The Desolation of Smaug pre-release thread [3] [SPOILERS]

[gray gundulf]

Continued from: http://www.hobbitmovieforum.com/t743-the-desolation-of-smaug-pre-release-thread-2-spoilers

----------

fuk off

[bungobaggins]

[Mrs Figg]

  its a fucking troll

[bungobaggins]

[Norc]

oi! be nice to him, he's my friend!

[Biffo Banks]

oi! be nice to him, he's my friend!

Wooden soupriz mee...  

[malickfan]

Norc's made a new friend how nice  

[Mrs Figg]

I think he might be a relation of Biffo.

[malickfan]

I can't tell if he's trolling or not...

Someone call the Bounders!

[RA]

This guy again.

[Eldorion]

http://www-images.theonering.org/torwp/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/HDOS_TAPESTRY_Intl.jpg

Oh, man. When you zoom in on the dwarves climbing the statue the photoshoping looks incredibly awful.

I'm glad to see the marketing team from AUJ is still finding work.

[Eldorion]

Going on the weapon this would appear to be Bolg-

But the graphic on the monitor seems to show something a lot more Azog like than what we have seen touted as Bolg so far, another change to make Bolg look more like Azog?

https://s1011.photobucket.com/user/pettytyrant101/media/TH/vlcsnap-2013-11-06-23h30m24s9_zps6df74d40.png.html

I heard a rumor on the TORn forums that Bolg has been redesigned (maybe it's more than a rumor but I can't find substantiation with just a cursory search on Google).  I wouldn't be surprised; the supposed Bolg design was (1) not CGI, supposedly he was going to be the one orc with a real costume, and (2) looked like ass.

Orcs attacking Lake Town-

Thranduil cutting a dash even when fighting somewhere-

https://s1011.photobucket.com/user/pettytyrant101/media/TH/vlcsnap-2013-11-06-23h32m38s93_zps07efbd5e.png.html

Thranduil still killing stuff, but not sure where- somewhere with a lot of arches in its architecture-

https://s1011.photobucket.com/user/pettytyrant101/media/TH/vlcsnap-2013-11-06-23h32m48s167_zpsf08b3356.png.html

I could be wrong, but the Thranduil scenes look like the ruins of Dale to me, especially the first one with the snow.  My first thought was maybe this was a scene from the Battle of the Five Armies, but it doesn't make any sense for that to be in film two (nor does the soundtrack suggest this).  So between that and the pic of orcs in Lake-town picture I suspect there may be fighting with orcs prior to the BOFA beginning.  This would of course mean that the build-up to the battle is very different, but that's hardly surprising anymore.  I just hope that they don't make Sauron responsible for the battle and/or have the Nazgul show up (though I expect they will).

[halfwise]

It's not a party without Nazgul.  

[Eldorion]

I heard a rumor on the TORn forums that Bolg has been redesigned (maybe it's more than a rumor but I can't find substantiation with just a cursory search on Google).  I wouldn't be surprised; the supposed Bolg design was (1) not CGI, supposedly he was going to be the one orc with a real costume, and (2) looked like ass.

Just a follow up to this: I have it on fairly reliable authority from someone who has watched the EE documentaries that the aforementioned image of the prosthetic costume of "Bolg" that was circulated on the Internet was actually the rejected original design of Azog. This is not to be confused with the costume they filmed Manu Bennet in before he was CGI'd over during post-production.

[Pettytyrant101]

mmm, not to doubt your source Eldo but that doesnt seem to quite fit.
Bolg, or someone who looks very like him appears in the Battle of Arse and Bull, and the design was also widely promoted as Bolg in spin off merchandise, such as the lego sets.
If it was meant to be Azog all along why would they give it to the merchandise makers as Bolg?  

[Mrs Figg]

at least that dude in the photos isnt cgi.

[Bluebottle]

Well Bolg does have one thing going for him as he's actually present in the corresponding section of the book. That puts him one up on Azog.

[Pettytyrant101]

That's true  

Here's hoping then PJ doesnt edge him out to fringe character level in order to make Azog the main bad orc.

[bungobaggins]

Too much changing of orc designs. I wonder how much time and money was wasted on all of this. And poor Conan Stevens.  

[Mrs Figg]

that weapon is silly

[Pettytyrant101]

I suspect that weapon Figg went through the same sort of conception as the Witch-Kings mace.

Someone made a sensible version and every time they took it to PJ he said, "NO make it much bigger and sillier looking" repeat half a dozen times until we end up with this  

[Bluebottle]

Well there seems to be a trend in modern fantasy movies to give baddies rather unpractical weapons.

Maybe that's why they always lose?

[bungobaggins]

When I first looked at that picture from the new production blog (the one that has the motion capture of what we are guessing is the new Bolg design), my first reaction was that it looks like a gorilla.

[Mrs Figg]

the Witch King's mace kinda worked. I never really cottoned on until later that it was too large.

[Pettytyrant101]

It certainly doesnt cry out orc to me. And oddly even less so when put alongside examples of orcs from PJ's own LotR's films.