Ian McKellen: 5 Awesome Performances And 5 That Sucked

2. Gandalf - The Hobbit (2012-2014)

Honestly, who in good faith could argue that The Hobbit films are anywhere close to approaching the quality of The Lord Of The Rings trilogy? There are the obvious criticisms, such as the fact that director Peter Jackson has somehow managed to wring out another three films from a book that's shorter than any of the Rings titles on their own, not to mention his mishandling of what's meant to be a small, intimate story about an awfully big adventure. Instead it's become a sprawling mess of an attempt to try and coalesce the epic scope of the Lord Of The Rings films with the inherently more narrow view that The Hobbit takes, with its main character lost amidst huge battles that simply don't work in the story, and clumsy attempts to try and tie it all together. Ian McKellen returned to his part as Gandalf, but the magic in his eyes is as absent as it is from the character's actions in the films, as he clearly signed up more out of a sense of reluctant duty than wanting to make the wretched things. In fact making the first Hobbit film, An Unexpected Journey, took such a toll on the veteran actor that he considered quitting the profession altogether. Isolated and working mostly on green screen with no other actors, McKellen is quoted as saying "It was so distressing and off-putting and difficult that I thought 'I don't want to make this film if this is what I'm going to have to do'.€ It made him cry. No part should make Sir Ian McKellen cry, dang it.