DOS Trailer #2

I honestly didn't mind LOTR and the changes as much as some people. But LOTR isn't as dear to my heart as the Hobbit is. The changes for the most part, for me anyways, made sense more so in the beginning with FOTR and got more out of the realm of Tolkien by the end of ROTK. They were at least realistic in style and not over the top for the most part. Other than a couple scenes with Legolas, the green toilet scrubbing bubbles, and Denethor's mad quarter mile dash to throw himself off the walls of Minas Tirith. The action was fairly gritty and felt real.

The hobbit is just cartoonish and OTT, with very few elements of realism in the films at this point. Which is the nail in the coffin for me as far as Jackson's Hobbit is concerned. If I want video game looking characters i'll play a game, If I want middle earth I expect realistic situations for the most part. At least something in the same style as Jackson's own LOTR

I've always found the ROTK ending complaints to be ridiculous -- any significant cuts would have made the ending feel far too abbreviated for the conclusions to a 10 (or 12) hour story. - Eldo

I have perhaps a unique insight, or at least take on this. My own edit of RotK following Tolkiens structure is only 1hr 40 minutes long, not only does it not suffer from any sense of too many endings, the story seems incomplete, without the capping of the hobbits story with Scouring, which at 1hr 40 there is plenty time for without anything needing to be too abbreviated.
My conclusion therefore is that its it he script an editing choices which are are to blame and do therefore cause an unnecessary pacing problem in Rotk which does not exist if you follow the original structuring of that book.

But to see this for yourself you will have to watch my edits first!

Pettytyrant101 wrote:
But to see this for yourself you will have to watch my edits first!

I see what you did there  

I didnt mind Legolas and his antics in LOTR, for the most part he was a fully fledged companion and had many great serious scenes, I particularly like the scene with Aragorn in Rohan, where they are both standing in profile on the battlements, thats awesome. I can forgive his Oliphant surfing, a moment or two of coolness didnt irk me at all. In contrast the heavy handed and gross out humour of TH did irk me a LOT. Legolas is an Elf therefore superhuman feats are not that impossible. But the humour in TH ruined the whole film for me.

Yeah, at least in LOTR there wasn't a blatant defiance of physics and mortality! I mean, look at how disgusting Aragorn always got! I called him the sweaty guy when I first saw the film! Apart from him falling off a cliff, there weren't any moments that were as outrageous as, say, getting smashed in the face with a mace and nawed on by a dog, or falling hundreds of feet through an open tunnel, or riding a precarious bridge down the inside of a mountain. The list goes on. And none of it was even cool!!!

I don't know. What about the staircase scene in FOTR? That seemed a little ridiculous to me.  

I do agree about the grit that was apparent in LOTR. None of the dwarves look very exhausted (or sweaty or whatever) after the escape from the goblins.

Although Thorin does look like he's a bit knackered during Azanulbizar with sweat and blood and what not. That just seems to highlight the inconsistent tone of this film even more.

It seems like Jackson wanted to treat the goblins like how Lucas treated the battle droids in the prequel trilogy (useless, easy opponents). Where's the excitement in that?

Tinuviel wrote:Yeah, at least in LOTR there wasn't a blatant defiance of physics and mortality! I mean, look at how disgusting Aragorn always got! I called him the sweaty guy when I first saw the film! Apart from him falling off a cliff, there weren't any moments that were as outrageous as, say, getting smashed in the face with a mace and nawed on by a dog, or falling hundreds of feet through an open tunnel, or riding a precarious bridge down the inside of a mountain. The list goes on. And none of it was even cool!!!

Honestly Tin Aragorn's fall off the cliff face isn't that far fetched based in reality... this is one example of someone surviving a 300 to 500 ft fall off a cliff to land on rocks and not in water like Aragorn.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SI88uRuVjA

I found a few examples of similar instances. Aragorn landed in a river which we never truly see how deep the spot he landed is. And it is implied that he was washed down stream a good ways and it is also unknown how long he lay unconscious. Plus he is obviously injured and limping after that...So that is a fairly believable scenario. Now Goblin Town falling was ridiculous falling hundreds of feet without a single scratch, to then have a ton of Goblin land on them and still no one was even injured. That is why I have problems with the Hobbit films. LOTR might have had some situations that seemed outrageous like the cliff scene but it is possible unlike AUJ's action which is more like looney toons action than real life.

bungobaggins wrote:I don't know. What about the staircase scene in FOTR? That seemed a little ridiculous to me.

But the physics involved in that scene were possible. The gap really wasn't all that far but the riding the falling piece into the lower stairs was only slightly OTT in comparison to TH's action for the most part the stairs were stationary. Not such a big deal for me anyways  

I suppose if I had to pick between the staircase scene or all the bullshit in goblin town, I'd pick the staircase scene. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to give a little scoff and roll my eyes when I watch it.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZUUxrSzrAo

here is the score from the trailer... Brilliant piece of music

Huh, I just assumed the trailer music was by Howard Shore.  Wasn't it like that with the AUJ trailers?  I guess maybe they haven't done all the recording for the DOS soundtrack yet?

Knowing PJ, that's typically what he does last of all, even while he's still editing. They just finished Pick-ups, so I'd say they're still editing film!

Yeah, based on what little I know about film post-production, it's not unreasonable that the music isn't finished yet (though PJ does seem to have a tendency to go down to the wire).  I suppose it's just that hearing the dwarf's song for the first time back when the original Hobbit trailer hit a full year before AUJ stands out in my memory so clearly.  So I just assumed the music in this trailer was from the soundtrack.  Oh well, it's still good, and that's really all that matters.

the music is always one of the last things to be made, only when the cuts have been made can they make it, so he better be finished soon lol. then all the effects are added later.

bungobaggins wrote:It seems like Jackson wanted to treat the goblins like how Lucas treated the battle droids in the prequel trilogy (useless, easy opponents). Where's the excitement in that?

They're pretty useless, the Jedi cut them down like butter.

Tinuviel wrote:Yeah, at least in LOTR there wasn't a blatant defiance of physics and mortality! I mean, look at how disgusting Aragorn always got! I called him the sweaty guy when I first saw the film! Apart from him falling off a cliff, there weren't any moments that were as outrageous as, say, getting smashed in the face with a mace and nawed on by a dog, or falling hundreds of feet through an open tunnel, or riding a precarious bridge down the inside of a mountain. The list goes on. And none of it was even cool!!!

yes I totally agree. even if there were the spectacular bits they never seemed impossible physics to me. I felt the drama because there was the possibility someone would get hurt. (I also like the subtle way they showed Legolas walking on the snow on Carahdras, like in the book). Thats why the fall of Gandalf was so hard to watch and the ride of Faramir out to Osgiliath so heart wrenching, the humans and the hobbits were all flesh and blood. As you say the OTT spectacle of TH was not cool at all.

I think the stair scene in FOTR was totally gripping and thrilling cinema, even now when I watch it.

Recoveryanonymous wrote:

bungobaggins wrote:It seems like Jackson wanted to treat the goblins like how Lucas treated the battle droids in the prequel trilogy (useless, easy opponents). Where's the excitement in that?

They're pretty useless, the Jedi cut them down like butter.

That's gonna be great. It's gonna be great.