'The Hobbit': Peace in Middle-Earth?

Fans have long dreamed ''Lord of the Rings'' director Peter Jackson would tackle J.R.R. Tolkien's ''The Hobbit,'' but a nasty legal battle with New Line Cinema has made it impossible. Now, at last, a cease-fire may be at hand

Encouraging news!! It would be nice to see "The Hobbit" on the big screen. Yes, some consider it more of a kids' story, but PJ could render it pretty intense for the screen; especially the Battle of the Five Armies! Heck, folks brought their younger kids to see the Rings movies, I don't see them holding them back from The Hobbit!

It really is a “there and back” boys adventure story, not a dark and epic struggle for the soul of the world.

For a YA, The Hobbit brought the publisher back to Tolkien quickly, demanding more. I suspect a lot of adults read it too, and someone saw potential for a more significant story set in the same universe. Tolkien rummaged through his never-finished Silmarilion, and found an era where he could shoe-horn in some Hobbits, and write a bigger story. The rest, they say, is literary history.

I have to admit, even after a half-dozen readings, I'm turned off by the childish exposition of the first few chapters of The Hobbit. But the tone changes, and things get more "interesting" after that.

I'm convinced that Peter Jackson was the right person at the right time to do what was considered the impossible: actually make a movie that could tell the story as best as could be done in 12 hours of film. If PJ doesn't do The Hobbit, I'll wait to see it for free on cable some day.

Jackson made Newline billions. You'd think having him do more of the same would be a no-brainer. But there is no such thing as a "no-brainer" when it comes to Hollywood.

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