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lionoferebor
Rohan
Oct 3 2015, 4:18am
Post #1 of 12
(2331 views)
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Original Scene and Book-to-Film Scenes
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It's no secret The Hobbit films - in one way or another - strayed from the book, though perhaps not in its entirety. A number of original scenes were interwoven with moments from the book to create a story that spanned over the course of three films. Some of these original scenes were good...others not so much. So...
1. What was you favorite and least original scene?
2. What was your favorite and least book-to-film scene?
I'll start...
1. Favorite original scene would have to be "I belong with my brother." For starters Richard, Aidan, and Dean are all brilliant in this moment...okay, they are always brilliant, but more so here. Also, it's a well written scene that proves you don't need all the stereotypical elements - i.e. cgi, action, romance, etc...or even a long speech - to have a powerful and heartfelt moment.
Least favorite...there's a few, but if I have to pick one it would have to be "Because it was real." I won't go off on a rant, all I will say is I find this to be a rather cliché moment that was poorly written.
2. There are not too many book to film scenes I did not like, but I would have to go with Bilbo and Smaug. The encounter between these two characters as portrayed on screen was better than how I imagined it from the book. It was a well written scene played out by two outstanding actors.
Least favorite book-to-film scene...probably the deaths of Fili and Kili, especially Kili. In regards to both I would've preferred they died side-by-side defending Thorin. However, I have come to accept Fili's death though I would have liked to see him fight before he was captured. Kili, on the other hand, the slow motion and incorporation of a romance that - IMHO - was unnecessary to the overall story left me...in the nicest of terms...disappointed.
Your turn...
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Avandel
Half-elven
Oct 3 2015, 4:35pm
Post #2 of 12
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And I am fuzzy on the book anyway, but
Original:
A toss-up for me between "if this is to end in fire" and Thorin/Azog end battle, for favorites. I like the entire forges addition and the more I watch, the more impressed I am - but IMO that scene was the beginning. On the other hand the Thorin/Azog battle IMO is mesmerizing and epic.
Least favorite: The Tauriel/Thranduil dynamics, especially the IMO and cringe-worthy scenario at the last. Tho the DOS healing scene is a close second.
From book:
The Thorin/Thranduil clash - IMO tho the book paints the scene well, the T & T scene in DOS is so stellar IMO - a favorite.
Least favorite - don't remember not liking scenes in the book - or the things that did happen that I didn't like were IMO softened or explained better in the films.
I suppose I'd have to go w. Fili and Kili not staying together, at the last.
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Susan
Bree
Oct 4 2015, 2:56am
Post #3 of 12
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Original scenes--
Favorite: Gandalf's "Why the Halfling" speech. It was a thoughtful compilation of themes throughout both The Hobbit and LOTR.
Least Favorite: Tauriel's healing scene. Not a huge fan of the glowing thing.
Book-to-film scenes--
Favorite: Riddles in the Dark.
Least Favorite: I'd have to concur with Fili and Kili's deaths, because I can't think of much else.
On a tangent, I love how you can see the differences between Elven and Dwarven armor in Avandel's picture  . Straight zigzag lines on Thorin's breastplate, curving, slightly leaf-shaped designs on Thranduil's armguard. (Sorry about the irrelevancy, but it just caught my eye)
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lionoferebor
Rohan
Oct 4 2015, 1:54pm
Post #4 of 12
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On a tangent, I love how you can see the differences between Elven and Dwarven armor in Avandel's picture . Straight zigzag lines on Thorin's breastplate, curving, slightly leaf-shaped designs on Thranduil's armguard. (Sorry about the irrelevancy, but it just caught my eye)
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Avandel
Half-elven
Oct 4 2015, 6:15pm
Post #5 of 12
(1780 views)
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On a tangent, I love how you can see the differences between Elven and Dwarven armor in Avandel's picture . Straight zigzag lines on Thorin's breastplate, curving, slightly leaf-shaped designs on Thranduil's armguard. (Sorry about the irrelevancy, but it just caught my eye)   , and IMO DID form a cohesive aesthetic for the different cultures. These films don't get enough credit, I think, for that alone - or the stellar performances.
So one thing to NOT dislike, IMO, is PJ's vision of Middle Earth - it always seems to end up richer than I could have possibly imagined.
Fascinates me how this reddish fur looks black or sable in BOFA - guess that was that "cameras sucking the reds out???"
Supposedly ASMUS toys will be making a Thranduil figure in the armor - *want* and I hope they do Thorin, I hope they do Thorin....
http://www.thelandofshadow.com/...th-figures-at-stgcc/
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Kilidoescartwheels
Valinor
Oct 4 2015, 6:44pm
Post #6 of 12
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Original scenes: Most favorite, hm, toughie. There's a few, I like Goth Galadriel (in fact I've said how much I liked the DG storyline), the Legolas & Tauriel fight scene in Bard's house, and the ice fight scene between Thorin & Azog. Least favorite original scenes are about half of the Alfrid scenes - a little would go a long way, but too much is just too much.
Book-to-film scenes: REALLY tough call, and mostly Bilbo. I like the Gollum & Bilbo scenes, the Smaug & Bilbo scenes are also good. But I think my favorite would be the Ramparts scene with Thorin. Least favorite, hm - I would say Fili & Kili's deaths, because that was my least favorite scene in the book, but the film didn't really follow that very closely so I don't know if that would count. The other choice is the way Bard killed Smaug in the film.
Proud member of the BOFA Denial Association
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dormouse
Half-elven
Oct 4 2015, 6:59pm
Post #7 of 12
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Yes - the creative side of these films is one of the things....
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... that drew me to them from the beginning and fascinates me still. It's a second story that runs alongside the actual films. Not only 'The Hobbit' but 'how we made The Hobbit', with all the exchange of ideas and experiments with materials - the problems they had, the things that didn't work out so well, the unexpected things that did work out and the personalities and styles of the different artists involved.
It's wonderful stuff, I think. Looking at it all I find there's often a second film playing in my imagination, expanded to include all the little details that might have made it in - and that not in a kick the slirting board, 'boo, they got it wrong' sense but just because they thought of so many good things. As someone who has done artistic work to commission in the past and still does it for fun, I'm in awe of the level of talent that went into creating the films (and I wish that just once I'd had the chance to work on something like it. Art work tends to be a solitary business).
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LSF
Gondor
Oct 4 2015, 7:12pm
Post #8 of 12
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Oh yes, totally agree with you. PJ and co have spoiled us creative types who love these movies with all the Appendices stuff, and I find all of it interesting- the design process, building/making things, digital effects, sound, music...
While the special features for James Cameron's Avatar aren't as extensive, WETA also did that film, and the special features show that they put the same amount of detail and love into it as they did LOTR/Hobbit.
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Avandel
Half-elven
Oct 4 2015, 7:33pm
Post #9 of 12
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Again, not to hijack the thread - LOL once I start thinking of the wonder of it all. Which I can't help, as the Star Wars machine begins to ramp up - another example of some excellent world building - but, IMO, there is nothing quite like the details and vision of PJ's Middle Earth. POTC I think too has done a good job in the past....
but - well, I just wouldn't want to be the director who follows PJ - not in design, and not with casting.
Re:
As someone who has done artistic work to commission in the past and still does it for fun, I'm in awe of the level of talent that went into creating the films (and I wish that just once I'd had the chance to work on something like it. Art work tends to be a solitary business).
Oh, how cool. What little I do - well, creativity is often lonely I think. Sometimes it's good, not having distractions - and sometimes lonely, when there is no-one to talk to (tho this past summer certain TORn members got an earful from me via PM, LOL as I angst'd over some printer color profiles *meh* )
Anyway, tho, for me, everything aesthetically in the Hobbit films, and LOTR I think just seems so RIGHT. The designs never existed before, but then PJ's teams go to work and it's mind blowing and for me, perfect - from the "fishy" Laketown to the goblin tunnels to the warmth of Bag End to the frozen Ravenhill. And the details - I love when the disks open with a tour of Beorn's house, so I can drool in comfort at the carvings and the candles....
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CamdenMcAndrews
Rivendell
Oct 4 2015, 9:28pm
Post #10 of 12
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Can't pick a favorite but I can mention scenes I enjoy
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It's really impossible to pick a "favorite" scene from the films; the only answer is, "My favorite is the scene I'm watching at the moment." However, I can mention some scenes that I really enjoy watching. I also very strongly disagree with the allegation that the movies strayed significantly far from the books. While it's true that the Hobbit film trilogy is not a rote book report about the original children's story published as "The Hobbit," nearly all of the three films is a screen adaptation of the full story of Bilbo Baggins's adventures as described in Tolkien's appendices to the Lord of the Rings and his notes and letters. The only key element that's not from Tolkien's writing was Tauriel. Quite a bit of embellishment was necessary to adapt the text to presentation as a movie, but that is always the case when bringing a book alive on screen; always.
Among the material that embellishes the story as required for a movie, I think the scene in Desolation of Smaug where Bilbo realizes how much the ring is affecting him is among the most impressive bits of acting in all the movies. Or, for that matter, in all movies ever made.
Desolation of Smaug: Bilbo Realizes How Much the Ring Is Controlling Him
Martin Freeman played that scene perfectly (or rather, Peter Jackson sure did a great job of selecting just the right version). That one moment shows Bilbo's character in incredible depth as well as telling the tale of the ring's influence on the ring-bearer. We see Bilbo's whole history here, the gentle hobbit who has just risked his life against an incredible foe for no more noble purpose than to regain possession of a tiny piece of jewelry that doesn't even have any significance as a family heirloom. This is so unlike Bilbo that the reckless will to do that must have come from something outside of him (or perhaps a moment of outright insanity); and we can see it all written on Martin Freeman's face at that moment.
This is story-telling at its finest. It's a moment impossible to capture in prose and only the greatest of actors, directors, and cinematographers could ever pull it off. But then, the same is true of almost every moment that Martin Freeman is on screen in these films.
Now, among the embellishments that don't appeal to me, I'd list Goblin Town as a scene I could do without, for several reasons. Topping the list is the many moments where the characters survive only by pure dumb luck and the invisible hand of God. The plot should advance through the cleverness and resourcefulness of the characters, never because they just suddenly got lucky.
Then there's the problem that the characters are repulsive. Making ugly characters appear ugly is good, but they should never be uglier than is necessary to show the point. Making them so repulsive that the audience looks away from the screen is one of the worst mistakes a story-teller can make. In writing, the most important concept is "never throw the reader out the story!" This adage is equally true for film-making. This is "The Hobbit," not "Bad Taste." PJ should have known better.
And a third whine about Goblin Town: The whole thing is just too silly; doesn't fit with the realistic portrayal of events in the film as historical events. There are a lot of great jokes and amusing moments in Goblin Town, but not one of them belongs in this movie.
Now, among the scenes from Tolkien that were directly adapted to the screen, I'd say that the encounter between Thorin Oakenshield and Gandalf at the Prancing Pony in Bree, in the introduction to the Desolation of Smaug, ranks high among the scenes that I most enjoy watching.
Gandalf Advises Thorin to Take Back His Homeland
The scene is from the Appendices, not the children's edition of "The Hobbit." It's not verbatim from the book, but darn close. I really enjoy the Prancing Pony (although the level of grunge in Bree as a whole is far too overdone) and especially this scene, which brings the tale of Bilbo Baggins firmly into the Lord of the Rings legendarium as Tolkien wrote it, and as Tolkien quite clearly intended.
As for direct adaptations from Tolkien's writing to the screen that I didn't really like, I can't think of a thing. I could take a lot of potshots at Tolkien's ability as storyteller, but it seems that Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens did a masterful job of skipping around the great weaknesses in the prose.
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beorn58
Bree
Oct 5 2015, 7:11pm
Post #11 of 12
(1582 views)
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book to screen moment was when Beorn carried Thorin's pierced body from the battlefield and returned to crush Bolg and scatter the goblin hordes.
Oh wait....
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These are always hard....
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