Director Peter Jackson takes us back to Middle Earth in the Lord of the Rings prequel in 2012. Split into two films, Christmas 2012 with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, and the second half, The Hobbit: There and Back Again (Christmas 2013), this, uh, duology is poised to make Martin Freeman (BBC's the Office) a household name.
I'm not convinced that Peter Jackson can actually pull this off.
First, while I'm a huge fan of The Hobbit book, I don't much care for the LOTR series. Sorry. I know, I'm freaking weird. But I first was exposed to The Hobbit in fourth grade, and loved it. Our teacher read it to us after lunch, and after she finished the book, she screened the 1977 animated feature. It was a magical time, an innocent time, long before John Matrix came into my life and destroyed my happiness and my ribcage.
And you know what? It was a fun experience. It was lighthearted. It was fantastic. Perfect.
And Peter Jackson cannot handle that. He takes things too seriously, takes himself too seriously. Martin Freeman is an excellent choice, and I hope to God Jackson lets Freeman be his quirky self. 'Cause otherwise, I honestly think we'll be in for a long, stressing movie experience like LOTR. Which I liked, but I think The Hobbit is a completely different type of beast, one that better exemplifies the birth of the fantasy genre. If I'm not busy getting fitted for a new chain mail wife-beater, I'll be there.
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