Waiting for 'The Battle of the Five Armies'...

bungobaggins wrote:It's been pretty clear that PJ doesn't like the story of The Hobbit, mostly because of its "simplicity."

There are plenty of people who like LOTR and not The Hobbit -- and vice versa -- which I can understand given how different the stories are, even though I personally love them both.  However, in the case of PJ, I think it's become clear that he only ever had a very surface-level appreciation of LOTR, and that's probably part of the reason why he was much less enthusiastic about The Hobbit the book.

A valiant attempt at improving a much-maligned action sequence from AUJ by removing everyone's least favorite character, but unfortunately there's too much shit in that scene for me to consider it salvaged.

If you're going to take out Radagast, why not just take out the Wargs? I liked Petty's traveling sequence a lot better.

God, what a boring "action" sequence. It's funny how Howard Shore's music tries to over compensate. It's like "duh-duh-duh" this is really intense, you should be scared. And I'm like...

It sounds a lot like the Rohan theme from TTT to me, but my mind might be playing tricks one me given the landscape of Rohan and the similarity to the warg battle from the earlier trilogy.

It does all start to sound the same at some point.

All I can say is, what a difference a (third) year makes... It must be bad if even the director/producer sounds like he doesn't give a shit !

Eldorion wrote:A valiant attempt at improving a much-maligned action sequence from AUJ by removing everyone's least favorite character, but unfortunately there's too much shit in that scene for me to consider it salvaged.

It's still so awful.
I mean, the distance inconsistency is still there between how far away the wargs and orcs are.

"Where's Gandalf!?" <-- panicking idiot
"He's abandoned us!" <-- Dickishly panicking idiot

Gandalf pops up, "This way you fools!" <-- Don't you mean, "Fly"? pfft.
  

And of course Thorin gets a long pointless shot of his shining, and ringing, steel phallus.

Am I the only one who can't yet bring myself to re-watch the movies? Every time I go to pick up my copy of AUJ...I just can't...

Radghastly getting even more bewildered is one thing, but as Petty pointed out, how the hell did Gandalf get over the stone gaints tearing up the mountains , then precede in just the nick of time to exactly the right cave where and co were being 'entertained' by Dame Edna's Rock Solo?

Convenient...

The exterior of the mountain being damaged so badly was a pretty big plot-hole, but I think some mystery can be allowed Gandalf's sudden appearance. Book-wise I suppose he must have followed the goblins secretly, but he is a wizard and I never minded his sudden reappearances much.

I dont think there is an issue in the book- Gandalf is there when they are captured and sees where they are taken, it wouldn't take much to work out that they had been taken for interrogation.

But in the film he doesn't know where they have gone, and when he tries to follow he would find the path is gone and half the mountainside seemingly collapsed in an avalanche of some sort.

The last thing you would expect him to think is that they took shelter in a cave with a false floor and were taken captive.
Especially a cave Gandalf can no longer get to as the path to it no longer exists. Not like he can fly, wizard or no.

The logical outcome of Gandalf's reasonings probably would have been that the entire company was buried under rock on the valley's floor. Good point Petty.

Sadly there are a huge amount of these sort of illogical things in the film- like how Radagast crossed the mountains so fast from the edge of Mirkwood to Trollshaws (seemingly overnight) and how he did it on his ludicrous bunny sled when we are shown the only path over is single file in most places.

How did they outrun wargs when they left the Trollshaws?

Did they run all day to get to Beorns with Beorn and wargs chasing them- if so how did they outrun either of them? If not why when the chase starts is it dawn and why when they arrive does Gandalf tell them to get some sleep for the night when it probably shouldn't be more than an hour after dawn when they arrive?

These movies are like a headache to sort out at this point honestly.

The guardian of the galaxy was a way better movie then these two crappy hobbit movies.

So I've heard!

By the by Petty, while you're on a roll... how about finishing DoS?

ThorinOakenshield.net has scans of the most recent Empire feature up on their site.  It's interesting, if not exactly news to anyone who has watched the video diaries.  The information that jumped out at me were these tidbits about the running time (PJ is currently editing BOFA).

http://thorinoakenshield.net/2014/08/01/battle-of-five-armies-article-in-empire-magazine/

He already has a working cut of film three. Apart from the to-do of the forthcoming battle sequence (which we'll come to), he has only a few shots left to chisel into shape. Without credits, The Battle Of The Five Armies currently runs to a positively jaunty two-thirty -- an entire 15 minutes shorter than Transformers 4.

"This one has got more of a thriller feel to it," Jackson elaborates, perfectly happy to shorten a Hobbit. "I think of this third movie as a psychological thriller with action scenes interspersed in the middle of it. It has got a very tight narrative structure. Three-hour movies don't tend to be thrillers."

His actors may have long departed, but the director is still giving himself options. He will keep watching and cutting his film, determined to get it down to a "lean machine" of two-twenty ("but don't hold me to that!"), while simultaneously elaborating on sequences as he does. Only James Cameron can boast a comparable technical freedom. Jackson can literally fix things in post.

AUJ and DOS were 169 and 161 minutes long, respectively, according to Wikipedia and IMDb, but I don't know if this figure includes credits or not.  I certainly wouldn't complain about BOFA being shorter, but I am surprised that it's even a possibility that a Middle-earth movie will clock in at under two and a half hours.

The hardcore fanboys really turned the 3-hour-plus Middle-earth movie into some sort of strange fetish.

PJ wrote: It has got a very tight narrative structure.

I swear he's listening to us!    

OK then, that'll  be the standard I'll hold him to when I watch BO5A: a tight narrative structure.  I hope he can  pull it off, but I have my doubts... 

Hopefully by "tight" he means no loose ends. My hope is everything gets tied up in the first fifteen minutes so we can just watch the storyline play out as it should. I have a feeling this one will be easier for him because all of the characters come together, so there can only really be one story line. No more subplots!

I think by tight he means...

"I think of this third movie as a psychological thriller with action scenes interspersed in the middle of it."

Okay, so now The Hobbit is a psychological thriller? He really is just pulling this shit out of his ass.

I feel that all the BS Ive read so far just proves to me Peejers does not know what the flying fook hes doing. Hes SO lost the plot & grip on daily reality, & is covering up & papering over his wild fantasies by pretending to re invent The Hobbit under a different guise. A Psychological what ?? .........Valium time ! And not just for me   

When I hear "psychological thriller" I immediately think Hitchcock. Peter Jackson, you ain't no Hitchcock.

I dont rate Peejers highly at all. If I see a film advertised on TV & the director mentioned is Scorsese or Coppola then Il show keeness, but, not PJ. He just aint got it. LOTRs was 'it' for me where he's concerned. It was the golden key that fitted the lock & opened the door to my fantasy but, I wont be rushing to get my coat to see anymore of PJs films.My distaste for what he's done with The Hobbit has clouded my view where he's concerned. He may have got a bucket full of things altered with LOTRs but he's totally fooked up The Hobbit beyond repair.