Thoughts after watching DOS

[Smaug's voice]

So I finally got around to watching DOS on the Tv, straight after December '13.
After a million presses on the rewind button, new thoughts;

1) Vastly better than AUJ. Both as an adaptation and as a film. But not on par with LotR. (as you all know I would say...)

2)I didn't like a lot of the first half. It has serious pacing issues with one chase following another. And it just feels incomplete, starting all of a sudden with a bear-chase. Elves at Mirkwood brought some long and welcome dialogues. And the prison chat with Kili is probably the second best scene in the first half (after, of course, Bilbo's "Ring-moment" in the spider-fight).
I am quite positive the EE will cure the pacing problems.

3)The barrel-sequence no longer works for me (it did at first) and is tiresome.

4)Evangeline Lilly totally wins in playing a female Elf. More refreshing and alive and Elvish than Cate Blanchett and Tyler. I just wish the love-triangle aspect was played down, as she herself said in an interview, that it's just one part of a character. It seriously undermines her character.

5)Thranduil, undeniably the best Elf ever portrayed. All the poetic lines in the film come from him.

6) I liked it before as well, and I did now too. Laketown is the best segment of the movie. It just feels lively and contains humane emotions. The set is simply gorgeous. Kudos to Del Toro.

7) I think Evans' Bard treads very close to Bernard Hill's Théoden and Sean Bean's Boromir. I look forward to him immensely in BOFA.

8)Loved the conversation with Smaug, yet again. I feared I would not.

9)Although on my first viewing I did not like it, but this time I liked the chase in Erebor!
The main problem here, I think, is of the direction. I was plain confused the first two times re; what they were doing, what was their plan, how did it work etc. It didn't help that it was intercut with the Laketown attack, making it even more muddy.
I hated the Thorin-on-a-wheel-barrow and Thorin-on-Smaug's-snout thingies though. But honestly are those any worse than burning-Parodenethor-jumping-off or Legolas-skateboarding-stairs/oliphaunt? Not to me.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Thanks for sharing that, SV. I pretty much agree with everything you say, other than that I still enjoy the barrel-sequence.

[Smaug's voice]

I kinda like your new profile pic!

[Voronwë the Faithful]

[Teremia]

[aside] V, I like the avatar, too. Did you draw it yourself? Have you said anything about it anywhere? [/aside]

[Voronwë the Faithful]

No, it was drawn by a very fine young artist who also happens to post here.

[Beutlin]

What do I win if my guess is right: Was it Smaug's voice?

[Voronwë the Faithful]

You win a smile:

[Smaug's voice]

Two.

[Smaug's voice]

And regarding this thread,
I re-watched DOS again.

And my liking for the Smaug-chase is decreasing again. That's mostly due to the Thorin-on-wheelbarrow moment!

[yovargas]

I hated the Thorin-on-a-wheel-barrow and Thorin-on-Smaug's-snout thingies though. But honestly are those any worse than burning-Parodenethor-jumping-off or Legolas-skateboarding-stairs/oliphaunt?

Yes. (At least the wheel barrow is.)

[Voronwë the Faithful]

As always, these types of things are a matter of opinion/taste. I don't like the Thorin on a wheelbarrow, but my dislike of it pales compared to my dislike of both the burning Denethor and particularly Legolas's take down of the Oliphant.

[yovargas]

But.....wheelbarrow.....on molten gold!

(I don't really get why people are bothered by Leggy's big superhero stunts.)

[Voronwë the Faithful]

But.....wheelbarrow.....on molten gold!

Kewlness!

(I don't really get why people are bothered by Leggy's big superhero stunts.)

To me they are just eye-roll inducing. Although I admit I giggle at the one that probably bothers the most people, his jumping from Dwarven-head to Dwarven-head during Barrels out of Bond.

[Passdagas the Brown]

The dwarf-head hopping is the least problematic of the Legolas gymnastics, IMO. In fact, I thought his stunts on the Running River were the most entertaining across all five films. There's a real rhythm to that sequence that makes it all work for me (interrupted only by the awful ninja-barrel Bombur, which almost ruined it - it was flowing so well, like the river, until that moment ground it to a halt).

By the way, I love your new profile pic, SV. Is that a drawing of yours? If so, I think your artwork captures some of that primordial beauty that Tolkien taps into.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Húrin's Last Stand. And yes, it is his.

[Dave_LF]

If so, I think your artwork captures some of that primordial beauty that Tolkien taps into.

I agree. I especially like that it shows the hero with a wiry strength instead of a bulky one.

I also like the understated monstrosity of his enemies.

[Smaug's voice]

Now that I need it, I see there's no blushing icon.

[Smaug's voice]

I hated the Thorin-on-a-wheel-barrow and Thorin-on-Smaug's-snout thingies though. But honestly are those any worse than burning-Parodenethor-jumping-off or Legolas-skateboarding-stairs/oliphaunt?

Yes. (At least the wheel barrow is.)

Matter of taste as V says.
For me, the Legolas antics at Pelennor and Helms' Deep ruin what are supposed to be very serious battles upon which ME's existence depends. It's not the fact that it is there, but how it was shown.
I admit, I like Legolas' stunts in DOS much better but I dislike the head-popping as well as the Laketown fights.

Denethor's death OTOH just stands out as a brief LOL moment in the battle, where his death should have been tragic. Not funny.

Thorin on a wheelbarrow on the other hand is a crazy thing in a plan that is supposed to be crazy. Kill a dragon on their own? I don't like that much craziness but it's atleast uniform.


ETA:
As an aside, I really dislike the fact that throughout the whole movie, everytime Kili is under danger Tauriel is her savior and no one else. Atleast 4 times. That's far too much luck on their side!
The irritance of course is elevated by the sudden burst of the "Tauriel theme" in the score whenever she pops up to save Kili.

[Dave_LF]

There are emoji for that!