Watch the Greatest Airline Safety Video on Middle-earth
It’s only appropriate that the most expensive film production of all time has helped make the most epic in-flight safety video in the history of air travel. With only two months to go until the The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies brings both the Hobbit trilogy and Peter Jackson’s entire Middle-earth saga to a close, Air New Zealand has unveiled a sweeping four-minute tutorial that’s tricked out with battle sequences, resplendent costumes, and fan-friendly cameos. (Hey there Elijah!)
Content-wise, the video doesn’t teach you anything you (hopefully) don’t already know about how to make it through a long-haul international flight: fasten your seat belts, secure your own oxygen mask before helping a young person, assume crash positions if absolutely necessary. (Here, of course, these instructions are provided by an Elf.) Unlike Air New Zealand’s previous Middle-earth-themed clip, this new one also provides a handy pre-landing travelogue of New Zealand’s gorgeous landscapes, as well as a guide to all the Hobbit/Lord of the Rings merchandise you can buy in just about any store. And those sales might come in handy: The Guardian estimates The Hobbit franchise cost a whopping $943 million in local dollars (close to $750 million in U.S. currency). No word on how much Air New Zealand spent on this video, but here’s hoping they didn’t have to hock any golden rings.
This post has been updated
