Shooting of the long-awaited film version of JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit is set to begin in New Zealand in July.
Actor Sir Ian McKellen, who reprises his Lord of the Rings role as Gandalf the Grey, revealed casting is taking place in LA, London and New York. [...]
We'll see how that goes. IMHO, the LOTR movies did not quite capture the feel of convincing otherworldliness that is the best part of the Rings books. Will The Hobbit, the movie, retain the often light and sometimes whimsical tone of the original? Stay tuned!