Posted on 12/17/2002 7:32:02 AM PST by HairOfTheDog
Come on! Come in! -if you would like to have some seedcakes and a pint and relax a while. (If it is a special occasion, we still have a few bottles of the old wineyards left!)
Our first thread ( New Zealander builds Hobbit hole ) reached 4,100 posts, and we thought that was big. Our second thread (The New Hobbit Hole ) held us for over 48,000 posts, and we loved it dearly. We talked about moving to a new thread for the last 38,000 posts, but we are really slow to muster! Finally, the time has come. Tomorrow (at 12:01 am, to be precise!) The Two Towers comes out, and we start a new chapter.
Snow is falling and the world is still pretty in white (none of that nasty brown road slush yet). The schools are closing left and right because in MD 1 or 2 inches of snow is a civic emergency. I can't decide if it is snowing because I finally washed the salt off my truck from the last storm or because I'm not teaching anymore. I'm leaning toward the latter. The powers of the universe are bound and determined to deny me a snow day. :( (When I was teaching, I was accused of bringing my beloved southern Arizona weather along with me which resulted in hardly any snow days.) Ah well, can't complain. I have way too many blessings to do that.
Now, random and rambling thoughts that accrued over the weekend: Where is Andy Serkis? I, like most who post on these LoTR threads, think the guy needs an Academy Award. It was rather disappointing to discover that such things need to be actively campaigned for- SO WHERE IS HE? I still don't think I've seen him. They supposedly remodeled Smeagol (isn't it hard to think of him as Gollum, now?) to resemble Serkis, so why isn't he all over the shows? Why aren't we seeing their faces side by side and saying "Oh isn't that amazing!"
Speaking of campaigns, it is time for the Academy to evolve. It is ill-equipped to handle movies such as these. One change that needs to happen is a new category for "best ensemble". The Brits have one and without one, none of our beloved characters will ever be rewarded for their work. You can't point to any one character and proclaim him the "lead" or a "support" because they each take turns in those roles.
Another new category should be 'ensemble character' for the CGI characters that are modeled on an actor such as Serkis. The new award would not only reward the actor but the animation team, too. While we're at it, let's add in a "film cycle" award for multi-part movies and reward the whole 'trilogy' all at once.
Now, a thoughtful academy could finesse the existing categories to get the job done. But considering the average IQ of those who get to vote in this process, LoTR will never be recognized without new categories. PJ is forcing the industry and the art to evolve and the Academy has a lot of catching up to do.
So where is Serkis?
Ok, back to work for a while. I have a spreadsheet to finish fillin in...
We are all thankful for that!
Good morning everyone!
No, I was looking at all the battle scenes and obsessing over Legolas!
LOL Rose!
Score one for the elf lovers among us.
Ringer Spy wizardlex sent in a link to pictures from a 2003 calendar of The Return of the King that can be found at HollywoodDreamsOnline.com. The calendar features some awesomely new pictures from (amongst others) Denethor, Gollum, Frodo in Shelobs Lair, Gandalf and others. The quality of the scans are a bit poor but don't let that stop you! [More]
Click the [More] link above to see all of them....
Here are two:
Sorry I couldn't check back in yesterday, but Glen had monopolized the computer with a pinball game I won through a sweepstakes. Between him and Becky, I can't get a minute with the PC - they both love their games! :)
Today is my birthday (30 - I can't believe it!) so let's have a good breakfast! A HUGE ham, cheese and mushroom omelet, sausage links, 2 platters of bacon (I'll save the grease), hash browns, fresh buttermilk biscuits and pancakes with maple syrup. Plenty of hot coffee (very strong today) and some orange-banana-pineapple juice to wash it down with. ENJOY!
Corin - prayers continue for you and yours. God never gives us more than we can handle, but He sure does love to push the envelope sometimes, doesn't He? :)
2J - I agree with everything you said about the friends we've found in the Hobbit Hole. All of you are closer to me than most folks I know in person. It's really funny since whenever something happens to me, good, bad or indifferent, one of my first thoughts is "I've gotta tell the Hobbit Holers about this!" LOL!
All that said, I'm looking forward to a delicious surf-n-turf dinner tonight. And hopefully, the place still sells escargot! YUMMY!
Thanks Ruthy. We've been hanging onto this quote from Mother Theresa:
I know God won't give me anything I can't handle. I just wish He didn't trust me so much.
;-)
(I believe it's my first official ROTK FMM)
I love those little guys!
Where's my smoking dude? LOL!
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