Ric Robertson Taking Paid Summer Hiatus From Movie Academy … 
‘The Big C’ Finale Airs On Showtime Tonight 
Obama Scandals Bring MSNBC 7-Year Low While Fox News Rises 
Ang Lee Departs FX Pilot ‘Tyrant’ 
DreamWorks Eyes January For ‘Glimmer’ And Dylan … 
Warner Bros TV & ‘Smallville’ Co-Creators … 
How Many Times Does Seth MacFarlane Have To Say No To The … 
UPFRONTS 2013: TV Spinoffs’ Almost Perfect Year 
OSCARS: Animated Feature Rule Change 
Cannes: Relativity Sets ‘Hunger Games’ Liam … 
RATINGS RAT RACE: Billboard Awards Surge From 2012, … 
Cannes: Park Chan-wook’s ‘Sympathy For Mr. … 
Cannes: Stanley Weiser To Script ‘Three Graves … 
Yahoo CEO Foresees Big Opportunities To Sell Ads On Tumblr 
Disney, Lucasfilm Animation Prep ‘Star Wars … 
Cannes: Deadline Crashes Palais Forum With Costa Gavras, … 
Hammond On Cannes: Sun Comes Out As Parties, Deals And … 
Kelly Rowland, Paulina Rubio In Talks To Join ‘X … 
‘Fast & Furious 6′ Breaks Records In … 
Specialty Box Office: ‘Frances Ha’ Triumphs As … 
‘Star Trek Into Darkness’ $164.5M Global: Lower … 
Peter Jackson has delivered another in a series of video blogs on the making of The Hobbit. This one is a tour of the New Zealand sets where the movie is being made. Jackson has been most generous in letting fans get a glimpse of how he creates the Middle Earth magic. This one, which shows the actors in and out of character and the sets, leads me to wonder: by letting the audience see behind the curtain, is he demystifying that magic at the expense of the film? When I watched this, it made me recall a magazine interview I once did with Daniel Day-Lewis. That actor (who was the first choice for Aragorn in The Lord Of The Rings) told me how much he did not like any promotional efforts that reveals the magic — that it’s like a magician explaining a magic trick. Day-Lewis’ process is unique in that he plunges himself into extreme modes of preparation for roles, and then so loathes watching himself on screen (he focuses on the flaws nobody else sees) that the actor doesn’t really get to see the finished product. Still, he makes an interesting point. Does showing the actors as themselves, and revealing snippets of sets and footage rob viewers of the completely immersive experience that made The Lord Of The Rings trilogy one of the great cinematic accomplishments in recent cinema?
Related: ‘Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ To Premiere In New Zealand On Nov. 28
Loading ...
My response to the question you’ve posed, Mike is “no.” PJ is actually really smart to do this in the way that he does. He isn’t revealing too much but gives enough to feed anticipation to the die-hard fans (like me). Casual movie-goers or spoiler-averse people may choose not to watch — but it’s totally their choice. On the flip-side, a project that was super-secret like “Prometheus” has really struggled to manage expectations to the point that if people aren’t convinced its instant cinema perfection, they will be disappointed. Movie-goers can’t trust filmmakers anymore to keep things secret. And the BIG culprit for that is high-ticket prices. $10-15 is a risk for most people these days. And with so many bad movies, folks want to know what they’re getting.
“No” for me as well, but a qualified one. PJ seems to have fun with the process, both the production of the film and the behind-the-scenes material. In addition, they do due diligence by blurring out anything too revelatory. So it’s more of a teaser than anything else. Just as well, his enthusiasm more than makes up for any potential spoilers. Could you imagine Spielberg doing some stiff walkthrough of the War Horse set? Boring…
My response to that question is no, largely because I don’t want to see such info before seeing the movie and so I avoid it seeing that sort of stuff. That same info after seeing the movie is fine. Filmmakers are bad enough in revealing key plot points in trailers, let along promotional bits, often done by PR folks who don’t understand the joy in watching a story unfold without knowing exactly what’s coming up. They just want to get you in the seat–they don’t care if you enjoy the seat.
As the above writer said–it’s your choice. You don’t HAVE to be pre-primed if you don’t want to.
I too say “no”.
Jackson is very careful about what is and isn’t revealed in these videos. If you look carefully you’ll see that plenty is blurred out. We’re only seeing the briefest of clips of things that we know are going to be in the film – floating in barrels etc. He holds back some characters and sets.
And don’t forget, he’s done this before. And it hasn’t worked badly for him.
These are some of the best produced behind the scenes videos you could wish for, covering the whole production process. And these are clearly being made for fans. A casual viewer isn’t going to watch a series of 15 minute videos like this.
Is it demystifying the cinema process? Yes, to an extent. But we all know, or want to know, how various things are done. And nobody is forcing you to watch these videos. The response is immense, and I’ve no doubt the videos will continue throughout next year to link the two Hobbit films together. Clever marketing in that respect.
A very good question, Mike. Clearly, not everyone is going to watch these clips. The fans will not get enough of them, other people won’t give a damn but will still go to watch the films. There will also be a subset that won’t watch either. I prefer my ‘Behind the Scenes’ peek to come afterwards, in the form of bonus extras, should I be interested enough, but when it comes to marketing films these days, many of which end up disappointing their audiences, then bringing out the heavy guns in advance is a good idea. Nobody’s being forced to watch ‘The Hobbit’ blogs and if Daniel Day-Lewis is not contractually obliged to do so, then he should not be forced to appear either. I think he’s an incredible actor but can respect the fact he wants me to watch his performance, not how he got there.
Daniel Day-Lewis was first choice for Aragorn? The story deepens… Stuart Townsend was originally cast in the role only to be replaced by Viggo Mortensen the day before principal photography because Townsend was, among other things, far too young for the role.
My girlfriend is a big fan of the “Lord Of The Rings”, and although she hasn’t been to a movie theatre in many years (including the time she and I have been dating; she doesn’t like the bad behavior of adolescents who frequent those places), she may actually drag me to a theatre when “The Hobbit” comes out.
I really enjoy these types of behind the scenes videos. Jackson and his team intentionally add humor/fun to them, making them more enjoyable than similar videos from other productions.
I don’t think they give away much at all. I’ve never read The Hobbit (and never will…don’t like Tolkien’s style of writing) and after watching ALL of these production videos, I’ve only gotten that a dragon is involved, there are more dwarfs than in LOTR, and that Bilbo goes on a journey with Gandalph and the dwarfs. Come to think of it…ALL of that info was also revealed in the trailers. So no…these production videos don’t ruin a thing.
What might ruin things is 48 frames per second……..
No.
The Lord Of The Rings behind the scenes videos made me want to become a filmmaker.
man this makes me miss the days on set!
Peter Jackson released videos like this back in 1997 and 1998 when he was working on his first Tolkien films. Those videos weren’t as long and detailed as this, but I vividly recall watching behind-the-scenes videos online back then. Posting pre-release videos like these are nothing new.
Didn’t ruin the magic then. Won’t ruin it now.
This is why I want to become a filmmaker
Jackson’s video blogs enrich viewers experience of the film, exemplify the importance of location and place, and provide a valuable tool for teachers, parents, and anyone interested in media literacy. They also call attention to the industrial nature of film production and the need for companies like these to reduce their environmental footprints and provide safe workplaces and fair wages.
No.
If anything, it’s smart. This movie has a HUGE cast, and it’s hard enough keeping track of all the dwarves when reading. This introduces a familiarity to the characters that will be a benefit to the viewer who can then concentrate on the story instead of worrying about who is who.