Jackson is a fellow kiwi who has used his incredible talent to not only bring amazing films to life but to also put New Zealand on the map. Before Lord of the Rings many people thought my country was either a part of Australia or located near England. Now they know I'm from the land of hobbits and wizards.
I have seen every one of Jackson's films. I can safely say that I am his number one fan. For Christmas one year my dad bought me every book associated with the Lord of the Rings films. I managed to write three essays on Jackson in University, and I even flew down to Wellington in 2003 to go the Return of the King premiere, and got to meet many of the lead actors. I may also own the one ring and Arwen's pendant...and quite possibly have had a cat named Strider, and I might have nicknamed a car Shadowfax...
Anyways, Peter Jackson is my hero. He came from a small town in beautiful NZ called Pukerua Bay, which is in the South of the North Island. He was born on Halloween, which couldn't be more perfect for a man who began his film career with splatter films like Bad Taste and Braindead. And then he managed to become a king of Hollywood. He has used ingenuity, integrity and originality to create some incredible films. I am still to this day in awe of Heavenly Creatures. He was able to bring this horrific true story to life by not horrifying the audience, but rather by bringing to light the imagination behind the two young girls who would commit a horrible act. The visuals are absolutely stunning and Kate Winslet and Melanie Lynskey and incredible for two so young at the time.
In Forgotten Silver Jackson managed to anger many kiwis. His mocumentary was so brilliantly done people actually believed it was true, that Jackson had in fact discovered a New Zealand film pioneer whose films had long been lost. What I really loved about this film is the message behind it, that New Zealand has some amazing talent in our very own backyard which we tend to ignore. He didn't know it at the time, but he was about to become New Zealand's golden boy.
Jackson's resume before The Lord of the Rings is actually quite small. It was a surprise to many that a director so unknown at the time would be given the command of such a beloved series. He quickly proved himself though, and I don't think anyone could have bought those films to life they way he did. Those were the films that really made me sit up and see Jackson for the director he is. I remember seeing the first one and loving it so much I went and saw it another 11 times.
Now here's where I admit a flaw in my hero. I was not a big fan of King Kong. I understood why he made it, it was the film that made him want to be a filmmaker, just as Lord of the Rings did for me. However I think the story got lost and I didn't find myself as enthralled in it as I'd hoped I would be. Andy Serkis was incredible as Kong though (and is amazing as Caesar in Rise of the Planet of the Apes) and the graphics were great.
Jackson went on to produce District 9 which completely blew me away. I wasn't sure what to expect in that film but I wasn't anticipating the strong and original story or incredible characters and cast. It's a great film and if you haven't seen it go out immediately and rent/buy it.
The Lovely Bones was a shoot that wasn't easy by the sounds of it. Jackson had to replace Ryan Gosling during the shoot (for reasons unknown) and the role went to Mark Wahlberg. I was really impressed with Wahlberg's acting in his role as the father of Susie. It is a very delicate story and could have been told in all the wrong ways but I appreciated how Jackson never made us feel too uncomfortable but bought the emotion through.
It's been a few years since Jackson has directed. He produced Tin Tin with Spielberg, which I have yet to see. The graphics look incredible though, as is to be expected with those two at the helm. Then we got the wonderful news (after the sad news of Guillermo Del Toro's departure) that Jackson would be directing The Hobbit films. I love Del Toro's work, but no one can tell these stories like Jackson can. I wait with the rest of the world in anticipation for December 2012 when the first film will be released.
So that's my hero's journey so far. I can't wait to see what projects he works on in the future. I can only hope that one day my dreams will come true and I will get to work with him.
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