We’ve come a long way since the days of Cool World and Who Framed Roger Rabbit? I mean, just look at last December’s blockbuster, The Hobbit. Peter Jackson’s Weta Studios (the same group that created Looper’s skylines and District 9’s extra terrestrial tech) leverages cutting-edge CGI techniques to meld live action and digital animation so seamlessly you’d swear those giant eagles were real. [/Film] More »
Peter Jackson’s version of The Hobbit has been causing a stir, because people expect its high frame rate—48 frames per second, no less—will make it look a bit like a 70s soap opera. At least you’ll be able to tell for yourself, because 450 theaters across North America are equipped to show the film at its high frame rate. More »
Not every theater will be showing Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit in its native 48 frames-per-second. But for those that will, Warner Bros. has created this handy FAQ that explains why the HFR 3D (high frame rate) technology could make the film look like a TV soap opera. More »
The CinemaCon crowd may not have been keen on 48fps footage of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, but we defy anyone to say they don’t want the best sound possible. A select few will get just that, as Dolby and Peter Jackson’s own Park Road Post Production have announced the film will be mixed for the speaker-packed Atmos technology. If you’re lucky enough to live near one of the select establishments it’s installed in, we doubt you’ll be grumbling about the immersive audio, even if the frame rate makes those orcs look unsettlingly real.
Update: That link of “select establishments” is somewhat out of date and, although the official list of locations you’ll be able to see The Hobbit in Atmos has yet to be released, Dolby says there should be between 80 and 100 screens capable of delivering the over-the-top audio experience by the film’s debut.
Continue reading The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey to receive the Dolby Atmos treatment
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey to receive the Dolby Atmos treatment originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Oct 2012 14:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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All told, we can’t deny Peter Jackson’s caused some madness since announcing the scheme to shoot his upcoming Hobbit film at a high frame-rate, rather than sticking with the more common 24 fps, Hollywood-style method. Regardless, rumor now has it Warner Bros. is supposedly planning a “limited release” of the 48 fps version because, according to Variety, the studio “wants to protect the format” by choosing to go the select-viewing route — that said, WB’s allegedly hoping to “expand the HFR release for the second and third installments.” Still, nothing’s set in stone just yet, so we’d hold off on throwing any temper tantrums (or celebrating, depending on which side you’re on) until we hear something official from Warner.
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Home Entertainment
Peter Jackson’s 48 fps version of The Hobbit said to be a ‘limited release’ only originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Aug 2012 22:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Two different audiences and two very different screenings. After unfamiliar 48fps Hobbit footage was pretty universally panned back at Cinema-Con, Peter Jackson decided to play it safe and show Comic-Con fans the traditional low frame-rate teaser. Their response? They loved it. Which would, you’d think, give the head hobbit a clear message: his film works better without the wacky frame rate, but that’s just not how he sees it. Writing on his Facebook page, he said “I’ve always been happy to bet on myself” and the 48fps version of Hobbit is “something really special” when you watch the entire movie. In other words, he’s sticking to his orc sword, and in the meantime we’re left to wonder what would have happened if the Comic-Con crowd — who are perhaps more his kind of people than Cinema-Con goers — had been shown the tricked out footage.
Filed under: Displays, Misc. Gadgets
Comic-Con fans go crazy over Hobbit teaser, but not the 48fps version originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Jul 2012 06:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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