March 1

[Zeke]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]

Heard what happened at the Oscars last night? If not, 5MV is here to help you catch up. Read [i:post_uid0]Return of the King[/i:post_uid0] wins all awards (../thisjustin/b1.html), the first installment of a new TJI feature called [i:post_uid0]This Just In[/i:post_uid0] Brief. (The layout is temporary -- I thought of TJIB just this afternoon.)[/color:post_uid0]

[Nic Corelli]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]The Tox Uthat... :D Very funny![/color:post_uid0]

[mudshark]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]:D

Hee hee hee.[/color:post_uid0]

[NAHTMMM]

[color=#000000:post_uid0][quote:post_uid0]"Needless to say, I'm delighted," commented Mr. Jackson. "This exceeds my wildest hopes. I assure all those who have chosen our film that your confidence in us is not misplaced. The money from these awards will be put to good use buying us all solid gold neckties and enabling me to hire many young hobbit servants for my tower-like home."[/quote:post_uid0]

:D


I like this new idea, Zeke... :smile:[/color:post_uid0]

[Michiel]

[color=#000000:post_uid0][quote:post_uid0]Other awards received by The Return of the King include the Pulitzer Prize, the World Cup, the Tox Uthat, the golden fleece, the Darwin Awards, the Sci-Fi Emmys, and the Holy Grail.[/quote:post_uid0]

Hehe. Zeke, you forgot "The amulet of aranon the unready". They won that too. :D[/color:post_uid0]

[taya17]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]I kind of like the idea of ROTK winning the World Cup. It just tickles me pink.

[Hailie Mathers voice] You're funny, Zeke! [/Hailie Mathers voice][/color:post_uid0]

[Derek]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]^ I like that it won the Darwin awards.

Theoden wins the Darwin award for not only deliberately setting himself on fire (and trying to set his son on fire), but also running off the top level of Minas Tirith.[/color:post_uid0]

[Kira]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]I think you mean Denethor. :D Â Theoden doesn't qualify for a Darwin since getting crushed by his own horse was accidental and not due to stupidity... well, except for the whole "taking on the massive army of the Dark Lord" part.

Just when I thought the film was getting the respect it deserved....

Did anyone see Billy Crystal's intro with him edited into the nominated movies? Â Or his Lord of the Rings song to the tune of "My Favorite Things"? Â I haven't laughed so hard in ages... I'm determined to find a copy of it on Kazaa if at all humanly possible.[/color:post_uid0]

[Quinalla]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]:lol: The Tox Uthat is hilarious.

I was pleasantly suprised that they won every oscar they were nominated for, I expected them to win a lot, but not that many. Being the big nerd that I am, I have watched all the extras on the extended versions for the first two and the amount of time and effort that went into those films is certainly deserving of many oscars.[/color:post_uid0]

[Derek]

[quote:post_uid0="Kira"][color=#000000:post_uid0]I think you mean Denethor. :D[/color:post_uid0][/quote:post_uid0]
[color=#000000:post_uid0]Crap. Note to self: Drink coffee first, then post. Not the other way around.

You'd think with the number of times I'd read the books (and seen the movies), I'd at least keep characters' names straight. Sigh.[/color:post_uid0]

[Kira]

[quote:post_uid0="Quinalla"][color=#000000:post_uid0]I have watched all the extras on the extended versions for the first two and the amount of time and effort that went into those films is certainly deserving of many oscars.[/color:post_uid0][/quote:post_uid0]
[color=#000000:post_uid0]Damn straight. I've only gotten through maybe a third of the features on my TT EE, and I'm already blown away by the amount of thought and detail that went into every aspect of production.

Incidentally, RotK may have tied Titanic and Ben-Hur for number of Oscars won with 11, but both of those films lost in at least one of the categories they were nominated in. I'd say that puts RotK at the top of the pile. :D[/color:post_uid0]

[Zeke]

[quote:post_uid0="Kira"][color=#000000:post_uid0]Just when I thought the film was getting the respect it deserved....[/color:post_uid0][/quote:post_uid0]
[color=#000000:post_uid0]Hey, I'm happy about that too. I was glad to see you were right about them waiting for the end of the trilogy to recognize LotR. But something had to be said about this absolutely ridiculous number of Oscars. :D[/color:post_uid0]

[Hotaru]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]It was very good, but why is there a link to the non-existant Brief #2?[/color:post_uid0]

[Zeke]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]Because I forgot the exclamation points, that's why.[/color:post_uid0]

[NAHTMMM]

[color=#000000:post_uid0][quote:post_uid0="Kira"]Incidentally, RotK may have tied Titanic and Ben-Hur for number of Oscars won with 11, but both of those films lost in at least one of the categories they were nominated in. Â I'd say that puts RotK at the top of the pile. :D[/quote:post_uid0]
Or you could say that that puts RotK at the bottom of the pile, because it was nominated for "only" 11 Oscars ;)[/color:post_uid0]

[Sa'ar Chasm]

[color=#000000:post_uid0][quote:post_uid0]Or you could say that that puts RotK at the bottom of the pile, because it was nominated for "only" 11 Oscars[/quote:post_uid0]

I'm with Kira. It has a higher percentage or win/loss ratio or batting average or whatever you want to call it.

Plus it doesn't have Leonardo or Charleton Heston.[/color:post_uid0]

[mudshark]

[quote:post_uid0="Derek"][color=#000000:post_uid0][quote:post_uid0="Kira"]I think you mean Denethor. :D[/quote:post_uid0]
Crap. Note to self: Drink coffee first, then post. Not the other way around.

You'd think with the number of times I'd read the books (and seen the movies), I'd at least keep characters' names straight. Sigh.[/color:post_uid0][/quote:post_uid0]
[color=#000000:post_uid0]Side observation: the names are near-anagrams of each other. A cup of good, strong coffee (maybe two) should get that sorted out. ;)[/color:post_uid0]

[Kira]

[quote:post_uid0="NAHTMMM"][color=#000000:post_uid0]Or you could say that that puts RotK at the bottom of the pile, because it was nominated for "only" 11 Oscars ;)[/color:post_uid0][/quote:post_uid0]
[color=#000000:post_uid0]That's only because they got completely shafted in the acting categories. Also, Gollum appears to have never existed -- did you notice he wasn't in a single effects shot they showed? And don't make me open a can of whoop-@$$ on you.[/color:post_uid0]

[NAHTMMM]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]Well, I'm not looking to make you do that, Kira, and I really honestly hate to say this, but I don't think I saw any consistently strong acting performances from any of the main characters that deserved nominations :(. There were strong moments and competent performances, but overall...acting was definitely the weak point of the entire trilogy, not just RotK. Which, considering how strong the directing, special effects, costuming, etc, were, isn't saying all that much ;), but still...[/color:post_uid0]

[Zeke]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]It's been nice knowing you, NAH my man.[/color:post_uid0]

[Quinalla]

[color=#000000:post_uid0][quote:post_uid0]Also, Gollum appears to have never existed -- did you notice he wasn't in a single effects shot they showed?[/quote:post_uid0]
What? I didn't watch them, but that is just crazy! Â Granted, there are a lot of special effects, but Gollum is one of the most amazing ones.

I think the reason they got shafted on the acting nominations is it is too much of an ensemble movie.  Not enough screen time for anyone in one movie anyway, except maybe Frodo in the first film.  I thought the acting was excellent myself, lots of attention to facial expressions and little details.  They need a best ensemble nomination that includes all the extras and everything, they would have won that  :smile:[/color:post_uid0]

[NAHTMMM]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]Quinalla's got a point. They couldn't spend too much time on getting any one actor's acting exactly right because there were so many actors to work with.


But one part that sticks in my mind as being subpar is the start of TTT, where Aragorn & co. are running along. Legolas's :dead: ly cheesy mug shot is the direction's fault. But then Aragorn does this terribly threadbare bit where he runs up to the proverbial duct tape X on the ground, stops and immediately goes Shakespeare (and seems to be attempting to make it all look and sound perfectly spontaneous. Well, he fails at that) and immediately begins running again.

And then, if I remember correctly, Legolas does the same thing. "Run up to this point, turn and gaze in this direction, deliver this monologue, turn back around and start running again."

(Neither of the monologues were anything that would have just occurred to one or the other suddenly after several days of running through the land. If they're going to bother to stop to say it, it's probably because the thoughts behind the monologue are gradually taking hold of their attention. So I'd expect them to slow down to a stop over several steps, not stop in their tracks as if they had just discovered a gorge lay before them.)


[i:post_uid0]I[/i:post_uid0] could have done that. Well, except for the apparent lack of deep breathing that I remember on their part. Apparently our heroes are so hardened by years of hard living that their muscles use the same amount of oxygen to run as to stand still...but that's getting ridiculously off topic, I suspect. ;)[/color:post_uid0]

[Nan]

[color=#000000:post_uid0][quote:post_uid0="Sa'ar Chasm"]Plus it doesn't have Leonardo[/quote:post_uid0]
Let go, damn you. Let go of those 3 hours I can never get back!

[quote:post_uid0]or Charleton Heston.[/quote:post_uid0]

Yeah, I'm still siding with the apes on that one.[/color:post_uid0]

[Tate]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]:lol: Â :lol: Â :lol: Great article (or whatever you call it), Zeke.[/color:post_uid0]

[Nan]

[color=#000000:post_uid0][quote:post_uid0]"What I'd like to know is how a movie about evil, evil war won the Nobel Peace Prize," observed actor Viggo Mortensen. [/quote:post_uid0]

In addition to the physics, chemistry, medicine, and literature prizes...

;)[/color:post_uid0]

[mudshark]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]^ Economics, too, no doubt. :smile:[/color:post_uid0]

[Zeke]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]Are you kidding? It won the Nobel Prize in hot dog skiing.[/color:post_uid0]

[Quinalla]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]I do agree with you that the one-liners during the running sequence were a little lame in TT, NAHTMMM, but Viggo did have a broken toe (from kicking the orc helmet, the take he did it in is the one in the movie btw), Orlando had a broken rib (from falling off a horse), heck even the guy who played the scale double for Gimli had an injury (not that he talked). Â They were the gimp squad running around all over the place :)

I think it would have been better if they had done a scene with those three during one of the nights. They don't run at night in the books because they are afraid of missing another sign like Pippen's leaf clasp. Â Then they could have had a conversation instead of silly one-liners. Â And besides, Viggo selling the tracking scene where he tells us exactly what happened to Merry and Pippen made up for it IMO.[/color:post_uid0]

[NAHTMMM]

[color=#000000:post_uid0][quote:post_uid0="Quinalla"]I think it would have been better if they had done a scene with those three during one of the nights. They don't run at night in the books because they are afraid of missing another sign like Pippen's leaf clasp. Â Then they could have had a conversation instead of silly one-liners.[/quote:post_uid0]
Sounds good to me! They may have avoided anything of the sort because they wanted to keep up the pace and the sense of urgency on the runners' part.


[quote:post_uid0]Â And besides, Viggo selling the tracking scene where he tells us exactly what happened to Merry and Pippen made up for it IMO.[/quote:post_uid0]
I agree he did that scene well. :)[/color:post_uid0]

[Nan]

[quote:post_uid0="Zeke"][color=#000000:post_uid0]Are you kidding? Â It won the Nobel Prize in hot dog skiing.[/color:post_uid0][/quote:post_uid0]
[color=#000000:post_uid0]Hot dog skiing? Is that like the Inuit tradition of using frozen fish as sled runners? ;)[/color:post_uid0]

[Zeke]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]In hot dog skiing, you ski off a slope and then pull off as many crazy flips and twists as you can before you hit the ground. It was an event in the old Olympics-based Commodore 64 game Winter Games. Man, I spent hours playing that game.[/color:post_uid0]

[Nan]

[color=#000000:post_uid0]Ahhhhh, yes.[/color:post_uid0]