Re: Amazon, Warner Bros in Talks for LOTR Series Adaptation: Variety

by Elthir Sun Nov 19, 2017 3:35 pm

halfwise wrote:
Forest Shepherd wrote:That's a separate thing: Tolkien-inspired pornos.

I went all glassy eyed when I found out Celeborn's alternate name was Teleporno. Ye Gods.

The telephone was, I think, invented before 1968 (when Tel(e)porno forms for Celeborn first seem to show up in writing). I remember using one in my young youth. One's fingers went in a dial sort-of-thing and wooshed around the numbers.

That part was loads of fun admittedly, although in general I wasn't, and still am not, a great fan of phone chat, perhaps evidenced today by my lack of any of the so-called "mobile phones". A priest of the Greek Orthodox church once called me a "Luddite"...

... but this message comes to you from a computation device.

__________

You probably don't care about any of this and already know the Celebornian trivia anyway, but I had time to kill while waiting for a phone call.

by Elthir Sun Nov 19, 2017 3:43 pm

Mrs Figg wrote:Itaril-y bad idea.

This deserves a quoting on this page too. Huzzah!

by Eldorion Sun Nov 19, 2017 7:25 pm

Mrs Figg wrote:I wonder about New Line being involved as they seemed to have a specific look, style, and aren't they based in NZ? will they be hiring original LOTR crews? interested to see what the style will be.

New Line is an American company. Their involvement is still a bit of a puzzle to me since they (or rather, their corporate parent WB) never owned the film rights, but there may have been something in the legendary settlement that underpins their involvement. But the creative team behind the LOTR trilogy was primarily NZ-based and was put together largely by PJ and worked for companies that he owned or was involved in, including Weta Workshop, Weta Digital, WingNut Films, Three Foot Six [Three Foot Seven for TH], and Park Road Post). Weta might be brought on since they're a world-class FX house and work on a lot of productions these days, but there hasn't been any indication so far that the production will otherwise be New Zealand-based or have anything to do with PJ's production companies. The fact that they apparently haven't contacted PJ at all would seem to suggest not, to me.

halfwise wrote:Was it really too small? Except for the empty Pellenor I felt Minas Tirith was among the most faithful sets of the series.

I feel kind of petty (pun semi-intended Pokey Tongue

) complaining about this since since the Minas Tirith big-ature and sets were already such a huge undertaking, but the scale of the city wasn't as large as in the book (more specifically, it wasn't really wide enough; the vertical height was alright though). I think Ted Nasmith's painting of Minas Tirith captures that a bit better, although he (like pretty much every Tolkien artist) misses/forgets that the outer wall was supposed to be black, like Orthanc.

http://www.tednasmith.com/tolkien/minas-tirith-at-dawn/
http://www.framecaplib.com/lotrlib/html/episodes/images/rotk/rotk0395.htm (comparison)

But I do really like the films' version of Minas Tirith and it's a very impressive achievement.

by halfwise Sun Nov 19, 2017 8:17 pm

I kind of see your point. It's only about a 30% horizontal reduction, but that corresponds to a 50% reduction in area. I like the more vertical feel of the movie version, though in my mind from reading the books I placed it about halfway between the two versions.

by malickfan Sun Nov 19, 2017 8:18 pm

Everything seemed smaller in the Jacksonverse (apart from Erebor for some weird reason)...

by Mrs Figg Tue Nov 21, 2017 6:07 pm

Elthir wrote:
Mrs Figg wrote:Itaril-y bad idea.

Heheheh. Ten gold buttons for that.

by Eldorion Thu Nov 23, 2017 7:02 pm

So apparently IGN Deutschland reached out to Amazon and are reporting that the Middle-earth series will not begin filming until 2019 and then become available on Amazon Prime in 2020. That's a slightly longer timeframe than I was expecting but I suppose they probably want to let more than a few weeks or couple months pass between the end of GOT S8 (probably airing in 2019) and the start of their new series.

http://de.ign.com/tv/126528/news/der-herr-der-ringe-termin-fur-drehstart-der-serien-adaption

h/t to TheHutt on TORn

by Forest Shepherd Fri Nov 24, 2017 9:01 pm

That's about what I was expecting in terms of when it would arrive. Two-and-a-half to three years out, basically.

Remind me, Amazon mimic Netflix with the binge-release format, right? Like they'll make an entire season available all at once? Personally, I would much prefer a weekly release for the sake of discussion on here and elsewhere.

That Nasmith painting has a great deal of charm to it. But the wildness of the land is rather at odds with how I would imagine things: you'd expect straighter roads and more of them. But I do like how the natural stone jutting forth from the top level is less prominent than in the film version. The Jackson version always seemed so precarious and difficult to live in (imagine the bloody switchbacks in that place!), and a less-steep Minas Tirith seems more inviting to me.

by Eldorion Fri Nov 24, 2017 9:33 pm

Amazon has utilized the all-at-once release model for seasons of The Man in the High Castle and Transparent so I'd assume the same will be true for the Middle-earth series as well. I tend to prefer binging TV shows and I find that I'm usually able to enjoy them more that way, though for the purposes of more engaging online discussion I agree that it's not the necessarily the best.

I think you're right about Nasmith's depiction of the Pelennor. In addition to making Minas Tirith less steep though, I think it's significant in that it gives more room for each level. In the film, levels 2-6 of Minas Tirith are for the most part a single street with a row of buildings on each side, and in some cases maybe an alleyway as well. This is especially noticeable looking at Weta's miniature copies but can also be seen in the films themselves.

Amazon, Warner Bros in Talks for LOTR Series Adaptation: Variety - Page 13 FHXzkGEl

Amazon, Warner Bros in Talks for LOTR Series Adaptation: Variety - Page 13 FHXzkGEl

https://www.wetanz.com/shop/environments/minas-tirith
http://screencapped.org/movie/lotr/thumbnails.php?album=6&page=44

by Bluebottle Fri Nov 24, 2017 11:37 pm

In my opinion, anything that tells a narrative is better watched in your own time. Whether you are gobsmacked or let down. Anything stand alone or weekly is not so bad to wait for though. It's mostly a highlight of the week. Probably won't binge it, but it is good to have the choice of place and time Razz

by Forest Shepherd Sat Nov 25, 2017 1:53 am

I find that a weekly show has the appeal of an event to be shared with others in a ritualized fashion. You get your friends together, you make some pizza, you set up the surround sound, you buy a couple goat kids from a local farmer, you sharpen your knives, you have a stone-mason put the finishing touches on your altar to an Elder God, and then you have the recipe for a really quality evening of communal blood-sacrifice!

And yeah, I just don't see that happening with an all-at-once release schedule. Some people binge it all in a couple nights, others don't get around to starting for a few months, and discussion online in forums just devolves into a "who-can-get-there-first" charge for the clitoris, so to speak. Utterly rubbish for discussion.

Edit: Good detail there Eldo, the single-street "levels" of the city are kind of... meh. It doesn't really feel lived in. I'm sure some city planner with degrees could point out all the flaws in such a wide-and-narrow approach.

by halfwise Sat Nov 25, 2017 3:23 pm

I like your imagery, Forrest.

I have to agree Weta Minas Tirith is more like a castle/fortress than a city, but it's still a very cool and evocative model. Having double streets on each level would bring it closer to Tolkien's statement about a population in the thousands.

by Eldorion Sat Nov 25, 2017 9:41 pm

Just a little more context from the book (my emphasis of course):

ROTK, VI 1 wrote:Pippin gazed in growing wonder at the great stone city, vaster and more splendid than anything that he had dreamed of; greater and stronger than Isengard, and far more beautiful. Yet it was in truth falling year by year into decay; and already it lacked half the men that could have dwelt at ease there. In every street they passed some great house or court over whose doors and arched gates were carved many fair letters of strange and ancient shapes: names Pippin guessed of great men and kindreds that had once dwelt there; and yet now they were silent, and no footsteps rang on their wide pavements, nor voice was heard in their halls, nor any face looked out from door or empty window.

If the Amazon series delivers some of this scale I will be grateful for that element even if the rest of it is shit. Razz

The Great Hall too, but that I feel even more bad about criticizing the movie version of that, since IIRC from the Appendices they built that set in the largest warehouse in New Zealand that they could get access too, and even then they had to cut holes in the walls of the building in order to fit all the lighting equipment to make it seem like sunlight was coming through the windows of the hall.

by David H Sat Nov 25, 2017 10:22 pm

Eldorion wrote:Just a little more context from the book (my emphasis of course):

ROTK, VI 1 wrote:Pippin gazed in growing wonder at the great stone city, vaster and more splendid than anything that he had dreamed of; greater and stronger than Isengard, and far more beautiful. Yet it was in truth falling year by year into decay; and already it lacked half the men that could have dwelt at ease there. In every street they passed some great house or court over whose doors and arched gates were carved many fair letters of strange and ancient shapes: names Pippin guessed of great men and kindreds that had once dwelt there; and yet now they were silent, and no footsteps rang on their wide pavements, nor voice was heard in their halls, nor any face looked out from door or empty window.

Good writers could probably set a whole series entirely within such a city. I doubt they'll do it, but it's an interesting idea!

by Forest Shepherd Sun Nov 26, 2017 7:07 am

Hm.. Indeed. Make the show all about Beregond!

by bungobaggins Tue Nov 28, 2017 11:08 pm

http://www.theonering.net/torwp/2017/11/25/104471-amazon-middle-earth-series-to-shoot-in-2019-air-in-2020/

Our friend, TheHutt, from the TORn discussion forums recently shared some interesting information from German site IGN.com: Amazon has revealed to them that shooting on the new Middle-earth series will begin in 2019, with the goal to begin airing the first episodes in 2020. The 2020 goal is designed to fill the void Game of Thrones will leave after the final season airs, likely now to be in 2019.

According to IGN, the series will air exclusively on Amazon Prime. Announcements related to the plot and casting will begin sometime in 2018.

If accurate, this news suggests that Amazon may be further down the road than we thought in deciding on which story-line(s) from J.R.R. Tolkien’s universe they’ll follow in the first season. Casting, location scouting, and other pre-production work requires a substantial amount of lead-time, not to mention writing a compelling script. That’s quite a lot to accomplish and still be ready to start shooting in 2019 and airing in 2020. If that’s the case, and they are further along than the initial press releases and reports hinted at, we’ll all be hoping to get more substantial news sooner in 2018 than later. Read the full article IGN article (in German) here.

by bungobaggins Sun Dec 03, 2017 8:40 pm

Amazon bosses try to raise morale by giving exhausted staff two 7p chocolates each after shocking working conditions were exposed

Mum finds disturbing note hidden inside her teen daughter’s Amazon Christmas package branding bosses ‘evil’

by malickfan Sun Dec 03, 2017 8:49 pm

Amazon sent me a free 30 day prime trial the other day (stopped paying for prime a couple of years ago) but I won't bother using it, the £80 per year prime costs isn't worth it to me, free delivery is usually available for most items and I don't mind waiting a few days, I don't really do streaming or downloads so all the video/music crap is meaningless to me.

Seems a bit odd the Tolkien Estate would work with Amazon the biggest and most commercially driven company going when they have spent decades obsessing over protecting the literary legacy from tacky commercialization and cash ins.

by bungobaggins Sun Dec 03, 2017 8:56 pm

malickfan wrote:
Seems a bit odd the Tolkien Estate would work with Amazon the biggest and most commercially driven company going when they have spent decades obsessing over protecting the literary legacy from tacky commercialization and cash ins.

It's because they don't actually care about any of that. Well, now that Christopher Tolkien isn't in charge anymore.

by halfwise Sun Dec 03, 2017 8:59 pm

exclusively on amazon prime does not sound like a route the Tolkien estate should go down. That's disheartening. The main reason I'm on Amazon prime is I've haven't been successful in cancelling my trial membership. I think I tried, but it didn't take - and I've been too busy to argue the point since I found out I still had it a couple months ago.

by malickfan Sun Dec 03, 2017 9:00 pm

bungobaggins wrote:
malickfan wrote:
Seems a bit odd the Tolkien Estate would work with Amazon the biggest and most commercially driven company going when they have spent decades obsessing over protecting the literary legacy from tacky commercialization and cash ins.

It's because they don't actually care about any of that. Well, now that Christopher Tolkien isn't in charge anymore.

I had hoped they'd wait more than a few months from his retirement to cash in, but it was going to happen eventually, might as well do it fantasy TV is still a popular thing.

The Tolkien publishers have been milking it for decades as well, each of the books has been reprinted dozens of times/format/special editions, many of which probably weren't necessary.

by Eldorion Mon Dec 18, 2017 12:11 am

So the latest in hot news seems to be that Ian McKellen wants to reprise his role as Gandalf in the new show.

http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/news/a845584/sir-ian-mckellen-gandalf-role-amazon-prime-lord-of-the-ring-series/

I kinda have mixed feelings. I would prefer that the show be its own thing rather than an adjunct to PJ's movies, and I think that having a clean slate would be beneficial to that end. On the other hand, McKellen was great as Gandalf (IMO) and it's hardly unheard for continuity reboots to retain one or two actors from older versions. But if they do bring back any actors I hope it's not more than two or three at most.

by halfwise Mon Dec 18, 2017 12:58 am

I feel the same way. Plus, he's not getting younger.

by Bluebottle Mon Dec 18, 2017 1:11 am

I think he is the only actor I could see doing a cross over, and Gandalf was never meant to be young anyway, so that part doesn't bother me. If anything he was meant to look youngest at the end. He'll still do a fine job as the craggy grey wanderer. Nod

by Forest Shepherd Mon Dec 18, 2017 5:13 am

Sir Ian is welcome in anything he wishes to appear in, as far as I'm concerned.

He'd probably be 80 or so by the time they got around to filming. Not too old to act, certainly, but a full 20 years older than he was at the beginning of the LotR filming.