This very spoilerific picture was dropped into our mailbox this afternoon and just has us grinning from ear-to-ear….
Continue ReadingThis very spoilerific picture was dropped into our mailbox this afternoon and just has us grinning from ear-to-ear. Mattel will be releasing later this year a collectible Barbie and Ken gift set, in the guise of wedding dolls. I’m pretty sure all of you know which wedding couple I’m referring to… Take a look [HERE] SPOILERS!
Tehanu adds in a Sensitive Stomach Advisory. Yyrrch!!!
I was checking out LOTR locations in the South Island in order to lead one of Red Carpet‘s November tours, when lo and behold, the ground started to shake….[More]
I was down in the South Island checking out the details of the Red Carpet LOTR Locations tour and we were in Te Anau, the closest town to the epicentre of last week’s massive earthquake. [More]
Well, we’d had a great time so far – rocketing around the site of the burned Rohan village in a farmer’s 4WD, jetboating down the river Anduin, following a snowplow to the edges of Fangorn Forest. But the earthquake that night was something else again!
Just after midnight our hotel room started to shake from side to side like it was built on a wobbly jelly. My room-mate and I looked at each other, both thinking ‘I’ll get up and run under the doorway if she does….’ I had time to think ‘no point getting up now, it’s going to stop any moment’ about 20 times before finally getting up and standing under a doorway. And still it went on.
Once it was over everyone piled out into the hotel hallway in their pyjamas, talking about it of course. Nobody seemed too frightened. There was no damage, and the hotel was built in such a way that there were no scary creaking and cracking noises to alarm us. Some older buildings make a lot more noise in a quake.
The oddest thing was that the ground continued to sway very slightly for a long time aftewards, as though we were riding a slow gentle swell, and as we stood around we’d rock from foot to foot as though tipsy.
The point of this is that I’m registering my disagreement with those people who are objecting to having the Embassy Theatre in Wellington strengthened for earthquakes in time for the ROTK premiere. [More I would not have wanted to be in a large masonry building without earthquake strengthening in a quake like that, and given the fact that Wellington is built on a faultline, the Embassy Trust is wise to insist on meeting seismic requirements.
A small group of lucky members of the media (including TORn) were offered a very special treat on this Monday morning, courtesy of New Line: an early sneak-peek of the Return of the King preview from the TTT DVD. [More]
A small group of lucky members of the media (including TORn) were offered a very special treat on this Monday morning, courtesy of New Line: an early sneak-peek of the Return of the King preview from the TTT DVD. After a great complimentary breakfast, we got the opportunity to see the preview before the DVD hits the stores tomorrow. I won’t go into the details of what the 10-minute behind-the-scenes has to offer, as I don’t want to spoil it for Ringers worldwide. Not to mention that TORn has already posted many detailed reports of the preview’s contents…! One thing is confirmed however: the footage that surfaced on the internet a few weeks ago and was hailed as the “official trailer” is nothing like that, but simply the last 2-minutes of the preview, which does give a glimpse of a few scenes from the movie. I suspect the real theatrical trailer will be quite different.
Two things struck me while watching the preview: one, the sheer epic size of the movie (the charge of the Rohirrim, the Battle of The Pelennor Fields are breathtaking – although the preview only offers a brief glimpse of both) – and two, how emotionally charged the movie will be. Exhilarating and heartbreaking. Some moments of the preview did bring tears to my eyes, and I think we should all bring a large supply of tissues to the theaters come December 17th… Like PJ himself, I tend to think of ROTK as my favorite part of the book – and Elijah Wood may be right when he says that the third movie will be better than the first two combined. But rather than trying to speculate and project unrealistic, unreachable expectations (which in my experience is the best way to be disappointed), I think ROTK will deliver on all levels on a very large scale, and will be incredibly emotional. As much as I’m looking forward to seeing the finished film in December, part of me is dreading that moment, as I’m sure many other fans are. Because we’ll have reached the Grey Havens, and we’ll be saying goodbye to the film version of Middle Earth. But we’re not there yet, and of course “the road goes ever on and on”. And to end of a happier note, let’s have a pint to celebrate the release of this highly anticipated DVD. Enjoy!
Xoanon here, so you’re planning to get the TTT DVD tonight at midnight? Are you prepared for the long wait? Are you ready to stay up REALLY late tonight watching the whole DVD and all the special features? If not then follow this easy-to-use guide called ‘Geeking Out on TTT and Surviving ‘Till Morning’. [More]
