Post 4

I’m no filmmaker, but I think when you read a book and watch the movie then look back on scenes the filmmaker cut out, sometimes it can become clear as to why they did so. Movies are typically an hour to two in length. The Lord of the Rings is one of those great trilogies where so much happens that it’s hard to include every little detail. I’m not that far into the book just yet but already there are a few changes that the filmmaker made when making the book into a movie.

I haven’t come across many scenes yet that I think are essential to keep that aren’t in the movie except for maybe the fact that so much time passes between the time Bilbo leaves to the time Frodo decides to leave. Frodo doesn’t know how dangerous the ring is until soon before he leaves in the book. I just think it would be important to show that Frodo doesn’t leave so suddenly, he leaves after a while.

Another scene in the book that needs to be kept is the whole birthday scene, which I believe that filmmaker did a good job of creating. I like how they showed the hobbits didn’t really care all that much about Bilbo’s speech which was definitely apparent in the book, some of them even got offended. But what I think should’ve been more clear in the movie is how the hobbits were greedy and wanted Bilbo to leave so they could have his things. There was no indication of that in the movie.

Something else that they needed to keep that was in the movie was the fact that the Ring Wraiths were searching for Frodo. I think in the movie they should've gone more into that because in the book the Wraith is asking the hobbits if they know where he went but in the movie the Wraith appears when Frodo has already started to hit the road. I think it shows that the Wraiths know he has the ring and that they're onto him, I believe it would instill more fear if they included that but all together from what i've read in the books I think the filmmakers did a good job.

Some scenes, such as where they're all singing about taking a bath together, I think should be left out. Not that I like the idea of leaving scenes out of the movie, but I see that the filmmakers left that part out because it doesn't really contribute to the plot. It mainly shows that after little time has passed since they left Hobbiton they're grateful to have hot water. Another part that I don't think is really all that significant that the filmmaker changed is the fact that Merry didn't leave right away with the other three, he joined them later in the book. Which I like in the movie that they all left together, it's more... symbolic I think.

Book 1 Project: The Night Circus

Come see what The Night Circus has to offer as it’s brought to life in The Night Carnival, a place where kids of all ages can come to enjoy true, believable magic. From contortionists who disappear, to gardens completely white made of ice, bottles that hold your wishes and dreams, to magicians, there’s nothing here that you won’t forget and it all starts when the sun goes down, unlike any other amusement park or carnival, any circus out there. This one will be different from all the others and it should be because this is real magic we’re talking about.

The carnival will be like an exact replica of the circus described in the book, as close as it can get at least. There are some aspects that unfortunately can't be incorporated just because they’re created with real magic in the book, and unfortunately though some people may disagree, the magic in reality isn’t the same as the magic that comes when you read the words of a book. If we’re able to find humans who can bend themselves in any direction and return back to normal shape, that’d be great. There are probably a good handful of excellent magicians out there who could give the illusion that their tricks are real magic. They’d come in handy for our carnival. Each tent would be black and white stripped, like in the book. And there’d be concession stands scattered around the carnival selling warm cider, chocolate mice, and hot cocoa, everything that was in the book. The carnival will be the circus brought to life.

Everything in the carnival will come straight from the circus. Including some of the rides and attractions such as the cloud maze, which is literally a maze made of clouds but you can spend as long as you want in there. There’s no rush to get out and you can climb as high as you want. In the book they say the easiest way to get out is to just jump down, and the characters don’t have to worry about getting hurt.

Obviously we can’t make a real cloud maze.

But we can make something like it. Something better than hanging pillows up in the air with ropes and screws. It’d be made to give the illusion that you’re floating in the air, and each platform would be soft, like a cloud is imagined to be. There’d be doors at each “safe cloud” which could be colored a light blue versus white to differentiate them from the others. Even though that’s not in the book, it’s safer than having the carnivalists jump from the “clouds.”

“The tower itself if a series of platforms swooping in odd, diaphanous shapes, quite similar to clouds. They are layered, like a cake.”

“Some platforms are suspended from ropes or chains from above. On lower levels, there are large poles driven through multiple platforms, though Bailey cannot tell if they reach all the way to the top.”

Another attraction we can create is called The Stargazer. It’s a rollercoaster in which you lean back, like you’re laying down, and you stare at the stars. Shocker, right? One of the characters, Poppet, looks up the stars and she’s able to read them, she’s able to read the future, though it’s fuzzy and she’s not always certain on some of the details.

“The tent has no top, Bailey realizes. The upper portion of it is open, with the night sky fully visible. It is a different sensation than watching the stars while lying in a field, something Bailey has done so many times. There are no trees creeping into the edges, and the gentle swaying of the carriage makes him feel almost weightless.”

The rollercoaster wouldn’t be like a thrill ride, it would be more soothing than anything. And like the ride in the circus, the ride in the carnival will only be open on clear nights, where there are no clouds so that all the stars can be seen.

And of course, what’s a carnvial without a fortune teller? There will be a tent set up in a corner somewhere, home to the fortune teller and behind a curtain of beads she would sit on a few pillows, her face hidden by a veil, and in front of her there would be a table that supports nothing but a deck of cards.

“The fortune-teller picks up the deck and shuffles, shifting the cards from one hand to the other. They fold over and under each other in waves. Then she spreads them across the table in one fluid motion, forming an arc of identical black-and-white-patterned card backs. ‘Choose a single card,’ she says. ‘Take your time. This will be your card, the one that will represent you.’”

She would be proffesional, and mysterious, and never give a clear answer but the people who go to her will always leave with a sense of direction of what they should do next, or what they’re supposed to do. What lies ahead of them. What their destiny is.

This carnival won’t be like any other, it’ll be truly magical because it’ll be based off a magical circus in a book, and books can hold the key to true magic.