We’ve been hearing a lot about the desire for Peter Jackson to direct an episode of Doctor Who. We’ve been hearing it from Matt Smith. From Jackson, himself. Hell! Even Steven Moffat expressed interest in the idea. So why hasn’t it happened? Maybe they all just need a bit more nudging.

At the recent Lords of Time convention in Auckland, New Zealand three former Doctors, Colin Baker (Sixth), Sylvester McCoy (Seventh) and Paul McGann (Eight) all gave their support for Jackson to direct an episode,

Baker: I could only think he would make an epic Doctor Who story. I would like to be cast, not as the Doctor, even if it’s inside a furry suit. Maybe I could be a villain.

McCoy: He knows what he’s doing. If he was in charge of the budget he’d most likely want to film it on the moon and has the ability to do it. If he was using the resources of Weta they would make some amazing magic.

It’s really exciting and would be great fun and Peter Jackson has been a fan of Doctor who for years. I have been told that he’s got my Doctor Who costume, he’s also got my Radagast the Brown costume and I’m hanging on to my own clothes because he’s not getting his hands on them I can tell you.

McGann: I think he would be above trying to make anything trendy. The story would be strong. He would be ideal to make it he’s above the kind of pressure, who could lean on him. He would make the best thing we have seen.

Could this rousing approval and yearning for Jackson to direct an episode from not one, not two, but three former Doctors be what’s needed to jump start some serious talks?!? No. Definitely not. You’re mad if you think the Beeb gives a shit about what these guys say. As long as they’re not badmouthing current Who. But! That doesn’t mean their comments aren’t important. If the desire for Jackson to direct and episode of Who becomes strong enough through the fanbase, just maybe there’s a chance. Though slim, I’ll admit.

I’m a supporter of Jackson having the chance to direct an episode of Doctor Who. Are you?

Source: Waikato Times via Blastr

No Comments

Last week Peter Jackson hosted a live-streaming event for anyone who purchased The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey on DVD/Blu-ray in where he answered fans’ questions and shared footage from the second film, The Desolation of Smaug. Unfortunately, it’s not the entire event but a six minute clip has been released online and it contains a little bit of behind the scenes filming footage. It’s our first proper look at the elves in action, featuring Legolas (Orlando Bloom), his daddy, Thandruil (Lee Pace), and the new elf not found in Tolkien’s books, Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly). There’s also a pretty hilarious and extra nerdy question from Stephen Colbert, and an anecdote where Jackson may have caught The Colbert Report giving dirty mugs to their guests. Give it a watch,

Can’t wait for Jackson to start releasing those video blogs! The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug releases later this year on December 13th.

Source: Geek Tyrant

No Comments

Yesterday was the day to get your first sneak peek at the second film in The Hobbit trilogy, The Desolation of Smaug. To see it you had to have bought a Blur-ray copy of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey that came with an Ultraviolet redemption code, and then you had to remember to tune in for the livestream event . Neither of which I did, but, a lot of others bought the Blu-ray and tuned in and they of course took to the internet to share what they saw. Here’s a description of the Smaug footage screened courtesy of Cinema Blend,

The footage: Gandalf is alone in a dark and spooky tomb, with dark and spooky music backing him up. Radagast shows up and surprises him, but Radagast asks “Why am I here Gandalf? This is not a nice place to meet.” Radagast ask who is buried there, and Gandalf says “If he had a name, it’s been long since lost.” Gandalf’s staff reveals there are many other people buried in this tomb– 9, in fact. The kicker is Gandalf saying “These tombs were opened from the inside.”

Bum, bum, BUM! (Hehe, bum.) Peter Jackson adds, ”That’s a little mystery that Gandalf is exploring in The Desolation of Smaug,” and the fact nine were buried in the tomb is a pretty good clue as to whose tomb they’re in.

Cinema Blend has a real great blog of the livestream event you should go check out. The event also featured behind-the-scenes videos, not unlike Jackson’s production video blogs which he promised there’d be more of this year, as well as questions asked via video from some big names like Stephen Fry, Orlando Bloom, Dominic Monaghan, and LOTR superfan, Stephen Colbert!

The Desolation of Smaug will release this December, but until then stay tuned for those production diaries as well as our first look at some footage.

No Comments

The current Entertainment Weekly features a ton great Doctor Who stuff, not least of which is an essay from Lord of the Rings director, Peter Jackson expressing his love of the series as well what he’d take as payment to direct an episode. That’s right, Peter fuckin’ Jackson has interest in directing an episode of Doctor Who. Last fall was when we first heard this, and since then it’s been nothing but coy “maybes” from Jackson and Who showrunner, Steven Moffat. Almost like they’re hiding something, hmm…

Anyway, in EW Jackson has again expressed interest in directing an episode of Who, writing,

They don’t even have to pay me, but I have got my eye on one of those nice new gold-colored Daleks. They must have a spare one (hint, hint).

See, he needs a gold one to go with his pair of silvers, pictured above. He’s kind of a Whovian, having been a fan for years, watching the series almost since it began broadcasting.

Of course, EW couldn’t let this go without asking Moffat to comment on the development, to which he said,

You’d never get any information like that out of me!

MOFFAT!

We’re theoretically on board for anything provided we’ve got a great story.

Okay, that’s better you snarky, British bastard. What do you think guys? Could we see a Jackson directed episode of Doctor Who in the near future? Say, before Moffat and Matt Smith leave? Is this something you’d even been excited about?

All right, on to the next bit of Doctor Who news, which is a little spoilery. It seems the BBC have inexplicably released a spoiler for “The Bells of St. John.” Oops. It’s a casting reveal slip-up. Not as bad as say, had they let it out Jenna-Louise Coleman was appearing in “The Asylum of the Daleks,” but something I’m sure was meant to be a surprise. Hit the jump to find out!

(more…)

No Comments

Last week Entertainment Weekly was all about Game of Thrones, this week it’s all Doctor Who. Huh? It’s almost as if both shows are returning sometime soon. This week’s issue has two exclusive covers, the one, above, featuring The Doctor and new companion, Clara, the second, below, shows off the new Cybermen designs from this season.

In addition to the covers, EW is celebrating 50 years of Doctor Who with an issue that is, “bigger on the inside.” Haha, EW, never heard that before. It’ll feature,

our Doctor Who cover story we visited the show on location in Wales, grilled executive producer Steven Moffat about the upcoming episodes and the 50th anniversary special, which is being broadcast this fall, and luncheoned in Manhattan with [Matt] Smith. In our Who package you’ll also find a breakdown of all 11 Doctors and, perhaps best of all, an essay by Peter Jackson in which the Lord of the Rings director recounts his Who-love and announces his price for directing an episode.

Sounds like a lot of good stuff, particular the piece from Jackson, considering how many rumors were circulating about him possibly directing an episode of Who. As always, in addition to their print magazine EW will be releasing a bunch of exclusives online, so stay tuned!

And, y’know, speaking of the new companion, Clara, played by Jenna-Louise Coleman, she isn’t exactly new-new. We’ve met her twice already, once as the Souffle Girl turned Dalek and again as a 19th century governess. Both times she’s died and has now become this “impossible girl.”

Who producer, Marcus Wilson, recently spoke with TV & Satellite Week, as reported by Doctor Who TV, where he challenged fans to unravel the mystery of Clara, the impossible girl,

What’s lovely this year is that we’ve also got a thread running through these eight very different, very exciting stories – the mystery of Clara.

She’s the impossible girl. The Doctor has met her twice before and both times she died. This time he’s determined to keep her alive and to discover who or what she really is.

It’s a riddle that won’t easily be cracked. I defy anybody to guess it. Steven Moffat has found a way to lead everybody down the garden path and then knock them over with surprise at the end.

Well, he sure as hell weaved an “interesting” story with River Song, even if I’m still not sure I fully understand that mess. Think Moffat can pull of the same with Clara? Guess we’ll find out when Doctor Who returns Saturday, March 30th!

No Comments

If you want a first look at the trailer for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug you’re going to have to go ahead and buy The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey after it’s released on DVD and Blu Ray on March 19th, but before the March 24th (3PM ET) live streaming event. You’d probably be buying it anyway, but you’ve got to but it in order to get the special code that gets you into the Live Streaming Event.

You’ve also got the opportunity to submit questions on the movie’s Facebook and Vine pages for Peter Jackson‘s Q&A which follows the trailers premiere. One can expect Warner Brothers to be on top of any boot-leg versions that will pop up on the Internet and slapping Cease and Desist orders left and right, so unless you want to play tag with the Warner Brothers Legal Department all day trying to find a site with a working copy you might just want to buy it or borrow a friends code.

You could just wait . . . unless you’ve got that Hobbit itch that you can’t just scratch away.

Via: Comicbookmovie

No Comments

In a surprising, yet somehow not unexpected, change of events the release for the third Hobbit film, The Hobbit: There And Back Again, has been pushed to December 17, 2014. Surprising, because I thought the July 18, 2014 release date was their way of appeasing fans who were upset it became another trilogy. Unexpected, because let’s be honest, turning the series into a trilogy means more time is needed. This is Peter fuckin’ Jackson, he is not one to rush things.

And I’m okay with that. Let the man take his time and give us a another damn good trilogy of films. I enjoyed The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, but I know others felt it was sluggish and weak, so the next two need to be really solid if it has any hope of matching The Lord of the Rings.

What do you think of the added wait time? Is it asking too much of fans?

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug releases later this year on December 13th.

Source: Deadline via /Film

Comments (2)

Nerdy flicks didn’t get much love for this Sunday’s Oscars, but nerd love is implied when the Saturn Awards nominations are announced. Of course this is an award specifically designed and set-up to celebrate achievement in sci-fi, fantasy, action and horror, but maybe we’ll just take what we can get.

In the film categories, the winner was The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. The first chapter in Peter Jackson‘s prequel opus is the easy front-runner with a total of nine nominations, including Best Fantasy Film, Best Direction for Jackson, and Best Actor for Martin Freeman. The Hobbit will face off against Ang Lee‘s Life of Pi, which also scored a Best Fantasy Film nomination as well as a Best Performance by a Younger Actor nomination for star Suraj Sharma, as well as seven others nods for a total of eight. Coming in third was the 23rd James Bond movie Skyfall, which was nominated Best Action/Adventure film as well as additional nods in acting categories for Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem and Judi Dench. In all, Skyfall received seven Saturn nominations followed closely by dualling superhero flicks The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises with six apiece.

In TV, the dearly departed Fringe was the big winner with six nominations including Best Network Series and acting nods for series stars Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson and John Noble. Serial killer drama Dexter secured five nods, including acting noms for star Michael C. Hall and guest stars Ray Stevenson and Yvonne Strahovski. And it’s a three-way tie for third with Breaking Bad, Revolution and The Walking Dead each nabbing four nominations.

For the complete list of categories and nominees scroll down. As to when the hardware will be handed out, that’s TBA.

Best Science Fiction Film

Marvel’s The Avengers (Marvel / Walt Disney Studios)
Chronicle (20th Century Fox)
Cloud Atlas (Warner Bros.)
The Hunger Games (Summit / Lionsgate)
Looper (Sony Pictures)
Prometheus (20th Century Fox)

Best Fantasy Film

The Amazing Spider-Man (Sony Pictures)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.)
Life of Pi (20th Century Fox)
Ruby Sparks (Fox Searchlight)
Snow White and the Huntsman (Universal)
Ted (Universal)

Best Horror/Thriller Film

Argo (Warner Bros.)
The Cabin in the Woods (Lionsgate)
The Impossible (Summit / Lionsgate)
Seven Psychopaths (CBS Films)
The Woman in Black (CBS Films)
Zero Dark Thirty (Sony Pictures)

Best Action/Adventure Film

The Bourne Legacy (Universal)
The Dark Knight Rises (Warner Bros.)
Django Unchained (The Weinstein Co.)
Les Miserables (Universal)
Skyfall (Sony Pictures)
Taken 2 (20th Century Fox)

Best Independent Film Release

Compliance (Magnolia)
Hitchcock Fox (Searchlight)
Killer Joe LD (Entertainment)
The Paperboy (Millennium)
Robot and Frank (Samuel Goldwyn Films)
Safety Not Guaranteed (FilmDistrict)
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (Focus Features)

Best International Film

Anna Karenina (Focus Features)
Chicken With Plums (Sony Pictures Classics)
The Fairy (Kino Lorber)
Headhunters (Magnolia)
My Way Well (Go USA)
Pusher (Radius)

Best Animated Film

Brave (Pixar / Walt Disney Studios)
Frankenweenie (Walt Disney Studios)
ParaNorman (Focus Features)
Wreck-It Ralph (Walt Disney Studios)

Best Actor

Christian Bale, The Dark Knight Rises (Warner Bros.)
Daniel Craig, Skyfall (Sony Pictures)
Martin Freeman, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.)
Hugh Jackman, Les Miserables (Universal)
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Looper (Sony Pictures)
Matthew McConaughey, Killer Joe (LD Entertainment)

Best Actress

Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty (20th Century Fox)
Ann Dowd, Compliance (Magnolia)
Zoe Kazan, Ruby Sparks (Fox Searchlight)
Jennifer Lawrence, The Hunger Games (Summit / Lionsgate)
Helen Mirren, Hitchcock (Fox Searchlight)
Naomi Watts, The Impossible (Summit / Lionsgate)

Best Supporting Actor

Javier Bardem, Skyfall (Sony Pictures)
Michael Fassbender, Prometheus (20th Century Fox)
Clark Gregg, Marvel’s The Avengers (Marvel / Walt Disney Studios)
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, The Dark Knight Rises (Warner Bros.)
Ian McKellen, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.)
Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained (The Weinstein Co.)

Best Supporting Actress

Judi Dench, Skyfall (Sony Pictures)
Gina Gershon, Killer Joe (LD Entertainment)
Anne Hathaway, The Dark Knight Rises (Warner Bros.)
Anne Hathaway, Les Miserables (Universal)
Nicole Kidman, The Paperboy (Millennium)
Charlize Theron, Snow White and the Huntsman (Universal)

Best Performance By a Younger Actor

CJ Adams, The Odd Life of Timothy Green (Walt Disney Studios)
Tom Holland, The Impossible (Summit / Lionsgate)
Daniel Huttlestone, Les Miserables (Universal)
Chloe Grace Moretz, Dark Shadows (Warner Bros.)
Suraj Sharma, Life of Pi (20th Century Fox)
Quvenzhané Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild (Fox Searchlight)

Best Direction

William Friedkin, Killer Joe (LD Entertainment)
Peter Jackson, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.)
Rian Johnson, Looper (Sony Pictures)
Ang Lee, Life of Pi (20th Century Fox)
Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight Rises (Warner Bros.)
Joss Whedon, Marvel’s The Avengers (Marvel / Walt Disney Studios)

Best Writing

Tracy Letts, Killer Joe (LD Entertainment)
David Magee, Life of Pi (20th Century Fox)
Martin McDonagh, Seven Psychopaths (CBS Films)
Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained (The Weinstein Co.)
Joss Whedon, Marvel’s The Avengers (Marvel / Walt Disney Studios)
Joss Whedon, Drew Goddard, The Cabin in the Woods (Lionsgate)

Best Production Design

Hugh Bateup, Uli Hanisch, Cloud Atlas (Warner Bros.)
Sarah Greenwood, Anna Karenina (Focus Features)
David Gropman, Life of Pi (20th Century Fox)
Rick Heinrichs, Dark Shadows (Warner Bros.)
Dan Hennah, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.)
Eve Stewart, Les Miserables (Universal)

Best Editing

Stuart Baird, Kate Baird, Skyfall (Sony Pictures)
Alexander Berner, Cloud Atlas (Warner Bros.)
Bob Ducsay, Looper (Sony Pictures)
Jeffrey Ford, Lisa Lassek, Marvel’s The Avengers (Marvel / Walt Disney Studios)
John Gilroy, The Bourne Legacy (Universal)
Tim Squyres, Life of Pi (20th Century Fox)

Best Music

Mychael Danna, Life of Pi (20th Century Fox)
Danny Elfman, Frankenweenie (Walt Disney Studios)
Dario Marianelli, Anna Karenina (Focus Features)
Thomas Newman, Skyfall (Sony Pictures)
Howard Shore, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.)
Hans Zimmer, The Dark Knight Rises (Warner Bros.)

Best Costume

Jacqueline Durran, Anna Karenina (Focus Features)
Kym Barrett, Pierre-Yves Gavraud, Cloud Atlas (Warner Bros.)
Sharen Davis, Django Unchained (The Weinstein Co.)
Bob Buck, Ann Maskrey, Richard Taylor, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.)
Paco Delgado, Les Miserables (Universal)
Colleen Atwood, Snow White and the Huntsman (Universal)

Best Make-Up

Heike Merker, Daniel Parker, Jeremy Woodhead, Cloud Atlas (Warner Bros.)
Gregory Nicotero, Howard Berger, Peter Montagna, Julie Hewitt, Hitchcock (Fox Searchlight)
Peter Swords King, Rick Findlater, Tami Lane, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.)
David Marti, Montse Ribe, Vasit Suchitta, The Impossible (Summit / Lionsgate)
Naomi Donne, Donald Mowat, Love Larson, Skyfall (Sony Pictures)
Jean Ann Black, Fay Von Schroeder, Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2 (Lionsgate)

Best Special Effects

Janek Sirrs, Jeff White, Guy Williams, Dan Sudick, Marvel’s The Avengers (Marvel / Walt Disney Studios)
Grady Cofer, Pablo Helman, Jeanie King, Burt Dalton, Battleship (Universal)
Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton, R. Christopher White, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Warner Bros.)
Chris Corbould, Peter Chiang, Scott R. Fisher, Sue Rowe, John Carter (Walt Disney Studios)
Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan de Boer, Donald R. Elliott, Life of Pi (20th Century Fox)
Cedric Nicholas-Troyan, Philip Brennan, Neil Courbould, Michael Dawson, Snow White and the Huntsman (Universal)

Best Network Television Series

Elementary (CBS)
The Following (Fox)
Fringe (Fox)
Once Upon a Time (ABC)
Revolution (NBC)
Supernatural (CW)

Best Syndicated Cable Television Series

American Horror Story: Asylum (FX)
Dexter (Showtime)
Leverage (TNT)
The Killing (AMC)
True Blood (HBO)
The Walking Dead (AMC)

Best Television Presentation

Breaking Bad (AMC)
Continuum (Syfy)
Falling Skies (TNT)
Game of Thrones (HBO)
Ken Follett’s World Without End (Reelz)
Mockingbird Lane (NBC)
Spartacus: War of the Damned (Starz)

Best Youth Oriented Series on Television

Arrow (CW)
Beauty and the Beast (CW)
Doctor Who (BBC America)
Merlin (Syfy)
Teen Wolf (MTV)
The Vampire Diaries (CW)

Best Actor

Kevin Bacon, The Following (Fox)
Billy Burke, Revolution (NBC)
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad (AMC)
Michael C. Hall, Dexter (Showtime)
Joshua Jackson, Fringe (Fox)
Timothy Hutton, Leverage (TNT)
Andrew Lincoln, The Walking Dead (AMC)

Best Actress

Moon Bloodgood, Falling Skies (TNT)
Mireille Enos, The Killing (AMC)
Sarah Paulson, American Horror Story: Asylum (FX)
Charlotte Riley, Ken Follett’s World Without End (Reelz)
Tracy Spiridakos, Revolution (NBC)
Anna Torv, Fringe (Fox)

Best Supporting Actor

Jonathan Banks, Breaking Bad (AMC)
Giancarlo Esposito, Revolution (NBC)
Todd Lasance, Spartacus: War of the Damned (Starz)
Colm Meaney, Hell on Wheels (AMC)
David Morrissey, The Walking Dead (AMC)
John Noble, Fringe (Fox)

Best Supporting Actress

Jennifer Carpenter, Dexter (Showtime)
Sarah Carter, Falling Skies (TNT)
Anna Gunn, Breaking Bad (AMC)
Laurie Holden, The Walking Dead (AMC)
Jessica Lange, American Horror Story: Asylum (FX)
Beth Riesgraf, Leverage (TNT)

Best Guest Starring Role in a Series

Blair Brown, Fringe (Fox)
Terry O’Quinn, Falling Skies (TNT)
Lance Reddick, Fringe (Fox)
Mark Sheppard, Leverage (TNT)
Ray Stevenson, Dexter (Showtime)
Yvonne Strahovski, Dexter (Showtime)

Best DVD/Blu-ray Release

Atlas Shrugged II: The Strike (Atlas Distribution/Fox)
Chained (Anchor Bay)
Cosmopolis (Entertainment One)
The Possession (Lionsgate)
A Thousand Cuts (Lorber Films)
Touchback (Anchor Bay/Starz)

Best DVD/Blu-ray Special Edition Release

Jaws (Universal 100th Anniversary Edition) (Universal)
Lawrence of Arabia (50th Anniversary Collector’s Edition) (Sony)
Les Vampires Classics Edition (Kino International)
Little Shop of Horrors: The Director’s Cut (Warner)
Stanley Kubrick’s Fear and Desire (Kino International)

Best DVD/Blu-ray Collection

Alfred Hitchcock (The Masterpiece Collection) (Universal)
Battle Royale (The Complete Collection) (Anchor Bay)
Bond 50 (The Complete 22 Film Collection) (MGM)
Dark Shadows: The Complete Original Series (MPI)
The Ultimate Buster Keaton Blu-ray Collection (Kino Lorber)
Universal Classic Monsters: The Essential Collection (Universal)

Best DVD/Blu-ray TV Series

In Search Of: The Complete Series (Visual Entertainment)
Logan’s Run: The Complete Series (Warner)
The River: The Complete First Season (ABC Studios)
Shazam! The Complete Live-Action Series (Warner Archive)
Spartacus: Vengeance (The Complete Second Season) (Starz/Anchor Bay)
Star Trek: The Next Generation (Seasons 1 & 2) (Paramount)

Source: Blastr

No Comments

Marketing, it always comes down to marketing. Any money. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will soon be available to enjoy in the comfort of your home through a variety of different mediums: digital download, DVD, and Blu-ray; but only the DVD and Blu-ray combo packs get you the exclusive early preview of The Desolation of Smaug.

Here’s An Unexpected Journey‘s release breakdown, courtesy of Collider,

Warner Bros. has announced that The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will be arriving on Digital Download on March 12th.  For those who want to wait a week, the film will arrive on 3D Blu-ray Combo Pack, Blu-ray Combo Pack, and 2-Disc DVD Special Edition on March 19th.

So, for those clinging to the need for physical copies, of which I’m one, you’ll need to wait another week. But, you’re week of waiting will earn you a front seat to the Peter Jackson-hosted, live first look at The Desolation of Smaug on Sunday, March 24th at 3:00 PM EST. It’s all made possible because of the Ultraviolet code available with the purchase of the DVD or Blu-ray. Y’know, the code that gives you a digital copy of the movie which I’m guessing you never, ever use. Now it has real value, but again, you’ll only get one if you buy the Blu-ray Combo Pack, Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack or 2-Disc Special Edition DVD. And you can’t share the code with friends, it’s a one time use kind of thing.

Below the cut you’ll find the specs for each available version of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. Which will you be grabbin’? You could wait for the expected Extended Edition released later in the year, but then, no early Smaug preview. Oh, and don’t expect any of these to play at 48 FPS. I don’t know if that’s even possible, yet!

(more…)

Comment (1)

It’s no secret the family of J.R.R. Tolkien think very little of Peter Jackson‘s films based on the Lord of the Rings series. What has been secret is how much and why son, Christopher Tolkien, despises Jackson’s adaptation. In his first ever press interview, Christopher doesn’t mince words when it comes to what he thinks of Jackson’s films. Here’s an excerpt,

“I could write a book on the idiotic requests I have received,” sighs Christopher Tolkien. He is trying to protect the literary work from the three-ring circus that has developed around it. In general, the Tolkien Estate refuses almost all requests. “Normally, the executors of the estate want to promote a work as much as they can,” notes Adam Tolkien, the son of Christopher and Baillie. “But we are just the opposite. We want to put the spotlight on that which is not Lord of the Rings.”

Invited to meet Peter Jackson, the Tolkien family preferred not to. Why? “They eviscerated the book by making it an action movie for young people aged 15 to 25,” Christopher says regretfully. “And it seems that The Hobbit will be the same kind of film.”

This divorce has been systematically driven by the logic of Hollywood. “Tolkien has become a monster, devoured by his own popularity and absorbed into the absurdity of our time,” Christopher Tolkien observes sadly. “The chasm between the beauty and seriousness of the work, and what it has become, has overwhelmed me. The commercialization has reduced the aesthetic and philosophical impact of the creation to nothing. There is only one solution for me: to turn my head away.”

It seems the Tolkien estate, of which Christopher is the official executor, doesn’t like anything to do with the Lords of the Rings unless it’s simply the books themselves. Kind of makes me wonder how New Line Cinema and Jackson made those movies happen at all. Read the entirety of World Crunch’s interview as it has more from Christopher about his father’s work than how much he hates the movies.

Personally, I haven’t actually read the entire Lord of the Rings series – I know, many, many nerd demerits to me – but for those who have, what did you think of Jackson’s films? Did he eviscerate Tolkien’s books?

Source: CBM

Comments (10)