The Hobbit Trilogy Discussion Thread

[BJKH]

I love this! I get to watch it Day one this way.

[SkillzthatKillz]

Yeah idk why they were going to release in July anyway. Fantasy films never do well during the summer months (Prince Caspian comes to mind...)

[metaridley]

It's not often you see a fan happy that the next movie in the franchise has been delayed.

[BJKH]

Originally Posted by metaridley

It's not often you see a fan happy that the next movie in the franchise has been delayed.

I will (hopefully, if I get accepted) be starting College this September-April for 3 years. During May-August I will probably move back in with my parents and work and they live in a small town (2,000 people) which dosen't have a movie theatre. The nearest movie theatre is 2 1/2 hours away. So this way I will be able to watch it!

[JavaJulien]

Originally Posted by SkillzthatKillz

Yeah idk why they were going to release in July anyway. Fantasy films never do well during the summer months (Prince Caspian comes to mind...)

Well, everyone was still seeing Iron Man that summer.

I agree though, it was odd that the films were going December, December, July! December is better because there really is no "direct" competition during that month.

[bowlingbilly10]

I think that's a smart move. Xmen will probably do better than the hobbit that weekend it's released.

[Tony208]

HOpefully this means a beter movie

[Jasonic]

Damn, now I won't be getting the trilogy set on blu ray for Christmas 2014.

[KingRad]

This is good, it's almost tradition for these films to come out in December. It wouldn't feel right if the film came out during any other month.

[Captain Kirk]

I'm fine with this. It just makes more sense to have it during Christmas time. It just feels right.

[Buddy Ackerman]

Originally Posted by Hoth

This is good, it's almost tradition for these films to come out in December. It wouldn't feel right if the film came out during any other month.

Same here. It'll be frustrating having to wait an extra 152 days for it but a Middle-Earth film at Christmas is tradition. The film is where it belongs.

The theatrical/extended blu-ray releases will be much easier now.

[Ernest Rister]

Originally Posted by SkillzthatKillz

Yeah idk why they were going to release in July anyway. Fantasy films never do well during the summer months (Prince Caspian comes to mind...)

Pirates of the Caribbean comes to mind.
Star Wars comed to mind. E.T. Poltergeist. Raiders. Gremlins. Goonies. Harry Potter 8.

[Buddy Ackerman]

Originally Posted by Ernest Rister

Pirates of the Caribbean comes to mind.
Star Wars comed to mind. E.T. Poltergeist. Raiders. Gremlins. Goonies. Harry Potter 8.

You can add Harry Potters 3, 5 and 6 to that as well.

The poster above who said that Prince Caspian under-performed because of Iron Man is right - it was sandwiched between that and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. That hit it hard. Also, it just... wasn't very good. Or well marketed.

There and Back Again would have done well in that release slot. The last four films Warners released in that slot made an average of $1,059,810,929 each - two of them being in the top ten grossers of all-time, both of which were endings to franchises. Assuming the second part does well The Hobbit would have had no problem in that slot.

[Ernest Rister]

Originally Posted by Buddy Ackerman

You can add Harry Potters 3, 5 and 6 to that as well.

The poster above who said that Prince Caspian under-performed because of Iron Man is right - it was sandwiched between that and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. That hit it hard. Also, it just... wasn't very good. Or well marketed.

I liked Caspian - at least, I thought it better than Lion, Witch, Warbrobe as a movie - only issue with it was the darkness of the thing. Little Lucy standing alone on a bridge, smiling from ear to ear as she unsheaths a dagger...what is this, The Omen?

[Buddy Ackerman]

Originally Posted by Ernest Rister

I liked Caspian - at least, I thought it better than Lion, Witch, Warbrobe as a movie - only issue with it was the darkness of the thing. Little Lucy standing alone on a bridge, smiling from ear to ear as she unsheaths a dagger...what is this, The Omen?

Indeed

I didn't dislike it but I thought it was lackluster and lacking in excitement or magic. Comes from the source material though - it's a hard one to adapt. It's not a story with any substance. The BBC TV series did it well by combining it as a story with Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Mind you, even though I liked it more, I thought The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe was lacking something as well. A shame as I loved the Narnia books as a kid and really wanted them do do the franchise justice. I'd love adaptations of The Silver Chair and The Last Battle done properly. Shame it looks like it won't happen this go around.

[Grand Bob]

Originally Posted by radagast

In case anyone is interested: I saw 4 Hobbit posters at Walmart for $5 each. One is a map. Another is a group shot. Another is like a movie poster, and the 4th is Bilbo.

I wonder if it is the same "Map of Middle Earth" that omits Gondor and Mordor and failed to label the River Anduin?

[Ernest Rister]

Originally Posted by Buddy Ackerman

Indeed

I didn't dislike it but I thought it was lackluster and lacking in excitement or magic. Comes from the source material though - it's a hard one to adapt. It's not a story with any substance. The BBC TV series did it well by combining it as a story with Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Mind you, even though I liked it more, I thought The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe was lacking something as well. A shame as I loved the Narnia books as a kid and really wanted them do do the franchise justice. I'd love adaptations of The Silver Chair and The Last Battle done properly. Shame it looks like it won't happen this go around.

Well, I never thought they'd ever get around to making The Last Battle, as I think it is the most heavy-handed of the books in terms of Biblical allegory. It is essentially a story about the anti-Christ and th Book of Revelation (a monkey in a lion skin pretending to be Aslan and starting a war that destroys Narnia, leading Aslan to call those truly loyal "home" while everyone else is doomed...and Susan doesn't make the cut). At least, I doubt they could have adapted it in a fashion faithful to the book (no pun intended). I remember talk about Disney making all seven, and I could only chuckle, "Good luck with that last one."

Silver Chair and Horse and His Boy, though, would be great to see.

And I agree that the first film was flat...it imitates other fantasy films, without finding its own voice and identity, like young actors who impersonate and mimic and "perform", instead of doing any real acting. Likewise, the second film went very dark, again trying to find importance, confusing darkness with substance (and the invented subplot of Peter choosing to attack the Telmarines seemed to be drawing a parallel to then-current world and political events, and made Peter out to be kind of a hubristic fool). My favorite of the three is Dawn Treader, by far. The tale is heavily abridged and great liberties were taken with the book, but it has moments of real fantasy and (dare I use the word? Sure...) magic.

[Grand Bob]

Originally Posted by Duffy12

.

And also this shot of Bree after a tsunami strike from the upcoming films-

[Show spoiler]

.

Bree after a tsunami???

Laketown (Esgaroth) perhaps? Otherwise, it's another "plot improvement".

[drichter33]

Originally Posted by Hoth

This is good, it's almost tradition for these films to come out in December. It wouldn't feel right if the film came out during any other month.

Yes. I prefer it like an annual ritual. Weird to do it in July. And I hate when movies do that 6 month apart release in these trilogies. Not enough time to build anticipation

[Buddy Ackerman]

Originally Posted by Ernest Rister

Well, I never thought they'd ever get around to making The Last Battle, as I think it is the most heavy-handed of the books in terms of Biblical allegory. It is essentially a story about the anti-Christ and th Book of Revelation (a monkey in a lion skin pretending to be Aslan and starting a war that destroys Narnia, leading Aslan to call those truly loyal "home" while everyone else is doomed...and Susan doesn't make the cut). At least, I doubt they could have adapted it in a fashion faithful to the book (no pun intended). I remember talk about Disney making all seven, and I could only chuckle, "Good luck with that last one."

I completely agree. And I love the book for being that "heavy-handed". I find it ambitious to push a children's fable that far. The apocalypse is brought about because of a belief in a false deity? From a series that started with a magic wardrobe and turkish delight? Brilliant. And I don't get those who complain about it (not that you were) - Lewis never made his Christian allegory a secret. You can't judge a story on following through on an authorial intent that has been there for six previous books. But, as I say, I would love to see someone handle that and make it true to the book. Chances of seeing it? Slim to none. But I would love it. I think it would be incredibly ambitious.

Besides, I found Aslan turning up as a lamb in Dawn Treader to be a more clumsy Christian reference.

Silver Chair and Horse and His Boy, though, would be great to see.

And I agree that the first film was flat...it imitates other fantasy films, without finding its own voice and identity, like young actors who impersonate and mimic and "perform", instead of doing any real acting. Likewise, the second film went very dark, again trying to find importance, confusing darkness with substance (and the invented subplot of Peter choosing to attack the Telmarines seemed to be drawing a parallel to then-current world and political events, and made Peter out to be kind of a hubristic fool). My favorite of the three is Dawn Treader, by far. The tale is heavily abridged and great liberties were taken with the book, but it has moments of real fantasy and (dare I use the word? Sure...) magic.

I always thought Horse and his Boy and The Magician's Nephew (allegedly the next one to be made if they do go for it) would be problematic in the same way that Prince Caspian was - there's not a lot that happens. Great children's books but they both concentrate on fairly small stories or timespans (not that the creation of Narnia is a "small" story but, well - they turn up, run around a bit, it's created, there's some temptation stuff, they go home). Both great entries in the book series to flesh out the mythology but not natural tales for a 100 minute film.

I agree with all of your criticisms regarding The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. You hit the nail on head regarding it imitating without finding its own identity. And I still haven't seen Dawn Treader despite loving the book.