On the set of The Hobbit: Peter Jackson and Martin Freeman (as Bilbo)
Over the weekend I went to visit a friend in Birmingham and somehow, in between φαβα (fava), Μελιτζανοσαλατα (Melitzanosalata) and Ratatouille (the Pixar movie, not the dish in this case) we ended up on the topic of The Hobbit, browsing the official blog and watching one of the production videos. This morning another one of those vlogs popped up (via the Guardian), giving us a tour around the studios where a lot of the filming has been taking place.
As always, peeking behind the scenes is fascinating and makes me think it would be great fun to work on such a huge project like this. Hard work, exhausting, super intense for sure but the kind of thing that allows you to (I’m going to borrow a phrase from Japanese manga/dramas here) “make memories”.
At the end of the video we get to see who the camera man is (a surprise!) and we are told that there is only one more vlog to come “when we wrap in a few weeks time”. Yes, you heard right – the filming for both film 1 and 2 of The Hobbit only has some weeks go! Of course, it has long been known that the first part is set to premiere on November 28, 2012 in New Zealand, with the worldwide cinematic release to follow in December. But still… November suddenly just felt a lot closer.
Anyhooo, here’s the vlog for you to enjoy:
P.S. Also went to see Moonrise Kingdom in Birmingham at the UK’s oldest cinema, The Electric, which has been operating since 1909. I’m not sure if I will find time to review Wes Anderson’s latest - there is enough being written about this film as is, and I prefer to prioritise underwatched and little reviewed productions (you can guess which major film I’m going to make an exception for 
). If you do want a super-brief Moonrise Kingdom verdict, it was good but not amazing (7/10 maybe?). Preferably see it without watching the trailer beforehand, as it contains pretty much all the good lines.
Alua~
Wow, that was a nice behind the scenes look at the Hobbit . So many trades and skills involved.
I know! I love all these behind-the-scenes production videos, they are just fascinating. That’s why I have the Lord of the Rings extended version DVD set, it comes with a gazillion of behind-the-scenes stuff.
This is my first look at The Hobbit. I might actually go to the movie theater to see this. This would be the first time in a theater since the wife and I saw Team America: World Police. That was Halloween night 2004.
Oh my! I can’t believe you haven’t been in the cinema in … 8 years! Actually, I can, because my mom never goes either.(I can’t remember the last time she went… might have been when my sis and I were kids and once had a cinema trip as a birthday present… but that was the first time I went to the cinema, which was probably around age 8 or 9).
You should absolutely go see this on the big screen, it’s the sort of film that is one type of experience in the cinema, another when you watch it on you TV/laptop screen. You’ll never notice all the detail of all the work they put in on the small screen…
No doubt, some films have to be seen on a movie screen to fully appreciate them. Gone With The Wind is one that comes to mind. I’ve read The Hobbit countless times. I think Jackson is capable of bringing it to the big screen in a fashion that will capture the magic.
Here comes my terrible confession… I haven’t actually watched Gone with the Wind. But I did read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, years before the films came along! Actually, I only read half way through the second book of The Lord of the Rings because it was too gory for me as a (pre?)teen. Then I finally reread them all last year or so and they were a lot less gory than I had remembered!
Yup, trusting Jackson too – I think Guillermo del Toro would have offered a decent take on the story as well (if surely a different one than Jackson), but after he pulled out, only Jackson was suitable to take over the reigns. So glad he did!