I have read Fellowship of the ring three times, two towers twice, and return of the king once. While i do not like changes from book to screen, i have come to realize that these changes have to be there. For example, elves assisting at helm’s deep. I feel it is only a way to bring hope that Arwen made the choice to stay, as the movie makes no reference to her afterwords. Personally, i think it works.
The wargs were a nice touch, and realistic, although not needed. What they brought was an answer to a question i had while reading the book. What if they had been attacked en route to Helms deep.
Oh well…i sure as heck enjoyed the movie and will no doubt be seeing it many many times.
Personally, i see the movies as their own, a part from the books. It’s an interpretation and you almost have to take it like that before watching.
Has anyone forgotten the soundtrack, which pretty much makes half the movie? That score is undoubtedly the best, blending past with present.
Sorry my thoughts went in a strange explosion there. Can’t wait for Return of the King and Aragorn’s travel through the paths of the dead.
I saw it yesterday. Wow! I’m counting the days until I can see it again. I hope there’s a whole hour of footage restored in the DVD, as hinted.
I agree with what seems to be the general consensus: this is a fabulous movie, and some of the deviations from the book worked excellently, and some were off the mark. I also liked having the elves at Helm’s Deep – it just felt right, somehow. I’ve had it up to here with Arwen, however, to the point where I wish Aragorn’s dumping here would be permanent and that he would take up with Eowyn, already.
All of the sequences in the Frodo/Sam/Gollum story were flawless, IMO. Andy Serkis made the CGI character a living, breathing, pitiable, comic character, and I’m hoping that history will be made at the Oscars. I’d like to see him win Best Supporting.
Here’s my favorite single scene, and it’s a slight deviation: Frodo pretending to sleep, but he’s awake and fondling and stroking the Ring. Gollum’s a short distance away with his back to Frodo, mimicking the stroking movements with his own hands and speaking to Frodo: “Isn’t it bright? Isn’t it shiny?” Ooooo, that scene gave me the shivers! Well done, PJ. It brilliantly brought forward the point that Gollum understood Frodo, and Frodo understood Gollum, a key idea in understanding their relationship.
As to the Osgiliath deviation: I have an idea that the scene depicting Minas Morgul is going to be left out, and Osgiliath will stand in its stead. One of the imortant aspects of Minas Morgul, besides the fact that its description is just so deliciously eerie, was that it showed that Frodo was beginning to feel under the influence of the Nazgul. In the book, he unseeingly ran toward the city of the ringwraiths and the other two had to drag him back. What was happening when he did that? Was he being commanded to approach the Witch King and hand over the One? Maybe the controversial Nazgul and Frodo scene in the movie is meant to make this plot point and we won’t see Minas Morgul in ROTK. Do you think?
I’ve seen the movie twice, and recently picked up TTT to re-read it. (It is the volume I have re-read least often, for whatever reason). I definitely liked it better on the second viewing. I think the first time I was too caught up in analyzing where they were taking the story.
The interesting thing – and I think this is also reflected in this thread – is that several times, when I thought, “Hey, that’s not how it is in the book!” I have found upon re-reading, that my memory of the book is faulty and that the movie reflects it more accurately than I thought. For example, I had forgotten about the explosion at Helm’s Deep and frowned upon it as an “add-on.” Not so. Or, in this thread, note how one reader recalls the Nazgul riding winged horses.
The Elves at Helm’s Deep sort of make sense, because they need some fighting force behind them. In the book Eomer’s eored fights at Helms Deep, and it is Erkenbrand – the Marshall or Captain of the Westfold – who appears with Gandalf as reinforcement. But it just doesn’t make cinematic sense to introduce even more characters to a cast that is already almost too many for most people to follow. Plus the whole plot of the battle of the Isen Ford, and how Erkenbrand got cut off from the main army is just… too hard to explain.
As far as Faramir, you know when he says “Bring them to Osgiliath” and Sam has this wierd look on his face? I leaned over and whispered to my friend, 'That look is Sam thinking: ‘Hey! that’s not in the book!’" But if you look at it, the net result is the same: Faramir lets Frodo go, and ends up in Big Trouble With Dad.
Personally, I thought Faramir should be more handsome/ ruggedly hunky al la Aragorn. He had a weak chin. Eowyn rocks. I can’t wait to see the look on her face when Aragorn says “Well, I like you, but I don’t like you like you.”
There is some evidence in JRRT’s notes (as collected in HOMES) that Legolas and his father Thranduil were originally elves of Doriath. Not as enlightened as the returning Noldor, they still benefitted from the wisdom of Melian to rise far above the sylvan elves, whom they ruled when they moved to mirkwood.
Really? So, like, if one of ‘em decided to enlist in the Navy, but he needed a place to stay while he was in his home port, and somebody decided to rent him a trailer, why, then, I just bet ol’ Roger Miller could’a written a song about it:
I loved Gimli’s comic relief, esp. the “We could have picked a better space” comment when they’re waiting for the orcs to attack. The whole theatre cracked up at that
Gollum… wow. Gollum’s the closest to a nonhuman intelligent creature that has been portayed by CGI, ever. Those movements, those faces…! Loved the inner conversations, heck, loved the hell out the whole character! (Well, except for times at the start - occassionally a bit too real, you know?)
Realized that the plot was changed at several places, and wasn’t bothered too much about it. Director doesn’t need walk the exact steps of the original writer, no matter how much fanboys would prefer it to be so. Aragorn’s fake death was a wee bit stupid, though.
Loved the CGI - except wargs, for some reason. I had always just imagined them as really big wolves. The warg that looked at Gimli before it was killed by Aragorn looked like a big puppet.
Inadvertent crack-up at the start of the film - Frodo feels the power of the ring and clutches his heart, suddenly a mobile telephone goes off at audience - and soon after that, Sam reaches for his backpack. Other inadvertent (almost-)crackups were the overuse of children in the Helm’s Deep pre-battle scenes and the arrival of Shadowfax - it was short scene, but somehow made me think of those horse movies for 12-year-old girls. Eh, not that I’ve seen one.
I’m REALLY looking forwards for RotK. Esp. Shelob, big battle scenes and Frodo at the Mount Doom (hope they pull it off VERY good.)
Oh, and BTW – never since Joel Cairo and Bridget O’Shaunessghy have two people in a movie fought more viciously over a material object.
Double BTW – I read over at ToRN that due to negative fan feedback, PJ changed the movie’s original storyline to disinclude Arwen’s participation in the Battle of Helm’s Deep. Thank God for that - I don’t think I could have taken any more footage of her trying to look bewitching.
That wouldn’t surprise me. Upon second viewing–this time not including a bathroom break during the Arwen-centric “intermission”–and this time knowing that the elves were going to show up in Helm’s Deep, it looked to me like we were supposed to recognize that the elves heading out of Rivendell with Arwen are the same (or some of the same) ones who help save HD. And the message Haldir delivers on his arrival is specifically stated as being from Elrond, to the effect that the elves are not giving up on Middle Earth–exactly the same topic of discussion between Elrond and Arwen during “intermission.”
As I see it, the Arwen stuff this time around is not a dream, except for the shorter sequence as Aragorn falls asleep at night on the road to Helm’s Deep. It’s a cutaway to a condensed version of what’s actually going on between Elrond and Arwen, and she ends up convincing him that the elves have to help fight the war instead of just taking off to the east. Given that Arwen was with those elves when they left Rivendell, the logical conclusion is that she was there in Helm’s Deep. Of course, since they apparently stopped off in Rivendell to pick up Haldir, maybe Arwen stayed behind with Galadriel–giving Cate Blanchett another excuse for a few lines in the next movie. We may find out when the extended DVD comes out next fall.
But god help Peter Jackson if it’s Arwen vs. the Witch King instead of Eowyn. If that blasphemy happens, a deranged fan will surely make an attempt on his life. And I’ll just have to shake my head and mutter "He had it coming . . . "
And having gone over to theonering.net after reading pugluvr’s mention, I see that their front page has linked to our now-classic thread If LotR Had Been Written By Someone Else!? Obviously, these are people of discriminating tastes who we can trust.
Speaking of which, here is their list of scenes deleted from the movie, as compiled from various sources (at least some of which have been confirmed by early previews, photos, and such).
And behold! it was a winged creature: if bird, then greater than all other birds, and it was naked, and neither quill nor feather did it bear, and its vast pinions were as webs of hide between horned fingers; and it stank.
…Suddenly the great beast beat it’s hideous wings, and the wind of them was foul. Again it leaped into the air, and then swiftly fell down upon Eowyn, shrieking, striking with beak and claw.
Hmmm, sounds like a pteradon of some sort to me. Especially the beak; I don’t recall any beaked dragons. In any case, the description is certainly birdlike, and if it were dragonlike the author would have said so. Dragons are prominently mentioned elsewhere in Tolkien’s work.
→ webs of hide between horned fingers, that sounds awfully much like a dragon or dinosaur looking thinghy to me and not just a naked nird
I think the nazgul dragons are just as i imagined them. My personal belief was that anything from mordor would be severely mutilated. Anything, for that matter, would lack beauty or uniqueness.
But still, i have always seen them as dragons. FYI, dragon is such a loose term that it was applied to dinosaurs upon discovery. So yeah, i would have to agree with the Pteranodon…
all that to just agree…why can’t i say i just agree
Although, admittedly, the Fake Death pissed me off quite a bit. Jesus, how Indiana Jones can we get? And the Arwen interludes were quite long. I . . . er . . . fell asleep the second time I went to see TTT. But I was tired anyway, I swear!
Haldir’s death . . . Ehhhh. He was my favourite elf before the introduction of Smart-Ass!Legolas, and when he kicked it I was extremely upset.
I did, however, like his reaction to Touchy-Feely!Aragorn:
ARAGORN: Come, Haldir! Let us embrace in a manly heterosexual fashion!
HALDIR: Erm. Right.
Eowyn rocks. I can’t wait to see the look on her face when 
