Wow. That’s about all I can say at this point. Purists won’t be happy. I knew there were going to be deviations from the book, but this was way beyond anything I imagined. I enjoyed the movie for the most part. The last half hour was a real surprise. I’m really glad I went, and I will be going to see it again. Part of me wants another drink.
I went to the IMAX 3D double feature (An Unexpected Journey plus The Desolation of Smaug). Many hours of Thorin Oakenshield! The perfect way to end my semester. I had two finals on Thursday before going to the movies – it was a long day! I’ll be back with more to say about the movie after I get some sleep.
ETA: Nope. Cannot sleep. Thinking about the movie. I simply cannot believe that Peter Jackson chose to go the route he did. What was he smoking???
Do I Have A Blog? 
Even the spoilers weren’t enough to prepare me for this movie. To be totally frank it felt like a big f#$% you to both the source material and those who love the book. Someone in the theater actually shouted out that PJ was a jerk at the end! I’m still in gut reaction mode, but I honestly feel like even RA won’t be able to lure me back for number three. I said on my own blog that I was worried this was going to be fanfic on an epic scale. I had no idea how very true that would be. PJ smoking something? Yeah, I think so.
A few positives: Lee Pace is awesome. 😉 Smaug is an amazing piece of artistry. And finally, Richard’s acting was of course wonderful.
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Honestly, I erased my gut reaction post. It was kind of harsh. lol Then, after I posted, I felt compelled to edit. I really can’t believe that last half hour actually happened. I love the book but do not consider myself to be a purist. Changes are bound to happen when adapting a book to the screen. I was even sort of okay with the addition of Tauriel. I am disappointed with the way the story went at the end of DoS. It was kind of like a Hobbit Alternate Universe!
There were positives, of course. I thought Smaug was incredible. Thorin was bad*ss, Thranduil was just an *ss. lol (All joking aside, Lee Pace did a great job. I’m just not a LP fan, as you know.)
I could watch Richard Armitage as Thorin all day long. Yeah, I know you knew that, too.
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Definitely a Hobbit AU! You know I’ve been dreading Tauriel and I wasn’t thrilled with her character. Most of her scenes seemed totally unnecessary to me. That said, I was still enjoying the movie up until those last 30 minutes. At that point I genuinely wanted something to throw at the screen! Oh well.
Thranduil was totally an ass, but he was an ass with so much flare. But then, you know I’m a Lee fan. 😉
They could have replaced quite a few things in the movie with more Thorin. As long as it wasn’t more Thorin in an extended version of the end. *cringes at the thought*
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So far, everyone seems to like the movie and hasn’t said anything about the last 30 minutes. Maybe they’re in shock? Maybe they’re just going, “meh, whatever, PJ.”
I’ve always thought that Richard had to delve in much much deeper to find movie Thorin beyond the book Thorin that he loved since he was 13.
BTW, I miss your blog.
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I hope other people are enjoying the film. I may have been really frustrated and obviously that woman who was in the same theater as me was as well, but I don’t want that for everybody.
I do think you are right about Richard having to delve deep for Thorin. Movie Thorin is a way more complex character than the book version.
My blog is back, I think for good now. I had to do some behind the scenes stuff to make sure I was okay coming back. We’ll see how that goes. 😉
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I was trying to not actually *say* anything about the last 30 minutes, because I know so many people have yet to see the movie. I was stunned, actually. I didn’t *hate* the last half hour, just wasn’t prepared to see the like in a Hobbit movie. If it had been in an Indiana Jones movie, it would have suited perfectly, but I would have expected it there. 😉 It’s all about context, and the last 30 minutes did not fit my idea of a Hobbit film.
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We have a few of the same reactions apart from the loyalty to the book. I loved it, but never cared that much about faithfulness to the book, and care less about it now having seen this film. There was a little murmuring in our theater (also did the 2 film marathon, which was a lot of fun and I would totally recommend doing it again) but on the whole people were on the edges of their seats the last half hour — literally, people sat up and watched closely — and when the film ended there was this sort of collective gasp and then nervous laughter before the applause came. I thought, again, I can’t wait another year!
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We did have a few of the same reactions. I enjoyed the movie overall, and Tauriel? She was okay, but I think there was a bit of overselling there. She was not necessary. And Legolas, while I enjoyed seeing him again, took up more screen time than I think he should have. His head stepping sequence went on too long, as did Bombur’s barrel sequence. Amusing, but enough already!
Back to the book loyalty. I was under the impression that Peter Jackson and crew had said the deviations from the book were sourced in other Tolkien works (other than Tauriel, obviously). I’d like to know the source for the events under the mountain. Seriously – I was not prepared for Indiana Oakenshield!!! I felt like the movie was loosely following the book then took an abrupt detour off the edge of the cliff and I had no time to recover before the credits rolled. Kind of like this: https://twitter.com/PreRaphHobbit/status/411582229890887680/photo/1 I think most of the audience in the theater with me felt the same way. There was a bit of murmuring when the credits did roll, and a smattering of applause. Nothing like I heard at the end of TUJ last year.
I will go see it again. I want to try and enjoy it on its own merits (not expecting book loyalty this time). Maybe I’ll come away with a different point of view.
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LMAO…Indiana Oakenshield! I love it. 😉
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It fits, does it not? 😉
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Abso-freaking-lutely!
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I loved the movie. If Peter Jackson had done that with LOTR then, yes, I would have been furious but with The Hobbit? Bring it on! The book is my least favorite of all of Professor Tolkien’s work. I could list several reasons why but mainly, let’s say I will never forgive the man for killing the Line of Durin – and I’ve felt this way for 40 years. So, yes, bring in as much Thorin as possible. Kudos to Lee Pace for making me hate Thranduil even more, which I did not think was possible. As for Tauriel, regardless of whether or not she was needed, Evangeline Lilly did stellar work. I’ve been a fan of her since Lost and think she is very talented, not to mention that the camera loves her.
My friends – who are in their 70’s and loved the book as children – had the time of their lives. They couldn’t care less about the changes and found them exciting and fun. In fact, they want to see it again and can’t wait to go see the third one with me next December.
I wonder who will rescue Gandalf now. If it’s an eagle, then I will groan! I intend to write a review but will wait a couple of days until more people watch it.
Sorry that some of you were so disappointed. I felt that way with the Harry Potter movies, so I understand completely. 😉
P.S: To be fair, yes, I was stunned with the changes Peter Jackson made and feel we will not know why until the third movie. Still, it did not detract from my enjoyment of the experience.
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