Riddles = Bilbo finds the ring and wears it later
Warehouse = Mycroft wears a ring

You can blame any number of factors for that. I blame directors usually.

I thought it was a quirky comparison though saturnR

The Doctor wrote:

Anyway, I thought this was a thread discussing how the Warehouse scene was much better acted than the Riddle scene (by Martin Freeman).

It's not really better acted, it's just differently acted because the characters are being challenged in a different way. Bilbo is not only mentally challenged, he's also physically challenged because Gollum is circling him continuously through out the scene. Mycroft doesn't do the walking around, circling his prey thing with John so John doesn't have to move as much

However, if you want an example of good acting, go to the scene where Bilbo points his sword at Gollum and you can see the precise moment where he changes his mind abut wanting to kill him - that was some of the most chilling acting I've ever seen from anybody. I remember getting goosebumps in the cinemas because it felt so real which is kind of silly considering I went in knowing that it was going to be a fantasy film.

I finally got around to reading The Hobbit and found the corresponding scene in the book where Bilbo doesn't actually point his sword at Gollum but is considering it. After seeing the original source, it made me respect Martin's acting in that scene more.

The Doctor wrote:

And while I cherish the behind the scene-stuff from The Hobbit the cinema version did fail to include many brilliant moments of Martin's acting. Thus, I'd rather watch dailies than the cinematic version.

I think Martin is a "no two takes are the same" actor; as a director, it's gotta be as annoying as hell (as creative as that is ). I love how ironic that is - Peter Jackson picked him because he's played some very famous placid characters; but the actor himself is anything but placid .
 

I did some amateur acting years ago but yes in stage play rehearsals directors will say ' yes, that's it, keep that' and they want a repeat of what you did every time becuase there isn't a choice of two filmed takes. Now I cosplay and am aware again that it is so much easier to play a character who is more like your own personality than one who is the opposite becuase. I think it is easier to show the forward moving emotions of stoic fire and holding back anger (John's)  than to portray the standing still emotions of indecision and a reticence to be active (Bilbo's). I think Bilbo must have been harder to play than John in those two scenes. It makes it high standard acting.