The Hobbit Movie Thread (and anything else related to Lord of the Rings & J.R.R. Tolkien) - Page 2

I think the movies try to make characters more human - like, more relatable. 

But it shouldn't be hard to make them different. I mean, all races/characters in the movies have the same eyes, all of them!

Edited by proton007 - 12/18/12 at 7:12pm

I read The Hobbit and the LOTR trilogy 26 or 27 years ago...so memories were faint enough that I was entertained by the LOTR movies, although some purists I know were mortified by them. In preparation for The Hobbit movie, I just bought all 4 books off Google Play Books and have started reading. I've just passed the adventure with the barrels in the river in the Hobbit book, and now I find out that they are splitting the book into three movies . So I guess, since I am going to see the film on Thursday, that I don't have to worry about finishing the book before then. 

 

I know many people can't handle movie adaptations of books....and it's true that many of them have been failures over the years. I, however, can separate and enjoy both, if the movie is well done....(example, the first three Bourne movies, which varied wildy from the books but the movies were still entertaining).....so I am hopeful this beginning chapter of The Hobbit will be good. I don't know yet which version I will be seeing....

Just saw the movie ( 3D and HFR) and i must say i`m impressed. To be honest i wasn`t expecting much since i haven`t read the book, but i`m happy to say it won me totally over. All the actors did a great job, but i just loved how Freeman played the part of Bilbo. 3D has never looked better and the 48 Frames per second were super good. 

 

I had the reverse reaction. There's a limit to how real you want to get, and the HFR version went way beyond IMO.

 

 

Kind of like Arwen's extended roles on LOTR. 

I dunno. I didn't mind seeing Galadriel again.

 

>.>

 

Technically the White Council has all the members shown in the movie, including Radagast, and perhaps a couple more. So nothing wrong in showing the meeting of the council. Its not actively pursued in the book I think.

I don't believe the necromancer is actually that big of a deal in the book either(its been a while since I've read the book), but I do recall (*Spoiler Alert*) Gandalf ends up battling the necromancer and I think that's going to be a large part of the second movie because the necromancer is actually Sauron.

Yes, Sauron encounters Gandalf at Dol Guldur and flees but there's not much of a fight. However that's where Thrain gave the maps of the lonely mountain to Gandalf, after his ring was taken by Sauron. Later the Nazguls attack to reclaim the hill. I'm not sure if it happens before or after the events in the Hobbit.

Got to see it finally only the 24 hz 3D version. Well done of COURSE but as shallow you could expect. Doubt I will buy the blurays but can see a Christmas tradition coming it does hold up for one viewing.

some weird stuff. Golf joke? Why are some dwarves human?

As for 3D just another proof of you shouldn't see any movie Shot with 3D cameras in any less then 24P 3D though it wasa bit understated.

Golf joke was an original Tolkien line.  Speculation is that they didn't want to typecast by species as much as the previous films.  So some dwarves look more dwarvish than others.

Some of the "fluff" that's in the Hobbit came from the Silmarillion, it adds a nice flavor and some background.

Finally got a chance to see it this weekend, saw the imax 3D instead of the HFR 3D because I easily get motion sickness and some reviews says to stay away from the HFR is you have vertigo. As for the movie, it was okay. Maybe my expectation was a bit high but it didn't do it for me like the Fellowship Of The Ring did. Still a great movie but didn't live up to what I thought it was.

Glad someone else caught that. And in all honesty, it's what we should have expected.

 

The Hobbit movie isn't just going to contain the information from the hobbit book, it's also going to be laced with tie ins to LOTR, as well as background from the Silmarillion, songs/poems from the same "world" and for all we know maybe some new plot lines based in norse mythology, where a lot of the background for "middle earth" came from, especially the information on the dwarves. This is likely (and I hope) the last set of movies we'll get detailing the ongoings of middle earth. There's a LOT of ground to cover there.

 

As a bit of a Tolkien nerd, I quite enjoyed the movie

 

 

In other news, the soundtrack is absolutely incredible.

I saw The Hobbit twice (12/16, 12/25) and read Tolkien's novel during the interim (for the first time too I'll add). The following is my humble opinion, for whatever it's worth to the reader.

 

***spoilers ahead***

 

I watched the film again last night and thought to myself the team were simply at the limits of movie storytelling, and what I mean by that is simply they didn't have enough space to work with. There are two things I can mention.

 

Firstly the pacing in the movie is altogether different. Tolkien's novel reads like a fireside tale (picture Bilbo Baggins describing the troll scene to the youngsters at his birthday party in the Fellowship of the Ring film). He dedicated much space putting a face to his world--characters, scenery--everything (animals of Middle Earth actually spoke) and his work is one of those things you'd sorta have to absorb thoroughly in order to appreciate. The troll scene was missing a little bit of magic (Gandalf trolling the trolls), missing songs (from all sides), Gollum vs. Bilbo riddles (there were more of them, ebb & flow much more fascinating to me), the company's and Bilbo's journey through the Goblin cave (HUGE difference i.e. overwhelming darkness under the mountain, a constant challenge throughout the plot, and also Bilbo's dramatic exit) to the general feel of Thorin & Co. during the journey (they're generally more confrontational in the movie I think). There are also bits cut out (Bilbo's 'scream' at the Goblin cave "front porch") and inserted (council meeting at Rivendell).

 

Secondly, I have grave concerns about Bilbo's character. Now, I adore Martin Freeman as young Bilbo as much as the next person (supposing they do) though I feel the movie script will never allow Freeman to build Mr. Baggins as well as Tolkien did. Bilbo was a hobbit and not a warrior, yet so far in the movie his only substantial feat was defending Thorin from the jaws of a warg (which never happened in the novel btw) and I have mixed opinions on it.

 

Anyway, there was a gradual process in which he gained respect from his peers. Some of it is exclusive to readers (nobody else found out about it--e.g. Smaug's weak spot--just one of many contributions he, and only he could've made) while most others were recounted (characters did share tales to one another). I also hope the next two installments will make clear Bilbo's cunning and ample dose of luck. Certain situations he found himself in were so bad that the ring wasn't an "I win" card but an instrument that Bilbo simply needed to do what he needed to. Specifically to the first installment of the Hobbit, Bilbo actually escaped from the Goblin cave [doors] within an inch of his life (a reminder that the ring renders its user invisible, not intangible or rid its own shadow) and that won't be the last time he'll be putting readers and his company through the wringer. Another missing element is that Bilbo oft fantasized about his home under the hill. This plays into his inner conflict as a sensible Baggins and an adventurous Took, as much as his journey into becoming a one-of-a-kind burglar.

 

Aside from that, I enjoyed the visuals especially from the earliest scenes (Erebor and Dale). I've got no complaints about the cast or acting though the standouts were rather unexpected. I thought Azog was wonderful--he had more swag than the rest of LoTR film villains put together (due to his voice and language more so than stature). The other was Lee Pace as Thranduil. I am genuinely looking forward to his part in the next two films as to me he's got that elvish vibe in abundance.

 

Just my 2 cents, cheers all.

 

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Good mention, I'll be revisiting that work after LoTR.

Edited by Akabeth - 12/26/12 at 2:33pm