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Part 3: Quint and Peter Jackson talk HALO!!!

Fun game... by morGoth	Sep 14th, 2006 05:38:43 AM
...and I hope this is better than "Doom."
There's no fucking reason... by Frankenblogger	Sep 14th, 2006 08:06:30 AM
...why you can't post all of your fucking interview at once, Quint! I don't give a shit about Halo.
Third... by TheMackenzie	Sep 14th, 2006 08:15:23 AM
So Close...
Glad they are waiting... by movieman742	Sep 14th, 2006 08:33:18 AM
for the script to be right. The first game was ok, loved the second. I just hope they do take their time, if they do then I don't see why they won't have a really great movie on thier hands. It would be pretty cool if they had an R rated version. Actually, I would prefer the R over the PG-13.
We are being tempted by the hobbit chat each day... by Talkbacker with no name	Sep 14th, 2006 08:41:34 AM
I'm hoping we learn something new, quint! You better not be just suckering me in :)...I'm more into the idea of Halo after what Peter said about "Lovecraftian horror". Sounds very interesting! P13 would be fine. you can get away with a lot these days.
I fear this will tank hardcore... by Reelheed	Sep 14th, 2006 08:42:32 AM
Everyone has the best intentions yet the buck stops with what the studio want. And the studio will want a pg13 (UK 12) rated film to be delivered exactly when the Halo3 game ships. Visions will be dropped in favour of deadlines, the 3rd act will be flashy but rushed and the whole thing will stink of unkept promises.
WELL by THE KNIGHT	Sep 14th, 2006 08:46:09 AM
not much on Halo ehh... I'm not too familiar with halo but it seems like the team is well in place and i love his statements about the director... they're risk takers and that's always appreciated...
Shut up Frankenblogger! by Talkbacker with no name	Sep 14th, 2006 08:47:56 AM
It's cool it's in parts. I'm really enjoying reading one each day with a cup of coffee in the morning.
Plot spoiler..... by ImJustABill	Sep 14th, 2006 09:25:05 AM
Frodo gets his ass handed to him by Master Chief at the end of a Plasma Rifle
The Hobbit by kevinwillis.net	Sep 14th, 2006 09:26:57 AM
Is what we're all waiting for. Quint knows it. So he's dragging it out. Making us wait. Chortling as he holds his clenched fists skyward, reveling in his absolute fanboy power. We all know it.
The HALO mythos is based on secrets... by CENOBITE	Sep 14th, 2006 09:33:52 AM
Much of the story and attraction of HALO has been the unanswered questions. This has led to some quite creative story elements that are just grazed upon in the games and hinted at in the novels. HALO is more than a game, but an entire universe based on "Hard core" science fiction themes going back to influences by Issac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke. But then again it doesn't surprise me most talkbackers don't know this. I would even say that most of the people who have even played HALO don't know many of these back story plot points going all the way back to the Marathon series of games. "It doesn't matter a damn whether it's based on a game, a book or a piece of chewing gum, you know? That's irrelevant. It's what actually ends up on the screen that's important." Bravo, Mr. Jackson.
Hobbit? by Trevor Goodchild	Sep 14th, 2006 09:39:07 AM
Having never read the Hobbit can someone give a summary of what kind of visions, scenes and setpieces to look forward to?
Chief takes off his helmet... by Knobules	Sep 14th, 2006 09:56:36 AM
And its Jack Baur. That would rock.
You Didn't Actually Conduct This Interview, Quint by tonagan	Sep 14th, 2006 10:05:39 AM
It was actually second-hand information from his pet cat Mittens. And my online film site ScoopPoop.com had the story first. Which we copied from you :)
Why isnt any doing Half Life by Lovecraftfan	Sep 14th, 2006 10:07:43 AM
Would love to see thar done properly.
Dumb... by IAmLegolas	Sep 14th, 2006 10:14:55 AM
Leaving the only news anyone cares about until the end (THE HOBBIT) which will turn out as non-news anyway as there hasn't been any movement on it (and if there was, it would be all over the internet, not held at will and doled out by AICN)
More excited for this than Transformers... by DJSpoonfed	Sep 14th, 2006 10:16:32 AM
But, they better not show his face. On another note, I don't see why a PG-13 would be so bad for this flick? Some alien violence, the occasional F-bomb, and some freaky lookin' flood. Hell, LOTR had enough violence to keep me satisfied, and it didn't need an R. As long as it has the FEEL of Halo, I'll be happy.
Hobbit by cyberend	Sep 14th, 2006 10:16:38 AM
Happy to oblige. I just finished reading the Hobbit to my daughter, so the story is fairly fresh in my mind. And I'm just in the mood to waste some time on the talkback... First off, I must say that it is really a Lord of the Rings light. When Tolkien wrote this het was clearly not in the same 'world-building-mode' he was in when he composed his epic LOTR, and LOTR is in many ways a reworked Hobbit. Many times you feel he just makes stuff up as he goes along. Which is fine, of course. But if you thought LOTR was a bit meandering at times you haven't read the Hobbit :-) MAYOR SPOILER SHOULD YOU NOT WANT TO KNOW THE PLOT OF THE HOBBIT!! A hobbit called Bilbo is visited by a wizard (Gandalf) who introduces him to a group of dwarves (or is it dwarfs?). They offer him a contract to join them on a quest (another quest? yes) to a mountain (yep, another mountain). The mountain was once a great city of dwarves, until the dragon Smaug drove them out and took possession of their treasures. Stuff that's bound to be in the movie: - the run in with the 3 trolls (as this is mentioned in LOTR) - the crossing of the orc-infested mountains, where Bilbo gets separated, meets Gollum and gets 'the Ring' - Wargs and orcs cornering the companionship up in a tree; getting rescued by eagles - large forest crossing with: - Bilbo climbing to watch above the canopy of the endless forest - a beautiful image, bound to be in the movie - large spiders (not Shelob large, but more of them) - slightly dubious wood-elves and an escape from the elven city via barrels in a river - a human city build poles on a lake - the mountain with the dragon - the fight to slay the dragon - the big end-battle between just about everybody I mentioned before (minus the dragon) over the treasure - Bilbo returning home Sounds familiar? Can't wait to see it on the big screen, craftily pruned and tuned by Jackson into a sharp, concise story I assume it is by now obvious that I prefer the movies by far over the longwinded version by Tolkien - which I liked enough to reread several times over the years. But I learned to read the poems and landscape descriptions diagonally.
Master Chief...not that interesting by alienindisguise	Sep 14th, 2006 10:23:14 AM
of a character, just a cheesy tough talking douche in a suit. Basing a movie around that will probably not end well.
Those worm things were the worst FX in Kong. by Grando	Sep 14th, 2006 10:28:04 AM
They better improve that shit quick or the Flood will look like ass.
It don't matter none by Bob of the Shire	Sep 14th, 2006 10:32:25 AM
Wii = $250 in the US, comes with Wii Sports. Launches on November 19th with Zelda and some other shit. 30 VC games at launch, 60 by the end of the year, they plan on releasing 10 VC games every week until the end of 2007. VC game prices: $5 - NES, $8 - SNES, $10 - N64. MSX, PCI, and Genesis game prices unknown. Tons of new footage, including a scene from Zelda where he's riding a motherfucking dragon!!!
red vs. blue by purplemonkeydw	Sep 14th, 2006 10:36:00 AM
that would make a good movie
Are there any good, PG-13 movies out there? by Billyeveryteen	Sep 14th, 2006 10:46:47 AM
None come to mind.
I'm pumped as much as ANYONE!! Sounds like progress!! by JDanielP	Sep 14th, 2006 10:57:55 AM
Great potential. I don't care what anyone else says. Jackson is right, mentioning the inspiration for a motion picture. It really doesn't matter where the inspiration comes from. What matters, folks, ...is what happens on the screen. And this sounds like an event picture!
based on a game, a book or a piece of chewing gum by RefriedBeaner	Sep 14th, 2006 11:21:00 AM
I hope he's not trying to steal my idea for Bazooka Joe: The Movie!
Glad they're not rushing the script. by DrPeestain	Sep 14th, 2006 11:32:36 AM
..
What a contrast... by Optimus Murphy	Sep 14th, 2006 11:36:19 AM
Peter Jackson vs. Don Murphy. Who do you trust with your franchise? Is R even a rating anymore? I mean if the movie doesn't show Sharon Stone's tired twat?
Thanks cyberend. by Trevor Goodchild	Sep 14th, 2006 11:48:45 AM
Filming this seems a little unessassary .
damn you Quint... by keyserSOZE	Sep 14th, 2006 11:54:56 AM
teasing us with this Hobbit info day after day. spill it, man! spill it!
What is with geeks ALWAYS by BRUTICUS	Sep 14th, 2006 11:59:54 AM
recommending that a special feature of this or a special version of that make it on the DVD special features? How bout them just concentrating on them making a good bloody movie?
A piece of chewing gum... by rev_skarekroe	Sep 14th, 2006 12:14:47 PM
Burton did that already, sort of. Mars Attacks was based on bubblegum cards. Also, I hope they make the Halo AI chick less irritating in the movie. I wanted to not do stuff in that game just to spite her.
um.. hasnt quint already spilled on the hobbit? by FrenchBastard03	Sep 14th, 2006 12:31:13 PM
Didn't he already say in another article that all PJ has said about it is that he surprisingly hasn't been approached by either MGM or New Line to do The Hobbit, even though MGM has recently stated that they are planning on doing The Hobbit with PJ?
oh and Billyeveryteen... by FrenchBastard03	Sep 14th, 2006 12:34:44 PM
...ever heard of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy? yea they were definetly PG13 and had their fare share of beheadings and such, far from a squeeky clean movie. I have faith that Jackson can push it all the way to the edge with the rating.
What PJ will say about the Hobbit... by sckbassg3	Sep 14th, 2006 01:32:54 PM
I haven't been approached yet, although I'd love to do it. He always says that. For all this suspense though, Quint better have something more substantial!
MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS by godoffireinhell	Sep 14th, 2006 01:44:52 PM
Guillermo directs, WETA gets to do the Lovecraftian imagery. Best movie ever made. Except it doesn't seem likely to get made.
This interview is soooo fake!!!! by Gil Brooks	Sep 14th, 2006 02:45:44 PM
j/k! Ron Wells- where's your proof you talked about yesterday?
AICN thinking of audio podcasts soon? by ls420	Sep 14th, 2006 04:05:41 PM
i sure wish you guys would do some of these interviews as a podcast.
Military Sci-Fi - For Reals This Time by YourNextPresident	Sep 14th, 2006 05:02:12 PM
PJ and Co. have a real opportunity to make an actual sci-fi military movie, and I've read elsewhere that the HALO movie is intended to be just that. You don't need lots of blood and icky gore in order to make it work - it's really more of an overall tone. Aliens is certainly the closest movie to come to nailing the genre, though Starship Troopers sort of laughed its way through the same obstacle course.
Half-Life 2 by MrCere	Sep 14th, 2006 05:49:33 PM
The game WOULD make a great movie. So, pray for HALO to be great and make money and every studio around will go searching for a futuristic space-movie game and before you know it, Half-Life 2. Tada!
excited but this means by erockwilly	Sep 14th, 2006 06:18:46 PM
we'll never see ringworld. james cameron almost made it.
There is no suspense over the Hobbit part by performingmonkey	Sep 14th, 2006 06:29:15 PM
He's just stretching it out over 5 parts, that's all. He's not enticing us with anything because we already know there's nothing there. If MGM wants to push for The Hobbit to shoot in 2007 you can forget Peter directing it, he's got a lot of shit on his plate at the moment, all the projects mentioned in this 5-part behemoth. His priorities are The Lovely Bones and trying to stop Halo turning into a piece of shit. Then he's got the new fantasy trilogy to deal with. If he did the Hobbit it would take two years. There's no way he's waiting over two years to start on the Temeraire trilogy.
Flames on Optimus = Nipples on Master Chief by sennan	Sep 14th, 2006 06:40:36 PM
yeah that shit looks hot.
Jackson needs to stop tooting his fucking horn by Zain	Sep 14th, 2006 06:41:30 PM
"It's like Fantasy was before LORD OF THE RINGS. Everybody was saying, "These films aren't any good." Shut the fuck up, anyone can make a damn movie off of Lord of the Rings with the budget he had. Get off your fucking high horse Peter Jackson.
Um, Zain... by javalux	Sep 14th, 2006 07:19:49 PM
Just because a movie has a big budget, doesn't mean it's going to be automatically great. "Waterworld", anyone?
Flames on Optimus = flames on the warthog by gray gorilla	Sep 14th, 2006 07:22:09 PM
please no peter, dont BAYterize halo. Halo is LOTR in space, so much backstory. There's so much yet to be revealed in Halo 3 next year that I can't understand how they could write a script...unless theyve gotten a sneak preview from Bungie. I bet PJ is blasting away G3 covenant as we speak on his Haradrim-skinned 360.
Hobbit by Quint	Sep 14th, 2006 07:38:15 PM
Hey guys. I just wanted to say that the interview itself was long. Word count had it pushing 20,000 words. I would have had to break it up into 3 or 4 articles anyway and it just made more sense to break it up in pieces related to the movies Jackson's attached to. By stretching them out, I've been able to let each part live a little bit on its own, instead of jumbling them all together. As far as the Hobbit stuff, you're right. There's no late breaking Oh My God news there, but what there is is an insight to Jackson's thoughts on the possibility of the movie. He didn't seem to know himself one way or the other, so you won't get an answer, but what you will get is him talking for more than a paragraph on why he'd want to do it and why he might not do it. I think it's interesting reading and well worth the wait. It's only two more days, afterall.
I luv ya Quint, but... by gray gorilla	Sep 14th, 2006 07:54:45 PM
you just cost Harry about 50% of his traffic for the next 2 days...
Jackson's CGI-FIRST focus = A Crap CGI Shitfest by Ringwearer9	Sep 14th, 2006 09:11:52 PM
I'm really unclear in my mind exactly what quality they were looking for in a director. The first thing they looked for was that he had to really, really like the game HALO? How does being a gaming fanboy qualify you as a director? Now, I can imagine a director who makes cool commercials and shorts would be a good choice for a director, but look how Jackson describes him. He says the guy had a "unique vision" for Halo, but he's pretty inarticulate as to what that might be. Jackson then goes to to illustrate this "unique vision" by saying that Neil has been working with WETA for two months "turning out stuff". WTF? Is he an artist, or a designer? Or is he just a rubber stamp for WETA designs? "Ooh, that one's nice ... er, yes, Mr. WETA artist, the way that one squirms is very cool". What is he DOING that's so cool and helpful? Did Neill bring in artists of his own, that he liked, or was he stuck with the ones that had been pre-chosen for him? Did he get to hand pick which CGI artists would be supporting HIS version of Halo, or is he just a bag on the side of the WETA CGI monster-fest? And listen to what he says ... "The wonderful thing of using the world of CG now and that real, Lovecraftian kind of twisted... That stuff lends itself to computer generated effects so well, the organic, pulsating, throbbing, oozing kind of effect looks great. I had a bit of fun with that on KONG with those sort of bug things and those insects and wormy things that kill Andy Serkis. I can see that tying all that CG technology to some Lovecraftian horror is going to be awesome." ... Where is Neill's "unique vision" in this? This sounds like Jackson's vision. The project has been selected because it fits a kind of effect that WETA already does, and that JACKSON wants ... toothy worm designs. It's working backwards from WETA's studio, not working forwards from a good story. Notice how Neill's "vision" doesn't seem to be connected to the script? That seems to be going on independently of Neill, who is hanging out with the CGI artists. All this pre-production is going on, and the script isn't "really great" yet? They don't have a really great script, but they've hired a director and are pumping out pre-production art. Sounds like what happened with Lord of the Rings ... Jackson admitted on the Extended DVD commentaries that the script could have used a couple more revisions for the second and third movies. Note that he says he won't put the movie in front of a screen until it has a really great script...THAT MEANS HE DOESN't HAVE ONE. And how is the movie going to be sold? With artwork and CGI demos, just as LOTR was sold with a WETA CGI battle scene (according to Jackson). This movie is going to be sold the same way, and made whether or not the script actually is good. Script, story, is the last thing on Mr. Jackson's mind ... as long as the movie has cool toothy worms in it wiggling about and eating people, that's all Jackson cares about. Well, good luck with another video game movie, directed by a for-hire fanboy and indulging the taste of a zombie-movie producer. Nobody who saw KING KONG can believe Jackson's sincerity about waiting for a good script before starting filming.
Master Chief will be played by Takeshi Kaga by Coyote Joe	Sep 14th, 2006 09:22:36 PM
That's right, the first Japanese actor to play both Jesus Christ and Jean Valjean. This is the only part of the 20,000 word interview that I gave a crap about, anyway. But way to go, Quint, for hanging in there through all the boring crap I didn't read.
Thanks for the laugh, Ringwearer9 by dimnix	Sep 14th, 2006 09:45:48 PM
Cant believe you actually typed up that stupid little rant. The way you so outrageously jump to negative conclusions based on Jackson's comments... man, I love it. It's like you think what Jackson says is the entirety of whats going on with Halo. And then you try to use your stupid conclusions (I mean, come on... do you honestly believe any of that crap? It's total guesswork) to prove a point and... man, I love talkbackers sometimes. Hehe. Jackass.
The director loves Halo so much... by Jack Colby	Sep 14th, 2006 09:49:41 PM
...that he's churning out new designs for all the things he "loves" from the game on a daily basis. Why are they spending massive effort to redesign everything? What is this, Transformers?
"Why the massive effort to redesign everything" by Ringwearer9	Sep 14th, 2006 10:49:38 PM
Cos it's another WETA demo-reel, that's why.
Javalux, Jackson's comment about Fantasy Films... by Ringwearer9	Sep 14th, 2006 11:22:24 PM
... is kinda moronic. Lord of the Rings isn't just a fantasy film. It's practically the fantasy story that almost all written fantasy today borrows from. Jackson being relatively faithful to what was written, and having a gigantic book-based audience who were going to see it no matter what (Bakshi's version, as unfinished as it was, was a financial success) is what made Jackson's LOTR a success. As Jackson says, it's the story that matters. And he also says ...HE DOESN'T HAVE ONE. What's he going to do, dig Tolkien up to write the Halo script?
Not sure about the PG-13 comments... by ScarranHalfBreed	Sep 15th, 2006 12:56:11 AM
...But we HAVE had plenty of decent PG-13 movies that have been quite adult - the Bourne movies, etc. If anyone can make a fantastic movie from a video game, Peter Jackson can!
Fanboy stuff: Halo vs. Half-Life by Killah_Mate	Sep 15th, 2006 02:32:11 AM
Just to sum it up: yes, Half-Life (2) is a better game than Halo. But Halo is a better STORY than Half-Life. Disregarding the moment-to-moment stuff that Valve does so well, Half-Life is a mess storywise (overall). Halo, on the other hand has more than TEN YEARS and, what, six or so? games' worth of story for the filmmakers to work with (yes, CENOBITE, some of us know about the whole thing). It is pretty much like Lord of the Rings - no wonder Jackson is so worked up about it. Bear in mind I vastly prefer playing Half-Life, but GAMES are about GAMEPLAY, and MOVIES are about STORY!
Also... by Killah_Mate	Sep 15th, 2006 02:39:02 AM
Give me a break with the CG hate! What is it with fanboys that think CGI is the root of all evil? What, you want matte lines around everything? Stop-motion monsters? Or man-in-suit, maybe? Massive space battles between three maquettes, with the lasers drawn by hand? Bullshit. I know it's hard for you man-children to comprehend, but there's such a thing as progress. Look it up. I shouldn't get worked up about it, but idiots like those really tick me off.
(Re)designs by Killah_Mate	Sep 15th, 2006 02:44:16 AM
It's a movie. You can't just plop the game models on the set and pray everything works. In a massive sci-fi production like this, everything has to be planned in advance. EVERYTHING. Hence the designs. Not REDESIGNS, DESIGNS! Every inch of the screen has to be thought of. Lighting? You know what lighting is, right? That thing that movies depend on? That Halo 1 practically didn't even HAVE? Christ, use those things that pass for your brains!
designs vs redesigns by Quint	Sep 15th, 2006 03:51:00 AM
I could be wrong, but the impression I got was that Blomkamp wasn't radically redesigning the look of the game for the film, just trying to find a way to pull those designs into reality and make it something that'll work for a feature film.
Re: Designs by Killah_Mate	Sep 15th, 2006 08:42:54 AM
What he said.
Um...Javalux by Zain	Sep 16th, 2006 11:54:26 PM
Jackson had one of the greatest stories of all-time to work off of, a comparison to Waterworld is laughable.
It Will All Hinge on the Lead and Cortana... by msspurlock	Sep 23rd, 2006 08:52:41 PM
They're the whole story. If you don't like them, the movie's dead. If they cast Diesel or Van Damme, it's over.
CGI, Weta, Script by Asterin	Oct 11th, 2007 09:10:01 PM
Although a movie like Halo necessitates some CGI, I imagine that WETA is going to work as much through actual sets, props, and "big"atures as possible. Any CG element must be worked over and over painstakingly to succeed on a level where the viewer won't see it on screen and recognize it immediately as CG - therefore fake. Overuse of CGI sets, objects, and characters can damage the suspension of disbelief that an audience must engage in to "believe" in the film. This is one of the reasons that Gollum succeeds as a realistic CGI character while Jar Jar Binks and Yoda tend to fail. Also, a script is something that gets worked and reworked sometimes even during and after filming, so just because Peter says that it isn't ready yet does not mean they have "no story." The Lord of the Rings movie script was not written by Tolkien, just the source material. The Halo universe has a lot of material to draw from between the games and books - not as much written material as Lord of the Rings, but certainly enough to write a rich script based on a rich setting. Budget does not determine movie quality. Lord of the Rings was not made good by a massive budget, it was made good by a love of the source material and by painstaking care and attention when it came to every aspect of the film. This is one reason I am happy to hear Mr. Jackson say that they took the time to get a director who is a Halo fan. A genuine fan of the material will take the necessary time and effort to at least TRY to make a movie live up to their imagination and expectations. Lastly, I don't think that the film needs an "R" rating to accurately portray the Flood. Pirates of the Carribean, after all, manages to show a great deal of dead, undead, and disturbingly disgusting characters without slipping beyond PG13. That said, I realize that the Flood are more suitable to a horror setting and that the type of violence in Halo may necessitate pushing the very edge of what will be acceptable by a PG13 rating.

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Part 3: Quint and Peter Jackson talk HALO!!!

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