A close relative of TheOneRing’s own Barliman’s chat room concept of group commentary while watching a film, DownInFront.net has completed thoughts on the entire LOTR trilogy. The site is free and interesting an the folks commenting know film but most importantly, they know story. The site leads off its “about” portion of the website with the following:
“Down in Front is a commentary podcast with a difference – all of the members of the Down in Front family are, in some way, involved in the film industry and work on movies for a living. Sometimes we even worked on the movies we run commentary on. Sometimes we’re not proud of it.”

They have done many more films than these, but deserve a tip of the hat for taking on this trilogy (although we confess we have only listened to snippets so far but believe they are certainly entitled to their opinions, whatever they are!) You can either watch the film and synch their commentary or listen to it on its own. Curious? Take a look right here to check out their work. (We like the idea so much, who knows, we might even borrow it and lock some staff in a room sometime during a trilogy marathon for a TORn staff commentary.) Thanks to spy rtambree for the notice.

We’ve reached the Elite Eight in our inaugural Middle-earth March Madness tournament! The match-ups in the second round proved to be quite historic, but none more than the Rankin/Bass Division. The top seed (1)Gandalf, narrowly won by a single vote. Yes, one vote out of 19,405 is all that defeated the great (4)Feanor! Proving once again that even the smallest of things can make a difference. In the other match-up, (6)Smaug lost to (2)Galadriel by only 100 votes in a competition that saw 20,616 total votes! The rest of the divisions were competitive, but did come down to less than 100 votes. (see all results here) Ultimately we’ve ended up with the number 1 and number 2 seeded competitors facing off in the Elite Eight!

(1)Gandalf will take on (2)Galadriel in a battle of characters that will be returning to the screen in the upcoming ‘Hobbit‘ films! In the Ralph Bakshi Division, (1)Bilbo Baggins will test his muster against a crowd-favorite (2)Aragorn. In the Tolkien Family Division, heavily favored heart-throb (1)Legolas will face off against the hardened savior of Middle-earth (2)Frodo Baggins. The Peter Jackson Division’s final competition comes served with a bit of irony. Peter’s division is the only one to have a competitor that was not represented on-screen in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. The match-up finds the top-seeded (1)Glorfindel versus a heavy crowd favorite (2)Samwise Gamgee.

Follow after the break to place your vote and see the latest version of the bracket. (download) Voting will remain open until March 30th at Noon ET. You may vote as often as you like, so please share with your friends and family.

Continue reading “Middle-earth March Madness 2012 – Round 3!”

Weta Workshop’s first helm in the relaunch of the 1:4 helm series is none other than the Uruk-hai General’s Helm. This is one of Weta Workshop’s helms, that if you have seen the Weta Collector’s Guide book, was under consideration before the line ended several years ago. Now, fans get a chance to get going again on collecting these awesome collectibles. Shipping for the Uruk-hai General’s Helm will not be until quarter three of this year allowing you time to make sure you have your fifty dollars ready. Make sure you order now though because at a 500 piece edition size this is sure to go fast. [Click Here]

From The Star:

Just back from a ‘top secret’ assignment with Wellington Weta Workshops, Fiona Thomson is happy to be back behind her work bench in her Glenview shop.

The In Hide Leatherworks owner is still excited at being part of the production of The Hobbit movie but everything she knows about the film and its wardrobe must be a secret till the official release in December.

All she will say about her four months stint in Wellywood is that she was involved in creating clothing and armour.

More after the break…

Continue reading “Leather worker finishes creating clothing and armour for The Hobbit.”

Welcome to our collection of TORn’s hottest topics for the past week.Aragorn at Weathertop If you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening on the Message Boards, here’s a great way to catch the highlights. Or if you’re new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the links to some of our most popular discussions. Watch this space as every weekend we will spotlight the most popular buzz on TORn’s Message Boards. Everyone is welcome, so come on in and join in the fun!

Continue reading “TORn Message Boards Weekly Roundup – March 25, 2012”

With just one day left in the second round of our Middle-earth March Madness, it is time to summarize the competition and do a little cheerleading for the characters.

The first match up in the Rankin/Bass division is between Gandalf (1) and Feanor (4) and is running extremely close. You best get your votes in, this one could go either way. The second match up in the Rankin/Bass division is Galadriel (2) versus Smaug (6). Again, this one is extremely close, will it be the Lady of the Golden Wood, or Smaug the Golden, their fate is in your hands, so vote now.

In the Ralph Bakshi division, the first match up is between Bilbo (1) and Gollum (4). Bilbo has a little lead, but it is not to say Gollum couldn’t sneak up and take this contest, so get your votes out. The second match up in this division has Thorin (3) up against Aragorn (2) and it appears at the moment the current lead hero is besting the previous lead hero, so pick your favorite hero and vote, vote, vote.

Checking in on the Tolkien Family Division, Legolas (1) is taking on Pippin (4) and as you might expect, the Elf Prince has a comfortable lead. Pippin fans, where are you? The other contest in this division pits Faramir (3) against Frodo (2). Currently, the Gondorian heir to the Stewardship who could not be swayed by the ring is beating the Ringbearer, please vote for your favorite in this contest.

And finally, in the Peter Jackson division, Glorfindel (1) is up against Merry (5) and the Elf lord is handily beating out the Esquire of Rohan. Make sure this one ends the way you want it, so vote now to ensure your favorite wins. And the last contest is between Samwise (2) and Boromir (3) with Samwise beating out everyone’s favorite Son of Gondor. How will it all end, only you can determine that by voting.

Middle-earth March Madness second round voting