Slashdot Mirror

[8 MB]
[5.6 MB]
[1 MB]

Brought to you by anonymous karma-whores for peace!

But *I* say the REAL VNBN is that only 90 % of all computer scientists are only 10 % as smart as Von Neumann.

Bilbo's Party Chart.

But *I* say the REAL VNBN is that only 90 % of all computer scientists are only 10 % as smart as Von Neumann.

Bilbo's Party Chart.

And the reaction from the one ring web site is...

April Fool!

Peter Jackson was already working on a King Kong remake back in 1996-1997 before The Lord of the Rings trilogy became reality. One story about it is here. The first script draft from 1996 is also available in the net on several sites, for example at TheOneRing.net.

And of course it was a Peter Jackson movie. In the same vein check out his first commercial movie "Bad Taste" financed entirely on his and friends credit cards.It took 4 years to complete (mostly weekends) and stared Peter Jacksons friends. Check out The Bastards Have Landed

no, it was TORNed like a week ago. slashdot is pretty late on this news.....

Well in Soviet Russia, the system won't trust you!

Oh wait. That's not Russia, that's the USA. Oops, my bad.

Say, have you noticed a whole lot of people with goatees recently?

"...suddenly it drew itself up to a great height, and its wings were spread from wall to wall..."

The Fellowship of the Ring II 5 The Bridge of Khazad-dûm

Encyclopedia of Arda's entry on Balrogs.

more Arda entries on the subject

from greenboks

some geocities site

I probably would agree that they don't have wings, but Tolkien wasn't grumpy about it...as I recalled when the topic was brought up he told people to read the books and make their own decisions. Tolkien was very adament that one person's understanding of creatures in the book was different from other's, and one wasn't better than the other (which is probably why he had an aversion to making a movie of the books...).

Reading through the threads, I get the idea that you definitely dislike Peter Jackson and you definitely dislike the movies. Well...here's an option: DON'T WATCH THEM! IGNORE THEM! If you go and watch the movies and then expound upon them at length at a website (pro or con), you're still promoting them. If you're some sort of tolkien purist that believes the movies are evil and hacks, then stop promoting them.

Personally, I loved the movie (and I can deal with almost every change that was made from the books). If you go watch the movie, don't take the book with you. Remember...it isn't Tolkien making the movies, and these aren't the books put on screen. These are movies (not books) based upon the story by JRR Tolkien. Jackson has no obligation to stay true to the book (other than his own fanhood), his only obligation is to make a great movie. And, if the academy awards and the turnouts are any sort of clues, then he did a great job.

My advice: go watch the movies and check your books at the door...you won't be needing them. The movies aren't a supplement to the books, they are entirely different and you can't enjoy them if you nitpick over every detail. Movies are supposed to be entertainment...

Oh..I can't forget to shamelessly promote my review of the movie at my website.

Given the model the story follows, it's surprising that any female made it into the original books. I believe that Tolkiens daughter can be thanked for the presence of Eowyn, but I have no idea if this is true and I'm not going to look it up now.

I rather did like how Tolkien not only brought in a female in what (again given the model) would have been a male dominated world but also teams her up with Merry (or is it Pippin?) - two spirited folk that refuse to be left behind by a bunch of valiant men that feel they would be of little use but who in the end help win the day.

(Please note: this is an extremely loose interpretation - please don't rip me apart here. I'm supposed to be programming anyway :)

Let's also remember that when Tolkien wrote his story, it was quite progressive of him to include such strong female roles, as few as they were.

BTW, this topic has been debated quite a bit at TheOneRing.net and with much more skill than I can muster here. Worth checking out.

That night on talkback radio (newstalk zb) there was a lot of joy. The occasional bitter american hating bastard called in, but no more that usual ;) It was really quite amazing, and the documentary promised that landmark event would be credited to New Zealand. It sounds silly, but it really was an awful feeling when the footage was announced as a hoax.

Still, excellent job. Good job Peter Jackson!

And if there are any Brazilian Tolkien fans who read ./, don't forget to have a look at the scheduled Line Parties for Brazil.

And going farther, if there is any Tolkien Fan who reads /. AND lives in Recife, I'll see you at the Multiplex Tacaruna Line Party. For the ones who live in the South Zone, there is one party at the Multiplex Recife.

I'll be there dressed as a Dark Night (No, this is not a joke. I did the same Jan, 1st, in the release of Fellowship Of the Ring.)

And if there are any Brazilian Tolkien fans who read ./, don't forget to have a look at the scheduled Line Parties for Brazil.

And going farther, if there is any Tolkien Fan who reads /. AND lives in Recife, I'll see you at the Multiplex Tacaruna Line Party. For the ones who live in the South Zone, there is one party at the Multiplex Recife.

I'll be there dressed as a Dark Night (No, this is not a joke. I did the same Jan, 1st, in the release of Fellowship Of the Ring.)

And if there are any Brazilian Tolkien fans who read ./, don't forget to have a look at the scheduled Line Parties for Brazil.

And going farther, if there is any Tolkien Fan who reads /. AND lives in Recife, I'll see you at the Multiplex Tacaruna Line Party. For the ones who live in the South Zone, there is one party at the Multiplex Recife.

I'll be there dressed as a Dark Night (No, this is not a joke. I did the same Jan, 1st, in the release of Fellowship Of the Ring.)

Here are some places around the web for more TTT info/media:

http://www.darthscreencapture.com/LOTR/ttt.html: Trailers and previews.

The Lord of the Rings : The Two Towers Official Movie Site: The name says it all.\

TheOneRing.net(TM)| Lord of the Rings Movie News and Rumors: Very useful news site.

TolkienMovies.com - Lord of the Rings Movie News, Rumors, Photos: Alot of available stuff, but nicely colated.

Hope that helps...

Slashdot receives a wide range of visitors from every country. Therefore, here's an international list of release dates in each country TTT will be showing (believe it or not, TTT just doesn't come out on Dec. 18):

Release Dates

For those of you who are interested, here is a link to the Gollum Song Video. This song will be played at the end of The Two Towers during the credits. Its really creepy, starring Emiliana Torrini for the voice. It's extremely well done and makes you feel a deep sense of pity for the tortured soul that is Gollum. (There are no spoilers in this video, just recycled images from already released previews).

Large (11.8mb)
Med (2.2mb)
Small (970k)

(Note: these are in Quicktime)

For those of you who are interested, here is a link to the Gollum Song Video. This song will be played at the end of The Two Towers during the credits. Its really creepy, starring Emiliana Torrini for the voice. It's extremely well done and makes you feel a deep sense of pity for the tortured soul that is Gollum. (There are no spoilers in this video, just recycled images from already released previews).

Large (11.8mb)
Med (2.2mb)
Small (970k)

(Note: these are in Quicktime)

For those of you who are interested, here is a link to the Gollum Song Video. This song will be played at the end of The Two Towers during the credits. Its really creepy, starring Emiliana Torrini for the voice. It's extremely well done and makes you feel a deep sense of pity for the tortured soul that is Gollum. (There are no spoilers in this video, just recycled images from already released previews).

Large (11.8mb)
Med (2.2mb)
Small (970k)

(Note: these are in Quicktime)

Oops, nearly forgot the frame by frame analysis link of the preview:

Frame by Frame

For the new LOTR:TTT Trailer seen on TV with MAJOR SPOILERS (ents, winged nazgul, ending of Battle of Helms Deep), head here (quicktime):

Large Size
Medium Size
Small Size

For the new LOTR:TTT Trailer seen on TV with MAJOR SPOILERS (ents, winged nazgul, ending of Battle of Helms Deep), head here (quicktime):

Large Size
Medium Size
Small Size

For the new LOTR:TTT Trailer seen on TV with MAJOR SPOILERS (ents, winged nazgul, ending of Battle of Helms Deep), head here (quicktime):

Large Size
Medium Size
Small Size

CNN on NZ Sailor, Peter Blake (who was shot by pirates last year!)

CNN on NZ Sailor, Peter Blake (who was shot by pirates last year!)

CNN on NZ Sailor, Peter Blake (who was shot by pirates last year!)

You've heard an exaggeration from the previous SlashDot article.

In another early simulation, Jackson and Regelous watched as several thousand characters fought like hell while, in the background, a small contingent of combatants seemed to think better of it and ran away. They weren't programmed to do this. It just happened. 'It was spooky.' Jackson said in an interview last year.

Also, I'd be stunned if Jackson, or anybody else, was getting gross points. Points on the net, sure, but gross points?

See more here.

Well the slashdottd review isn't the only one out there. (Glad I read it yesterday. (Maybe I should sumbit stories more often.)
Here are a couple more reviews of the extended DVD.
This review is a pretty good rundown of the DVDs.
and
This one is a rundown of Xoanon's review and there is a nice Question and answer format at the end where fans of, well, the Fan Site write in with their questions. Tons of SPOILERS --you're warned.

Well the slashdottd review isn't the only one out there. (Glad I read it yesterday. (Maybe I should sumbit stories more often.)
Here are a couple more reviews of the extended DVD.
This review is a pretty good rundown of the DVDs.
and
This one is a rundown of Xoanon's review and there is a nice Question and answer format at the end where fans of, well, the Fan Site write in with their questions. Tons of SPOILERS --you're warned.

Blockquoth the poster:

I think we can assume Shelob will be present in TTT.

Uh, no. Peter Jackson has already said that Shelob has been moved to third movie, not only to give Sam and Frodo enough to do but also to have the events line up chronologically. Here is the report.

For us LotR addicts, a frame by frame analysis is available at:

http://www.theonering.net/movie/preview/ttt_093002 _01.html

Additionally there is official frame by frame footage available at Lordoftherings.net

The Drudge Report has reported a rumour that The Two Towers is already available on the internet. WinMX and Kazaa carry several files purporting to be some version of the film, however they all appear to be fakes. Thanks to Sir Mordred, Moses and several other Barliman's chatters for helping me check these files out.

This looks like a major hoax. Drudge Report says it's a rumour but every big newssite seems to take it for real.

In fact, noone seems to have it, and those who claim they have it have fake files.

Many believe this rumour is actually spread by the RIAA and the MPAA, which is not too far fetched, imho. Especially considering that harsh quote from a "New York executive".

TheOneRing.net has a blurb of it, saying that they think it's a hoax as well.

Hey! He did just fine on part 1! Now I just need to wait for good versions of parts 2 and 3.

Wait? Was this thread about Star Wars?

I dig holes

This is the same trailer that was reffered to by a story last week...however, it appears to be oh a higher quality...and in a variety of screen sizes...

also, i saw this after the story was posted last week...from theOneRing.net posted a frame by frame analysis of the trailer...it's pretty cool, and does a good job analyzing what's going on in the teaser trailer...contains major spoilers though, of course, that only matters if you've never read the book...

It is a bootleg, but not of the preview that's at the end of FotR... the preview appended to the first installment is much longer.

This is the trailer that's going to be attached to the new Austin Powers movie (as theonering.net speculates), but it looks like it's been leaked a bit early. I imagine it'll go up on apple's site in higher quality once it's officially released.

-Wombat

Or perhaps he meant Gandalf?

Akira was a great comic series. I was turned on to it during the late 80's when Eclipse Comics was translating Japanese manga into English. The story was compelling and just, well great. I saw the 2nd generation of Akira. At the time I didn't read Japanese and didn't have the original version in the original language. We all know how much is lost in translation. (For some really wild LotR's tranlation check out Here.)
I then found out that there was Movie(!) of Akira. Too cool. I went to see it and I was really flaberghasted. What the hell is with the Tetsuo blowing up into a huge gross ameba?
Now we have someone that is going to Reinterpret it AGAIN? How will it be changed to be made more accessable? Will Tetsuo Just put a gun to his own head and shoot Akira? That'd make accessable sence. Oh well. I will NOT be in line to see this.

According to TORN, most places will be able to see the trailer friday, not saturday.

I first heard about LOTR being made into a film about 2 years ago. I'd never read the books, but had always wanted to. I quickly bought the books, and read them even quicker. I fell in love with the story. I watched the film's developement very closely over those 2 years, reading Tolkien Online and TheOneRing.net almost daily. I bought the soundtrack (excellent!) and a couple books. I even bought some miniatures. I reread the books a few months before the film was released, and enjoyed them even more the second time. I caught a showing of the film on it's first day out, and have been back for a total of 7 times (so far!).

Now, if you had told me 2 years ago that LOTR would be nominated for 13 Oscars, I would have said you were nuts. This is truly an amazing accomplishment, and LOTR deserves every one of them.

As scary as that is and as much as I would hate it, it is thankfully not the case. Eowyn's part has already been cast and is confimred on the official website.

BTW here is the link to my review of FOTR, which details my gripes and likes nicely:

http://theonering.net/movie/reviews/review.php?id= 5573

Justin

Reports on The One Ring indicate that several scenes that are known to have been filmed have not appeared in the final movie cut.

Examples include some of the way from Bree to Rivendell, the scene where Aragorn and Elrond talk about Narsil, and the scene where the Fellowship parts from Galadriel. All of these appear on some of the merchandise (cards, stickers - I don't remember exactly which), but they're not in the movie. A particular favorite of my is the lake they see when they depart from Moria. Just as I managed to think "Kheled-Zaram" - the Fellowship entered Lothlorien.

Obviously, these scenes have been filmed (there are stills from them), so they must have been cut out because of time constraints as some of the less important detail. It occurs to me that they could integrate well with the plot as it is. So I just hope they will come as a part of the DVD (and not just as "director's trash", but rather as a part of an alternative viewing sequence.

The story of Turin Turambar was taken directly from Kalevala. You might call it plagiarism except that J.R.R. never published the Silmarillion.

See here.

• April 17, 1990, posted by Jon Blow:
  ...By this time, the wizards [dungeonmasters] had locked off a few areas that were just spam-for-the-senses...
  
• June 27, 1990, posted by Vintage Mutant Ganja Technerd:
  For example, a delay of 5 to 10 seconds between object creations and logging in, will all do the trick of 'limiting' spamming without the juggling of quotas, login times, keeping track of hosts, et al.
  
• October 4, 1990, posted by A Molitor:
  ...when you run a MUD advertised as having few or no rules, a MUD where you can do anything, players *will* spam it. This is not conjecture, but documented historical fact. Ask around about BloodMUD some time.
  

• From: Jon Blow (blojo@tornado.Berkeley.EDU)
  Subject: Re: Word wrap
  Newsgroups: alt.mud
  Date: 1990-01-22 23:18:55 PST
  Right now my entire adventure is formatted to be easy-readable in 80 columns. This is also a pain, since 1) It takes much longer for me to write it, and I constantly feel a loss of artistic quality when I am forced to reword so that a line will fit; 2) People with wordwrap must turn it OFF, or the adventure will look like Spam. Bummer.

Jackson has kept the names of the books the same, but altered the story somewhat. He's also keeping the movies more nearly the same length than the books are (go look at your paperbacks and you'll see that The Two Towers is by far the thinnest). There is more background being shoehorned into the first movie than we found in the first book, and to keep the movies relatively the same length some of the action we read in FOTR is appearing in the movie TTT.

From TheOneRing.net:
The character of Rosie will be expanded slightly, in order to allow us to see the origins of her relationship with Sam before his departure from the Shire....
Also, events that were told through flashbacks in the books will have to be told visually in the movies, such as the defeat of Sauron during the Second Age, Isildur's death, Gollum's history with the Ring, and Gandalf's imprisonment by Saruman at Isengard. ....
the first film in the trilogy will apparently feature flashbacks that will familiarize audiences with the history of the Ring, and it is safe to assume that any flashbacks of this type will include a summary of the story of The Hobbit.

Gandalf explains Gollum's history at the very beginning of FOTR and describes Sauron's defeat at the Council of Elrond, IIRC, so both of these added scenes will appear in the FOTR movie. The explanation of Bilbo's history with the Ring will probably also occur in Hobbiton at the start, so the movie version of FOTR has lots of added material. No wonder there wasn't room for Tom Bombadil.

Tolkien geek