Brego. Shadowfax. Goliath. And Cass Ole, the horse actor for TBS, as David says. Even with a weave.

What's the prettiest horse you ever saw in a movie?

[link]

Tom wins.

He totally does.

He does.

Still going to go with Koko [link]

Tom's answer rules but my pick would be the grey Irish Draught in the riot scene in Billy Elliot.

The picture of Cass Ole on the Koko page led to others. Pictures of Arabians always bring back the description in King of the Wind, that for speed there should be as much horse forward of the withers as behind, or that the outstretched neck and head, particularly the thick, muscular Arabian neck, should measure the same as from withers to tail.

There are other beautiful breeds, but I was stuck on the beauty and symmetry of Arabs from an early age.

True Grit was really wonderful - my only complaint was that a few of the night scenes were lit so darkly I had trouble making out the action. Fortunately the dialogue was so fantastic I didn't mind missing out on the visuals. (And I have a feeling that if I'd seen it in a theatre instead of on DVD I wouldn't have had a problem, it's just hard to get a living room dark enough for that kind of cinematography.)

I can't wait to see True Grit--hopefully this week.

I'ma regress for just a minute. We did the now-traditional (two years in a row sets it in stone, right?) rewatch of LotR over Christmas, and I was struck all over again with awe at the sheer magnitude of the thing in all its component parts, and as a whole. The music, the locations, the cgi, the exquisite costuming that ages and wears, the wigs and makeup and prosthetics that fade into accepted reality, the gorgeous sets and the incredibly extensive armoury and weaponry, the jewelry and props.

This entire world created by this group of people interpreting a story beloved for decades (I'm aware of its social shortcomings, but choosing to overlook them for the moment), and the absorption of fandom during production and release of all three films. It became its own society and civilization in a way, with a vernacular and recognizable talismans worn or carried by its citizens.

I skimmed some of our LotR threads, and was taken back to that period of excitement and enchantment and outright love for the project. And I have to confess: I am overjoyed to have been a part of it at the time it was unfolding. There hasn't been a cinematic project of the same magnitude since, and given the state of the industry there may never be again.

And also? I miss it--the excitement, the discussion, the study, the anticipation of the next installment, the gossip, the BTS report, photos and video, and the gush of awed excitement plus self-deprecation at one's own--or others' excessive--fannishness. Good times, good times.

I was watching RotK last night on TBS, and was struck all over again at how well they incorporated the CGI into the miniatures, particularly in that first scene of Minas Tirith when Gandalf and Pippin are riding to see Denethor. For all the advances in computer tech in the seven years since, it still doesn't look dated or stilted.

And it is fun to read over those old posts, Beverly! I do it every so often, and remember how absolutely jazzed I was to be so swept up in the fannishness.

One thing that struck me while watching last night was how skillfully most of those actors have parlayed their new fame into career growth: John Noble on Fringe, Dom Monaghan in Lost, Viggo got an Oscar nod, Karl Urban in, well, everything, Orlando (although he's currently in a dry spell--who knows how he's going to go on from here), Sean Astin boosted up from his journeyman acting career pre-LotR to more high-profile acting gigs and voiceover work, and Elijah Wood made the transition from adolescent roles to adult roles without any serious awkwardness that many of his cohorts had to go through.