The Hobbit - The Movie: Speculation and Discussion

[Philipa]

A very fun image indeed...a wizard in 3D glasses? See here on Ian McKellen's flicker account.

[Lindariel]

Just spotted this bit on news on Digital Spy: http://www.digitalspy.com/movies/news/a ... obbit.html

Apparently, Martin Freeman's Sherlock Holmes co-star Benedict Cumberbatch has been offered a role in The Hobbit! How MARVELOUS! Now, who do you suppose he will play? I don't see him as Bard the Bowman; he's more elf-like to me. Perhaps a member of Thranduil's court, or another denizen of Rivendell? Ooooooh, perhaps he could play the dual role of Elrond's twin sons Elladan and Elrohir! He looks like he could be Hugo Weaving's son! VERY interesting news!

[Merry]

That is interesting news. I liked him in Sherlock Holmes and also in the Amazing Grace movie. I can't decide whether he is an elf, though. It seems strange to have such a hot actor with no major roles left to cast.

[Merry]

Apparently someone has an old quote from BC saying he would like to play Smaug--now THAT would be interesting casting!

[Merry]

So Martin Freeman 'accidentally' announces the BC is going to be in the movie and it comes out that he may be Smaug and then he may be Bard the Bowman and then BC says he can't say, thank you very much. And Orlando Bloom also says he can't say, thank you very much. Does anyone think we're being played just a little by PJ's info machine?

[Merry]

Been thinking about the movies and the additions that are going to be in it. The writers are really going to have to come up with something from very bare bones in the story about the White Council taking on the 'Necromancer'. Wonder how they'll do it?

[Philipa]

Wonder how they'll do it?

I don't know Merry but I also worry that perhaps we'll just have to go with the flow with this movie and like LoTr take it at face value.

[Merry]

Ah, but Philipa, I didn't and don't take the LOTR movies at face value--I have many criticisms as well as good things to say! (Just thinking about it--I really take very in life at face value. I'm not exactly a 'go with the flow' kind of gal!) I have high expectations of the Hobbit movies and I'm putting them out there!

[Merry]

Well, it looks like it has been confirmed that Cumberbatch will play Smaug by motion capture--which will be very interesting!--and also will voice the Necromancer. Somebody named Luke Evans has also been cast as Bard the Bowman. His picture is handsome enough and it has been promised that he will be Aragorn-esque!

[Merry]

Helllooo! Anybody home?

TOR.n has a link to a few pictures from the movie. Martin Freeman looks the perfect Bilbo! It's kind of amazing, really. And the dwarves look pretty dwarfy--lots of handsome faces too covered up for my taste, so I was wrong about that.

[Lindariel]

Hi Merry! I'm on vacation this week, so my internet usage is spotty. Thrilled about the Cumberbatch development. I think the Bilbo/Smaug scenes should be FABULOUS, since Cumberbatch and Freeman have such marvelous on-screen chemistry in the Sherlock series and seem to be great pals on and off set.

As far as Luke Evans is concerned, I'm hoping he will be Bard-esque rather than Aragorn-esque. After all, they are two different characters, and I'd prefer they work to develop a fabulous Bard rather than trying to recapture Viggo Mortensen's lightning in a bottle. Bard should NOT be Aragorn redux. I think that would be a BIG mistake.

[Merry]

So have you seen the photo of Dori, Nori and Ori that appeared on the Hobbit Facebook page? It's also posted at TOR.n and is accompanied by short character descriptions of each one. First, it looks like they are working hard to distinquish the dwarves from each other, in look and in character, and to make at least some of them rather distinquished--no brightly colored hoods and not all of them will have long beards! Second, they seem to be going beyond Tolkien just a bit in their descriptions, which I have to admit might be a good thing: with a couple of exceptions, most of the dwarves are kind of blurred in my mind, and I've read the book many times.

I like the look!

[Lindariel]

Hi Merry! I saw the article and photo too, and I'm excited as well. A number of folks commented negatively about the shorter beards and complained that they "didn't look like Gimli," and quite frankly I'm very RELIEVED they don't look like Gimli. How boring it would be if the 13 dwarves were all Gimli clones! I'm glad to see that PJ and Co. are working hard to turn Tolkien's 13 dwarves into 13 INDIVIDUALS. Can't WAIT to see the amazing ARMOR they put on once they've raided Smaug's hoard!!!! Ooooooooooh, and Martin Freeman should be completely decked out in the mithril shirt, belt, and helmet. That should be GRAND!

[Merry]

I just saw Fili and Kili, too: as my students would say, now THAT'S what I'm talking about!

I'm looking forward to seeing the Elven King, too, Lindariel.

[Lindariel]

Ooooh, me too, Merry! I am very, VERY anxious to see what they will do with Thranduil. I'm hoping for a Middle-earth version of the Green Knight/The Stag King -- a very force of nature, very primal, almost feral/fey, yet completely majestic character. I want to see the quasi-paranoia in him that comes from defending your people for thousands of years against the terrors of Dol Guldur WITHOUT the benefit of one of the great Elven Rings. I want to see the heritage of Doriath and the kinship with Thingol and Celeborn in him. I want the trees to bend to him and the grass to speak to him and the creatures of the forest to acknowledge his kingship. I want the sense that he is wedded to the land and that his personal power comes from this bond he has made to land and people. In other words, I want him to be a magnificent representation of what it means to be a Sindarin elf, majestic and powerful in a completely different way than Elrond and Galadriel, who are Noldor and draw power from the things they have MADE rather than from the forces of nature.

Does that make sense?