Anyone been to see The Hobbit yet?

[psychocandy]

3 parts!! oh damn I'm taking my daughter to see it on Christmas Eve and was then going to watch the LOTR over the holiday with her

Blast!!!

Flippin heck spartie. Me and the family going xmas eve as well.

Cardiff? Might bump into you....

[psychocandy]

I must admit like I said before, I cant believe they split a small book into 3 films.

LOTR - fair enough. 3 large books anyway. Lucky they didnt think of this then otherwise that would have been a 12 film series.....

And why the hobbit next? Surely something like the silmarillion would have been cool.....

[northernladuk]

I'm not sure if I want to waste the money on the cinema, I know Mr N is keen to go, but the book is so short it could have been done and dusted in one film.

Oddly enough my other half is not a fan of Dungeons & Dragon types and wasn't that impressed with LOTR because she doesn't understand the 'rules' of fantasy worlds, elves all hairy fairy, dwarves live underground and all that. The Hobbit does spend a lot of time explaining all this and the lead characters so she could actually follow it a bit more than just a slash and magic film like most are.

[original PM]

"In selected theaters".

I heard some people are saying it makes it seem too "unreal", whatever that means. It's interesting though: despite all the other advances, cinema has been stuck on 24fps forever.

I just about made it through the first Lord Of The Rings, I've no desire to see any others.

isn't 24fps the max frame rate the eyes can detect or something anyway?

[NotAllThere]

How ? By stretching it needlessly they will alienate most of the genuine hobbit lovers and so in turn actually end up losing money. ...

It work for the Harry Potter drivel. Seven books, each longer than the last.

I think 3 films is pushing it, and agree that the first film is about 30 mins too long. However, I understand that they'll be putting in the whole Necromancer of Dol Guldur episode, which was never published as a complete story, but for which Tolkien made many notes. The beginning of this is already in part 1.

Whether it will pan out properly or not, I can't say. But if it does, Tolkien fans will be delighted.

I agree but I am willing to bet that many many people will go to see all three, buy the expensive box sets and then the special edition box sets and then the special edition with a limited edition toy box sets.

I will be getting the extended editions for sure. But none of the others.

[VectraMan]

isn't 24fps the max frame rate the eyes can detect or something anyway?

Why would your eyes be limited to a certain frame rate? What's the frame rate of nature?

[northernladuk]

Why would your eyes be limited to a certain frame rate? What's the frame rate of nature?

It's not about that directly, it is about how much information you see. Viewing material, particularly cinemas rely on blurring to make the movements look fluid when you watch, something similar with tv (which is why when you pause a video it is always blurred I believe). The blur softens the image to a point it is believeable.

The higher the FPS, the less the blur so it will look less natural, which computer games often do and yes I believe The Hobbit struggles with. The facial movements are incredible and stuff but it is all just too pin sharp.

[minestrone]

isn't 24fps the max frame rate the eyes can detect or something anyway?

Was watching Ian McKellen on the box on Sunday morning and he said that eyes will go up to 60fps, he said he never noticed a problem with it but that it is younger people that notice the change the most. I think he said the new avatars might go up to 60fps.

[original PM]

apparently it is not a simple question!

Linky

[OwlHoot]

Quite a bit apparently, not went down well, a bit too real is the verdict although I don't really know what that means. I am actually looking forward to seeing in just for that.

Haven't seen it myself either, but I would guess any grumbling about the picture quality relates mostly to the tint.

People are used to feature films since the 60s having a slightly blue-enhanced tint, especially outdoor scenes. I mean, think back to some of those ghastly red-tinted 50s films.

But I gather the Hobbit has a homely, warm brown tint, which seems at odds with that, especially if it features the kind of panoramic vistas seen in LotR