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CHUD EXCLUSIVE: IAN MCKELLEN DODGES HOBBIT QUESTION, BUT REENACTS KHAZAD-DUM

post #1 of 28
11/4/10 at 6:50pm
Thread Starter 
Renn gets a great video of McKellen busting out the Gandalf the Grey.

More...
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post #2 of 28
11/4/10 at 7:02pm
Jealousssssssssss
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post #3 of 28
11/4/10 at 7:17pm
Nice scoop Renn. Cool that McKellan cracks a joke about it considering he must get asked 20 times a day.
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post #4 of 28
11/4/10 at 7:40pm
they're

sorry, had to.
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post #5 of 28
11/4/10 at 7:59pm
From Gandalf to Richard III to James Whale, I don't know if I respect any actor more than I do McKellen. I dare say he's my favorite. I love the way his voice throttles when he "Shall Not!!''s.
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post #6 of 28
11/4/10 at 8:22pm
Nuts. Looks like the article disappeared.
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post #7 of 28
11/4/10 at 8:26pm
Is there a video or something in that article? I'm don't see anything.
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post #8 of 28
11/4/10 at 8:56pm
Still nothing.
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post #9 of 28
11/4/10 at 11:46pm
Fixing...
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post #10 of 28
11/4/10 at 11:56pm
...and fixed.

ETA: And help me out getting this around, if you can.
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post #11 of 28
11/5/10 at 12:08am
That was fun. Makes me want to bust out the EEs to listen to McKellan there.

Here's something he did while back for Shakespeare. CHUD might have linked to this earlier.

http://www.stagework.org.uk/mckellen...lscreen-tc.htm
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post #12 of 28
11/5/10 at 12:21am
Incredible dude to hear talk about theater. It's absolutely clear that's where his passion is centered (he refers to film as "dead" pretty frequently), but his touring record is insane.

He busted out a monologue from Sir Thomas Moore (which if you look at the history of the play, Ian McKellen is quite likely to be the last person on earth to originate a Shakespearean role). Just imagine him breaking out this monologue in a small room with <60 people...

"Look, what you do offend you cry upon, That is, the peace: not one of you here present, Had there such fellows lived when you were babes, That could have topped the peace, as now you would, The peace wherein you have till now grown up Had been ta'en from you, and the bloody times Could not have brought you to the state of men. Alas, poor things, what is it you have got, Although we grant you get the thing you seek?

Grant them removed, and grant that this your noise Hath chid down all the majesty of England; Imagine that you see the wretched strangers, Their babies at their backs and their poor luggage, Plodding tooth ports and costs for transportation, And that you sit as kings in your desires, Authority quite silent by your brawl, And you in ruff of your opinions clothed; What had you got? I'll tell you: you had taught How insolence and strong hand should prevail, How order should be quelled; and by this pattern Not one of you should live an aged man, For other ruffians, as their fancies wrought, With self same hand, self reasons, and self right, Would shark on you, and men like ravenous fishes Would feed on one another.

Let me set up before your thoughts, good friends, On supposition; which if you will mark, You shall perceive how horrible a shape Your innovation bears: first, tis a sin Which oft the apostle did forewarn us of, Urging obedience to authority; And twere no error, if I told you all, You were in arms against your God himself.

Nay, certainly you are; For to the king God hath his office lent Of dread, of justice, power and command, Hath bid him rule, and willed you to obey; And, to add ampler majesty to this, He hath not only lent the king his figure, His throne and sword, but given him his own name, Calls him a god on earth. What do you, then, Rising gainst him that God himself installs, But rise against God? what do you to your souls In doing this? O, desperate as you are, Wash your foul minds with tears, and those same hands, That you like rebels lift against the peace, Lift up for peace, and your unreverent knees, Make them your feet to kneel to be forgiven! Tell me but this: what rebel captain, As mutinies are incident, by his name Can still the rout? who will obey a traitor? Or how can well that proclamation sound, When there is no addition but a rebel To qualify a rebel? You'll put down strangers, Kill them, cut their throats, possess their houses, And lead the majesty of law in line, To slip him like a hound. Say now the king (As he is clement, if th' offender mourn) Should so much come to short of your great trespass As but to banish you, whether would you go? What country, by the nature of your error, Should give you harbor? go you to France or Flanders, To any German province, to Spain or Portugal, Nay, any where that not adheres to England,-- Why, you must needs be strangers: would you be pleased To find a nation of such barbarous temper, That, breaking out in hideous violence, Would not afford you an abode on earth, Whet their detested knives against your throats, Spurn you like dogs, and like as if that God Owed not nor made not you, nor that the claimants Were not all appropriate to your comforts, But chartered unto them, what would you think To be thus used? this is the strangers case; And this your mountanish inhumanity."

...and then he explains that "mountanish" actually comes from a term that means to "be like Muhammed," so Shakespeare (if he did indeed write it) inserted an intolerant term into this beautiful monologue about acceptance of strangers.
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post #13 of 28
11/5/10 at 8:22am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Renn Brown View Post
Why, you must needs be strangers: would you be pleased To find a nation of such barbarous temper, That, breaking out in hideous violence, Would not afford you an abode on earth, Whet their detested knives against your throats, Spurn you like dogs, and like as if that God Owed not nor made not you, nor that the claimants Were not all appropriate to your comforts, But chartered unto them, what would you think To be thus used? this is the strangers case; And this your mountanish inhumanity."

...and then he explains that "mountanish" actually comes from a term that means to "be like Muhammed," so Shakespeare (if he did indeed write it) inserted an intolerant term into this beautiful monologue about acceptance of strangers.
I just wonder what lead him to speak this piece. Was this during a Q & A or did he have the floor alone? The impact of seeing Sir Ian perform this monologue had to be intense.
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post #14 of 28
11/5/10 at 9:23am
You know what struck me the most? The way he projected his voice instead of merely shouting. I love these old, classically trained, theatrical actors. They can open their mouths and make fucking thunder and lightning fall from the heavens. Something that a lot of the younger, even if equally gifted, actors lack. Compare these scenes form LOTR for example. McKellen's "You shall not pass" scene and Hill's "Arise, riders of Theoden" speech, to Mortensenn's speech before the Black Gates. Such a difference in technique.

I would give everything to be able to see McKellen perform live, even for five minutes.
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post #15 of 28
11/5/10 at 10:53am
So true. Classically trained theatre performers can raise their voice without shouting and lower their voice to a whisper 500 people can hear in a large theatre stage. Mortensen isn't classically trained and doesn't have a theatre-background. Which doesn't mean he's not awesome.
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post #16 of 28
11/5/10 at 11:29am
I wasn't saying that he isn't a good actor. I just noticed the difference his lacking of that skill had in the power of the scene.
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post #17 of 28
11/5/10 at 11:33am
Interesting article, and a fun clip. I was a little surprised to hear that Jackson had no clue what the Balrog would look like, given the fact that I recalled it being mentioned in the special features of the FELLOWSHIP EXTENDED EDITION that the Balrog design cribbed heavily from that illustrated version of THE LORD OF THE RINGS
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post #18 of 28
11/5/10 at 2:21pm
It's almost scary how easily Ian McKellen can slip back into the moment, losing none of the power of those words in front of a live audience. Then I remember that he's a brilliant actor whose roots in theater are staggering.
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post #19 of 28
11/5/10 at 4:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by stelios View Post
I wasn't saying that he isn't a good actor. I just noticed the difference his lacking of that skill had in the power of the scene.
And you brought up a very interesting point. I know some people who are studying at a theatre academy and the bulk of their four year studies is about learning to use their voice. There was a very good interview with Ernest Borgnine on AICN a while ago where he discussed this and was very critical about young movie stars' abilities.
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post #20 of 28
11/8/10 at 12:30pm
Shit's gone legitimately viral.



It was at 19k when I came into work an hour ago.

If you care to Digg: http://digg.com/news/entertainment/i...d_dum_chud_com
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post #21 of 28
11/8/10 at 12:45pm
How does CHUD benefit from it being up on Youtube? Is there some sort of split?

Apologies for being ignorant. Genuinely curious.
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post #22 of 28
11/8/10 at 12:48pm
Exposure.
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post #23 of 28
11/8/10 at 1:13pm
Digged (Dug?)
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post #24 of 28
11/8/10 at 1:21pm
Congratulations on CHUD's new found YOUTUBE infamy!
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post #25 of 28
11/8/10 at 3:16pm
Oh I realise there's exposure but I was curious as to whether there is formula re number of views.
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post #26 of 28
11/9/10 at 6:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by stelios View Post
You know what struck me the most? The way he projected his voice instead of merely shouting. I love these old, classically trained, theatrical actors. They can open their mouths and make fucking thunder and lightning fall from the heavens.
Commanding. McK commands like a mofo.

Projection's all in the diaphram.
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post #27 of 28
11/25/10 at 11:48pm
Fun landmark.

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post #28 of 28
11/26/10 at 10:20am
I remember an interview with him a while back where he said the only thing left in his career he hadn't done and wanted to was a Panto and a soap opera.

A Short time later he made Cornation Street watchable for a few months and was then Widow Twanky in Aladdin. the man is all kinds of awesome.
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CHUD.com Community › Forums › THE MAIN SEWER › CHUD.COM Main › CHUD EXCLUSIVE: IAN MCKELLEN DODGES HOBBIT QUESTION, BUT REENACTS KHAZAD-DUM