Of course with higher frame rates you can also run into issues with judder on screen. It can be an issue with 50″ HDTV’s, god knows how big of a problem it can be on a 50′ movie screen. You’d have to use crap tons of motion blur to eliminate it which could lead to a softening and blurriness to the image. Though this hasn’t been an issue with modern digital projectors, so I’m hesitant to get too worried about it.

That all being said, judging 48fps on a 10 minute unfinished promo seems to be much ado about nothing IMO, especially I don’t exactly trust the mass majority of those attending to discern what looks good and what doesn’t.

We don’t want to take the risk with a movie we’ve been looking forward to for a long time. Tried and true will always be the safest route.

On the other hand, a safe life is not as exciting or fulfilling. Filmmakers need to take these risks to fulfill their own needs for creative achievement. This doesn’t scare me in the slightest. This is how progress is made. I’ve always been curious where the human mind will take technology. I can’t wait to see The Hobbit and how 48fps will look. I trust that the professionals that make movie magic happen will do just that.

If the Hobbit films are only shown at 48 fps, odds are that the majority of people that go out and see the films won’t have a clue about the 48 fps until afterward. If it’s a positive thing and actually adds to the experience, there will be a lot of buzz about it. People will be commenting that the film looked “different” and they’ll be wondering what the change was and that will build publicity for the new technology.

If it takes more of an adjustment then Jackson thinks, to get used to the 48 fps, but the film, in and of itself, is still awesome and engrossing, the backlash probably won’t be as bad as it would be if the 48 fps were being introduced in any other film.

The point is, unless it’s completely unwatchable, I don’t think there are many people that will refuse to watch the film solely because it’s filmed in a new way.

As a Peter Jackson fan, if someone told me that the film was only going to be released in black and white, I would still be half tempted to show up on opening day and see it, that is the draw of these films. That’s why if there’s a time to introduce a new filming method, that is the time.

either way – misjudging the reaction to released footage,or, picking the wrong workflow in the first place – this is a major misstep from the largest current franchise in production at this time.