Peter Jackson directs "The Hobbit"

I was thrilled with it, but with everyone more or less dwarf sized, the sense of scale seemed off. Was it just me or did the dwarves not seem dwarf-y enough?

momgamer wrote:

Now you realize I have to go re-read the book now. Sigh. I was trying not to drive myself insane with it for the whole of next year like I did with LOTR. ;)

The proper date to start read The Hobbit is April, isn't it?

I'm sure an expedition to view The Hobbit will be part of the family Christmas plans for 2012.

Nevin73 wrote:

I was thrilled with it, but with everyone more or less dwarf sized, the sense of scale seemed off. Was it just me or did the dwarves not seem dwarf-y enough?

Yeah, I was definitely getting a Vampire vibe from one of them.

I just figured it out. Thorin reminds me of the leader of the Klingons from ST:NG! With the hair (and armor) he looks just like him.

DudleySmith wrote:

It'll be interesting how they balance the sometimes silly, childish nature of the book with the more serious tone of LOTR.

This is actually precisely what bothers me. I love the LotR movies, but there are several times when Peter Jackson proves he wasn't the best director for the job. He's a shlock horror director, and his poor treatment of Moria shines through. Moria was done better in Ralph Bakshi's animated Lord of the Rings than in Peter Jackson's.

I also still haven't forgiven Legolas stair-surfing on a shield.

The Hobbit was always more of a family oriented tale. Nothing approaches the same epic scale, or the tragedy, of The Lord of the Rings. The closest is some of the dwarves dying at the end of the Battle of Five Armies, but everything about that battle was like a child's moral lesson, only wrapped around real consequences. Don't be greedy, share even with those who wronged you, or else you and those you care about may not make out too well.

This is not an epic to the same scale of The Lord of the Rings. This is a story where Bilbo tries to steal a wallet and the wallet talks to him.

That trailer has clashing ideas of the silly "all the dwarves fall through the door" nature, tied with "Look, Gandalf in a scary place about to fight monsters on his own!"

I'm sorry, I just can't be excited for this.

...though I shall inevitably see it anyway. -_-

Maybe I'm biased by decades of Hildebrandt brothers, Michael Hague, and D&D-inspired art, but I always pictured dwarves as being stouter and older (Thorin especially should be a gray-beard, right?!). So in that respect, they don't look "dwarf-y" to me. However, I also didn't think Viggo looked "Strider-y" enough, either (and still don't), but still loved him as Aragorn. I'll give Jackson a pass given that the rest of the movie is likely to kick all kinds of serious ass.

Man I wish this was coming out this Christmas.

In regards to their appearance, I actually feel like the dwarves look a lot more prosthetic than the ones shown in Lord of the Rings. That's about my only concern there.

And the great deal of amusement that Peter Jackson needed someone to be the dark and brooding "hotty" for all the lady viewers, and decided that would be Thorin Oakenshield.

Nevin73 wrote:

I just figured it out. Thorin reminds me of the leader of the Klingons from ST:NG! With the hair (and armor) he looks just like him.

Yeah Thorin is totally Gowron, It's the first thing I thought of when I saw the pictures.
IMAGE(http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS0IA892jZumJNv8cy1mZ_dCCJafVxWWdkt5qgOfbN4Rq8Dd45B6PVNX8IQ)

ccesarano wrote:

And the great deal of amusement that Peter Jackson needed someone to be the dark and brooding "hotty" for all the lady viewers, and decided that would be Thorin Oakenshield.

I think the ladies will be most interested in Aiden Turner, playing Kili:

IMAGE(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5e/Aidan_Turner.jpg/461px-Aidan_Turner.jpg)

Slacker1913 wrote:

"To dungeons deep and caverns old"
*shiver*

I am excited but I also don't mind waiting. I know it will be great and I know what to expect. Still I wouldn't mind more trailers in the coming months.

wordsmythe wrote:
Slacker1913 wrote:

"To dungeons deep and caverns old"
*shiver*

The album art in that video reminded me that I used to have that soundtrack. On vinyl.

McChuck wrote:
wordsmythe wrote:
Slacker1913 wrote:

"To dungeons deep and caverns old"
*shiver*

The album art in that video reminded me that I used to have that soundtrack. On vinyl.

It's super expensive now, FYI.

My favorite part was always the bit after that, when Gandalf starts declaiming the poetry.

The dragon fire in twisted wire
they meshed the heart of moon and sun....

And I do NOT thank you for the earworms off this. I spent way too much time watching this on VHS and I know the songs. Even the silly bits in Rivendell.

Rallick wrote:

Yeah, that song also sent chills down my spine. So awesome! I love that Bilbo is played by the guy that plays Watson in the BBC Sherlock series. It looks like he's doing a fine job, too.

IMAGE(http://bluntobject.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/double-facepalm.jpg)

Oh huh, I didn't realize he was also Arthur Dent / Tim.

ccesarano wrote:
DudleySmith wrote:

It'll be interesting how they balance the sometimes silly, childish nature of the book with the more serious tone of LOTR.

This is actually precisely what bothers me. I love the LotR movies, but there are several times when Peter Jackson proves he wasn't the best director for the job. He's a shlock horror director, and his poor treatment of Moria shines through. Moria was done better in Ralph Bakshi's animated Lord of the Rings than in Peter Jackson's.

I also still haven't forgiven Legolas stair-surfing on a shield.

I liked Jackson as the director of The Lord of the Rings, but those movies were often at their worst when attempting to be cute or funny. Jackson has a sure hand with action sequences of all scales, but he's less capable with humor, especially slapstick, unless it's really gory slapstick. The Hobbit is downright silly, and I don't know how well that will mesh either with Jackson's abilities or with the interpretation of Middle Earth he and his team have created.

We'll see. There have to be some elves that aren't portentous asses. Maybe Elrond's got a trickster on perimeter patrol.

Our family had that soundtrack on vinyl too. The part where the trolls were stomping around collecting their dinner (dwarves) rattled the windows.

Maq wrote:
Rallick wrote:

Yeah, that song also sent chills down my spine. So awesome! I love that Bilbo is played by the guy that plays Watson in the BBC Sherlock series. It looks like he's doing a fine job, too.

IMAGE(http://bluntobject.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/double-facepalm.jpg)

What did I say?

I'm curious to see how they do the encounter with the trolls. It's so different from how trolls are portrayed in LotR that they almost seem like a different species. I thought the portrayal of Moria in Jackson's LotR was a weak point as well, because of how things were handled once the fighting started. It will be interesting to see how this one sorts out.

I expect this:
IMAGE(http://s-ak.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/web05/2011/3/18/1/enhanced-buzz-15854-1300424464-1.jpg)

Rallick wrote:

Yeah, that song also sent chills down my spine. So awesome! I love that Bilbo is played by the guy that plays Watson in the BBC Sherlock series. It looks like he's doing a fine job, too.

I believe Sherlock is in it too. And hr's playing Smaug. Well, voicing him at least.

I got chills. CHILLS!

Here's your trailer

Whoah. That looks incredible. They recreated Bag End and the altar of Narsil exactly, from what I can see.

And yeah, that song was shiver-inducing. There's a lot of singing in the Hobbit, isn't there? It would be very cool if that made it into the movie, if they can do it with that kind of quality.

Not having seen the actor for Bilbo before, I can totally buy him in the part. Totally.

Khoram wrote:

Maybe I'm biased by decades of Hildebrandt brothers, Michael Hague, and D&D-inspired art, but I always pictured dwarves as being stouter and older (Thorin especially should be a gray-beard, right?!). So in that respect, they don't look "dwarf-y" to me.

That's exactly how I feel after seeing the trailer as well.

Stop messing with my childhood Jackson!

Malor wrote:
Here's your trailer

Not having seen the actor for Bilbo before, I can totally buy him in the part. Totally.

Have you ever seen the Hitchhiker's Guide film or the British version of the Office*?

*The original version.

I figure it's time I post my Hobbit collection here:

IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/jDgt6.jpg)

IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/Z4d48.jpg)

I'm so excited!

Have you listened to the Tolkien Professor podcast, tuffalo?
Great stuff.

Rallick wrote:
Maq wrote:
Rallick wrote:

Yeah, that song also sent chills down my spine. So awesome! I love that Bilbo is played by the guy that plays Watson in the BBC Sherlock series. It looks like he's doing a fine job, too.

*facepalm*

What did I say? :-(

Just that Martin Freeman deserves a little better than "the guy that plays Watson". I guess you guys have your own version of the Office and don't get as much Martin Freeman action.