# Die Hard LOTR fans: Were you impressed or dissappointed with the overall filming? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 23, 2003, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657 "2003-12-23T15:59:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![toadspittle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c0e974/32.png) [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2003, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/41 "2003-12-24T17:08:55Z")
One thing I miss greatly from the books is the loyalty of Rohan and Gondor. There’s something great about it, something very stirring in the classic heroic myth kind of way, that I guess doesn’t fit into modern post-Shakespearean conflict-driven dramatic structure. The whole thing about how Rohan would come for no reason–just b/c they promised, ages ago, that they would! It’s great to have good friends. In the books, when the horns of Rohan blow and the riders appear, it meant something. It seemed very unimportant in the movie when the riders appeared. It’s a tough thing to pin down, but there it is. ---
**Author:** ![beajerry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@beajerry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beajerry)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2003, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/42 "2003-12-24T17:15:05Z")
Nothing beats the big screen experience, but the extended editions are more satisfying, story-wise. I can’t wait for the King EE next November. ---
**Author:** ![NoCoolUserName](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5fc32e/32.png) [@NoCoolUserName](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoCoolUserName)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2003, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/43 "2003-12-24T18:03:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Phlosphr \* > \*\*Is it me…or do others lust love it when a bunch of people get together who all love LOTR and talk about the ins and outs of the works! I love being around people who are in the know! Especialyl when people like me who say _Andrew_ Jackson in stead of **PETER!** :)🙂 \*\* I was going to say something about _Michael_ Jackson’s contributions to the films, but I figured you’d catch the error eventually. I agree that it’s great to have folks with whom to discuss what was left in and what was left out. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2003, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/44 "2003-12-24T19:02:56Z")
My reaction to the movies is about the same as Jeff Goldblum’s character’s reaction to seeing dinosaurs in _Jurassic Park_: “He did it. The crazy bastard did it.” I’ve had nits to pick about each film; fewer in ROTK than either of the previous. And most of my issues are addressed when the EE comes out, so I can’t wait for ROTK:EE (an unconfirmed source on [theonering.net](http://theonering.net) says it’s going to be over 5 hours long. Hard to believe…) So–as movies, they’re spectacular. As adaptations of the books: could scarcely be better. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2003, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/45 "2003-12-25T06:14:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Munch \* > \*\* > I would love to have seen the Mouth of Sauron, though he could be in the EE. \*\* It wouldn’t surprise me if he made the EE - he is actually in the ROTK videogame for the PS2 (and Xbox and GameCube). In fact, I kicked his ass good and proper. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2003, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/46 "2003-12-25T09:19:25Z")
Tried to see ROTK last Sunday…went to the local Las Vegas casino multiplex where there is never a line to see a film. Despite it being shown on four screens, the line was huge, snaking through the casino and all the way OUTSIDE! Never seen that in five years living here. It sucked, but I decided to wait…I don’t do crowds well. I will try again this weekend. I was kind of amazed to see the crowd was really mixed…from 15 to 70 years old! No wonder it made $256 million worldwide the first few days! To the topic: My SO other hates fantasy films, has never read the trilogy and I had to threaten him to go to the first film. He loves the first two films and was just as disappointed as I was not to see ROTK last Sunday. I was truly scared when I first heard of a live-action LOTR trilogy from some newbie New Zealand director. Now I know how people felt back in 1939 when they plunked down their 25 cents to see if someone slaughtered their favorite book, Gone With The Wind. If you read reports of those first screenings, you will know that nobody felt cheated. And just like that crowd in 1939, from what I have heard from your posts, I think it is safe to say that generations from now, people will envy us for having seen this film over the three year period, fresh and full of awe. Even without seeing it, if ROTK does not win Best Film at the upcoming Oscars, I will not only be pissed, I will be shocked that this masterpiece of film fantasy is not honored for being the ground-breaking epic classic it is destined to become. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2003, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/47 "2003-12-25T11:46:28Z")
Well, long as I have to work on _Christmas_ ( _grumble_ )… > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by nisosbar \* > Oh, and Arwen had collagen injections on her lips, and it really showed in a Gena Davis way. I’m pretty certain Liv Tyler’s ( who I thought was an acceptable substitute for Glorfindel, but largely superfluous after the first film and annoyingly overused - yet still lovely ) bee-sting lips are all natural. She IS the natural daughter of Steve “Lips” Tyler of Aerosmith, afterall. - Tamerlane ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2003, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/48 "2003-12-27T04:16:40Z")
The IMDB had credits for the Mouth of Sauron and Ghan-buri-Ghan at one point, so it’s probably a safe bet that they’ll appear in the EE. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2003, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/49 "2003-12-27T05:51:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DMark \* > **I was truly scared when I first heard of a live-action LOTR trilogy from some newbie New Zealand director. Now I know how people felt back in 1939 when they plunked down their 25 cents to see if someone slaughtered their favorite book, Gone With The Wind. If you read reports of those first screenings, you will know that nobody felt cheated.** My mother lived in Santa Barbara when she was young, and _Gone with the Wind_ was previewed there – as were a lot of movies in those years. It was _the_ movie to see that season and everybody was in full anticipatory mode when the scheduled movie was shut off at 8pm and they announced they were going to show the first cut of _GWTW_. It was over eight hours long at that point. Nobody left the theater. > [@](#): > > **And just like that crowd in 1939, from what I have heard from your posts, I think it is safe to say that generations from now, people will envy us for having seen this film over the three year period, fresh and full of awe.** I think you’re right. I’ve been a bit jealous of Mum for having experienced that. I have enjoyed the print trilogy in the past and will continue to do so in the future; the movies have in no way diminshed them for me. I have enjoyed the movie trilogy and will continue to do so in the future. With some minor slips they are an awsome cinematic achievement. DD ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2003, 8:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/50 "2003-12-27T08:16:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DesertDog \* > \*\*My mother lived in Santa Barbara when she was young, and _Gone with the Wind_ was previewed there – as were a lot of movies in those years. It was _the_ movie to see that season and everybody was in full anticipatory mode when the scheduled movie was shut off at 8pm and they announced they were going to show the first cut of _GWTW_. It was over eight hours long at that point. Nobody left the theater. > > D \*\* That is SO COOL!!! If your mother is still alive, please get her to relate that experience on video tape!!! Seriously…documentary film makers will thank you for years to come. And trust me, in 50 years, many of you reading this who saw ROTK on opening day will be inteviewed by the local press…save those ticket stubs!!! Frame them. Write your thoughts. This really is history in the making. If nothing else, your grandkids might be on Antiques Roadshow and find out it is worth $1,000,000 (taking inflation into consideration.) ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2003, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/51 "2003-12-27T09:13:08Z")
> [@](#): > > I was really quite disappointed with the movie, for a wide range of reasons. Mostly how aspect after aspect of Tolkien’s story was “sexed up” for mass consumption - basically saying that Lord of the Rings just isn’t interesting or dramatic enough by itself. Maybe I’m just more charitable, or less strictly attached to the books (I’ve read them all and enjoyed them a lot, but I can’t compete with some of the fanatics here), but I don’t agree with your assessment here. Like it or not, movies are fundamentally different from books. There are many things that will work in one that will not work in the other: you can spend much more time with exposition in books, and you can take things slow and narrate a lot. In movies, action scenes are much more visceral and exciting, so the medium naturally favors more of that kind of stuff and less talking and exposition. Not everything can be the same, that’s why the process is called adapting. If you ask me, it’s remarkable how much is in these movies. You also have to keep in mind that while some changes will really annoy a diehard lover of the books, most people haven’t read them - and very few read them over and over again. It would have been the stupidest decision in movie history to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to make a movie that so few people would appreciate. I thought it was tremendously ballsy of Jackson and New Line to even make three three-hour movies. That wasn’t the original plan. And then there’s even more stuff in the DVDs. As others have said, the studio put a tremendous amount of money into a project that could have sunk them had it not paid off. One of the most negative things movie studios do is play things safe. That’s not what New Line did here, even if you think things were ‘sexed up.’ Jackson and the studio said ‘the story and films are so good that we think people will sit through them despite the fact that they’re almost twice as long as the average movie, and much more involved.’ That’s giving the audience a fair amount of credit, I think. ---
**Author:** ![NoCoolUserName](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5fc32e/32.png) [@NoCoolUserName](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoCoolUserName)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2003, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/52 "2003-12-27T16:31:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Marley23 \* > **You also have to keep in mind that while some changes will really annoy a diehard lover of the books, most people haven’t read them - and very few read them over and over again.** Have there been any polls, exit surveys, etc. on this? I’d really be curious to know how many of the people who see the movies have read the books. Does anyone have hard data? ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2003, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/53 "2003-12-27T17:04:04Z")
For those who feel somewhat cheated by the ommision of “The Houses of Healing”, remember that a bit of it was lifted for a scene in FotR. When Aragorn is ministering to Frodo after the stab on Weathertop, he tells Sam to go find some athelas leaves. That dialog is right out of HoH and, I think, establishes the same point that Aragorn is a natural healer and leader…Timmy ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2003, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/54 "2003-12-27T17:59:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tim R. Mortiss \* > \*\*For those who feel somewhat cheated by the ommision of “The Houses of Healing”, remember that a bit of it was lifted for a scene in FotR. When Aragorn is ministering to Frodo after the stab on Weathertop, he tells Sam to go find some athelas leaves. That dialog is right out of HoH and, I think, establishes the same point that Aragorn is a natural healer and leader…Timmy \*\* Well, perhaps, but Aragron _does_ use athelas after Frodo is wounded at Weathertop in the book (he gathers it himself, though), and makes a brief speech about its virtues. Not having FOTR in DVD form, I cannot comment on whether the dialogue there resembles more the book version of FOTR or borrows from ROTK. I thought just having Eowyn and Faramir standing next to each other at the coronation was enough of a nod to the missing chapter, myself, though further exposition would really add to the character development of the both of them. Perhaps in the EE…though if everything everyone wants is in there, it’ll be 9 hours long all by itself. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2003, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657/55 "2003-12-27T18:08:56Z")
> [@](#): > > Perhaps in the EE…though if everything everyone wants is in there, it’ll be 9 hours long all by itself. And the problem with that would be…?? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/die-hard-lotr-fans-were-you-impressed-or-dissappointed-with-the-overall-filming/220657.md?page=2)