logan j. fowler and bill bodkin visit the Shire …
Theater, Rent, No Thanks, Undecided? Undecided.
I know what you’re thinking. “You’re undecided on going to see a movie in the same realm as the Lord of the Rings?” Yes, you’d be correct. As I’m sure I told my colleague and fellow trailer Tuesday counterpart Bill Bodkin (and I think he followed that fact telling me that I was crazy), I never got into LOTR. Never saw what the hubbub was all about. To me, the movies are aesthetically gorgeous, and the music is wonderful, the actors are great, but it’s the whole plot line and a good chunk of the context that just flat out … well … bores me. I know, on such a beloved franchise this can be a polarizing opinion, but I can’t just dig it like so many people can. However, there’s always a chance that I’ll give this new entry the time of day, and who knows? I may actually end up liking it as a whole. With Guillermo Del Toro attached as well, my interest shot up a bit too. So we will see. If anything, it’ll be a solid rental when it releases on home video.
My apologies if I have offended your love for this franchise. I’ll go now.
— LJF
Theater, Rent, No Thanks, Undecided? Theater.
Chills. That’s what I get from watching the trailer for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. Chills. The chills come from the childlike excitement and anticipation that envelopes me as I watch this trailer. It’s almost as if I’ve been given the news that a long, lost friend is returning home in one year’s time. As a massive fan of the original Lord Of The Rings trilogy (including the ending of Return Of The King), it’s exciting for me to see characters like Gandalf, Galadriel and even Gollum return to the big screen. And at the same time, I’m intrigued by all the new characters, some of whom are portrayed by terrific actors like James Nesbitt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly and Stephen Fry. Also one has to wonder how characters like Saruman, Elrond and Legolas are going to be included in the film — as they’re all listed on IMDB as appearing in the film. And I cannot wait to see Martin Freeman take over as young Bilbo. He’s such an underrated actor … well, at least in the States, he is.
Outside of the cast, the glimpses we get of Middle Earth looks even better than it did in the original films and that to me is an accomplishment. It’ll be interesting to see what a decade of technological advancements will do to a world that was so beautifully created by Peter Jackson. Honestly, I’m so stoked by this first trailer that I can’t wait for more to be released.
— BB
