Molouk Y. Ba-Isa Saudi Gazette If you have furry feet, pointy ears and aren't very tall then you'll fit in fine with all the characters in the new movie, “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.” The film made a lot of money in the USA when it opened last weekend - a record $84.8 million in fact. The film is being shown in theaters either in 2D and 3D. It's the first movie for a mass audience which was shot at 48 frames per second (fps). What that means is that for every second of the movie you watch, 48 separate images pass before your eyes. Most movies are shot at 24 fps and some cartoons have just 12 frames per second (fps). With so many images passing before your eyes and your brain, “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” usually looks very bright and the images are very sharp. Some people think that it's like watching real life passing outside a window. Other movie goers said that it made some of the movie's scenery look fake. Then there were some people who found that watching the movie made them feel queasy. They spent the whole three hours in the movie theater trying not to throw up. According to The Tolkien Society (www.tolkiensociety.org), “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is based on a story John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (J.R.R. Tolkien) told to his children. In this form it was composed sometime between 1929 and 1936. In 1937, it was published as a book titled “The Hobbit” or “There and Back Again.” The story is set in Middle-earth. Tolkien did not make up the name Middle-earth. It is a version of the name of the world inhabited by humans that was used in ancient northern European languages. The book and the movie tell the story of Bilbo Baggins – the hobbit of the title – and the adventures he becomes involved in with Gandalf the wizard and a group of dwarves. You can read the book for free from www.readanybook.com/ebook/the-hobbit-17 or listen to it at www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7jYQFTV7EM If you get a chance to watch the movie, you will see that there are 13 dwarves who play important roles. These actors are really 13 normal-sized men who thanks to some special techniques used to shoot the movie – and a lot of makeup – are turned into short people with fat faces and pointy ears. You can see yourself as one of the “Company of Dwarves” by using the online application at http://apps.warnerbros.com/thehobbit/ar/uk/ It needs a webcam to capture your face. It's also nice to try “The Hobbit: Kingdoms” for Android or the official “Hobbit Movies” app for iPhone or iPad. The Hobbit Action Figure Box Set from The Bridge Direct and Vivid Group. — Photo by Warner Bros.
