Happy Monday!

Little bit of this and a little bit of that going on today.

I watched the new trailer for Melancholia today.  The film stars Kirsten Dunst and Alexander Skarsgard among others.  The trailer is...odd to say the least.  I can't decide if it's about this wedding, or about a planet that's going to crash into the Earth at any moment and kill all life on both planets.  It seems like odd things to juxtapose.  At first, based on the title, I thought it was going to be about this super happy wedding day where the bride is depressed and do a psychological exploration of the importance of appearing happy on that day, etc. etc.  But, it doesn't seem like that's it at all.  It appears to be very artistically filmed, and may or may not be worth watching?  I'm not sure.  If nothing else, I think bizarre is a good word for this one.  A US release date for this film has not yet been set, so maybe we won't get it, but for those fans of abstract, semi-foreign films, keep an eye out.

News From The Shire
Peter Jackson has lost Rob Kazinsky as part of his cast for The Hobbit.  He was slated to play a minor role as one of the 13 dwarves, Fili.

Jackson stated on Facebook:
"I am sad to report that Rob Kazinsky, who was cast in the role of Fili, is having to leave The Hobbit and return home, for personal reasons.  Rob has been terrific to work with and his enthusiasm and infectious sense of humor will be missed by all of us.  I should say that Rob's departure will not affect ongoing filming of The Hobbit, nor will it impact work done to date, as we had yet to film much of Fili's storyline.  At the moment, we are shooting scenes featuring Bilbo without the Dwarves, which will give us time to find a new Fili."

Jackson also gained an actor for his long list of cast members.  He just announced Ian Holm will be returning as the older Bilbo in the film.  Holm joins original Lord of the Rings cast members Cate Blanchette, Andy Serkis, Ian McKellen, Elijah Wood and possibly Hugo Weaving and Orlando Bloom.

The first part of the film is due out in December of 2012.

With all the tidbits of news that are eeking out about this film on a daily basis, I just hope there isn't too much hype that precedes it.  Everyone is already expecting it to be epic, based on Jackson's Lord of the Rings series.  I'm just not so sure it can live up to it.  Particularly since Frodo is generally a more lovable character than Bilbo.  That guy is just whiney and annoying!  So, I'm interested to see what Jackson does with his character.  Obviously, I'll be seeing it when it comes out, I'm just not sure it's going to be as awesome as the first set of movies.

All for today!  I hope you all had an excellent Easter weekend!