Tweaking the Hobbit
Yours truly was interviewed recently for an article in regard to the changes being made to the Hobbit, and they actually used a couple of my comments. You can read the article at The Urban Wire.
Please note that I’m not that concerned about the changes so far being discussed, but I am also somewhat wary of what may come. Don’t forget that PJ did try to insert Arwen into Helm’s Deep, and there are some changes to the LotR movies that I’m not thrilled about, so consider my general viewpoint in regards to the Hobbit as…cautious.
-Rivka
17 Comments
That is awesome. I’m glad you stood up for those who are wary of the changes. (Myself included)
I actually had no idea they were adding a romance into it, and now I am sad. This movie will definitely not be what I was waiting for. =/
I didn’t realise there was going to be a romantic subplot. And I agree that Peter Jackson’s going to lose more fans than he gains if he changes so many things in the Hobbit. The female elf Tauriel was the first warning flag for me, after I saw the dwarves I’m already losing faith.
Congrats Rivka! Great to see you and CoE getting some recognicion.
As far as the article goes, I think it and you hit the nail on the head – I don’t think any of us heard the news there would be a Hobbit movie, and hoped PJ would fail. There is a lot of good will towards him for what he did right, and I had high hopes after hearing that both Ian McKellan and Christopher Lee would be back. But, a lot of us were cautious about it….some of us (like me. :P) just happen to be a bit more vocal about our feelings then others. 😛 The recent dwarf pictures have done nothing to calm my nerves (and what about the rumor that Elrond will be going into Dol Guldur).
I am right there with you, Rivka. 🙂 As with LotR, the unnecessarily changed material detracts from the appeal for me. While I agree that some changes need to be made to make films coherent and not over-burdening in information, I do not feel the same way about the unwarranted changes of dwarf appearances into something far from JRRT’s descriptions, and the love subplot. These features, apparently targeted at wide masses who, it is believed, want to see these things in movies, give me just one kind of impression – mediocrity. Characters and plots any run-off-the-mill movie could have. And mediocrity is something I do not imagine when I hear the word “Tolkien”.
Thank you for making the voice of the CoE fans heard! 🙂
Way to go, beginning and ending the article with your comments, Riv!
I share those concerns, especially any romantic angle PJ may try to insert with the Tauriel chick.
There’s at least one certain think to thank LotR and Hobbit movies about, and that’s letting people know that such wonderful works such as Middle-Earth and Aman books exist.
Despite that, every once in a while I still hear or read people say “I don’t like how Frodo / Faramir / Denethor / Gandalf” blablabla… and I feel that I have to fix that none of this stuff happened in the book.
I really wish I didn’t have to feel like it. But even if the movies fail in some things, at least we still have the books, fan art, illustrations, etc. And we must remember that there’s no way these movies can tell people everything.
I’ve come to expect changes in book-to-movie films. It’s just what happens, for various reasons. Compared to some, though, I would say PJ has done a good job at keeping the films true to the books. I found more disappointment in the “The Chronicles of Narnia” movies than I did the “Lord of the Rings” movies. I hope he doesn’t lose his game with “The Hobbit”. *crosses fingers*
There had better NOT be a romance between Legolas and this new she-elf!!!! I mean, why create a new character??? She has no reason to be in The Hobbit, so why add her? Peter is going to lose a lot of fans because of all the changes he makes. we just have to hope that he will cut her if he sees our reactions!! *crosses fingers* 🙂
I really honestly do not care what Peter Jackson does because first of all: its a movie! All directors, when they create movies that are based off books, tweak it. Disney did it with 1993 version of The Three Musketeers and I am pretty sure the director of the latest The Three Musketeers is going to do the same, but in all honesty I don’t care because it’s a movie, it’s meant to entertain people. It’s the same way with books, but when I watch a movie that is based off a book, I really do not expect much from it. However, I will agree with some of the lotr fans: this new she-elf has got to go if she is going to be Legolas’ romance because there was no mention of Legolas ever having a lover in the books and I think that’s way too much. I don’t care if she stays and is not Legolas’ lover, but if she truly is, then she has got to go!
*weeps in anxiety* I hope PJ will trash his ideas about a romantic subplot (mainstream-fanfic indeed), and Tauriel will become yet another Arwen-at-Helms-Deep. The White council I don’t mind that much, but Tauriel or whatever she’ll be called…
I am currently a bit pessimistic, but if PJ or any of his working partners have a hunch of fan-relations they will read these kind of news, interviews and querys, and change their script while they still have time.
I thought that PJ made it pretty clear when Tauriel was announced that there won’t be a romantic link between Legolas and her. She’s quite a regular Silvan elf, it’s the only think we know about her.