# [Trailer] The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug



## Krug (Jun 11, 2013)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dUlxoZRwUS0

Nice last shot...


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## horacethegrey (Jun 11, 2013)

One word: AWESOME. 

However, I'm a little torn on this trailer, as _An Unexpected Journey_ left me a bit underwhelmed. I still liked it, but Jackson's interest in cramming whatever appendice material Tolkien wrote really bogged it down and the pacing suffered as a result. Hopefully there's less fluff and more of the good stuff in this one.

Also, I'm surprised by how prominent Legolas is in the trailer. He wasn't even in the bloody book!


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## Mr. Patient (Jun 11, 2013)

horacethegrey said:


> However, I'm a little torn on this trailer, as _An Unexpected Journey_ left me a bit underwhelmed. I still liked it, but Jackson's interest in cramming whatever appendice material Tolkien wrote really bogged it down and the pacing suffered as a result. Hopefully there's less fluff and more of the good stuff in this one.
> 
> Also, I'm surprised by how prominent Legolas is in the trailer. He wasn't even in the bloody book!




I think Legolas's presence is a good indication that the second installment will be no less overstuffed than the first.


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## Droogie (Jun 11, 2013)

Didn't quite love part one but I'd be lying if I said this trailer didn't get me excited. And Evangeline Lily as an elf? That's some perfect casting right there, even though she's not in the book.


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## jonesy (Jun 11, 2013)

So why exactly are they stuffing all this into the same movie(series)? If Jackson wanted to do the necromancer story why not make it it's own movie(series)?


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## NewJeffCT (Jun 11, 2013)

Good trailer overall.  I still have yet to see the first Hobbit movie, though.


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## Derren (Jun 11, 2013)

horacethegrey said:


> However, I'm a little torn on this trailer, as _An Unexpected Journey_ left me a bit underwhelmed. I still liked it, but Jackson's interest in cramming whatever appendice material Tolkien wrote really bogged it down and the pacing suffered as a result. Hopefully there's less fluff and more of the good stuff in this one.




I agree with that. 3 movies about the Hobbit is a bit strange. It looks almost as if Jackson is afraid of doing something else than LotR as he can never top it. Which is imo quite sad as he is sitting on several book licenses, Temeraire (which I would like to see a lot) and Mortal Engines (don't care).


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## Zaukrie (Jun 11, 2013)

Movies and books are different, and I like that movies have different content than the source material. I go to movies for enjoyment, not to worry about consistency with a book.


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## El Mahdi (Jun 12, 2013)

deleted


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## Olgar Shiverstone (Jun 12, 2013)

Well, it looks like they've gone and turned the Hobbit into a series of action movies.

While they'll be entertaining, I do wish someone would do a Phantom Edit on them and produce a version that just sticks to the plot of the book and deletes the extraneous characters and inserts (to the extent possible, that is).


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## TarionzCousin (Jun 12, 2013)

Krug said:


> http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dUlxoZRwUS0
> 
> Nice last shot...



Definitely. I was pleasantly surprised to see the dragon in the trailer. This looks fun.


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## Kaodi (Jun 12, 2013)

I found Smaug's look to be severely underwhelming given what artists seem to be capable of these days. I will try to temper my disappointment with the knowledge that The Hobbit was originally a childrens' tale though, and so a slightly less terrifying and more cartoon-y dragon is not entirely uncalled for...


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## Derren (Jun 12, 2013)

Kaodi said:


> I found Smaug's look to be severely underwhelming given what artists seem to be capable of these days.




Agreed. A pity that Draco (1996) still is the pinnacle when it comes to dragons on the screen.


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## frankthedm (Jun 12, 2013)

horacethegrey said:


> Also, I'm surprised by how prominent Legolas is in the trailer. He wasn't even in the bloody book!



But he is worth big box office bucks so we are also getting Will Turner as a resident of Laketown too!


Mr. Patient said:


> I think Legolas's presence is a good indication that the second installment will be no less overstuffed than the first.



Overstuffed with CASH! PJ's probably got a good contract so whatever profits the studio profits him.


jonesy said:


> So why exactly are they stuffing all this into the same movie(series)? If Jackson wanted to do the necromancer story why not make it it's own movie(series)?



For the money! Hobbit is a big name everybody knows, "The Necromaner of _Made-up Namesville_" won't pack the seats.

Can barely see the the darned dragon... lets adjust the image
[sblock]

[/sblock]


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## Krug (Jun 12, 2013)

Derren said:


> Agreed. A pity that Draco (1996) still is the pinnacle when it comes to dragons on the screen.




Hey those in *How To Tame A Dragon* were pretty well-done.. 

I guess Smaug needs a human-like face in order to make it look persuasive when vocalizing..


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## Argyle King (Jun 12, 2013)

I have no doubt that I'll enjoy the movie, but something Smaug's look reminds me of Falcore.  I know that sounds crazy, but it's the first thing I thought of.  I think it's the mouth or maybe the texture.  I don't think it looks bad per se; just off somehow.


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## horacethegrey (Jun 12, 2013)

Eh. No offense, but I never liked Draco's look. Unlike Vermithrax Pejorative from 1981's _Dragonslayer_, Sean Connery as fire breathing lizard looks kind of bland. At least Smaug looks to be taking some cues from Vermithax in his design. Here's the dragon in question:

 

As for the Will Turner comment from frankthedm, that's Luke Evans playing Bard of Laketown.


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## amerigoV (Jun 12, 2013)

frankthedm said:


> Can barely see the the darned dragon... lets adjust the image




Odd, when I clean it up I get


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## horacethegrey (Jun 12, 2013)

Ok. I thought this was hilarious. Here's a vid of two fangirls geeking out over the trailer:

[video=youtube;52ktuLmy8pM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52ktuLmy8pM[/video]

And in this video a couple of familiar faces react to them:

[video=youtube;ijN69FbZPLI]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijN69FbZPLI[/video]


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## frankthedm (Jun 12, 2013)

horacethegrey said:


> As for the Will Turner comment from frankthedm, that's Luke Evans playing Bard of Laketown.



Oops. Well, looks like I'm not the first to make that mistake. http://www.aceshowbiz.com/news/view/w0007077.html

I like the design of the dragons in Reign of Fire. Shame the movie focused too much on the humans. I went to that movie to watch the dragons TAKE OVER the world, not to dwell human drama AFTER the dragons took over.


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## Morrus (Jun 12, 2013)

At least Smaug is larger than a small pony, as most movie dragons tend to be.


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## frankthedm (Jun 12, 2013)

horacethegrey said:


> Also, I'm surprised by how prominent Legolas is in the trailer. He wasn't even in the bloody book!





> Explaining Legolas' role in "The Hobbit", Peter Jackson says, "He's [elven king] Thranduil's son, and Thranduil is one of the characters in The Hobbit, and because elves are immortal it makes sense Legolas would be part of the sequence in the Woodland Realm."



Also, you can't trust trailers. They might have shown the majority of Legolas's role in the movie, just to reel in Bloom's fans.


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## jbear (Jun 14, 2013)

I have to laugh when I hear criticism of the first part of the Hobbit and complaints that it has been made into 3 movies, or turned into an action film.

Actually I don't laugh at all. I am  baffled, especially when it comes from RPG fans. So you are getting even more of a fantasy story done incredibly well ... ? Yet you complain... I guess you are right ... it's not as good as that other fantasy movie ... Oh wait, other than LotR (which doesn't count as it is part of the same story) there has been no really awesome fantasy movie. Ever.  

I personally really enjoyed the first part and I can't wait to go and see the second part.


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## billd91 (Jun 15, 2013)

The problem is it's diverting a really *good* story into something else - a different story. Maybe you like it better, maybe you don't. But it is different. A combat action barrel-riding sequence? I'm not exactly thrilled.


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## jbear (Jun 15, 2013)

Feels like the same story to me. You are entitled to your opinion, as I am mine. That's a given.

But allow me to simply not get all the nay sayers, especially RPG fans.


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## Rune (Jun 15, 2013)

jbear said:


> Oh wait, other than LotR (which doesn't count as it is part of the same story) there has been no really awesome fantasy movie. Ever.




Huh.  I loved LotR movies and enjoyed the Hobbit movie, but I wouldn't say they were the only really awesome fantasy movies, ever.  I wouldn't even call them the _most_ awesome fantasy movies, ever.  But maybe you and I have different definitions of "awesome."


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## jbear (Jun 15, 2013)

Okay, D&Desque style fantasy movies i.e not The Last Unicorn/animated movies. 

I can think of a few older ones: Willow, Labyrinth, Princess Bride, The Never Ending Story (These are more Fairy Tale fantasy movies but okay ... I misused the word EVER).

But fantasy as in with orcs, dwarves, elves and goblins, warriors, wizards and dragons ... Name another good movie (I'd love to see it ... as I love fantasy, hence why I even frequent these boards (and hence my own bafflement at the criticism)).


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## Rune (Jun 15, 2013)

I'd have to throw the Dark Crystal in there, too, although you might consider that more fairy-tale.  And we could probably throw in Haryhousen's works.  They're dated, but they're still _awesome_.


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## billd91 (Jun 15, 2013)

The LotR and Hobbit movies are adaptations of already popular works among the fanboys and fangirls. These fans have their own conceptions of how the stories look and feel. That's a lot to compete with, for any adaptation. Just look at X-Men fan reactions to the third movie's attempt to cover the Dark Phoenix saga.


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## jbear (Jun 15, 2013)

I didn't like Dark Crystal much (It didn't make my list but I have seen it). And anyone who prefers Harry Hausen's movies to the Hobbit ... well ... not much to say about that.

As for adaptations ... The Last Airbender is a good example of a bad adaptation. The animated series is full of humour which really makes the entire story. In the movie the characters completely lose this dimension. The acting is weak. The movie falls flat long before you look at whether or not the bending looks cool or not.

When I think about the X-men ... I am also a fan of x-men comics and have read more than a few in my time ... and when I think about the movies, again where I feel the movies don't cut it is with the characters. Compare those characters to Iron Man or any of the characters involved in the Avengers. They work because the portrayal of the characters is cool.

The main characters in the Hobbit ... Bilbo: Fantastic ... The Dwarves: Fantastic ... Gollum: Fantastic ...

I am a fan of LotR and the Hobbit and the fantasy genre in general, as I assume are most people here at ENWorld. The character portrayal in the Hobbit so far has been great (from where I am standing), the movie was entertaining and enjoyable ... what is to complain about? I say nothing.

As those who disliked the movie are so vocal, I have decided to be equally vocal in my disagreement.


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## billd91 (Jun 15, 2013)

Well, as a critic of the Hobbit as an adaptation, I will *not* be shouted down simply because you (or anybody) liked the movie better than I did.


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## jbear (Jun 15, 2013)

Likewise, I won't let those, like yourself, who disliked it, get away with voicing their opinions unchallenged as though they were widely held and accepted beliefs, agreed with by one and all.


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## Morrus (Jun 15, 2013)

Ok, calm down people. It's just a movie. Like it, or don't like it, but getting angry about it is just silly.


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## jbear (Jun 15, 2013)

Sorry if I came across angry. I'm not angry at all. I was going for vocal. Please accept my apologies if it seemed I was getting over emotional.


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## billd91 (Jun 15, 2013)

But why do conflicting opinions *need* to challenge each other? That's what got us into the D&D edition war. They don't. Just put yours out there. I'll put mine out there. Done.


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## frankthedm (Jun 15, 2013)

> jbear said:
> 
> 
> > The main characters in the Hobbit ... Bilbo: Fantastic ... The Dwarves: Fantastic ... Gollum: Fantastic ...
> ...


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## jbear (Jun 15, 2013)

frankthedm said:


> > The Albino Orc who think he's gonna rock 40K Orky style and just jam in a prosthetic: Facepalm.
> 
> 
> 
> I am sorry. I cannot understand what you have written.


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## jbear (Jun 15, 2013)

billd91 said:


> But why do conflicting opinions *need* to challenge each other? That's what got us into the D&D edition war. They don't. Just put yours out there. I'll put mine out there. Done.



Good idea. But you should also follow your own advice.


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## Orius (Jun 16, 2013)

It looks good.  The first film wasn't bad at all, the biggest problem was that Jackson left the camera running in a few spots and it shows.  This looks like it will be pretty good too, though it seems they're playing up the conflict between the dwarves and the elves.  My guess it that the film will end right after Bilbo talks with Smaug and gets him so angry he smashes the secret door and then flies off to Lake-town.


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## The Gibbergeist (Jun 26, 2013)

Holy cra... Didn't know this was up already! Can't wait to see it!


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