It is really challenging to consider a critical assessment of The Hobbit. The much-beloved Tolkien novel has to live in many shadows, from the achievements of Peter Jackson’s previous treks into Middle-Earth, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, to the classic Rankin-Bass animated version, to the very novel itself. It’s almost impossible to judge Jackson’s return to Middle Earth without considering... 

It’s been a long, challenging road for The Hobbit. It’s endured lawsuits, studio bankruptcy, and even a change in directors. At times, it didn’t even look like the prequel to the popular Lord of the Rings movies was ever going to be made. On one hand, there were people who were happy with that outlook, feeling like the existing trilogy was so perfect that it was best to leave well enough alone.... 

With Rise of the Planet of the Apes, 20th Century Fox looks to revive their Planet of the Apes franchise. Based on the 1963 novel La Planete des Singes by Pierre Boulle, the original movie hit the theaters in 1968 starring Charlton Heston and Roddy McDowall in Franklin J. Schaffner’s classic Planet of the Apes. Since then, they provided four sequels – Beneath, Escape, Conquest and Battle –... 

One of the upcoming movies we should be looking forward to the most keeps slipping off my radar: The Hobbit (or The Hobbit movies, if you want to be specific, since they’re making two films out of this project). While there was a ton of buzz surrounding the follow up to Lord of the Rings when Guillermo del Toro was announced as Peter Jackson’s chosen successor, most of that has faded with time....