There has been some noise from some corners that The Hobbit isn’t so great or even good. During Hobbit Week (#HobbitWeek on Twitter) those comments can be a little painful to fans hoping to go and love the movie. Fictional Frontiers radio host Sohaib Awan interviewed TORn staffer Larry D. Curtis “MrCere” this week in a show that airs at 5 p.m. ET in Philly today. But Fictional Frontiers has shared the extended chat with TORn listeners early right now, right here. MrCere quite liked the film and is okay with 48 fps but needing further review and both gentlemen are critical of the critics whom they feel are sometimes giving the show a bit of a raw deal, intentionally or not. These guys have opinions and maybe informed ones at that. Here is the extended chat: http://www.fictionalfrontiers.podcastpeople.com/posts/49058
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“One does not simply walk into Mordor.” It’s one of the classic catchphrases from Lord of the Rings. But is it true?
To celebrate the release of The Hobbit this month, Kerry Shawcross and Chris Demarais, two members of Rooster Teeth Productions (the creators of the acclaimed machinima series Red vs Blue*, as well as Immersion, and Achievement Hunter), decided to find out for themselves. They’ve set themselves the task to complete in just six days the 120+ mile journey across New Zealand from the filming location of Hobbiton in Matamata to that of Mount Doom on Mount Ngauruhoe. Continue reading “Exclusive video: can one simply walk into Mordor?”
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SPOILERS! Just a week before the worldwide release ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,’ EW.com has acquired some amazing new images from both ‘The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug‘ (Dec 13 2013) and ‘The Hobbit: There and Back Again’ (July 18th 2014). The first pic showcases Luke Evans as Bard the Bowman and Orlando Bloom reprising his role as Legolas taken from what looks to be a battle prep scene in ‘There and Back Again.’ Check out the EW.com article for some insights into the photo from Peter Jackson himself. [here] The second image features Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins in ‘The Desolation of Smaug‘ climbing on a great pile of gold. If you look closely, it looks like he is wearing The One Ring – but it could also just be a gold piece covering his hand. Jump over to EW.com for more details about the pic and talk of how The Hobbit is not just about a quest to regain gold from Smaug. [EW.com]
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Many fans are eagerly anticipating a return to the fictional world of Middle-earth with next week’s general release of the first movie in “The Hobbit” trilogy. Director Peter Jackson and the film’s stars speak to The Associated Press about making “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”.
Jackson on shooting at 48 frames per second instead of the standard 24: “We’ve seen the arrival of iPhones and iPads and now there’s a generation of kids – the worry that I have is that they seem to think it’s OK to wait for the film to come out on DVD or be available for download. And I don’t want kids to see `The Hobbit’ on their iPads, really. Not for the first time. So as a filmmaker, I feel the responsibility to say, `This is the technology we have now, and it’s different … How can we raise the bar? Why do we have to stick with 24 frames? …'”
“The world has to move on and change. And I want to get people back into the cinema. I want to play my little tiny role in encouraging that beautiful, magical, mysterious experience of going into a dark room full of strangers, and being transported into a piece of escapism.”
Martin Freeman (Bilbo Baggins) on shooting some scenes without other actors around: “I must admit I found the green screen and all that easier than I thought I would. … I found the technical aspect of it quite doable. Some of it’s difficult, but it’s quite enjoyable, actually. It taps into when I used to play `war’ as a 6-year-old. And the Germans were all imaginary. Because I was playing a British person. So yeah, I was on the right side. …”
On marrying his performance to that of Ian Holm, who played an older Bilbo Baggins in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy: “I knew I couldn’t be a slave to it. Because as truly fantastic as Ian Holm is in everything, and certainly as Bilbo, I can’t just go and do an impression of Ian Holm for a year and a half. Because it’s my turn. But it was very useful for me to watch and listen to stuff he did, vocal ticks or physical ticks, that I can use but not feel hamstrung by.”
[Read More]
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Tomorrow, December 8, many theaters in the U.S. and elsewhere will be hosting Lord of the Rings movie marathons: all three extended editions of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy in one glorious day! If you don’t have your tickets, you can still get them in the U.S. at AMC, Cinemark and Regal cinemas. If you do have your tickets, you’re probably getting ready for the big day. Like you, some of our discussion board members are also going and have been sharing tips and tricks to prepare for, and survive, the big day. Read some of their recommendations below, and share one or two of your own here. (Thanks to member Chopsta123 for getting the ball rolling).
– some caffeine might help if you’re not used to staying up late, but too much caffeine might make you fidgety. (zarabia)
– bring something you can drape on your chair to ‘claim’ it during breaks but you won’t mind losing if some loser steals it. (Magpie)
– a set of earplugs or tissue to periodically stuff in your ears might be useful. You might say, “It would interfere with the experience” (which it does to some extent), but after years of being in control of the volume on the TV to watch them, it was like an assault on my eardrums when the orcs, wargs, and Nazgul showed up in the theatre again (Lissuin)
– plan something to do afterwards to help you process/unwind — like walking under the stars, if you can manage that. It’s like eating a very fine and heavy meal — you need time to digest it when you get up from the table! (weaver)
– be prepared for the theater to be cold. Many are. But layer so you can adapt if it gets too warm. (Magpie)
– bring outside food (of the healthier sort) if your theater allows it. (lyndomiel)
– get up, move around and stretch between films. (zarabia).
– don’t buy the jumbo drinks. Unless you have scenes in the movies that you don’t mind running to the bathroom for. (Magpie)
– don’t snore to loudly as it bothers the Elves! (Kangi Ska)
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Ever wondered exactly what they do at Weta Workshop and Weta Digital? Richard Taylor talks about their work in this neat little clip. Plus there’s some footage and red carpet interviews from the Wellington premiere of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey that you may not have sen previously. Continue reading “Richard Taylor talks about Weta’s work”
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