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Author Topic: Unpopular Movie Opinions (2008 - 2010)  (Read 643205 times)

oneaprilday

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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #420 on: May 26, 2008, 07:02:25 PM »
I see what you mean, but I think I love the fact that he introduces characters and stories and doesn't flesh them out completely. It works in that those gaps make the stories feel like history or myth in which you understand that you as the reader are only hearing or seeing one part of the world - you get little glimpses into other parts of it. Characters like Tom Bombadil are part of what I mean when I say the trilogy bursts the boundaries of the books themselves.

edgar00

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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #421 on: May 26, 2008, 07:11:46 PM »
Do you all LOTR haters dislike the fantasy genre or just these particular movies? Just curious. (I have no particular interest in defending the movies, by the way, though I'd fight to the death over the books.  ;) )



I preferred the films to the books. I've read them twice now, when I was 11 and about 4 years ago. I always thought there was too much time spent on the history and language of every single race or tribe. The Hobbit gets it just right and is his best book by some distance.

Wow, I have no conception of how it could be possible to like the films more than the books.  :)  I love The Hobbit, but I think it has less depth, fewer philosophical or mythic musings - it's just a smashingly fun adventure story, and it's the trilogy that I find myself reading over and over again, not The Hobbit. I'm fascinated by what Tolkien was attempting to do with the trilogy - not just write a story but create a myth that burst the boundaries of the books themselves.



I understand. His ambition with the trilogy is staggering but he has too many ideas for the three books. A lot of them can seem tagged on and never fully fleshed out whereas I thought the Hobbit was just a better book even though I concede it does have far less depth than the trilogy. It just works better as a story. The trilogy introduced whole chapters just to get an idea across but they didn't always flow with the rhythm or the tone of the story. For instance I would have loved if he spent more time with the character Tom Bombadil but the story moves swiftly on. I think the three books are good but would have been a better six books.

Six books?! Well, I think you really have to fall in love with Tolkien's creation to want that. Don't get me wrong, I think the books are entertaining, but fantasy is not really my thing. Other than LOTR, I don't touch the fantasy genre, whether in novels or films. I'm a big fan of English novels that are well written, that use the English language well, you know, a bit sophiticated. That's another reason why I thought the trilogy was a fun read. But with regards to the plot, it was a bit long. I think someone in this discussion mentioned that too much time was spent on the backstory of the cultures and languages, and I agree with this.
If your in to this kind of stuff, then have a ball, but I found the length of the books to be more than enough. Any longer and I wonder if I would have finished them.
The films really did it for me. I found them supremely entertaining. It think it had a lot to do with the cast and the action sequences.
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oneaprilday

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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #422 on: May 26, 2008, 07:15:15 PM »
I'm a big fan of English novels that are well written, that use the English language well, you know, a bit sophiticated. . . . But with regards to the plot, it was a bit long.

Do you like Victorian novels? Talk about long, convoluted plots . . . (Yay!! I love me some of those.  :) )

edgar00

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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #423 on: May 26, 2008, 07:17:22 PM »
No I haven't read any unfortunately. But I can imagine how well written they are. Authors wrote so well back in the day.
It's the same thing in French. I usually don't touch contemporary stuff, but give a Dumas or Hugo and I'm ready to dig in.
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mañana

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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #424 on: May 26, 2008, 09:08:00 PM »
Do you all LOTR haters dislike the fantasy genre or just these particular movies? Just curious. (I have no particular interest in defending the movies, by the way, though I'd fight to the death over the books.  ;) )



It's true that I'm generally not a big fantasy fan, but there are other genres that I'm not that into but I like the standards. For instance I'm not really into musicals but I've watched some of the classics and have really liked some of them. The LOTR trilogy is so big that I expected it to transcend fantasy the way Singin' in the Rain is enjoyable for musical-haters, and Goodfellas is appreciated by those not typically into crime.   
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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #425 on: May 26, 2008, 09:41:33 PM »
Do you all LOTR haters dislike the fantasy genre or just these particular movies? Just curious. (I have no particular interest in defending the movies, by the way, though I'd fight to the death over the books.  ;) )


What constitutes fantasy films exactly? (Bear in mind, that I rarely actually read)
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oneaprilday

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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #426 on: May 26, 2008, 10:00:49 PM »
Do you all LOTR haters dislike the fantasy genre or just these particular movies? Just curious. (I have no particular interest in defending the movies, by the way, though I'd fight to the death over the books.  ;) )


What constitutes fantasy films exactly? (Bear in mind, that I rarely actually read)

Hmmm. I'd say fantasy involves magic, mythic or make-believe creatures, and possible some kind of supernatural activity. I'm not really a fantasy expert, but I'm thinking of films like Narnia, Harry Potter, Neverending Story, possibly even something like Pan's Labyrinth (though that's probably not true fantasy b/c the fantastic isn't actually "real" in the world of the film). I'd say, too, that there's some overlap between sci-fi and fairy tale, though I'm not sure I can articulate the difference very well.

facedad

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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #427 on: May 26, 2008, 10:04:13 PM »
I'd mostly say I tend not to see them more than anything.
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Junior

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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #428 on: May 26, 2008, 10:30:38 PM »
possibly even something like Pan's Labyrinth (though that's probably not true fantasy b/c the fantastic isn't actually "real" in the world of the film)

I do not agree with this. I think the fantasy is absolutely real in the world of the film.
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Re: Unpopular Movie Opinions
« Reply #429 on: May 26, 2008, 11:17:50 PM »
I realize this is the unpopular *movie* opinions thread, but I just have to interject that anybody who wanted *more* Tom Bombadil in the Lord of the Rings books is not someone I think I'll ever understand. :)

 

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