By far the most popular version of the story of 'The Hobbit' is the version loosely translated from the Thain's Book copy of the Red Book of Westmarch by Professor JRR Tolkien in the mid-20th century.  Professor Tolkien was of course an entertaining writer with a strong grasp of the Old Westron sources for the late Third Age period, but it is most ( Read more... )

Phew.  Local cinema has gone from ( Read more... )

It seems unlike the Bond franchise to miss a commercial trick but

1. They drove all the way to Scotland from London, and there was no shot of Bond moodily filling up the Aston with Super Unleaded from his preferred petrol pump!
2. And no shot of M tucking into a Ginsters pasty or a Melton Mowbray pork pie!
3. not really sponsorship, but those were SO ( Read more... )

Just clicked on link for The Hobbit movie, and discovered that Vue cinemas have it all ready set up in their Coming Soon section - in 3D. But not in not-3D. The only cinema listed on their site as showing it in 2D is in Birmingham ( Read more... )

( Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday... )

Went up on Dartmoor to watch our local stage of the Tour of Britain.  It was exciting, although I have to confess my grasp of what was going on was a bit shaky.  Fortunately philmophlegm was packed with relevant knowledge.
( The people! the cars! the motorbikes! Oh yes, and the cyclists... )

After watching the final Harry Potter film, philmophlegm speaks  "What was all the fuss about?  He's hardly Boromir!"

This is true.  Fred Weasley and Boromir have .... almost nothing in common. But now I am wondering about an alternative world where Boromir disappoints Denethor by refusing to go into the army, but instead sets up the first joke shop in Minas

( Based on the book : Four Letters from Centurion Drusillus : 750 words )

This movie just goes to show that a selection of excellent ideas and well known actors in an interesting setting (the fall of the child emperor Romulus Augustulus in 476) can none the less produce a truly appallingly pants film.

Also that Ben Kingsley should under no circumstances ever EVER be allowed to try to do a Welsh accent.

Also, that trees ( Read more... )

I would thank huinare for the link to this, but I'm not sure if 'thank' is the right word. :-D

It's a  bizarrely contorted 1966 'movie' of The Hobbit.

Probably many of you have seen it, but I hadn't!   I kind of like it.  Kind of.  The graphics are quite nice, if not particularly Hobbity. But the plot is kind of appalling! :-D