Hobbit Trailer (and some hilarity)...

[locustsofdeath!]

Right, the Hobbit Trailer has been released: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGM1RB73Zso.

Unexpectedly, we get much more than a teaser. The footage we get to see is absolutely gorgeous, and it seems Jackson has resisted making the film too dark and the book's whimsy and humor has been retained (though we do see a bit of the serious, "darker" tone that LotR the Films had running through them). The characters...look okay...not sure how I feel about "sexy" dwarfs though. I was hoping to catch a glimpse of Smaug - or the trolls at the very least - but I understand those scenes have either not been filmed as of yet or are in post production.

Of course, IMDB has been bombarded with opinions - both good and not so good - on the trailer. After a couple of minutes of post-reading, the usual IMDumBasses made themselves known.

Poster Vlad Frost on why the Hobbit will fail to live up to the LotR trilogy:

"I still have no idea how the hell these movies could even come close to being as epic as Lord of The Rings. Come on, it's about a Hobbit and some dwarves finding treasure, with some battles here and there. Unless Jackson added some massive war with the orcs that I'm unaware of, this won't even compare to the trilogy at all. I've always hated The Hobbit. Why so many people are excited about the movie surprises me, I mean I'm assuming you guys read the book right? It's not exactly an epic story."

Um...Uh...Hmmmmmmmmm.

[Mardroid]

"I still have no idea how the hell these movies could even come close to being as epic as Lord of The Rings. Come on, it's about a Hobbit and some dwarves finding treasure, with some battles here and there. Unless Jackson added some massive war with the orcs that I'm unaware of, this won't even compare to the trilogy at all. I've always hated The Hobbit. Why so many people are excited about the movie surprises me, I mean I'm assuming you guys read the book right?"

More than he did apparently. Don't highlight if you haven't read the book:

Okay, it wasn't exactly the focus of the main story, an addendum if anything, but wasn't the Battle of the Five Armies pretty.... well... big? Considering the new films are split in two and focussing on extra elf character(s) etc, as well as the White Council and Gandalf's adventures away from the dwarves,  I wouldn't be surprised if we saw more of a lead up to those events as well. I.e. stuff that happened off-stage in the book.

Oh, and I like the trailer!

[Mardroid]

I'm not convinced Thorin and Kili look particularly dwarf-like though.

[Colin_YNWA]

Looks good and hope that Locusts comments about the tone carry through to the movie as a whole. Its a wonderful kids book (so much more in my mind that LoTR which I'm not a fan of) and I hope the films remember this and don't try to make it too much a direct link to the three pretty poor films (I know I know but I'm a fan of neither book nor films) that follow. In terms of tone of not story.

Its a wonderful kids story please, please please remember that...

[TordelBack]

Its a wonderful kids story please, please please remember that...

QFT.

Even a whole year out the trailer (bizarrely) has very little new in it, but it does go a long way to reassuring me that the whimsy (if not the talking animals) will be a big feature.  Of course this is certainly going to be the lighter of the two parts.

I'm a fan of the LotR films, for all their many faults they get a lot more right than they do wrong, and are rescued and sustained by palpable enthusiasm and (most importantly) heart from all concerned.  This looks like going the same way, but I'll never shake the feeling that the visual cloning of the first trilogy was a mistake and a missed opportunity.  It's all just too familiar, for a tale that isn't about the backstory of the Ring, but about pushing into the Wild beyond your comfortable threshold. 

That said, it was lovely to see McKellan and particularly Holm again, two performances that anchored the first film, and will hopefully do so once more.

Incidentally, we've been reading The Father Christmas Letters at bedtime this past week.  He was a great kids' writer and a pretty funny chap, that Tolkien - I truly hope that aspect of his work survives into this production. 

[Proudhuff]

looks good, but a year away its a bit previous isn't it?

[radiator]

Looks (and sounds) great - the music especially is superb.

It does - to my eyes - look a lot brighter and more colourful than LotR - hopefully this reflects a lighter tone.

I'm still not at all sure about the idea of framing the story with Frodo etc - seems a little pointless if you're going to be watching The Hobbit movies first.

There seems to be a hell of a lot of "You remember those Lord of the Rings films?" moments in the trailer, hope there isn't too much foreshadowing in the finished film and it can live and breath as it's own story.

Also: Galadriel and Gandalf seem rather close - is that in the books?

[TordelBack]

looks good, but a year away its a bit previous isn't it?

I call this double standards!   

[TordelBack]

I'm still not at all sure about the idea of framing the story with Frodo etc - seems a little pointless if you're going to be watching The Hobbit movies first.

I was pondering this myself, and while I totally agree that I'd prefer it if The Hobbit wasn't dressed up as LotR Episode I:  The Dragon Menace I wonder if the telling-stories-to-Frodo framing device isn't a clever way of incorporating Bilbo's wider historical writings into the story (since we know that there will be all the White Council/Dol Gulder business too) -  a sort of Red Book of Westmarch, rather than There and Back Again . 

[Proudhuff]

looks good, but a year away its a bit previous isn't it?

I call this double standards!   

fairynuff, just worried it will be old hat by the release date.

 but having read the book, nearly forty years ago, I don't think i 'll avoid spoilers, trailers etc for this, so by the time it comes around what will there be to enthuse over ?

[Radbacker]

I just wet meself, I'm not a fan of any of the books (phillistine i know, its not that i haven't tried, theyre just a bit old reading for my taste) but really like the trilogy.  If this is more of the same or something a bit lighter i dont mind i just want to get back to the brilliantly constructed fantasy world WETA and Jackson built.

CU Radbacker

[JOE SOAP]

It looks fine -the song is the best thing- but it doesn't really look like a trailer for the Hobbit; it looks like deleted scenes from Lord of the Rings with too much sentimentality, looking back. Wouldv'e been better to stick with more Hobbity content rather returning to emphasise so strongly the ring and Gollum at the very end which isn't what the Hobbit is about. Obviously there's a ton of stuff to come but the emphasis is wrong in this teaser- and it really didn't need to be released so early.

[JOE SOAP]

I was hoping to catch a glimpse of Smaug - or the trolls at the very least - but I understand those scenes have either not been filmed as of yet or are in post production.

The trolls are there -their legs anyway- and I doubt we'll be seeing any Smaug footage in the trailers for this film as he won't be in it. Can't promise something that won't be delivered.

[Goaty]

Trailer breakdown;

http://www.totalfilm.com/features/the-hobbit-an-unexpected-journey-trailer-breakdown/meet-bilbo-baggins

[locustsofdeath!]

Wouldv'e been better to stick with more Hobbity content rather returning to emphasise so strongly the ring and Gollum at the very end which isn't what the Hobbit is about.

And Serkis' Gollum annoys me to death. Everything from the character's design to his voice...I simply cannot watch those scenes in the LotR movies!

I do agree that this should have been treated as an entirely separate film and not a 6 hour (when both movies are done) foreshadowing of LotR...which I'm sure we'll get plenty of.