‘The Hobbit’ To Be Three Films

by · July 30, 2012

Peter Jackson breaks the news:

We know how much of the story of Bilbo Baggins, the Wizard Gandalf, the Dwarves of Erebor, the rise of the Necromancer, and the Battle of Dol Guldur will remain untold if we do not take this chance.  The richness of the story of The Hobbit, as well as some of the related material in the appendices of The Lord of the Rings, allows us to tell the full story of the adventures of Bilbo Baggins and the part he played in the sometimes dangerous, but at all times exciting, history of Middle-earth.

I find this prospect both exciting and disconcerting.  It’s what I’d do if I were at the helm: incorporate tales and details Tolkien developed after composing The Hobbit.   I would go so far as to film a brief appearance of ten-year-old Aragorn in Rivendell, reading a book or writing a song.  However, Jackson and company didn’t endear me to their storytelling style with The Lord of the Rings, and I’m not convinced a three part division would work well in their hands.  The Hobbit is a simpler story better suited to their talents; their expanding it spells trouble.  My Shelob sense in tingling.

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Kyle Cupp

Kyle Cupp is a freelance writer who blogs about culture, philosophy, politics, postmodernism, and religion. He is a contributor to the group Catholic blog Vox Nova. Kyle lives with his wife, son, and daughter in North Texas. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter.

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9 Responses

  1. Ryan Noonan says:
    July 30, 2012 at 6:32 pm

    I am pretty much appalled. The Hobbit is a book I love, and I love it precisely because it does not contain the portentous nonsense of The Lord of the Rings, which I really, genuinely hate. Ugh.

    • Glyph says:
      July 30, 2012 at 6:51 pm

      I don’t hate LOTR like you do; I read the whole series a couple times as a kid.

      But even as a kid, I thought the Hobbit was the better book due to its being more concise, and emotionally varied.

      I don’t doubt Jackson thinks he is doing the right thing, but this movie trend toward expandexpandexpand is doing no one any favors (though I am sure it must make financial sense for the studio).

  2. greginak says:
    July 30, 2012 at 6:47 pm

    I think its clear PJ will be incorporating a lot of the extra material from of Tolkeins writing. This will be more than just The Hobbit. I’m betting there will be extended flashbacks to ME history and a bit of Gandalf on his own that wasn’t told in The Hobbit.

  3. Pierre Corneille says:
    July 30, 2012 at 11:41 pm

    “The richness of the story of The Hobbit, as well as some of the related material in the appendices of The Lord of the Rings,”

    Maybe it will include a 90 minute discourse on the linguistic theories concerning the origins of Elvish and the common tongue, just to set the stage for Bilbo and the Dwarves’ visit to Rivendell.

  4. Kolohe says:
    July 31, 2012 at 12:08 am

    I’m already looking forward to the Red Letter Media reviews.

  5. Kelly says:
    July 31, 2012 at 2:23 am

    I couldn’t agree with your more, Kyle. Jackson and the gain really missed some of the finer points of LOTR. But, I’m sure I’ll get sucked in to the Hobbit trilogy all the same.

  6. Mike Schilling says:
    July 31, 2012 at 2:29 am

    “And this has nothing to do with taking in more money. Really. I’m shocked you would even suggest such a thing. We needed time to fit in the half-hour battle with the trolls, the 45-minute fight with the spiders, and the full one-hour version of the Battle of Five Armies. Artistic integrity demands it.”

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