Many thanks to Ringer Piet for bringing this video of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies…
Continue ReadingMany thanks to Ringer Piet for bringing this video of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies Panel to our attention. Before you get your hopes too high, the teaser trailer has been excised from the video, so it only shows the Panel, but it’s still worth watching for that. Meanwhile we’ll all keep hoping they’ll release the trailer online soon.
Well, the long wait is over. Peter Jackson and his team brought much Hobbit goodness to San Diego Comic-Con’s Hall H today, and blew everyone’s minds.
To say the event zoomed past at an overwhelming pace would be a massive understatement. We’re digesting everything seen and said, and will continue to update as we work through the visuals.
In the meantime, please read on for TORn staffer Mr Cere’s insta-summary of what was shown and said! And, warning folks, if you’re avoiding the details of the teaser trailer because you’d like to see it yourself first … there are spoilers below! Continue reading “Breaking: Peter Jackson presents The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies in Hall H!”
Some of the coolest things you’ll see at Comic-Con are the Lego built characters either at their booth, other booths, and even outside of the convention center itself.
This year if you happen to make it to the Warner Bros. booth (#4545) you will get to see a Lego Smaug standing over six feet tall and weighing 411 pounds. Smaug took 625 hours to complete and includes 83,433 pieces. The folks at Lego also have some surprises for fans showing off new sets for The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies as well as an exclusive Bard figure. Continue reading “Lego Smaug coming to Comic-Con 2014”
On July 22nd, Warner Bros. will be reissuing remastered, deluxe editions of the Rankin/Bass animated classics ‘The Hobbit’ and ‘The Return of the King’.
The Hobbit Deluxe Edition Synopsis: [Amazon.com]
The place is Middle Earth. The time is long ago, when humans shared their days with elves, wizards, goblins, dragons, heroes…and hobbits. Bilbo Baggins is a hero and a hobbit, a roundish, peaceable homebody going on a dangerous quest – even though adventures make hobbits late for dinner!
In this enchanting adaptation of the first installment of J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Bilbo the hobbit is asked to recover a fabulous treasure stolen from friendly dwarfs. All he must do is brave dark forests, towering mountains, hobbit-eating trolls, huge spiders, a fiery dragon and more. Fun and amazement await – so join the quest!
Special Features:
Format: Multiple Formats, Animated, Color, Full Screen, NTSC, Original recording remastered
Language: English
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada)
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Number of discs: 1
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
Run Time: 78 minutes
[Buy on Amazon.com]
My Thoughts: It’s been many years since I last saw this, and I had forgotten how much I loved the voice talent: Orson Bean as Bilbo, John Huston as Gandalf, Otto Preminger as a very German Thranduil/Elvenking, and (my favorite) 1960’s Surrealist comic Brother Theodore as Gollum. Picture and sound are both superb. A great soundtrack by Glen Yarbrough.
‘The greatest adventure is what lies ahead
Today and tomorrow are yet to be said
The chances the changes are all yours to make
The mold of your life is in your hands to break”
The Return of the King Deluxe Edition Synopsis: [Amazon.com]
Frodo the Hobbit, the remarkable hero of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, battles more evil forces plaguing Middle Earth in The Return of the King.
The Magic Ring of The Hobbit has now become the Ring of Doom – and to restore peace it must be destroyed in the raging fires in which it was made. Chosen for the task, Frodo and faithful servant Samwise face grave perils – the worst of which is the ring’s terrible power to possess its wearer. Will Frodo give in to the madness of the ring….or will he fulfill his quest?
Special Features:
Format: Multiple Formats, Animated, Color, Full Screen, NTSC, Original recording remastered
Language: English
Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada)
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Number of discs: 1
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
Run Time: 98 minutes
[Buy on Amazon.com]
My Thoughts: It’s a shame Rankin/Bass didn’t have the chance to do ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’ and ‘The Two Towers’, as ‘The Return of the King’ doesn’t do a great job of filling in the story for those that may be unfamiliar with the first two books. The mispronunciations are a little annoying, too. Still, the film is a lot of fun to watch; the Ringwraiths are fantastic, as is Eowyn’s confrontation with the Witch King of Angmar. As with ‘The Hobbit’, the picture, sound, and voice talent are all top-notch. Orson Bean, John Huston, Otto Preminger, and Brother Theodore reprise their roles; new additions include the great Roddy McDowell as Samwise Gamgee, and Casey Kasem as Merry. Best of all, ‘The Return of the King’ includes (in this writer’s humble opinion) one of the greatest Tolkien-inspired songs of all time:
“Where there’s a whip, there’s a way.
Where there’s a whip, there’s a way.
We don’t wanna go to war today,
But the lord of the lash says nay, nay, nay!
We’re gonna march all day, all day, all day,
Cause where there’s a whip, there’s a way.”
It only makes sense, with the last of Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit Trilogy coming out this December, to have some kind of presence from Middle-earth at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con. You will get that and more to keep you happy, if you are a fan of Middle-earth! You have some of the actors who have been in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and The Hobbit Trilogy there for various projects, our awesome Laketown Luau sponsors Weta Workshop and Badali Jewlery, and of course the Laketown Luau. So with just eight days left before Comic-Con 2014, we wanted to list for you all the Middle-earth presence you will find at this year’s event.
Continue reading “Middle-earth’s huge presence at San Diego Comic-Con 2014”
Here’s a confirmation that a lot of folks have been been waiting to hear: Peter Jackson will be presenting on The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies at San Diego Comic-con.
On Saturday, July 26th, beginning at 10 a.m., Warner Bros. Pictures brings three of its most hotly anticipated films to this year’s Con: Peter Jackson will be on the main stage with “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies,” from New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, and George Miller will be on hand to present a first look at “Mad Max: Fury Road,” from Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures. Continue reading “Peter Jackson Hobbit 3 presentation confirmed for San Diego Comic-Con”
