Either wisely or unwisely, I have been slowly revisiting 'The Hobbit' movies. I've survived a second viewing on the first two and the third is waiting. The frustrating thing about them is they have so much potential! The actors, scenery, music, budget...all very much in favor of the director. And while the source material isn't my favorite of Tolkien's get, it is a decent little story. Perhaps that is the key: little. This version of the movie is too epic for its own good. 'The Lord of the Rings' is the epic of the saga, this is just a little adventure, not even a footnote in the great happenings of that world, save for the finding of the Ring, but they have tried to cram too much in, even for a three part epic. It is supposed to be an adventure, not a rollercoaster ride, but they travel at lightning speed to fit everything in (most of which is not vital to the story or even in the book). And while you can eventually learn to filter out the needless junk and find the gem of the story lurking somewhere in the chaos, it is very tiring, like being on the journey yourself.
Is our modern life like that? Each of us is living a story, certainly, some as epic and grand and important as 'Lord of the Rings' but most of us are more of the scale of 'The Hobbit,' interesting and important in its own right, but hardly worth mentioning on the grand scale of the universe, but I think we try and cram in countless needless things, perhaps cool and intriguing in theory, but in the end they just jumble up the story, confuse the plot, and tire the characters without adding anything. That's what a good editor is for: they cut out the unimportant clutter, be it a movie or book. Take a look at the busyness that is your own life and consider what a good editor might do? What would they hack away, that you might have life, and that more abundantly? Maybe it's time we each took a hint from this overstuffed movie and apply it to our hectic lives!
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