An insightful article appeared yesterday on “Heirs of Durin” about the appeal of Thorin, Fili and Kili beyond the physical response to the actors. It was originally written in German and then translated into English, but still makes for a good read. There are some minor spoilers at the end of the article regarding the end of the book and likely the end of the final film as well, so caution to those who have not yet read the book. So click on the link to read about Thorin Oakenshield and “the Sons of my Father’s Daughter, Fili and Kili of the Race of Durin”.
Category: Fans
We’re happy to announce that the Red Carpet Tours and TORN Premiere Party in Wellington raised $2600 for our chosen charity, Duffy Books in Homes.Thanks so much to Peter Jackson, Weta, Stansborough, Harper Collins and Asni the Harpist for donating beautiful things we could offer in our party auctions and raffles. Thanks to the generosity of the Red Carpet Premiere Tour too, who raised more money in a spirited round of bidding during their farewell dinner a week later.
Originally half the proceeds of the party were to benefit TORN itself, but after a quick palaver among TORN’s senior staff we decided to give it all to Duffy Books in Homes. The Duffy scheme provides books to New Zealand children in areas where books can not be taken for granted as part of the normal furniture of life. Duffy role models travel the country fostering a love of reading. It’s a great scheme, and one long supported by both TORN and Red Carpet’s founders Vic and Raewyn James, who were schoolteachers and principals before they went into tourism.
“The Hobbit” brought home a big box office treasure over the weekend, setting a December movie record with $84.77 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales as legions of fans turned out for the long-awaited big-screen return to Middle Earth.
The 3D movie directed by Oscar-winning “Rings” filmmaker Peter Jackson is the first of three films based on a 1937 classic novel by J.R.R. Tolkien. Warner Bros. is aiming to build on the success of the “Rings” series, one of Hollywood’s biggest franchises with $2.9 billion in global ticket sales.
The “Lord of the Rings” movies debuted in theaters from 2001 to 2003. After that, production on “The Hobbit” ran into delays, leaving fans waiting a decade for another look at the fantasy story of dwarves, wizards and elves.
The opening weekend “Hobbit” sales proved interest remained high. North American (U.S. and Canadian) receipts toppled the old record for December set by Will Smith sci-fi flick “I Am Legend,” which pulled in $77.2 million when it debuted in 2007. [Full Article]
For the majority of the world, the release of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was just a simple visit to your local cinema. But for Ringers like us, one does not simply walk into…theaters. What did you do to celebrate the release of the latest adventure into Middle-earth? Did you participate in a TORn Line Party? Maybe you took the whole family out for a long overdue special night? Maybe you got together with your closest friends and dressed up like Hobbits, Wizards and Dwarves! Whatever you did, we want to hear about it. We have a form below where you can submit your Ringer Report and send us a few images. We can’t guarantee we will post all of the reports, but we will post a lot of them! This is your chance to shine in the spotlight of Tolkien fandom! We look forward to your reports…[Link to Form]
Continue reading “Send in your ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ Ringer Reports and Photos”
Underscoring what seems to be a significant disconnect between fans and critics, early returns are in for our Ringers Reviews and ‘The Hobbit: AUJ’ is showing an average of 4.6/5 Rings with fans. The audiences seem to be just as excited based on this report from BoxOfficeMojo.com:
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey drew large crowds on Friday and set a new December opening day record with an estimated 37.5 million from 4,045 locations.
The previous December record-holder was The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, which debuted to $34.5 million on a Wednesday in 2003. The Hobbit also opened noticeably higher than The Two Towers ($26.2 million), and grossed twice as much as The Fellowship of the Ring ($18.2 million). With 3D/IMAX premiums and a decade of inflation, though, The Hobbit‘s initial attendance was substantially lower than that of Return of the King and about on par with The Two Towers. [Read More]
For most of you, you’ve had at least your first viewing of ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.‘ TheOneRing.net is proud to bring back our ‘Ringer Reviews‘ – a unique opportunity for fans to share their thoughts on this first installment of ‘The Hobbit’ Trilogy from Peter Jackson and crew. This is not just a simple text form. Among broad questions concerning directing and acting, we also get into specifics, so beware of Spoilers! (Ie, don’t fill in a review until you have seen the movie!!!) Once your review is posted and approved (we are simply moderating to keep things family friendly), share it with friends and family through the social tools right on your own personal review page!
If sharing your thoughts with the world is not enough incentive…we are going to be giving away some great prizes over the next week to randomly selected reviewers. We’ll be contacting winners with the email they use when submitting their review. Prizes will be doled out over the next few weeks, so stay tuned to TORn’s homepage for winner announcements!
Also, we are going to be working around the clock to approve your reviews as they come in, so please be patient with the dedicated efforts of the TORn staff. [Ringer Reviews]