/Tolkien/ teaser

**Nick** · April 30, 2019, 22:11

Thanks. I don't know whether to be excited or scared...

**bio_hazard** · May 3, 2019, 17:28

Reviews seem to be, uhh, mixed... I don't know whether I'll pay to see this in the theater.

**Pete Mack** · May 12, 2019, 22:29

Whether or not you see this, seeing Peter Jackson's WWI documentary is very worthwhile, esoecially if you can find a second-run theatre show. All voice and footage is either from British or Scottish soldiers, or lip-read dialog performed by actors. The digital reconstruction from jerky, 100 year old newsreel to smooth, clear 24-fps color is astounding. Really amazing, and do watch the director's notes after the credits. A real tour de force of animation technology turned to a different use.

**bio_hazard** · May 15, 2019, 18:31

Originally posted by Pete Mack

Whether or not you see this, seeing Peter Jackson's WWI documentary is very worthwhile, esoecially if you can find a second-run theatre show. All voice and footage is either from British or Scottish soldiers, or lip-read dialog performed by actors. The digital reconstruction from jerky, 100 year old newsreel to smooth, clear 24-fps color is astounding. Really amazing, and do watch the director's notes after the credits. A real tour de force of animation technology turned to a different use.

Yeah, I heard that was just unbelievable.

Tolkein seems to be more popular with the audiences than critics.
(different trailer through this link)

Tolkien | Rotten Tomatoes

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/tolkien

As a young student, J.R.R. Tolkien finds love, friendship and artistic inspiration among a group of fellow outcasts. Their brotherhood soon strengthens as Tolkien weathers the storm of a tumultuous courtship with Edith Bratt and the outbreak of World War I. These early life experiences later inspire the budding author to write the classic fantasy novels "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings."

**Pete Mack** · May 15, 2019, 19:04

It just blew me away. It really sets the standard on documentaries from here out. Burns' Civil War was already badly dated (I mean, Shelby Foote was the lead actor! Puhlease!) This movie puts the stake in. There is no reason that daguerrotypes should be so crummy looking anymore.

**Grotug** · May 22, 2019, 04:33

The reviews of Tolkien made it seem like it'd be good enough. I'm not surprised the audience score is so much higher than the tomatometer given the nature of the reviews. I'm finally coming 'round to realizing that what critics deem good doesn't always amount to something that is actually good or, more importantly, watchable. Heck, The Cooler got 77%! One of the most unengaging films I've seen in some time. I actually turned off the 55" tv 10 minutes before the movie was over and went to bed (you'd think if I made it that far I'd at least want to wait and finish it, right?). I could have stopped watching that movie at any point, but was bored and didn't have anything better to do at the time. How the film is certified fresh is quite mind-boggling.

I have yet to see Tolkien, but want to sometime this week. (showtimes where I live are few and odd (9am??).

**bio_hazard** · March 28, 2021, 19:19

Resurrecting this old thread, but my wife and I finally saw Tolkien movie recently. I thought it was pretty well done. The WW1 scenes were quite visceral and the added fantasy elements meshed well. There aren't deep dives into Middle Earth lore but if you are familiar with LoTR and his other writings the movie gives you plenty of places to see where ideas might have originated. I don't think this is too spoiler-y but it ends right as he's starting to write the hobbit, so there's very little about his family life and nothing about his writing/publication process. It's really a fairly small movie about the man and his upbringing, his childhood friendships, his first love, his awful experiences in the war, and how he finally combined his passion for languages and stories to start thinking seriously about Middle Earth as a life's work.

**Pete Mack** · March 28, 2021, 20:20

How does it stack up against "They Shall Not Grow Old"?

WarnerBros.com | They Shall Not Grow Old | Movies

https://www.warnerbros.com/movies/they-shall-not-grow-old

Employing state-of-the-art technology to transform audio and moving image archive footage more than a century old, Peter Jackson brings to life the people wh

It's by far the best movie of WWI I've ever seen, either documentary or drama. And its made entirely of "remastered " newsreel and still photos, with voice-overs using the words of men--and a handful of women--who were there. And this may be heresy, but I think Peter Jackson did a better job of this than of LOTR.

**bio_hazard** · March 29, 2021, 16:37

Originally posted by Pete Mack

How does it stack up against "They Shall Not Grow Old"?

WarnerBros.com | They Shall Not Grow Old | Movies

https://www.warnerbros.com/movies/they-shall-not-grow-old

Employing state-of-the-art technology to transform audio and moving image archive footage more than a century old, Peter Jackson brings to life the people wh

It's by far the best movie of WWI I've ever seen, either documentary or drama. And its made entirely of "remastered " newsreel and still photos, with voice-overs using the words of men--and a handful of women--who were there. And this may be heresy, but I think Peter Jackson did a better job of this than of LOTR.

Very different and I wouldn't try to compare. Much more 'evocative vignettes of the horrors of war from the POV of someone with an active imagination' and not an attempt at photorealistic "you're right there in the action"

/Tolkien/ teaser

/Tolkien/ teaser

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