There’s some interesting stuff in Quint’s interview with Peter Jackson at AICN today.
Basically, Jackson explains that… and this is hard to believe… nobody at all has ever even phoned him to ask him if he’s interested in directing The Hobbit. He’s filling up his work calendar, MGM’s talking about making the movie in a couple of years, and nobody’s bothering to check to see if he’ll do it.
And frankly, when I hear him talk about how much he would alter the story if he did do it, I’m kinda hoping they give it to someone who will stick with the story that Tolkien told.
Hmmm . . . Just as I feard, Jackson seems to want to turn it into a sort of *prequel/sequel* to LOTR, if you take my meaning. To make it into another LOTR rather than film what The Hobbit is & was intended to be. He’d make it a chance to bring his LOTR stars back for another go ’round. But at what expense to Tolkien’s story? He sure doesn’t seem interested in being at all true to the original story & its tone.
There’s gotta be someone out there who can capture the enchantment & wonder of the story – with all its whimsy & cool weirdness – as well as that sense of adventure & danger that tingled our spines when we read it in 5th grade.
And, hopefully, MGM will have the guts to allow that person to do it!
Um, that’s “feared” – I plead Monday.
In my opinion, the Hobbit is a stronger piece because it is more innocent. It makes a nice contrast to the terror that will come.
If you want a backstory movie for LotR, it would be better to somehow put together the Silmarillion. The only way a movie for it could work would be very experimental as it could not be a traditional Hollywood plot – the only director I think who could handle it would be Mel Gibson. But an HBO like series would be nice.
I don’t have the same negative reactions. I love The Hobbit and LOTRs. I read both sets in the 5th grade and while LOTRs was more complex writting, they share the same world and the same dangers. I think any movie with spiders and dragons and orcs (goblins) would be pg-13 anyway, so it will not be a children’s movie. It doesn’t have to be dark, but it will be scary at times.
I also like the idea of having some of the same actors in parts. Only don’t make the parts too large, more like cameos. That would be fun and would not take away from the story – seeing Legolas whispering to his father, seeing Sauruman and Gandalf talking, maybe even seeing a brief shot of Strider…
I’m not opposed to another director, but let’s not be hard on PJ who did a bang up job on a set of movies we all love to death.
Let’s just hope the movie(s) get made and get made well. Period.
Jeff,
I think you’re right that Lewis would have liked del Toro’s film. Whether del Toro was impressed by Wardrobe or not, that book and del Toro’s film have a lot in common.
I don’t think Tolkien would have been impressed, though, for the same reason that Lewis’ stuff bugged him: the mixture of fantasy with the real world. And as with Lewis’ fantasy, the real-world stuff in Labyrinth is too trivialized. For Tolkien, fantasy “cleaned our windows” without muddying them first.
Jeff,
I think you’re right that Lewis would have liked del Toro’s film. Whether del Toro was impressed by Wardrobe or not, that book and del Toro’s film have a lot in common.
I don’t think Tolkien would have been impressed, though, for the same reason that Lewis’ stuff bugged him: the mixture of fantasy with the real world. And as with Lewis’ fantasy, the real-world stuff in Labyrinth is too trivialized. For Tolkien, fantasy “cleaned our windows” without muddying them first.
One, and only one, of those movies has now gone on my “to see” list. 🙂
Good reviews both, though.
One side comment: You wrote, “You might guess that Flags would be the film most likely to win acclaim at the upcoming Oscars.” Er, actually, I would EXPECT Letters to be much more likely to win acclaim at the Oscars. A movie that glorifies the enemy of America? Many in Hollywood act out of a desire to be seen as more “world-oriented” rather than “American.” This film gives them an ideal chance to demonstrate that. Just my opinion.