The Hobbit.
3 Jan 2013 08:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
curiouswombatI celebrated JRRT's birthday by finally going to see The Hobbit.
And I thoroughly enjoyed it, it certainly didn't drag for me at all (S2C was inclined to believe the people on his FL who has said it did, rather than all those who said it didn't - so I went on my own and saved him the possibility of boredom - his loss, oh, most definitely his loss!), and I was really surprised when I realised we were at the end. And even with added bits of plot, and foreshortening of certain timelines - I still loved it.
I have one or two thoughts about it that I will put under a cut - just in case anyone else who wants to see it hasn't...
I actually liked the wee glimpses of Thranduil at the beginning - even though I don't really see him paying tribute to the Dwarven king - but I can well believe that that is what the dwarves told Bilbo - and it is their version that he has to form the tale. I can understand Thranduil deciding not to fight at that point too - there really wasn't much they could have done.
I thought, from others' comments, that the dwarves might be too comical at the beginning - but they were on the right side of the line - especially as this is, after all, an adaptation of a children's book and the audience was at least 75% children this afternoon.
Radagast could have been just as effective without the bird-poo - but I disagree with the person who said he spent ages ages a hedgehog and it was a real waste of time. Trying to heal the hedgehog was an instant snap-shot of his personality and his place in the scheme of things - and actually it was on screen for a couple of minutes simply because it was in his hands whilst he was using the deeper magic against the Mirkwood spiders. I didn't really mind the bunny-sled either - I could have lived without it, but the chase was fun - even if it reminded me a bit of Star Wars!
I know the darkness had crept in a long while before the events of The Hobbit, and I know the meeting of the White Council was also years before - but putting both into the timeframe of the film meant that that information was there within the story and I can live with that. Both Galadriel and Elrond looked better in this than they did in LotR as well. Hugo Weaving looks 10 years younger as Elrond - and much more as I imagined him.
Although I do think living in PJ's version of Rivendell would be like living inside a washing machine...
I can cope with introducing a BIG BAD - it helps the kids follow the flow and holds the story together for them - and I didn't mind the extra wargs and things - and I really liked the Goblin King - he made me smile.
The riddle scene was perfect - how good it was to see Gollum again. And that moment near the end between Thorin and Bilbo brought a lump to my throat. I loved the wee glimpse of Smaug at the end too.
The casting was really good - I could believe in the dwarves remarkably well - and Martin Freeman just IS Bilbo in my mind now, in the same way as Viggo M. is Aragorn, or Ian McKellen is Gandalf.
All in all, I am really looking forward to Part 2.
And I thoroughly enjoyed it, it certainly didn't drag for me at all (S2C was inclined to believe the people on his FL who has said it did, rather than all those who said it didn't - so I went on my own and saved him the possibility of boredom - his loss, oh, most definitely his loss!), and I was really surprised when I realised we were at the end. And even with added bits of plot, and foreshortening of certain timelines - I still loved it.
I have one or two thoughts about it that I will put under a cut - just in case anyone else who wants to see it hasn't...
I actually liked the wee glimpses of Thranduil at the beginning - even though I don't really see him paying tribute to the Dwarven king - but I can well believe that that is what the dwarves told Bilbo - and it is their version that he has to form the tale. I can understand Thranduil deciding not to fight at that point too - there really wasn't much they could have done.
I thought, from others' comments, that the dwarves might be too comical at the beginning - but they were on the right side of the line - especially as this is, after all, an adaptation of a children's book and the audience was at least 75% children this afternoon.
Radagast could have been just as effective without the bird-poo - but I disagree with the person who said he spent ages ages a hedgehog and it was a real waste of time. Trying to heal the hedgehog was an instant snap-shot of his personality and his place in the scheme of things - and actually it was on screen for a couple of minutes simply because it was in his hands whilst he was using the deeper magic against the Mirkwood spiders. I didn't really mind the bunny-sled either - I could have lived without it, but the chase was fun - even if it reminded me a bit of Star Wars!
I know the darkness had crept in a long while before the events of The Hobbit, and I know the meeting of the White Council was also years before - but putting both into the timeframe of the film meant that that information was there within the story and I can live with that. Both Galadriel and Elrond looked better in this than they did in LotR as well. Hugo Weaving looks 10 years younger as Elrond - and much more as I imagined him.
Although I do think living in PJ's version of Rivendell would be like living inside a washing machine...
I can cope with introducing a BIG BAD - it helps the kids follow the flow and holds the story together for them - and I didn't mind the extra wargs and things - and I really liked the Goblin King - he made me smile.
The riddle scene was perfect - how good it was to see Gollum again. And that moment near the end between Thorin and Bilbo brought a lump to my throat. I loved the wee glimpse of Smaug at the end too.
The casting was really good - I could believe in the dwarves remarkably well - and Martin Freeman just IS Bilbo in my mind now, in the same way as Viggo M. is Aragorn, or Ian McKellen is Gandalf.
All in all, I am really looking forward to Part 2.
