Middle Earth Ranger Forum

Anybody catch the ‘offical’ full trailer for PJ’s The Hobbit: Part The Third?

I…just……meh.
Things we saw what I’m looking forward to:
Smaug vs. Lake-town (how could they possibly screw it up?)
Bilbo sneaking off at night (looks like the book!)
the standoff at the gate (looks like the book!)
White Council scenes (happened offscreen in the book, so knock yourself out, PJ!)

Things that make me shake my head: (aside from the right-off-the-bat use of the orangeandbluey/desaturated palette, and Inception horns standard trailer soundtrack)

*Hammy Thranduil. The actor’s very very similar scene-chewing scenes in Guardians of the Galaxy were my least favorite parts of that otherwise fun flick.

*Thumbs-up for acknowledging Mount Gundabad, especially as the source of the orc army, but apparently having Legolas and Tauriel there (for some reason) just makes me question PJ’s grasp of both M-E geography and logistics—quick calculations show it’s a ~700 mile roundtrip from Dale!—in this trilogy. It's a shame, because the LotR trilogy did extremely well in conveying not only distances covered but the times it took to cover them. These films? Not so much.

*for that matter, pretty much anything with Legolas—or at least the flashy, twirly videogame character-version of him in these films. Really, he could hand you a knife and it would go ‘Thwwip!’

*Trolls (what are they doing there?!) wearing catapults, or something.

Really, one of my biggest complaints with Jackson’s telling of this story is the way he’s completely raised the stakes to an unnecessary level. Yes, I get that he’s trying to do something reminiscent of the 1960 Hobbit, with a more LotR-like tone. But calling this ‘The Defining Chapter’ seems a little over-the-top, no? (And really: from the perspective of the present, anything that happened in the past could be considered a defining moment).

The Battle of Five Armies (which, semantically, seems quite different from The Battle Of The Five Armies) in the book almost seemed like an accidental event—in fact, Tolkien starts the breakdown of the battle by saying, “So began a battle that none had expected”!

Bottom line: if there’s one thing I’m looking forward to about the end of this trilogy, it’s the like, nine hours of fodder available for someone to make a really solid fan-edit.

Udwin wrote: *Thumbs-up for acknowledging Mount Gundabad, especially as the source of the orc army, but apparently having Legolas and Tauriel there (for some reason) just makes me question PJ’s grasp of both M-E geography and logistics—quick calculations show it’s a ~700 mile roundtrip from Dale!—in this trilogy. It's a shame, because the LotR trilogy did extremely well in conveying not only distances covered but the times it took to cover them. These films? Not so much.

I am with you on this, clearly no one was looking at the sheer logistics it took to get from point "A" to point "B" in Middle Earth!
They never gave you the propper feeling of distance travelled through Mirkwood, they had Radagast pop in with his rabbit sled like he was around the corner from the lone lands! (as far south as Rhosegoble is, he would have had to come over the pass at Carhadras or the main path of the Great East Road that was all but impassible due to the Wolf Gate) and then the back and forth of Bolg and Azog from The northern Anduin Vales and upper mirkwood to Dol Guldur in Southern mirkwood! (Oh BTW The Necromancer wants to see you just swing by and see what he wants...)
The other incredulous journey was going to the High Fells OF RHUDUAR to check on the escape of (or the entombment of) the Nazgul, (well north of Imladris West of the mountains), then showing up on the steps of Dol Guldur to check out the Necromancer again in southern Mirkwood (almost the same lattitude as Lorien! to place some perspective in distance travelled North to South.) Like it was an afternoons ride.
There was a reason Gandalf was gone for so long from the party...its a freakin long way to Dol Guldur then up the east bight of mirkwood on the plains and Up further still to the Ruins of Dale Under the eaves of Erebor. (with no eagle to ride!)

I thought they were supposed to have people in these films that verify these things, just to make it a bit more plausible. I mean if you are messing with story as much as PJ seems he feels he needs to, you may feel as if he doesn't care about plausability as much as cinamatography. (I mean you got eagles to fly you around right?)
I just feel it is kind of insulting to the reading public and serious fans as well as anyone who can look at and understand a map, and that they spend more time and effort on how to make mushrooms look better in 3D than to preserve at least a semblance of continuity to Tolkiens original work.

And for all the respect I have for Orlando as a young actor and adventure film star, I am starting to feel rather Dwarven in my inclinations toward his every uneccissary, over sensationalised, fancy OOH! AAH! Elven cavalcade of stunts, OK already! He is an elf, he is light, he is nimble, he walks on top of snow, Tra la! And now he is also stronger than a Gundabad ork twice his size?....

I love the movies for what they are and I seldom knock them like this, but I am afraid you hit the DM button in me and it has always been a sore spot of mine that every good story and the descisions of its characters, are shaped by time, distance, geography and weather. (to name but a few) It may be fantasy but it is governed by a setting that must have some basic rules applying to it. If not it is not fantacy, it is farce.
Next scene, Sean Astin will reprise his roll as Sam in a cut scene at the Green Dragon Inn singing about the man in the moon and all...on the moon because, well who cares, eagles can fly there too right?

Let's not forget the runaway cart rocketing down the stairs. We can only pray that it explodes into flames when it hits the bottom.

nine hours of fodder available for someone to make a really solid fan-edit.

That's my take.
Some beautiful footage there. Just needs most of the garbage yanked out.

Elleth wrote:

nine hours of fodder available for someone to make a really solid fan-edit.

That's my take.
Some beautiful footage there. Just needs most of the garbage yanked out.

So true- as I've said before, I think they dropped the ball on the look of a lot of the characters, from the Scrotum Goblin King to Guanobeard Radagast, Disco Queen Thranduil, Sonic the Hedgehog Beorn and the cartoonish orc villains, WETA workshop and the costumers have done some beautiful work on these films.

Aye,

I loved the LOTR films. When I heard they were doing the Hobbit I said great!. PJ will do it well. Then it was Pacific Rim, Hell Boy Director...I said...'what?' Then it happened and PJ was brought in to direct it. Perfect. He knows this stuff. Ian is back great, Holm is back as an older Bilbo? Perfect!

I saw the first trailer...was excited. Here we go back to ME right? Umm well kinda. I don't know the exact distances to some as most here but if a film is made well I don't care that much but when I saw the first film I had this sort of 'huh?' feeling. Gollum is rendered so well its hard to tell he's CG. But the scene alone where the ring is found....PJ does know he made a movie where he shows that moment right? I had expected Martin dressed in the same costume doing the same speech and movements as we'd seen it...now it appears that was a 'inspired flashback' or comes Lucas film change screwup.

There isn't blood on any of the Dwarves weapons when they kill something. Then we get to the bridge sliding down the mountain and when the Dwarf says you've got to be joking...pretty much how I felt. Second film the river barrel scene..........I don't even know how to say that these last two films while in the same world as LOTR are seriously kid versions. I get it the Hobbit is a kids book and LOTR more adult but you've set the setting already....seriously the tones, locations. They're right there and yet were massing CGI, we're making characters that don't appear in the books and then making the elf boy more ohh ahh. Subtle works better with him folks, surfing the shield ok, surfing the Olaphant..Ok. Jumping on dwarves heads.....ehhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

I loved the two artists who sing the credit songs. The music Howard does is great but seriously this is like the SW prequels all over again. There is a book, it has all the info, LOTR did such a nice job of making touching fantasy stories that yes were interpreted different then the film at times but I was never in arms over things...........these three I have a feeling will be what I put on when I'm in a fantasy mood but can work on other tasks because if LOTR is on I watch....Hobbit...I tend to let me eyes wander sadly.

I think overall while I loved Smaug and Benedict. I think I really just felt these films were relying on more CGI and huge long fight sequences........if Thorin jumps on a shield that is floating....on a gold stream. Your going to be hot....and get it on your clothes. I just basically feel these films have been careless with a lot of things. If your a kid you'll watch it and love it...for more aged fans...we're more picky. But that's just me

The whole Thorin on the wheel barrel, though cute, was a debauchery of science. Molten gold in proximity to his fingers wrapped around the edges of the vessel, would have cooked them to the bone (dwarven fire resistance or no) and his hair and fur and clothing would have made him look like the human torch!

Yeah, I suppose I just trusted I'd watch LOTR but the Hobbit and I really don't see that...sparse images and scenes catch it but there's just too much softening for me.

Ringulf wrote:The whole Thorin on the wheel barrel, though cute, was a debauchery of science. Molten gold in proximity to his fingers wrapped around the edges of the vessel, would have cooked them to the bone (dwarven fire resistance or no) and his hair and fur and clothing would have made him look like the human torch!

Yes & no, I agree that it is beyond belief, but there is the 'power hammer' scene in the first Hobbit where the dwarf takes a hunk of orange hot iron in his hand, no tongs, and holds it up to the double power hammer over his head.

With this the establish the 'in world plausibility' of Thorin's Small World ride. Gold melts at about 1900 F, just about the temperature of iron between orange & yellow. On the other hand, the barrow should have turned orange in short order and all of Thorin's clothes should have burned off.

That's right Jack, good catch, but a small hunk of molton metal radiating heat a short distance from the hand is not like floating down a river of it in a metal barrel. The accumulated heat of that much metal?

I dunno. LOL Well anyway, it is fantasy and it is entertaining to a degree and to split too many hairs is gonna kill my joy of watching the next one, sooo I am going to pretent that it is a special Dwarven tool that was created out of some double-walled special metal yadda yadda and that it seemed like a long trip but was just a few seconds. There I have created my own little fantasy vacume that will allow me to see the next movie without too much consternation. (let's see if I still feel like that after TBo5A)