The Hobbit Hole III - Journey to the Cross-roads!

[HairOfTheDog]

Welcome to The Hobbit Hole!

Journey to the Cross-roads
The Two Towers Edition

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.

[Sam Cree]

"Corporate America is swarming with orcs these days"

Why do you suppose that is? Makes me think of the founding fathers insistence that their experiment in freedom required a "virtuous people."

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

Welcome back! You were missed! I certainly understand your reasons for being away, and you have all my sympathy and best wishes. Visit us when you can, please! :)

[Sam Cree]

maybe partially a result of the PC doctrine that nothing is anyone's fault, and that responsibility belongs to government. Someone forgot to tell the exec types that those doctrines are only for "workers."

[osagebowman]

Hair; got back some time ago but whew, a whole lot of posting and reading going. Through a fortunate set of circumstances was able to attend the 3 pm show at our local theather. Susan got the tickets this morning, our showing was about half full, not so the later one, that was a truly impressive line to get into it. Most all age groups represented.

The movie was incredible, actually gave myself a bit of head ache from 3 hours of rapt attention.

Yes, the movie is not the book, still an awesome movie. Will definitely need a second or third viewing to get it settled comfortably into place. Wow, what a vision it was.

Okay, a few minor, repeat, minor grumps, the oliphant was how tall?, way out of scale. Eowyn got shortchanged. Faramir, not sure yet. Eomer, nailed it. Not comfortable with the Ents, but that is Jacksons' vision so will have to accept it, and doubtless will come enjoy it subsequent viewings.

Fanghorn forest was superbly crafted.
Cheers for superb work by WETA's craftsman on armor and weaponry.

Helm's Deep, WOW. The cuts to the other stories lines were probably made to prevent sensory overload. So much happening - needed a breather to get ready for more. Probably would have passed out from forgetting to breathe occasionally.


Smeagol/Gollum - stellar.

[Sam Cree]

Good night All

[2Jedismom]

I'm going to bed too. Good night everyone. It's been a adrenaline powered day!

[Sam Cree]

Good night, 2J!

[Overtaxed]

You have Freepmail!

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

OK, I'm all caught up!

Ooops, everyone else gone to bed? Or to the movie?

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

I know what you mean about hearing the HH regulars in my head during the movie. I kept thinking of how folks here would react to certain scenes...

Gimli's short little legs trying so hard to keep up... swish! swish! swish! go his snowpants...

Haldir's reaction to Aragorn's hug... "Don't touch the hair!"

Seeing the movies all together at the Moot is going to be very, very interesting....

[JenB]

I should not be here. I should be sleeping. But WOW! I cannot believe that movie.

Short run down, I'll write something longer tomorrow. It was, IMO, better than the first. The action was faster and there were no "nuclear Galadriel" scenes that I hated on first glance.

Helm's Deep was incredible. I loved the bits leading up to it; scenes of the army moving in, arming the boys, Aragorn and Theoden donning armor. The battle itself - was that really 45 minutes? No way.

Elves. How cool. There they are, arriving to fight a battle that's not their own, to give their immortal lives for mortals. Wow. I almost cried when Haldir died.

Aragorn has competition! Faramir is lovely to look on, and the changes to his character weren't too horrible. I want to write more about that later. Basically I think changing two things would have made him better.

The final charge of Gandalf and Eomer was incredible.

The things I didn't quite like; the Ents didn't look right, and Gollum's face was not what I had pictured. Also I'm sorry they didn't keep the almost-repentance scene, where he sees Frodo sleeping and is about to repent, I think, when Sam wakes up. But maybe that will be in the next one.

Also, was that or was that not a three-hour essay on the premise that there are things worth fighting for, and that those things must therefore be fought for?

[sneakers]

Well, it's 1:43 in the morning and I just got back from seeing TTT. What can I say that hasn't already been said? I had chills, goosebumps, tears, laughter and wonder. When I first got in line (I went alone to the 10:30 show), I heard the comments of folks coming out of the previous showing. Comments like "That was awesome!", "It was worth it", and other similar remarks. This movie was packed just like the earlier one. I didn't even feel tired - the movie had me so enthralled. It's now starting to hit. I'm going again on Saturday - this time Mr. Sneakers will come with me. Good night everyone - I will sleep happy, but longing for the RoTK.

[John Farson]

These objections will likely fade with repeat viewings.

I went to see it again tonight. It is much more enjoyable the second time. Because I'm familiar with the story, the first time through I was anticipating the story -- attempting to guess what was coming next.

The editting still seems a little "off". An extended cut may improve this film more than FOTR.

Now, I'm trying to find time for a third viewing.

[HairOfTheDog]

Hi! - Back from my second view a little while ago.

I just wrote out a long post about my current take on it. and, through clumsiness or fatigue, just lost the whole thing! Blast!

I am too tired to write it all out again!

In short, I loved it more this time around. I have a couple of raves that I appreciated more than the first time around, a couple of things PJ did that I understand better, and a couple of issues that have held through the second view. I guess we will have more time for those to come up again when I can write them all down without losing it! I am so mad!

But tired too. Oh well. I will go think on it while I go to sleep! Talk to you all in the morning!

[Valin]

I just got back from seeing The Two Towers. I am a little disappointed, not by what he left out but by what he put in.

[LinnieBeth]

...The whole side trip to Osgiliath with Faramir was unnecessary, IMHO. More than that, it was a nearly complete savaging of Faramir's character.

I'm glad you said that. I felt the same way. The contrast between brothers was something Tolkien wrote with such sincerity, and Faramir-the overlooked brother- had such depth and spiritual 'insight' that I felt the whole episode with Faramir was done by Jackson so as it lost Tolkien's "intent".

There were more scenes that were fabricated in TTT, but mostly the intent was there. With Faramir, Osgiliath, Fell Beast- I thought the writers just did not keep the nuiances that the book had, and in fact, kind of turned Faramir's character upsidedown.

I think you may have said it better than I, rosebear, but it did seem that this "invention" is the one that really ditches the original inner virtue of Faramir - and he comes off more of a clod than his brother.

[HairOfTheDog]

Interesting.... Are you still collecting your thoughts on it? Can you ellaborate?

[HairOfTheDog]

This will probably be one of the more talked about subjects in the month to come!

I don't think he is more of a clod than his brother.... I think he is a rather sympathetic character in the film. He was not rash like Boromir, he didn't lose his composure and take the ring for himself or act brutish, only decided to take them all to his father. I thought his reactions were reasonably true... In the book he didn't automatically release Frodo either. It needs to be explained, or demonstrated, for it to make sense for him to let it go. If he wasn't seriously tempted to take it, then the premise that all are tempted is false, and wouldn't make sense.

[HairOfTheDog]

OK - Energy has run out! Going to bed! This has been a long 24 hours!

[LinnieBeth]

Valin wrote:" I am a little disappointed, not by what he left out but by what he put in.

I'm feeling that too, Valin. It was a good movie, but am vaguely disappointed, and with the additions.

It seems that the quick and easy "good vs. evil" explaination is there, but subsequent readings impressed me most with Tolkien's way of demonstrating the awesomeness of "Free Will". Guess it's that 'free will' thing that gets me with the Bible too.

I suppose that's the thing that most disappoints me with his depiction of Faramir. In the book, he had such a solid grasp of the situation, and inner fortitude to follow his 'good spirit' that it made his aquaintance and persistence in drawing Eowyn to himself so moving.

What they've done in TTT diminishes the Faramir/Eowyn union, IMHO.

We've known that the Aragorn-Warg attack-Arwen thing was coming, and that Faramir had been weakened in the movie. I just missed some of the internal strength in both Faramir and Eomer that I sensed in the books.

Loved the appearance of the White Rider ! accurate or not.