It is now Boxing Day in Australia and they are finally able to see ‘The Desolation of Smaug’ in all its glory. So now that nearly the whole world has fought spiders, ridden down a river in barrels, had a pile of fish dropped on them and played chicken with a Dragon, it’s time to go back and do it again. Most of the world has a Holiday weekend to fill with fun family activities, such as Holiday meals and sweet treats, opening loads of new toys, games, electronic devices and questionable clothing choices from your Second Aunt once removed, how about adding a return trip to Middle-earth. Even for those who have to go back to work for a day or two, there is Saturday, December 28. New movie releases have started to push ‘The Hobbit’ into fewer theaters and fewer screening options, so strike now while you still have a range of options. Let’s call this ‘DOS Line Party: The Sequel’ and go out and have fun once more with your friends, old and new. Wear costumes, bring trivia games with you, go out for Mooty meals together and enjoy the Fellowship of other Ringers.
If you are in Southern California, we even have a Line Party event set up for the Irvine Spectrum. You can find the info at the Facebook Event page. And if you would like to start your own Line Party Sequel page, make a note of it here in the comments section and see if we can’t have a second Global viewing party.
You’ve seen many of the major news outlet’s reviews for the film and we’ve posted reviews from most of our staff, but now that ‘The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug’ has been out for over a week it is time for Ringer Reviews. This is the time when you get to have your say; good, bad or otherwise. We are open to all opinions but we will be scanning the reviews for foul language, adult content and rude behavior. Short of that, this is your time to be heard.
Australia, Japan, we know you don’t have the film yet, bookmark this section and come back to it when you have had a chance to watch the film, we’ll keep the light on for you.
To get started, head over to Ringer Reviews. You will find the review section comes in two parts. One allows you to rank various aspects of the film, cast performance and production values, while the other portion allows you to write a review of up to 5000 characters. Once you hit ‘submit’ the review will be scanned by one of our staff for any of the above mentioned offenses, and once cleared it will appear. Do give us between a few hours to a full day to get to your review and have fun with it. We don’t want to decline a review, a good rule of thumb is “would you let your mother or grandmother read this?”, if so, then you can expect to see it published.
TORn staffer ImladrisRose was lucky enough recently to see the ‘Two Plays in Rep’ on Broadway, starring Sir Ian McKellen and Sir Patrick Stewart. Here’s her review:
New York City in December is nothing short of magical, and this year, for a limited time, you can see pure magic on the Broadway stage. No Man’s Land and Waiting for Godot are two completely different plays, by two different writers, but with the exact same cast, at the historic Cort Theatre. Each performance runs subsequently one night after the other, and each show is a different experience.
The stellar cast just happens to include film and theatre legend Sir Ian McKellen (perhaps you have heard of him, he plays Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films and Magneto in the X-Men franchise), and film and television legend Sir Patrick Stewart (best know for playing Captain Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Professor X in the X-Men franchise). These fantastic, cinematic greats are working together again on Broadway, and it is something that should be witnessed by every person who is able! There is a poignant line delivered by Patrick Steward in No Man’s Land that rings especially true: “You speak with the weight of experience behind you!” These two stage and screen masters certainly do.
To celebrate TheOneRing.net achieving 200k fans on Facebook, Sideshow Collectibles‘ has generously given us their Sam and Frodo diorama to giveaway to our audience. Fully-realized in high-quality polystone, the statue depicts Frodo and Sam, clad in commandeered orc armor, as they make their way across the black lands of Mordor. Standing at 14 inches in overall height, the Frodo and Samwise Diorama equally captures Frodo’s tormented fortitude and Sam’s earnest vigilance while on the final leg of their quest to Mount Doom. How do you enter? Simply fill in the form below! The winner will be chosen next week. [View the Prize]
As part of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug’s premiere festivities, Air New Zealand graciously invited TheOneRing.net to the red carpet reveal of their new Smaug plane! Fili of Happy Hobbit was in attendance and thank goodness she was, for two certain dwarf brother recognized her on sight! Another surprise was the appearance of Peter Jackson, so join the director himself, Aidan Turner, Dean O’Gorman, and TORn staffers Quickbeam, Sarumann, and Fili and her mother Dis for a fun time and some interviews with the cast! [Air New Zealand]
They say “better late than never”. I hope that’s true – because my review is coming a bit late. I love discussing cinema, but I’m not always very fast at collecting my thoughts. Many times, as on this occasion, I don’t even have a complete handle on the film until a second viewing. Also, I tend to write
on impulse – which means that something as organized as a film review takes me a little while to put together. I’m never able to discuss as much
as I would like to – so you can expect a few elements of the film to go uncovered. Otherwise, I could go on forever about each of these movies.
I also didn’t know how to approach this review. I had two very different reaction to this film – one as a Tolkien loyalist, another as a cinema lover. To the chagrin of many, I’m sure, I’ve chosen to focus on the latter. I’ve always viewed the books and PJ’s cinematic offerings as two completely separate things – and I think I must remain true to that. This is a film review of The Desolation of Smaug – which I unabashedly loved – and not a checklist of book vs. film differences. I look forward to such a discussion in the future, and hope you, dear readers, will indulge me in a different conversation at the present moment. Continue reading “Aragorn the Elfstone reviews ‘The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug’”
It is now Boxing Day in Australia and they are finally able to see ‘The Desolation of Smaug’ in all its glory. So now that nearly the whole world has fought spiders, ridden down a river in barrels, had a pile of fish dropped on them and played chicken with a Dragon, it’s time to go back and do it again. Most of the world has a Holiday weekend to fill with fun family activities, such as Holiday meals and sweet treats, opening loads of new toys, games, electronic devices and questionable clothing choices from your Second Aunt once removed, how about adding a return trip to Middle-earth. Even for those who have to go back to work for a day or two, there is Saturday, December 28. New movie releases have started to push ‘The Hobbit’ into fewer theaters and fewer screening options, so strike now while you still have a range of options. Let’s call this ‘DOS Line Party: The Sequel’ and go out and have fun once more with your friends, old and new. Wear costumes, bring trivia games with you, go out for Mooty meals together and enjoy the Fellowship of other Ringers.
