The Hobbit is a 1977 animated musical fantasy television special created by Rankin/Bass and animated by Topcraft. The film is an adaptation of the 1937 book of the same name by J. R. R. Tolkien; it was first broadcast on NBC in the United States on Sunday, November 27, 1977. The teleplay won a Peabody Award; the film received a Christopher Award.

The New York Times found the film "curiously eclectic", but felt that whatever its failings, it warranted attention.

  • Orson Bean – Bilbo Baggins
  • Richard Boone – Smaug the Dragon
  • Hans Conried – Thorin Oakenshield
  • John Huston – Gandalf / Narrator
  • Otto Preminger – The Elvenking
  • Cyril Ritchard – Elrond
  • Brother Theodore – Gollum
  • Paul Frees – Bombur, Troll #1
  • Jack DeLeon – Dwalin, Fíli, Kíli, Óin, Glóin, Ori, Nori, Bifur, Bofur, Troll #2
  • Don Messick – Balin, Goblin, Lord of the Eagles, Troll #3
  • John Stephenson – Dori, Bard, Great Goblin
  • Glenn Yarbrough – the balladeer
  • Thurl Ravenscroft – Goblin (singing voice), background voice

Production

The film was produced and directed by Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass of Rankin/Bass Productions in New York City. It was adapted for the screen by Romeo Muller; Rankin took on the additional duties of production designer. When interviewed for the film, Rankin declared that he would add nothing to the story that was not in the original. The New York Times reported that The Hobbit cost $3 million to produce.

The story's protagonist, Bilbo Baggins, is voiced by Orson Bean, backed up by Hollywood director and actor John Huston as the voice of Gandalf. In supporting roles, the comedian and performance artist Brother Theodore voiced Gollum, and Thurl Ravenscroft performed the baritone singing voices of the goblins. The gravelly voice of the dragon Smaug was provided by Richard Boone, with Hans Conried as Thorin Oakenshield.

The Hobbit was animated by Topcraft in Tokyo, a now-defunct Japanese animation studio whose animation team re-formed as Studio Ghibli under Hayao Miyazaki; some of the animators went on to establish Pacific Animation Corporation. According to Rankin, the visual style of the film took its cue from the early illustrations of Arthur Rackham. <!--Principal artists included coordinating animator Toru Hara; supervising animator/character designer Tsuguyuki Kubo; character and effects animators Hidetoshi Kaneko and Kazuko Ito; and background designer Minoru Nishida. The same studio and crew members worked on The Return of the King.-->

Harry N. Abrams published a large, illustrated coffee table edition of the book featuring concept art and stills. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, but lost to Star Wars.

A few days before its first airing, John J. O'Connor wrote in The New York Times that "Rankin and Bass Productions have now carefully translated The Hobbit into film. The result is curiously eclectic, but filled with nicely effective moments... The drawings frequently suggest strong resemblances to non-Tolkien characters... The goblins could have stepped out of a Maurice Sendak book. But... the Dragon and Gollum the riddle aficionado bring some clever original touches... Whatever its flaws, this television version of The Hobbit warrants attention."

Criticism primarily focused on adaptation issues, including the unfamiliar style of artwork used by the Japanese-American co-production team. Some Tolkien fans questioned the appropriateness of repackaging the material as a family film for a very young audience. The scholar Douglas A. Anderson called the adaptation "execrable" in the introduction to his book The Annotated Hobbit, although he did not elaborate; and a few critics said it was confusing for those not already familiar with the plot. The science fiction author Baird Searles criticized the adaptation, calling it an "abomination" and an attempt that had "failed miserably". He singled out the quality of animation, the omission of key plot points such as Beorn and the Arkenstone, and the soundtrack.

IGN gave the film 7 out of 10, recommending it to fans of the novel.

Release

Before The Hobbit aired on NBC, Rankin/Bass and its partner animation houses began preparing a sequel. Parade Video released the film on DVD and VHS in 2004.

The film was released on DVD by Warner Bros. as part of a DVD trilogy boxed set, which includes Ralph Bakshi's The Lord of the Rings and the Rankin/Bass production of The Return of the King. A remastered deluxe edition DVD was released in 2014.

See also

  • The Hobbit film series (live action)
  • The Last Unicorn (film)
  • List of animated feature films
  • The Hobbit (1967 film) a short film by Gene Deitch
  • The Hobbit (1985 film) a USSR film

Notes

References