The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (Post-release)

[jaganar]

Re: The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

There's a surprising number of people that haven't read them. I read them all decades ago, so I'm good.

in the films the only thing i praised him for was that he finally showed LEGOLAS'S true face , ( the doucehbag

Spoiler

really , you c**kblocked KILI and Tauriel in the second movie , let your dad TALK TRASH ABOUT HER WITH YOU SHUTTING YOUR MOUTH NOT DEFENDING HER HONOR and had the FRAKKIN NERVE TO SAY YOU LOVE THE GIRL ??? then 5 ARMIES happens and you just walk away like the PUNK CENSORED you are . im honestly not mad that it ended with ONEHAND cus even tho readers knew it was coming , everyone else was expecting it to be different, but X went out like a bad a55 ; you mean to tell me after all that elf magic that not one of those SoB's could bring X back

come on man sheesh .

but i digress , books are books man and it sometimes takes a TEACHER to bring out interest in a writer ( my english and social studies teachers were avid readers and inspired me to find their favorites ) kids today have it waaaaaay tooo easy and need instant gratificiation rather than go out and enjoy a good search .

 

[jaganar]

I'm also confused at how the men of Dale were able to defend and outlast thousands of orcs.

remermber TRANSFORMERS 3 when our entire planet was invaded YET 9 autobots saved the world ?? it gets worse when the HERO wins inSPITE of common sense ( to this day i think that North korea and RUSSIA have been conquered in the bay-universe .)

 

[Laspector]

Well, I don't care what anyone says, I love these movies--all of them. But that's just me. My first introduction to Tolkien was the Bakshi version and I loved the surrealism of it. Then the Rankin Bass stuff, then I read the books. Yes, the books are classic, but I didn't read them until I was about 17. This was my first experience of the entire "book vs movie" thing. Not just with Tolkien, but in general all around. So I kind of have a skewered take on that whole system of thinking. I'm usually the person saying "I wish the book was more like the movie." I remember reading the books just wishing I could hurry up and get to the parts I was familiar with from the animated stuff. But again, that's just me.

So this four day Thanksgiving holiday was the last of my "first" visits to Middle Earth. By "firsts" I mean there is my first viewing in the theater, my first viewing of the disc, and then my first viewing of the Extended Editions. Sure, I watch them more than that, but usually by that time it is reduced to them just being on television and I will watch them, whether it's just pieces of them or maybe even the entire movie. But there is rarely, if ever, a time I schedule to sit down, turn out the lights, pop the popcorn and watch them. But I never tire of them.

With all that being said, I will always love to immerse myself in this world with these movies. They have been a part of my life for so long, that to me, it's not just the movies themselves, it is the memories of when and where I was when I first watched them. These movies have seen me through me giving up my job, my girl, all my friends and leaving the big city to move back to my small hometown. They've seen me through my first marriage and eventual divorce. They have seen me through meeting my second wife and her untimely tragic death. Four different changes in employment. Friends that have come and gone. A lot of ups and downs.

So again, this Thanksgiving holiday was the last of my "firsts" for Middle Earth and I will admit, it got me quite emotional. With the Extended Edition of The Battle of the Five Armies, over the course of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, I spent almost twelve hours, on and off, snuggled up on my couch, my black Labrador laying across my lap watching the movie and the Appendices. The last part on disc 3 is the final goodbyes of the cast and crew and I actually shed a tear or two, knowing this part of my life is over. Yes, I will see them again, but the "firsts" are gone.....I will miss them.

By the way, the Extended Edition of BOTFA is really good! A lot is added that really fleshes it out well.

 

[FrontaLittle]

- Spoilers ahead -
I've watched the entire extended trilogy on sunday and I gotta say it enhances the second and third part. I'm still disappointed by the movies but they are better now with the extended material. First one not so much, unless you have a thing for naked dwarves but I always found the first one to be the best of the trilogy anyways.
Second one benefits from more scenes at Beorn's place, especially Gandalf's introduction of the party from the book. Mirkwood is also way better now with the stag and Bombur falling asleep etc. but as soon as Legolas and Tauriel show up, I wanna turn off the tv.
Now the battle of the five armies finally feels like a battle. We get to see dwarvish war machines and where the heck those goats came from and I really enjoyed the battle scenes. But the whole movie feels like a pendulum, swinging from "Awesome" to "WTF" moments like Dain headbutting orcs unconcious or Bifur losing his axe. Why, Peter, why ?