THE HOBBIT (2012/2013): News, Rumors, Pics Till Release

[Klaus]

And here's a nice pic of them all put together!

 

[Deckerd]

There is, of course, a reason why none of these publications is particularly popular, especially in comparison to The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings.

The biggest and only relevant reason being that The Book of Lost Tales, Unfinised Tales, The History of Middle-earth, etc., are all more like reference books, full of old scraps and notes by Tolkien, edited together to flesh out Tolkien's ongoing development of Middle-earth. They're not novels like The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.

Who decides what's relevant? My reason is that they're boring.

 

[Skywalker]

I decide, dagnabbit! ...Okay, maybe not.

Sorry for getting snippy, my point was just that those books weren't published for their entertainment value.

 

[mswood]

Production Diary #3 and its fucking awesome...
http://www.facebook.com/PeterJacksonNZ

 

[Skywalker]

Thanks, mswood! Another fantastic video, with a great moment that I shan't spoil. You'll all know what I'm talking about.

Here's a YouTube link for those who don't want to deal with Facebook.

These production diaries are just amazing. I wish they'd done this for LOTR, back in the day.

 

[Neroon]

Each and every one of these production videos has me even more encouraged - even psyched - for the upcoming film(s)!

 

[Greylock Crescent]

Who is that odd little fellow?

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I liked how Ian McKellen could name all the Dwarves!

 

[Deckerd]

Still don't understand why it's two movies. Okay I know it's to make more money but artistically it's not a good idea. After all the time wasted in the LoTR trilogy with lingering close-ups and soaring music, I have a bad feeling about this.

 

[Greylock Crescent]

Lingering close-ups and soaring music? I surely hope so!

 

[Alidar Jarok]

They are adding scenes that were left implied (or invented post hoc to explain why Gandalf disappeared). Plus, there were more action scenes in the Hobbit and less description. If the movies are a touch shorter than Return of the King, it might make sense as two movies. If all this info could have been fit into a RotK length movie, maybe one would have been appropriate.

I'm willing to wait and see. The titles alone give me hope that they know what they're doing.

 

[Skywalker]

I'm going to guess that neither movie will be three hours long like the theatrical editions of LOTR were (except for ROTK, which was even longer). I also think that An Unexpected Journey will end sometime shortly after the Company escapes from Goblin-town and Bilbo steals the Ring from Gollum, and then There and Back Again will cover the Company's adventures in Mirkwood, Lake-town, and the Lonely Mountain. Again, though, that's just a guess on my part.

 

[Greylock Crescent]

I'd put the split just as the Company gets its first view of the Lonely Mountain. That'd come right after the Barrels Out of Bond sequence (which I hear is being reworked to be more like an action-packed prison break). Also coinciding with that sequence is the confrontation between the White Council and the Necromancer. Both sequences (the prison break and the confrontation) would make for a natural climax to An Unexpected Journey.

 

[Booji]

Question... how will they handle the Saruman/White Council stuff if Christopher Lee is doing minimal, off-location filming? If Chris Lee couldn't get to New Zealand, wouldn't they have been better off getting a new actor? the part of Saruman seems too big in the extended Hobbit to just let Lee do minimal work. or are they gonna go nuts with the green screen and insert senor Lee where needed?

 

[Gepard]

For all we know, the necessary cast is flying to to England to film with Lee. They already spent the money to build copies of the sets there, so why not?

 

[Ayelbourne]

Well, I guess it was just a matter of time:
http://img804.imageshack.us/img804/5797/klingonextended.jpg

 

[Skywalker]

I love the internet.

 

[Greylock Crescent]

are they gonna go nuts with the green screen and insert senor Lee where needed?

Yep

Spoiler: Going nuts with the green screen

 

[Set Harth]

That'd come right after the Barrels Out of Bond sequence (which I hear is being reworked to be more like an action-packed prison break).

I knew it...

 

[InklingStar]

Official image of the thirteen dwarves.

http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/Images/stories/2011/jul/hobbitsupersize.jpg

are they gonna go nuts with the green screen and insert senor Lee where needed?

Yep

Spoiler: Going nuts with the green screen

That gave me a big smile in the third production diary.