There and -- where again?
by prudence on 22-Dec-2012
I'm disappointed to see The Hobbit getting lukewarm or even hostile reviews.
This is not just because I'm a patriotic New Zealander -- it's largely because I think a lot of the crits are unfair.
Yes, the style is similar to what we all knew and loved about The Lord of the Rings. But why would it not be? Why would Peter Jackson suddenly branch out in a totally different direction? If you loved the initial trilogy, would you not be looking for more of essentially the same -- and for precisely all those little connection points that Jackson takes such care to flag up in Part 1 of The Hobbit?
As for it being all too heavy a weight to place on the original little book, well, that idea is competently squashed in this excellent post by Seth Abramson.
I do worry, though, that orcs, trolls, and other nasties always seem to have Cockney accents...
Of course, we all inevitably view movies through the prism of our own current experiences. And the fact that this one dealt with several themes very close to us at the moment undoubtedly affected my reactions.
Once again, we too are leaving home. Not on a noble quest. And not to face fearsome enemies (unless you count nomad-hating bureaucrats as fearsome enemies -- which, I confess, I'm starting to, especially as they seem to be increasingly covering the planet like a dark shadow).
But still, upping sticks and leaving -- leaving the people and places and customs you've really enjoyed getting to know over the last year -- is always something to be reckoned with. We both seem to bond with our localities very quickly, and can definitely empathize at present with Bilbo's reluctance to leave his familiar little hobbit hole.
But then there's always the lure of the open road. That's a really powerful theme with us. Experiencing the world from a different vantage point, forging new routines, imbibing another intoxicating little shot of unfamiliarity -- these are always strong incentives to risk pain and inconvenience and follow the dwarves...
(Ironically, the dwarves want nothing more than a place to call their own -- like lots of modern people groups who somehow lost out in the game of states... Their travels will therefore always have an edge that's very different from ours.)
I also empathized with Bilbo's "fitting in" dilemma. Those nearest to me in my academic environment have always been supportive, and I'm very grateful to them. Nevertheless, in the wider world of international academia, I very often feel like a hobbit running along behind a pack of dwarves, still trying to adjust to their abrupt manner, faster pace, pack mentality, and ability to fight. I hope I won't have to slay too many orcs before I feel I belong...
And finally there's the need to recover our assets... It's cruel to mention the dragon Smaug in the same breath as the impeccably polite young man at the Malaysian tax office or the always helpful guys on the end of the line at its Australian equivalent. But the fact remains that the Malaysian and Australian governments are currently sitting on a lot of our gold... And we want it back...
This is not just because I'm a patriotic New Zealander -- it's largely because I think a lot of the crits are unfair.
Yes, the style is similar to what we all knew and loved about The Lord of the Rings. But why would it not be? Why would Peter Jackson suddenly branch out in a totally different direction? If you loved the initial trilogy, would you not be looking for more of essentially the same -- and for precisely all those little connection points that Jackson takes such care to flag up in Part 1 of The Hobbit?
As for it being all too heavy a weight to place on the original little book, well, that idea is competently squashed in this excellent post by Seth Abramson.
I do worry, though, that orcs, trolls, and other nasties always seem to have Cockney accents...
Of course, we all inevitably view movies through the prism of our own current experiences. And the fact that this one dealt with several themes very close to us at the moment undoubtedly affected my reactions.
Once again, we too are leaving home. Not on a noble quest. And not to face fearsome enemies (unless you count nomad-hating bureaucrats as fearsome enemies -- which, I confess, I'm starting to, especially as they seem to be increasingly covering the planet like a dark shadow).
But still, upping sticks and leaving -- leaving the people and places and customs you've really enjoyed getting to know over the last year -- is always something to be reckoned with. We both seem to bond with our localities very quickly, and can definitely empathize at present with Bilbo's reluctance to leave his familiar little hobbit hole.
But then there's always the lure of the open road. That's a really powerful theme with us. Experiencing the world from a different vantage point, forging new routines, imbibing another intoxicating little shot of unfamiliarity -- these are always strong incentives to risk pain and inconvenience and follow the dwarves...
(Ironically, the dwarves want nothing more than a place to call their own -- like lots of modern people groups who somehow lost out in the game of states... Their travels will therefore always have an edge that's very different from ours.)
I also empathized with Bilbo's "fitting in" dilemma. Those nearest to me in my academic environment have always been supportive, and I'm very grateful to them. Nevertheless, in the wider world of international academia, I very often feel like a hobbit running along behind a pack of dwarves, still trying to adjust to their abrupt manner, faster pace, pack mentality, and ability to fight. I hope I won't have to slay too many orcs before I feel I belong...
And finally there's the need to recover our assets... It's cruel to mention the dragon Smaug in the same breath as the impeccably polite young man at the Malaysian tax office or the always helpful guys on the end of the line at its Australian equivalent. But the fact remains that the Malaysian and Australian governments are currently sitting on a lot of our gold... And we want it back...