Huh, I expected there to be a link to the new trailer.
I’m in the deeply skeptical camp. I found the additions added to the *Lord of the Rings * by Jackson and Boyens ranged from ‘tolerable, but mediocre’ (elves at Helms Deep), to cartoonish (dwarf tossing and Oliphant surfing), to bewildering pointless (more Liv Tyler!, Aragorn falls off a cliff and floats down a river). The films would have been far better without them.
Frankly, I fear we’ll find the added Radagast material to be a little bit shit and utterly pointless. Of course I hope I’ll be proved wrong but I doubt it.
There are certainly worse hands than Peter Jacksons when it comes to adapting Tolkien, and in fact, there might not be better. The man has a deep passion for the world of Middle Earth, and I trust him to show us his vision, and I trust him to take risks to do so. And, if it turns out badly, well, he still directed what is unquestionably one of the greatest adaptations of all time, and those movies will always be with us. But I don’t think it will turn out badly.
I barely remember Radagast from The Hobbit - it must have been ten years since I’ve read it. I have very little opinion on him as a character, or a wizard. But I happen to be a very big fan of Sylvester McCoy from this other little sci fi show he was on some years back, so the geek in me is doing cartwheels at this news.
He was the backwards universe guy from Vision On.
You barely remember him from the Hobbit because he was mentioned exactly once:
“I am a wizard,” continued Gandalf. “I have heard of you, if you have not heard of me; but perhaps you have heard of my good cousin Radagast who lives near the Southern borders of Mirkwood?”
Not really much to go on there…
Huh, interesting stuff in that trailer. Re: Radagast, one scene apparently depicts Radagast mind-reading a squirrel to get the first news of the presence of the Necromancer/Sauron. And riding a sled pulled by bunnies or something. Very strange.
Hmm, I also see a thunder giant, or whatever it was called in the book, flinging boulders in the misty mountain scenes.
And from the trailer it appears Galadriel has been shoe-horned in to add to the padding as well…
Do Americans not know what a hedgehog is?
Hedgehogs are not in North America, if that’s what you mean, except imported for pets in the few places that allow them. And how common are they down in the antipodes, considering they never got down there? The spines aren’t immediately noticeable, but now that you mention it, yeah, I see it.
Thorin reminds me of a vampire. And Gollum is in full cute blue eyed Sméagol mode.
They were really common in NZ, so presumably they were introduced by the British immigrants for some misguided reason. Not sure about here in Australia, though, I haven’t seen any.
It appears that Jackson and company have confused Middle-earth with Narnia. Oh dear.
Agreed.
That, or Lower-Middle Earth.
Not shoe-horned at all; a significant part of the film will concern the White Council’s dealings with “The Necromancer”. While this was all done “off screen” in The Hobbit, it’s described in the appendices to The Lord of the Rings, and was contemporaneous with the events of The Hobbit; it’s why Gandalf left before the company entered Mirkwood. Galadriel was a significant player in the White Council, so there’s every reason to expect her to play a role in the film. It’s the same reason we’ll see Saruman again.
There’s a difference between forcing a character into a story just because they’re popular/cool/whatever, and using a character who, while not explicitly mentioned or described, has every reason to be present (like Legolas and Galadriel).
Not the whole time: here’s a compilation of alternate endings to the latest trailer. I must admit, if those are the kind of additions we’ll see (none of those are from the book, IIRC) then I’m good with it. Nothing there sets off my Aragorning-off-a-cliff vibes. Good humour with the Gandalf wagering and “more of a letter opener, really” line, and a bit of very Freeman slapstick.
Sure there was!
The journey before you
May be long and filled with woe
But you must escape the gay man’s ass
Or your tale can’t be told…
Oh, forgot to add - loved, loved, loved Gandalf’s use of the same lines as Pippin’s song (in the actual trailer)
And of course there was singing - does
Tril-lil-lil-lolly
The valley is jolly
not ring a bell? 
No…
:eek:
Just from the trailers, I suspect it will be impossible to re-read the book without picturing Martin Freeman as Bilbo…
Stone-giants - they only came out to play when it was thundery up in the mountains. They’re not mentioned otherwise, though Gandalf talks later on of seeing if he can find a “more or less decent giant” to block up the cave the goblins used to ambush Thorin’s company.