good as all the other Tolkien stuff PJ has done, then does it matter to fans if he is milking it? As long as it is enjoyable and similar in quality to the other films, that's all I care about. I guess we won't really know until 2014 either way.

[braex27]

No, which is why PJ is getting his extra material from the LotR Appendices.

Why is this sad? If it turns out to be as good as all the other Tolkien stuff PJ has done, then does it matter to fans if he is milking it? As long as it is enjoyable and similar in quality to the other films, that's all I care about. I guess we won't really know until 2014 either way.

Actually, I didn't even think all of the other Tolkien stuff that he has done was that great. With the possible exception of the extended edition of Fellowship, I found the other instalments substandard. They lacked the finesse and intricacies of the books. That and the fact that he left out The Scouring of the Shire, even in the extended edition of the third film has put me off side.

I may change my mind once I see the final product. We shall see.

[MisterMajestic]

I saw Cloud Atlas over the weekend and The Studio that is distributing The Hobbit released more trailer footage...My earlier concerns about the Flick being a bit cheesy and comedy-heavy were put to rest. The new footage featured many scenes with Gandalf, the Hobbits and their adventure. The footage was so good I wanted to see more. They should have packaged it better months ago instead of weeks before the release......

With the new footage it's now a Deff must see....

[pausanias_usa]

I'm not sure where they are going to fit Legolas into the movie.

The appendices, from which a lot of the extraneous material will be taken, states that Legolas was the son of the Wood-elf king, Thranduil.

While not named in the HOBBIT, Thranduil does appear: he's the elf-king in Mirkwood that puts the dwarves in his dungeon while Bilbo skulks around invisible with the ring (and eventually dumps them all into barrels to be floated to Dale). The latter scene is in the early trailers.

So Legalos had to be around Thranduil's palace somewhere during that time, as his son; I imagine he'll bump into Bilbo (literally, haha) and keep his secret or something like that. Also, the Battle of the 5 Armies will have the elves, too, presumably the wood-elves among them, so Legolas gets to fight later.

Radagast the Brown is in some of the early trailers: when Gandalf leaves the dwarves at the entrance to Mirkwood, it is to gather the White Council (Saruman and the two other secret ring-bearers, Elrond and Galadriel; Gandalf has the third elf ring) to drive out the Necromancer (who is an early form of Sauron). Gandalf met Thorin's father in the dungeons of the Necromancer while checking to see if the Necromancer was Sauron returned, which is where he gets the map at the beginning of the HOBBIT with the secret entrance. Thorin's father had a dwarf ring, but the Necromancer took it away from him before putting him in the dungeon, but apparently didn't find the map. Orcs make sloppy jailors, apparently, lol.

I suspect Jackson will bring up Thorin's father's story through Gandalf at the beginning of the HOBBIT, just like the book. That sets up the side-plot of driving the Necromancer out of Mirkwood (and into Mordor, eventually), tying all the films together, and allowing Saruman, Elrond, and Galadriel to be in the story as well.

My best guess is that Jackson will follow the pattern of the LOTR films, and have a skirmish end the first film (the Warg attack after they escape from the Goblin king?), the White Council battling the Necromancer at the end of the second film, and of course the Battle of the 5 Armies at the end of the final film.

Should be a cool magical battle between the White Council and Sauron in his Necromancer form! Radagast is a very minor figure, even in the appendices, but he talked to animals, so I suppose that's him with the furry critters in the trailers, sending a message to Gandalf that the Necromancer might be Sauron returned. There were two other wizards in the appendices, part of the five Istari with Gandalf, Saruman, and Radagast, but they weren't even named, and presumably were away down South or East on other errands.

(Can you tell I've read and reread the books since childhood? )

[likecharlie]

Actually, I didn't even think all of the other Tolkien stuff that he has done was that great. With the possible exception of the extended edition of Fellowship, I found the other instalments substandard. They lacked the finesse and intricacies of the books. That and the fact that he left out The Scouring of the Shire, even in the extended edition of the third film has put me off side.

I may change my mind once I see the final product. We shall see.

This.

I'm trying to keep an open mind but I must admit i'm a little worried, lol.

[RRUGER]

snoooze fest.

i will pass

lord of the rings was too litle action for me.

the books where way more entertaining than the movies.

i will pass on the hobbit


i rather watch avengers and spiderman at least you get some good action and not just some weirdd drama

[DigitalFudge]

What is the adventure? Didn't Frodo already destroy the Ring? Are there any elves in this?

[Harke the Boeotarch]

What is the adventure? Didn't Frodo already destroy the Ring? Are there any elves in this?

The Hobbit is a prequel, not a sequel, to the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

[Spiff]

This should satisfy anyone with a dwarf fetish. A few of these actually look hot.

[MisterMajestic]

This should satisfy anyone with a dwarf fetish. A few of these actually look hot.

...LOL....A few? What you meant to type is 2...LOL...Spiff you steal my Heart....

[Dylannz]

On a not strictly related note;

In the last month or so, the post office has started stamping the mail with Middle Earth instead of New Zealand in my city.

Weird.

[alphaxxx]

25 days to go! (UK)

[rotary]

Rumors are saying early previews of the film are mostly negative. The 48 frames/second (vs. the usual 24) is said to be stripping away the cinematic feel of film. It is trying to fix what was never broken. People are saying it is like watching a live broadcast television show. People saying this are hardcore LotR fans too. Hopefully Jackson fixes it up and pulls off another epic. I would be crushed if this ends up sucking as much as people are saying it does. No word if they watched the preview in 3D or not.'The Hobbit' 48FPS Footage Divides Audiences At CinemaCon

I believe the 48fps version in only being released for High Frame Rate Imax 3D. Could be wrong. I always turn off motion interpolation on my tv, the extra frames make video look odd.

Most new flatscreens have this option, turn it on and see how you like it. I think Samsung labels it 'trumotion' in display settings.

[Misaki]

Hopefully I'll be lined up to watch this at launch like the other LOTR related movies. I generally don't take anything related to the early previews and whatnot seriously since a lot has to happen before then.

[alphaxxx]

11 days....

[pausanias_usa]

10 days. . . .!

Have a premier IMAX 3D ticket and arranged to take the next day off so I don't have to work after staying up late

[jdbadboy]

Why do I think this is gonna suck?

Because Jackson has taken a sweet fantasy adventure novel that was written for children and turned it into an epic 3 movie spectacle.

[jdbadboy]

Because Jackson has taken a sweet fantasy adventure novel that was written for children and turned it into an epic 3 movie spectacle.

And also I feel like we were shortchanged with the Lord of the Rings films. If he can get three movies out of the hobbit then he should have gotten NINE movies out of the Lord of the Rings.

[BreakTheIce]

I could swear we saw some cartoon like movie of The Hobbit in high school. Didn't really care for the movie, but I loved the books. It's one of the few books I absolutely love.

[pausanias_usa]

I could swear we saw some cartoon like movie of The Hobbit in high school. Didn't really care for the movie, but I loved the books. It's one of the few books I absolutely love.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hobbit_(1977_film)

Made for TV -- a musical! Argh. Tolkien always regretted the "children's story" tone of the Hobbit, and in this adaptation you can see why! Interestingly, while the musical followed the story closely, it had "to be compressed," so Jackson was not far off the mark in using all the time he could get to tell the story. I think he'll do a great job -- we'll see in a week 8').

[TickTockMan]

For those interested a 13-minute TV special:


'Return To Middle-Earth'

http://my.spill.com/profiles/blogs/w...o-middle-earth

[Spiff]

No doubt I am still going to see this movie; not sure which version. The opinions I have read so far from early reviews is to skip the HFR (48fps). But I am getting slightly depressed because this movie is not getting as well received as LotR was. In fact not even close. I was hoping PJ was going to pull off another classic; but it is apparent that did not happen this time.

[Spiff]

I have problems with 3D glasses (eye problems) put that with this 48 frame thing I've been hearing- not sure if I'm seeing this anymore!

You can see the normal 24 fps , non-3D version. And from what I have been reading, it's the best version; makes it look more like LotR.

[MisterMajestic]

The movie is 2hrs-50Min....I'm suppose to be going Friday night with a couple of Buds. We're going to the last showing..Hopefully it won't be so packed we can't get middle-row seats...

It seems VERY odd that the shortest of the 4 books gets a triology all to itself- while the other 3 books got 1 movie each....they must be adding A LOT!!! I'll wait til the reviews- if 4 star/A I'll go....not all that thrilled to pay to see homophobe Evans....

The Studio would have allowed Jackson to SQUEEZE 3 movies from each book but I'm sure the ball was already rolling and the other 3 books could only get 3hrs of film each....It could have produced more films than Harry Potter...

I'm sure Jackson didnt have to convince the Studio he could Milk 3 Films from one book..I just hope there's enough of a Good story to tell from that one Freaking book.....As long as Gandalf is in all 3 flicks I'm good...

[Spiff]

Been having a hard time deciding which of the 5 formats to see. I can eliminate Imax HFR 3D, since it is available only at 58 Imax screens worldwide, my city not one of those. That leaves regular 24fps, 24 fps 3D, HFR 3D, Imax 3D. I think I have settled on HFR 3D, which is the native format that PJ filmed it and intended to be viewed. I'll try to go with an open mind for the new technology. Many have complained that it looks too different than regular film. Um, I think that was the point of filming in HFR. Since nobody has HFR 3D technology at home, I figure it's a rare opportunity to see it as it was intended on the big screen. I can always wait for the DVD to see the regular 24fps version. (there is no non-3D HFR version.)

[Spiff]

Watched it this afternoon, HFR version. I loved it and I left so confused about all the harsh criticisms it's been getting. It's pretty much all consistent with what we would expect, except with the story of The Hobbit instead of LotR. Just remember they are different stories. But all the expected elements are there. The HFR I hardly noticed; didn't seem much different than any other decent 3D movie I have seen in recent years. The HFR definitely does not take anything away or "cheapen" the visuals; those are from unfounded criticisms. And while it is another long Jackson movie, once again it doesn't feel it. The pacing is fine. To me PJ hit all the marks and got the job done.

[Harke the Boeotarch]

Just back from the cinema. Wasn't great, but not as nearly aweful as I would have imagined.

[TickTockMan]

So far this is my least favorite movie of the ones out.