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Oin's parasite
Rivendell
Jan 10 2013, 9:51pm
Post #1 of 7
(709 views)
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Dwarves; and why we love them
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I'm a dwarf lover, always have been. When my older brother and his friends where running about as Aragorn and Legolas I would sure as the sun rises be Gimli (due to the fact I was shorter at the time and loved the character). So my love of all things dwarf got me the most excited for The Hobbit. I have compiled a list of what I loved about their design and culture in the film and would love to hear what you guys loved about them!
Erebor- Goodness me it was spectacular, the sheer vastness and craft of the halls where remarkable. Much better than a simple hollowed out mountain with some pillars, Alan Lee and John Howe never cease to amaze me with their designs.
The beards/hair- While many beards may have not been on Gimli's par (*cough* Kil*) there where many that rival or exceeded it! The things these dwarves could do with hair was a delight. From Thrór's beard to Nori's hair every bit of hair on these dwarves was awesome to behold.
Thrain and Dwalin's tattoos- On my second viewing I noticed that Thrain had a tattoo between his eyebrows of what looked like a mountain. But of course Dwalin out does everyone in the tattoo field, the tattoos on his skull and and his hands reading "Baruk Khazad! Khazad ai menu!"
Thorin and Company- I loved them all, nuff' said.
Dwarf women- For ages dwarf women have been a joke almost, imagining Gimli in a dress was often what seemed to be the final verdict on their appearance. But the way Peter Jackson had them looking was spectacular; not very large beards more of fuzz on the chin and long whispy sideburns often decorated with jewelry, and hair that nearly broke the clouds being braided in more ways than even Nori could dream of.
The skill of the dwarves- The way the film portrayed the machine like efficiency of a group of dwarves did not shine brighter than when they where carrying out the act of cleaning dishes. Like clockwork they where able to clean an entire dining room that had served 12 hungry dwarves and one wizard in a matter of about a minute and a half (And sing at the same time!)
The wealth of the dwarves- As all who saw the movie know, Thrór and his people had done fairly well from themselves and had obtained practically mountains of gold and gems, Thrór was often seen scuttling
about his Scrooge Mcduck sized hoard in the late hours of the night. The sheer quantity of the wealth shown was mind blowing, and the way dwarven wealth puts others in danger was shown in a mind blowing fashion as well...
Smaug's attack- This dragon terrifies me and we have not even seen him yet. The only thing comparable to the destruction he causes is a nuclear blast. And yet the dwarves meet him at their door! Once again showing the badassery of their entire race.
Bofur's hat- Possibly the greatest bit of craft to ever come from the dwarves.
Well I'm sure there are some splendid things I left out, this film was full of dwarfy goodness!
"I've got parasites as big as my arm!"
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Rostron2
Gondor
Jan 10 2013, 10:01pm
Post #2 of 7
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They've really made new definition of dwarfdom, erasing many generations of 'Hi-ho' and garden gnome mythology.
Erebor -- Loved the look, and the halls.
Beards/Hair: The art book by Alan Lee and the Dan Hennah goes into great detail on how they developed these. Beautifully done.
Tattoos: It seems perfectly appropriate to me to have some of these.
Thorin & Company: They may be all different, some ore miners, some are warriors, and some are scholars, but they all work teogether nicely.
Dwarf women: I thought the vision was a good compromise. The art book again goes into detail on how they arrived at the final design.
Skill: They're quite good at what they do. I liked their whole vision we saw
Wealth: That hoard was the best looking treasure heap in any film I've seen. It looked very realistic, not plasticky fake like Pirates of the Caribbean
Smaug: Can't wait to see the full version. That was just enough to tease us, and I expected that whole sequence almost exactly as they did it. I liked how they hearkened back to the dwarven war masks and armor to protect them against the dragon's breath.
Bofurs' hat: All the costumes are great work. The craftsmen in New Zealand did a great job on everything.
Dwarf Design: everything has their unique stamp on it. The detail is amazing, even down to thread work on the clothing.
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ashonmytomatoes
Bree
Jan 10 2013, 11:24pm
Post #3 of 7
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I've always been Hobbit-centric, myself and, at 10, looked exactly like Ralph Bashki's Pippin, but the movie has given me a much greater appreciation for Dwarves. I'd love to see more Erebor and have a closer/longer look at Dwarf women and children.
They are much more realized characters (the 13 Dwarves, that is), than in the book. I adore Bofur and don't remember anything about him from the book. Anyway, the character designs are great and the actors also do a good job making each Dwarf different. I also adore Thorin, Balin, Kili, and Fili (we need to see more of Fili, though).
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Ave Moria
Rivendell
Jan 11 2013, 1:04am
Post #4 of 7
(281 views)
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If anything in Middle Earth, I would be a Dwarf. I love to get drunk, I am loud and silly and I am covered in large tattoos.
I love the Dwarves. They know how to party, how to create great works of skill and passion and they love a good laugh. What's not to love?
-In the Darkness, a torch we hold-
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marillaraina
Rohan
Jan 11 2013, 1:26am
Post #5 of 7
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I never would have thought it before, but I've fallen in love with the dwarves. They are just wonderful. I don't know maybe it's because they are an "underdog" race. But I just love how Peter and Co have portrayed their culture and their personalities.
Even before seeing the movie I'd already started to have such affection for that group we saw in the pictures but seeing them in action - I just adore the whole raucous, loyal, sometimes opportunistic, sometimes rude, merry, bad ass bunch of them. :D
And it really makes me feel like, in retrospect, Gimli's boasts before entering Moria make a lot more sense - their creations were beautiful and wonderous and I'd imagine their food and drink would be plentiful and generous and their fires large and warm. Even seeing some of the dwarves intermixing every so briefly with the townspeople of Dale during the prologue just gave a lovely sense of how they might interact with those they consider friends. The dwarves come across as having a lot of life and energy about them.
It's hard to put into words but I really feel for them as a people and I find the individuals we've met so far mostly likable or if not likable then intriguing.
(This post was edited by marillaraina on Jan 11 2013, 1:27am)
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Beren0nehanded
Bree
Jan 11 2013, 1:20pm
Post #6 of 7
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When re-reading LotR in November I felt for the first time such a deep sorrow when they are in Moria, and I think that was due in part to this movie coming out.
Don't be hasty.
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swordwhale
Tol Eressea
Jan 14 2013, 7:46pm
Post #7 of 7
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Dwarves... why did it have to be Dwarves....
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OK. I was born the same year LOTR was. I didn't discover it until a fellow Star Wars fan dumped an epic pile of reading material into my hands and intoned, "you must read this". I paled, "Lo! In my copious free time!" Nevermind that a kid behind me in art class had said; "You look like an Elf in that shirt."
????? I had the same reaction from the first crew I played D&D with. I waved my first character sheet at the DM and said, "What do I make of this?"
He went hoooom hommmm like Treebeard for a moment, then... "Play an Elf."
"What? Like Hermie, in Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer?"
"Read LOTR."
I did. Yeah, and there was this blond guy with a bow... and... I've been drawing Elves since 1978.
Now, I live in southcentral Pennsylvania (somewhere between Gettysburg, famous for its Civil War battle and Lancaster, famous for Amish who still drive horses and buggies), our first immigrants were English and German... read Hobbits and Dwarves. They like their comfort food, their farms, they are doughty, sturdy folk, stubborn, stolid, stoic... and many of them have beards. If they aren't carrying axes, they are carrying shotguns. At least during Bambi season. Which is long. They like their red meat and eye green food with uncertainty. Despite my sharing DNA with them, I never could quite relate...
Durin you Peter Jackson. Dwarves... hot steaming smouldering doughty sturdy little Dwarves.
(I quite liked Gimli, mostly because Legolas did, oh, and that John Rhys-Davies guy, what a hoot!).
Darn you James Nesbitt... and whoever designed that darn hat (really, I have to turn that sheepskin in my studio into a hat now).
For years in fantasy art (which I have perpetrated quite a lot) I have seen short fat guys with lots of beard. Bleah.
Now along comes WETA, those geniuses of design and...
...those are Dwarves???????
Those are Dwarves!!!
I am mindblown. I am enamored of the gorgeous costumes, and the way the designers have turned a tall Elvish (Mr. Armitage) guy into a short stout dwarf with the cut of the clothes and some cool boots. And some powerful movement. I love the details. I love the various designs for hair and beard.
I truly want that hat... and so, apparently do a lot of other women. A "Hobbit" search on tumblr reveals a number of postings for "Bofur's hat". Many have deciphered the pattern and built their own, or modified ushankas and lumberjack hats they've found in stores.
I identify with the Elves, with their nature-centric, nature spirit, talking to trees and riding horses without saddle or rein (see: book, Legolas, Riders of Rohan), with The Sea Longing, and with Legolas riding back into the Huorn Wood in wonder because he saw "eyes in the trees"...
AAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHHHHH!
Kidnapped by Dwarves.
These characters are awesome. The films have developed them so wonderfully from the simple list of rhyming names in the book. The evocation of culture is wonderful: Erebor, the miners on bosun's chairs, the one Dwarf holding up a glowing hot thingie and the two ginormous hammers smashing it (that takes some guts), the Dwarf women (finally, a costume I'd look good in), the beard ornaments, the clothes, did I mention the clothes???
WETA has broken the stereotypes, stereotypes set mostly by interpretations of Tolkien's work. We see variety, diversity, character. Real people who happen to be short. Or maybe it's just that everyone else is too tall.
I must pause to defend FiliandKili. My first reaction was (including Thorin) ...??? Then I thought about it. Thorin is a central character, his kingly, lionlike appearance makes sense (or, as Richard Armitage opined, look at the diversity in the Human race, now, apply that to Dwarves). FiliandKili are young. Pedomorphosis. Juvenile characteristics. All young humanoids look pretty similar. Elves age to thirtyish and stop. Humans go on. Dwarves go on longer, getting gnarlier and tree-rootier as they age. FiliandKili aren't there yet. They are still what young humans think of as cute.
There was great posting, somewhere on tumblr, from a young lady who had a poster of Bofur on her wall. Said young lady was likely a high school or college student. ...
"So my mother just walked in my room and noticed my poster of Bofur. Of which I am quite proud of, he is by far my favorite Dwarf. She proceeds to ask me…
“Who is that ugly pirate? And why do you have him on your wall? He’s ugly!”
“Excuse you! That there is a sexy Dwarf, not a pirate.”
*looks closer at the poster*
“He’s still ugly.”
“Really? Thanks a lot, I find him quite attractive!”
“Ugly.”
Sometimes I think she does this on purpose."
This is a woman who could be obsessing over sparkly vampires with no frontal lobes. She clearly has taste. So do a lot of other folk.
Because Tolkien wrote a terrific tale. And Peter Jackson and Crew interpreted it wonderfully.
And made me love the Dwarves. All of them.
Why do I think Balin looks like Father Christmas....
Go outside and play...
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