|
Post by Stormrider on Nov 26, 2006 10:26:18 GMT -6
Ian Holme was a very good pick for Bilbo IMHO after seeing how he portrayed him in the movie.
I think PJ wanted to keep ages similiar to how we see them when he made the movie. In the movie, Frodo did not wait another 20 years only a few more weeks or months. When Gandalf left him on the 111th party, he also instructed Frodo not to use the Ring. It was still sealed up in the envelope when Gandalf came back, so we have to assume that Frodo never touched it until he was on the road with Sam. At least movie-wise.
|
|
|
Post by Andorinha on Nov 27, 2006 5:45:34 GMT -6
Desi, yeah, in the books they talk about Bilbo going on and on, never getting much older in appearance than a Hobbit in his fifties, while Frodo seems to have the same "luck," never getting much older than his late thirties. In this case, maybe PJ found it too difficult to make a convincing 50 year old hobbit (36 to our eyes!) out of Ian Holm. When they had the flashback scene to Bilbo (Ian Holm) finding the Ring in the Goblin tunnels, they did a fairish job of de-aging Holm, but I remember thinking he still looked too old even then -- he looked like a fifty year old Big Folk, not a fifty year old (36) Hobbit. If PJ could not quite get Bilbo-Ian to look the right age six years ago, what will they do in 2009 when the movie might be finished?
Stormrider, yep, I think you hit the nail on the head, PJ was not trying to follow the chronologies of the book very precisely, so we wind up with a very youngish Frodo, and a much too old looking Bilbo in the Party scene of the film version.
I think, taking the film as a separate entity, it still worked out back in 2000, most viewers would probably never make the connection, and Ian Holm as an older appearing Bilbo gave the right tone for a "proper" Uncle-Nephew" relationship. But can they pull it off a decade later, especially when Bilbo will be the main character on screen? Reminds me of a genuinely fifty year old Mary Martin playing the part of an 11 year old Peter Pan on stage in New York, she still looked 50...
That said, I agree with you that Ian Holm did a splendid job, his character portrayals are always solidly entertaining, and I'd like to see actor continuity among all the films, but can they DO it convincingly?
If New Line do dump PJ, I'll bet all the characters will be played by different actors, though I liked the Gandalf, Elrond players well enough to want to them reprise their roles.
|
|
|
Post by Stormrider on Nov 27, 2006 7:20:51 GMT -6
I agree that I would like to see Gandalf and Elrond played by the same actors. It would make The Hobbit movie flow into PJ's LOTR movie much more smoothly.
In the case of Bilbo though, are there any actors out there that might look similar to how Ian Holmes would have looked when he was younger? If there are, I sure hope they can act as well as Ian Holmes so Bilbo's character is portrayed well.
|
|
|
Post by Andorinha on Nov 28, 2006 20:34:59 GMT -6
Hmmm, you know, offhand, I do not know anyone who could double for "Sir Ian Holm," usually there are "look alikes" available, but are there any with the sort of skill needed to carry off the staring role?
I looked Ian up on wikipedia, he was born September 12, 1931... 75 in Big Folk years?
|
|
|
Post by Desi Baggins on Dec 1, 2006 20:39:37 GMT -6
I found this info on others who have played or voiced Bilbo
In the 1966 BBC Radio serialization of The Hobbit, Bilbo was played by Paul Daneman.
In the 1977 Rankin/Bass animated version of The Hobbit, Bilbo was voiced by Orson Bean (born July 22, 1928). Bean also voiced both the aged Bilbo and Frodo in the same company's 1980 adaptation of The Return of the King.
In Ralph Bakshi's 1978 animated version of The Lord of the Rings, Bilbo was voiced by Norman Bird. Billy Barty was the model for Bilbo, as well as Frodo and Sam, in the live-action recordings Bakshi used for rotoscoping.
In the BBC's 1981 radio serialization of The Lord of the Rings, Bilbo is played by John Le Mesurier.
|
|
|
Post by Andorinha on Dec 1, 2006 22:10:48 GMT -6
Oh, neat stuff, Desi, I never thought to look at alternative productions, aren't there some ongoing stage versions of The Hobbit right now? Maybe they look for someone already familiar with the requirements of the role, someone a no older than 35 - 50? LOL!
Well, with so many good actors out there, they've got to be able to find someone who at least fits the bill, continuity with Holm in looks and manner?
|
|
|
Post by Stormrider on Dec 2, 2006 8:20:20 GMT -6
I was also thinking about who the producer/director should be. All I hope is that whoever it is will have the passion and desire to make The Hobbit movie as Peter Jackson had for LOTR.
I don't know if Sam Raimi has read Tolkien's works nor how he feels about them. If he doesn't have the passion, how can he produce a movie based on a story of this caliber without having a great desire to do it right?
|
|
|
Post by Androga Erindalant on Dec 23, 2006 7:38:23 GMT -6
It's pity PJ won't make the Hobbit. And thus without the expertise of WETA. What about everything they used for the Hobbiton scenes in LotR? It's not wise of New Line not to settle their matters well, and I definitely can't blame PJ.
I hope they'll consider wisely whom they'll appoint as director. And I wonder about other implications of the decision. Will our old friend Ian Gandalf come along? And if they'll indeed broaden the tale with Gandalf's own matters, if other old friends like Christopher Saruman or Kate Galadriel will appear as well?
On Ian Holm as Bilbo - they did have that scene in LotR in which he finds the Ring. As it happened during the Hobbit, he could definitely play Bilbo once again, to my thoughts. As Frodo got the ring on an earlier age as Bilbo did, it is "explainable" why Frodo looked younger than Bilbo. Plus, additionally, PJ doesn't make any assumption that Frodo waited until his sixty before he started his adventure. In the movie version it could have been only a few months after. [film scenes] Bilbo leaves + Frodo gets Ring, Gandalf leaves + rides to Minas Tirith, Gandalf back to Frodo + sends him off, Gandalf goes to Saruman [/movie scenes]. Does that take a decade?
I can only hope New Line will consider their new director wisely, and don't only think of the money to earn. I hope the (new) actors will be considered well too, as the company(ies) that will work on the effects. I likely will watch the Hobbit when it comes in theatres, whoever is making it. But it will depend on how good it is made if I'll watch it more than once in theatres - which is a rarity. All three LotR movies I watched several times on the big screen.
|
|
|
Post by Stormrider on Dec 28, 2006 18:30:55 GMT -6
Well...JRRT's great-grandson, Royd Tolkien, would like Peter Jackson to direct The Hobbit Movie. Here is what he has to say at The One Ring.net: www.theonering.net/perl/newsview/8/1165850624That is a pretty strong endorsement and I hope New Line and MGM listen to what one of the family members has to say!
|
|
|
Post by Andorinha on Feb 18, 2007 8:45:24 GMT -6
Rather than start up another topic, I'll slot this announcement here. It regards the forthcoming production of a HOME style book that will outline the various manuscripts and versions of The Hobbit.
From Wikipaedia:
"In May and June 2007, Houghton Mifflin is publishing in two parts The History of The Hobbit. Much like The History of Middle-earth, The History of The Hobbit will examine previously unpublished original drafts of The Hobbit with extensive commentary by John Rateliffe."
Amazon Dot Com has a release date of May 8, 2007 for this work. I am unfamiliar with the editor, J. Rateliffe, has he done any other JRRT related projects?
Meanwhile, has anyone got any up-date information on the proposed Hobbit movie?
|
|
|
Post by fanuidhol on Feb 23, 2007 7:46:38 GMT -6
John D Rateliff: an interview (second and third to last question are the most relevent): www.montecook.com/cgi-bin/page.cgi?int_dnd30_RateliffI haven't read his work but I am aware of references to an article he wrote comparing H. R. Haggard and Tolkien called “She and Tolkien”. HotH was actually started by the late Taum Santoski sometime in the 1980's. I don't know what portion of the soon to be published books are Santoski's work, if any. There are references to Santoski in HoMe. Fan
|
|
|
Post by Andorinha on Feb 23, 2007 17:16:01 GMT -6
KOOL! Thanks, Fan, this is a fun connection, and it gives me a good idea about what Rateliff is doing here. I'm especially interested in the fact that his works will have the original version of The Hobbit in full. OK, more money to start saving...
|
|
|
Post by Stormrider on Aug 15, 2007 5:45:54 GMT -6
|
|
|
Post by Andorinha on Aug 22, 2007 21:09:53 GMT -6
Hmmm, that's interesting, making some room for PJ... Wonder if this is going to have any impact on real film content/ style? It sounds like, maybe, this a sop to the public who seem to want PJ there to maintain continuity of mood and all? Beats me.
Anyway, 2009 does not sound too terribly far away.
|
|
|
Post by Stormrider on Aug 23, 2007 6:07:49 GMT -6
I wonder how much of the old Hobbiton set is left and whether they kept the greenery that they planted in that area when they decided on the location for The Shire set. I remember reading they had found the location, planted trees, bushes, crops, and added the buildings so that it would have enough time to grow before they began filming.
It would be a good idea to have PJ's affiliation and Weta's collection of tools, weapons, housewares, etc. to keep the same feel to The Hobbit as PJ's ROTK series. It would be a shame to have The Hobbit feel a lot different.
But hey, they switched directors on the Harry Potter movies and kept the same atmosphere--at least I thought they did.
|
|