The Hobbit
The family went to see The Hobbit last night, and came away with mixed feelings.
*spoilers*
The casting was wonderful. Martin Freeman was an excellent choice for the young Bilbo. His mix of earnestness and humor was perfect. Seeing Ian McKellen (or his double) kick goblin ass as a 400-year-old wizard was great fun. The dwarves were-- dwarves. A few stood out: Thorin, Fili, Kili, Bombur, but mostly they were cutouts, especially compared to the party in LOTR. Andy Serkis was once again brilliant as Gollem! His scene with Bilbo and the riddle game was a highlight of the film.
The liberties taken with the plot were seen mostly as padding to wring three movies from the book. None of us were impressed with the Radaghast digression, although the bunny sleigh was rather fun. The "pale Orc" thread was a little tiresome and trite. There were no orcs in The Hobbit, nor was the necromancer ever seen.
The noble eagles got short shrift to give Elrond & Co more screen time. I'd rather have had more eagles.
But the biggest thumbs down is reserved for the cinematography. This new fangled HFR (High Freakin' Resolution?) looked flat and raw, with none of the glow of the LOTR films. At times it had the grainy jerky look of an old Dr. Who video. I wouldn't pay for it again. In general I perfer good old 2 D. My photographer son said the white balance looked off.
That being said, it was great fun, and I loved that Jackson used the songs from the books, especially the two sung by the dwarves at the beginning of the movie. We're all looking forward to the next installment.
*spoilers*
The casting was wonderful. Martin Freeman was an excellent choice for the young Bilbo. His mix of earnestness and humor was perfect. Seeing Ian McKellen (or his double) kick goblin ass as a 400-year-old wizard was great fun. The dwarves were-- dwarves. A few stood out: Thorin, Fili, Kili, Bombur, but mostly they were cutouts, especially compared to the party in LOTR. Andy Serkis was once again brilliant as Gollem! His scene with Bilbo and the riddle game was a highlight of the film.
The liberties taken with the plot were seen mostly as padding to wring three movies from the book. None of us were impressed with the Radaghast digression, although the bunny sleigh was rather fun. The "pale Orc" thread was a little tiresome and trite. There were no orcs in The Hobbit, nor was the necromancer ever seen.
The noble eagles got short shrift to give Elrond & Co more screen time. I'd rather have had more eagles.
But the biggest thumbs down is reserved for the cinematography. This new fangled HFR (High Freakin' Resolution?) looked flat and raw, with none of the glow of the LOTR films. At times it had the grainy jerky look of an old Dr. Who video. I wouldn't pay for it again. In general I perfer good old 2 D. My photographer son said the white balance looked off.
That being said, it was great fun, and I loved that Jackson used the songs from the books, especially the two sung by the dwarves at the beginning of the movie. We're all looking forward to the next installment.
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Did you see it in 3D? I didn't know they had it in 3D... I'm glad I didn't end up seeing it in 3D if that's the case though... It has tendency to ruin movies for me... In any case, I also felt a more subdued reaction than I had with the first trilogy. But I expected that, I suppose, going in. So in the end, I rather liked it. But I think that has to do with expectations. I loved the new take on the music though. Perhaps the next ones will be a little better. My friend says this one was really just meant to set them up and make it a trilogy.
I liked the HFR 3D. I guess it depends on your personal tastes. Though I also wished that the eagles had more time I didn't mind they put the white council in. It was fun seeing things you've only read in the appendix, now fit in the hobbit storyline.
"The 'pale Orc' thread"? I'm afraid to ask what that is, other than something else which bears no relation to the book.
I saw the movie a 1,5 weeks ago and I still don't quite know what I think. All from our group thought HFR 3D looked great but some changes to the storyline.. ugh. And changes to the appendix material as well. I knew that there would be changes but they felt kind of half baked, did not make sense even the context of the movie itself and LotR movies. Despite this I enjoyed it and definitely look forward to seeing more of Smaug. :)Tracey, The pale orc also known as Azog the Defiler (Dain didn't kill him like in the books)
Everything with Gollum was perfect, though. And Freeman was spot on as Bilbo. I gave the movie a 3 out of 6. As mediocre as it can be.