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The One Ring Forums: Tolkien Topics: Movie Discussion: The Hobbit:
Beorn vs Bolg was most likely cut because of the Ratings

Hobbity Hobbit
Lorien


Jun 14 2015, 8:50pm

Post #1 of 14 (1336 views)
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Beorn vs Bolg was most likely cut because of the Ratings Can't Post

I am not sure which magazine it is, I believe it is Total Film Magazine confirms an "epic smackdown" between Bolg and Beorn (the article was released a month or two before the premiere). I am not entirely sure if I am allowed to scan it?

In this video by PryftanAW
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jCjB4gtavo
(Near 2:07), who I believe is on these forums, Beorn literally crushes the bodies of the orcs (which is a bit disgusting...), but it is only an animation (unrendered CGI). In the books, Beorn literally "rips through" Bolg (unless I'm mixing something up), and this would most likely cause an Rated R Scene. And if the CGI animators would go with the clip in the video, Beorn vs Bolg would probably be more violent.

The actor (whose name I cannot recall) was arrested in April, so it is most likely since they couldn't get him for pick ups, his scene was replaced.

"As the snowflakes cover my fallen brothers,
I will say this last goodbye."

(This post was edited by Hobbity Hobbit on Jun 14 2015, 8:50pm)


MyWeeLadGimli
Lorien

Jun 14 2015, 9:04pm

Post #2 of 14 (1285 views)
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I think Legolas was the main reason [In reply to] Can't Post

I imagine PJ switched to Bolg vs. Legolas so Legolas would have something prominent to do. And they could definitely have Beorn throwing bears around or running over them and keep it PG-13. As long as there's no gore they'd be fine.


Hobbity Hobbit
Lorien


Jun 14 2015, 9:14pm

Post #3 of 14 (1275 views)
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Well, they got rated later on, [In reply to] Can't Post

so it might of been a last minute change. Also they did, they just cut out the beginning. If you saw the video, if that was fully rendered, that would make me throw up! He literally smashes their bodies, and pieces of their bodies go flying through the air!

"As the snowflakes cover my fallen brothers,
I will say this last goodbye."


AshNazg
Gondor


Jun 14 2015, 10:09pm

Post #4 of 14 (1231 views)
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We might see some of Beorn and Bolg's fight in the EE... [In reply to] Can't Post

I heard a reliable rumour long before cinema release that there was an unfinished scene of Beorn facing down a large ogre/orc creature. These ogres turned out to be in the film.

Sounds to me like it's similar to Aragorn vs Sauron in RotK. They changed the story, but kept the fight and replaced Bolg with an ogre. From the description I've heard it's a real highlight of the movie, and got a big reaction from the test audience (but was an unfinished render), so I was really surprised that it was not included. Maybe they needed some more time to render it, or (more likely) it was deemed too violent for theatrical release.


(This post was edited by AshNazg on Jun 14 2015, 10:12pm)


Mooseboy018
Grey Havens


Jun 14 2015, 10:43pm

Post #5 of 14 (1206 views)
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Not so sure... [In reply to] Can't Post

There are a million ways they could have had Beorn face Bolg without it being graphic enough to get an R rating. And the decision to create the arbitrary Legolas vs Bolg rivalry had to have been made way before they did any effects work for the final battle. I think they abandoned Beorn's story in favor of Legolas simply because of Legolas's popularity.

Leaving out Beorn killing all those orcs in the theatrical cut could have been a last minute decision based on ratings though, or just time constraints. Even though this movie had the longest post-production of all six movies..


Eruvandi
Tol Eressea


Jun 14 2015, 11:45pm

Post #6 of 14 (1172 views)
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If they do put that in the EE... [In reply to] Can't Post

All I ask is that it not be...too icky. I'm not one to watch many R rated movies...I'm not sure I've ever seen more that one or two if that many. I just don't like the level of gory violence that often come with them and honestly, all this talk of violent content that they supposedly cut out of BotFA has me nervous that they're going to put something back in the EE that could seriously limit my enjoyment of it. Frown

I'm not even sure why I'm bothering to say all this because if they put this stuff in then they do and there's not much I can do about it. But I'd hate for them to put so much focus on the extra fighting that they gloss over the story bits that need to be wrapped up too. We need to see Thorin's funeral, we need resolution to the Thranduil's wife's necklace storyline, it would be nice to see at least a little resolution to Tauriel, and I wouldn't half mind seeing some of Bilbo's return trip. So I guess what I'm saying is that if they just must have a bunch of extra violence, then they better at least balance it out with the story stuff or I won't be a happy camper.Mad

Ok, sorry. Rambling rant over. I just needed to get that out of my head.

Lord I give you everything, Anything you want from me
Take my past and my future I lay it at your feet
Yeah, I'm after your heart, you've stolen mine
I give you my all 'cause you gave up your life
I'm not who I was simply because, Oh, you set me free

And you change me from what I used to be
Opened my eyes, now I can see
You're making this life so beautiful
So beautiful

~"Beautiful" by Dan Bremnes



Mooseboy018
Grey Havens


Jun 15 2015, 2:57am

Post #7 of 14 (1118 views)
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I doubt it's that bad. [In reply to] Can't Post

There's already some stuff in both trilogies that would probably give the movies an R rating if orc blood was red instead of black. Not to mention the beheading of Thror and all those Gondorian soldiers. The beheadings themselves may not have been shown, but that's still some pretty graphic stuff for a PG-13 movie. Personally I think that stuff is worse than a few mangled CG orcs.


Legolas_Shoehorn
Bree


Jun 15 2015, 7:02am

Post #8 of 14 (1054 views)
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I agree with this [In reply to] Can't Post

Within up to this day both available Hobbit audio commentaries there are several moments when PJ & PB are talking about
scences in the book that 'lacked power' if they transferred them 1:1 to the big screen. My guess: they thought exactly the same
about Beorn simply rushing through the enemy lines in his bear form and killing Bolg quasi in a second.

But for the movie goers who saw the LOTR Trilogy every scene with Legolas in the Hobbit movies had no Tension at all, because
we knew he is alive in LOTR.

My English is not that good, my Elvish is better ;-)


Mooseboy018
Grey Havens


Jun 15 2015, 7:11am

Post #9 of 14 (1047 views)
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Probably [In reply to] Can't Post

I don't understand their line of thinking though. They obviously had a plan for Beorn that would have made him more of a fleshed out character, but they abandoned it. Not that revenge for the death of his family is that original of an idea, it still would have been a great way to give his presence in the final battle more weight. And it would have been more meaningful and probably more exciting than Legolas killing Bolg. They could have come up with creative ways to show how Bolg could hold his own against Beorn. Legolas didn't need anymore screentime. He's already in five out of the six movies. I don't like that they robbed Beorn of his chance to shine for something that didn't really amount to much.


(This post was edited by Mooseboy018 on Jun 15 2015, 7:13am)


dormouse
Half-elven


Jun 15 2015, 8:04am

Post #10 of 14 (1017 views)
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Various possibilities.... [In reply to] Can't Post

... but it may just be that the actor's conviction on drug charges in April last year played some part in this. Whatever the rights and wrongs of it - which I don't know - whether he appealed or not, as it was said he would, the fact that it was widely reported internationally as 'Hobbit star convicted....' would surely have made an impact on Warner Brothers. It's not the kind of publicity they want to have: one of the regular actors in the Harry Potter films was dropped before the final film because of a drug-related charge. By the spring of last year any filming for BotFA had already been done (though possibly not the final sound recording) and Beorn could not be altogether removed at that stage but it is just possible that Warners wanted to downplay the character as much as possible.

I don't know, of course I don't, but it could just be that Peter Jackson and co. didn't want to 'rob' Beorn but were given no choice about it....


Eruvandi
Tol Eressea


Jun 15 2015, 3:21pm

Post #11 of 14 (862 views)
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I'm probably worried over nothing. [In reply to] Can't Post


Quote
There's already some stuff in both trilogies that would probably give the movies an R rating if orc blood was red instead of black. Not to mention the beheading of Thror and all those Gondorian soldiers. The beheadings themselves may not have been shown, but that's still some pretty graphic stuff for a PG-13 movie. Personally I think that stuff is worse than a few mangled CG orcs.

This is true. I guess part of my anxiety stems from the fact that when I saw BotFA in theaters, some of the violence did bother me a bit, but now that I think of it, the violence that bothered me the most was specifically the deaths of Fili and Kili (I knew they would die, but I wasn't expecting it to happen like it did. I still have to look away when it gets to their parts on the DVD, especially with Kili.Unsure). But Fili and Kili were humanoid characters, not orcs. and I have/had an emotional connection to them.

I don't have any emotional connection to orcs, so in all reality, if it hasn't bothered me to see them sliced and diced in the previous movies, it probably won't bother me in the BotFA EE either. Actually, when I wrote my previous post, I hadn't watched the video the OP had linked to and was going off of what the OP was saying about it. Having watched the video since then, I don't think it looked as bad as I was imagining.

Lord I give you everything, Anything you want from me
Take my past and my future I lay it at your feet
Yeah, I'm after your heart, you've stolen mine
I give you my all 'cause you gave up your life
I'm not who I was simply because, Oh, you set me free

And you change me from what I used to be
Opened my eyes, now I can see
You're making this life so beautiful
So beautiful

~"Beautiful" by Dan Bremnes



dormouse
Half-elven


Jun 15 2015, 3:44pm

Post #12 of 14 (845 views)
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I wouldn't worry about it... [In reply to] Can't Post

The EE scenes tend to be more the quieter character moments. Not all, but generally speaking I think they are. A lot of my favourite scenes come in as EE scenes.


Hobbity Hobbit
Lorien


Jun 15 2015, 7:31pm

Post #13 of 14 (740 views)
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Yeah, [In reply to] Can't Post

I'm a bit faint hearted when it comes to action scenes. Blood is fine for me, but Beorn smashing them scares me. I think I overreacted a bit though, and I agree it's easier to notice the more-human looking characters than the orcs, it just seems more justified for them then the more-human like characters, because they are the literal incarnation of evil (Not saying what happens to them is wrong).

"As the snowflakes cover my fallen brothers,
I will say this last goodbye."


Terrible Tony
The Shire

Jun 17 2015, 1:58pm

Post #14 of 14 (531 views)
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A quick kill [In reply to] Can't Post

I think a quick kill can be very satisfying to the audience - easily the best received scene in Marvel's The Avengers was The Hulk manhandling Loki. I could see the same thing working here - Beorn rushes up to Bolg, who gets a smile/sneer and roars at him - setting up what the audience expects to be a climactic battle. Beorn swipes a paw and knocks his head off, then leaps offscreen into a pile of horrified orcs. Cut to close up of Bolg's head on the ground with a shocked expression. Audience cheers and laughs.

 
 

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