The Lord of the Rings

[okieinexile]

By Bobby Neal Winters

Let me get out of the way in the first paragraph my only negative comment about The Return of the King. It is long. At three-and-a-half hours, it is not a movie but a lifestyle choice. However, the question then comes, "How would you shorten it?" and I don't have an answer. It is like going to a man who has a dozen children and telling him that his family is too big. Which ones do you get rid of? None. You live with them all, enjoy every one, and thank God they were all born.

In the entire three-and-a-half hours, I cannot find a nanosecond that should be removed. Like the children in a large family, each of the parts of the movie has something wonderful about it. In this it is like its predecessors The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. I have held off reviewing this trilogy of films until now because I wanted to see it all wrapped up before I wrote anything. Now that the final pieces are in place it seems like so much that I can only scratch around at the surface. Indeed, there has been a library of commentary written on the trilogy, and I despair of adding anything new to that.

J.R.R. Tolkien was a religious man who had been part of translating The Jerusalem Bible and converting C.S. Lewis to Christianity. While one can enjoys the books and the movies without knowing this, it added a new level to my enjoyment. Some things that you might want to look out for—but that I will not discuss today—are the times characters are saved by water, the images of the Virgin Mary that are used, and various and sundry Christ-like characters.

For my part, I was taken by how weakness is use throughout. I love the quote by the Apostle Paul in Second Corinthians, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." This is a verse that Tolkien must have been well acquainted with because the heroes of the story are hobbits, creatures that are half as tall as a man, about the size of first graders. One would not choose to create an army of first graders.

In addition to this, there is a scene in The Fellowship of the Ring, the second film, where the good wizard Gandalf has been imprisoned by the evil wizard Saruman on the top of a high tower, and his life is saved by a message he sends through a moth.

Also, at the very beginning of the first movie we see that Sauron, the personification of evil they are fighting, is dispatched during his previous manifestation by a sword that has been shattered. Strength made perfect in weakness, indeed.

The final trio of ring-bearers also is worthy of watching. This is composed of Frodo, Sam, and Gollum. Frodo, played by Elijah Wood, is the focus of the story as it is his burden to carry to One Ring through the evil land of Mordor to Mount Doom, the place where it was forged and the only place it can be destroyed. Sam is his loyal friend and comrade who symbolizes all that is good in plain, ordinary folk. While the Ring has little direct effect on him, it slowly wears away at the somewhat more aristocratic Frodo. Gollum is the most fascinating of the three, however.

He is a loathsome character whose corruption we see at the very beginning of The Return of the King. It would be very easy to dismiss him as worthless as indeed Sam does, but Frodo, who himself feels the corrupting influence of the Ring, does not. All three of these characters are needed to carry the Ring to its final destruction, but it is the filthy, disgusting, corrupted Gollum who saves the world at the end. This final scene is something that says more in being played out than I could possibly explain.

At last, I feel that I would be remiss if I do not comment on the strong female characters included in this trilogy of films. There are only three with speaking parts, but those three are powerful and complex. Arwen and Galadriel are featured more prominently in the first two films than in the last, while Eowyn, who was introduced in the second movie, is more visible in the third. While these movies are fantasies, one might argue that these portrayals of women are more realistic than commonly available in contemporary popular cinema.

In The Return of the King, Arwen, the elf princess, consciously chooses to die, to give up immortality, in order to bear a child, which is something that does happen but we don't often see spelled out, and Eowyn, the heroic princess of Rohan, does all of the fighting the men do while having to wag a child-sized hobbit around.

As I say, there has been a library of books written on The Lord of the Rings, and in the end most people will go see The Return of the King because it is a great adventure movie, but there is more. Sit back, get popcorn but no drink, and enjoy, because it is a long, beautiful ride.

[Nogodnomasters]

I thought Elijah Wood as Frodo sucked. He was out classed by his peers. I thought the character Sam was not only the best actor, but was the real hero and humble about the whole thing. I felt a chill when he spoke the line, "I can't carry the ring, but I can carry the ring bearer."

Had I written the story, I would of had Sam push Frodo into the river of fire at the end of the story instead of using Gollum, maybe even having Sam falling in with him. Had Tolkein seen Wood's performance he might have done it the same way.

The line of the King also got me choked up when the 4 Hoobits are standing there and he says, "You kneel to no man" and everyone kneels before the Hobbits.

The 3 plus hours went very fast in the third movie. I admittedly found myself nodding off in the first one, even though I preferred it to the second flick. Part 3 was one dramatic climatic scene after another up until the ring is destroyed.

In spite of the great symbolism, I did not like the trees as characters. The special effects of the trees reminded me too much of "The Never Ending Story."

Peter Jackson wanted to make the most believable spider in cinema history. I didn't think it was that great either. Good yes, but not great.

Elijah Wood was the "Kelso" of the triology. I can't but help but think of someone like Joe Pesci playing his part.... in the end he is beating Gollum over the head with a shoe screaming... "You F#$%! Give me the ring you f#$%!"

[Susma Rio Sep]

I used to be when a child thrilled by such kinds of stories and movies. Now no longer.

My own opinion is that a much greater expertise and a more intricate insight into human nature and society is demanded to write a story and make a movie involving current real time characters, scenes, concerns, lives, incidents and in current fashion and make-up, and to succeed in captivating the interest of people.

Susma Rio Sep

[Susma Rio Sep]

What's happening to me?

I used to love chocolate. Now I won't touch it with a five foot pole.

Some things are just no longer fascinating to me anymore.

But writing posts here, it is still enjoyable, enthralling.

Susma Rio Sep

[I, Brian]

Not seen it yet - hopefully will get the kids' grandma to babysit next week.

The one big thing that irks myself about the films is that there is apparently so much in the "extended edition" releases. For example, there's an extra 40 mins for Two Towers in terms of new scenes and extended scenes. Somehow that makes the cinema releases seem a bit too chopped - there were favoutite moments in Fellowship I thought were missed out of the movie, only to find them in the special edition. Just little things - but it's always the little things that are most important, IMHO.

[brucegdc]

Originally Posted by I, Brian

Not seen it yet - hopefully will get the kids' grandma to babysit next week.

The one big thing that irks myself about the films is that there is apparently so much in the "extended edition" releases. For example, there's an extra 40 mins for Two Towers in terms of new scenes and extended scenes. Somehow that makes the cinema releases seem a bit too chopped - there were favoutite moments in Fellowship I thought were missed out of the movie, only to find them in the special edition. Just little things - but it's always the little things that are most important, IMHO.

I think you can put the blame for that squarely on the economics of the movies. At 3 1/2 hours each, they're pushing the limits for the theatre owners for what they'll show - since the majority of their income comes from the concession stands, they want turnover (you're only going to buy one bucket of popcorn per movie, for example), so longer movies must be ultra-popular. If they'd added the 40 minutes to each to keep all the good scenes they should have, then the theatres wouldn't have been willing to show them. (Not to mention the economics of releasing a "regular" and "extended" DVD release to get some folks to buy it twice)

[I, Brian]

Certainly I understand that point - but somehow the appeal of going to see a movie that is only 85% complete at the cinema - when I have so many problems arranging babysitting, makes for an excuse to gripe and moan.

[Susma Rio Sep]

Originally Posted by I, Brian

Certainly I understand that point - but somehow the appeal of going to see a movie that is only 85% complete at the cinema - when I have so many problems arranging babysitting, makes for an excuse to gripe and moan.

What is that thing Buddha said about conquering desire to overcome suffering and attaining peace thereby getting to Nirvana?

Try it. and you will be free.

You have my sympathy though.

Susma Rio Sep

[Zazen]

i havent seen it yet either, i dont know why..

and elijiah wood does suck

i like the dwarf though, gimly i guess his name is? gimly son of gloin hehe i dont even know if thats the correct spelling but i always remember that line when they say it in the first one..that little guy cracks me up

amitabha

[Nogodnomasters]

Originally Posted by Susma Rio Sep

What is that thing Buddha said about conquering desire to overcome suffering and attaining peace thereby getting to Nirvana?

Try it. and you will be free.

You have my sympathy though.

Susma Rio Sep

[ADMIN EDIT by I, Brian - Now, now, Nogodnomasters - you should know better than to make inflammatory comments like that]

[okieinexile]

Originally Posted by Zazen

i havent seen it yet either, i dont know why..

and elijiah wood does suck

i like the dwarf though, gimly i guess his name is? gimly son of gloin hehe i dont even know if thats the correct spelling but i always remember that line when they say it in the first one..that little guy cracks me up

amitabha

Gimli got all the best lines, "Still counts as ONE." Cranked me up.

[Susma Rio Sep]

Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter are essentially fantasy stories for which readers give a lot of allowances and ask no demanding questions.

Now if someone writes a story about mad cows or war against terrorism, then readers do not give any allowances; and authors have to be very meticulous with logic and facts; even though the stories are also fictions. "Fiction is stranger than fact"; but it is still bound to logic and true contemporary events.

With fantasy stories you can spin anything you want, even though you might give indications of your scholarship of past fantasy stories and supposedly historical details which are basically still fantastic readings into history.

I am interested to know how many people truly read the whole whole books from page one to the last. And how many can really say that they were attentive to the whole moves from beginning to ending.

Then I am interested to know if they can write an account of these stories in fifty words or less and do credit to their authors -- their authors will admit that these account of fifty words or less grasp the whole gist of their stories.

Susma Rio Sep

[okieinexile]

Susma,

"A man is born, gets married, has kids, and dies," is the story of a mans life in less than 50 words, and yet something is left out.

[Nogodnomasters]

Originally Posted by Nogodnomasters

[ADMIN EDIT by I, Brian - Now, now, Nogodnomasters - you should know better than to make inflammatory comments like that]

Can I say I prefer fantasy stories to anyone's invisible god?

[Nogodnomasters]

Originally Posted by okieinexile

Gimli got all the best lines, "Still counts as ONE." Cranked me up.

After part 3 came out I rewatched the other two films for stuff I missed while dozing off or going to the restroom. I liked Gimli's line in the second one where he tells Aaragon to "toss him" onto the bridge to fight the Orcs. Aaragon questions him, seems his legs are too short to make the jump. Aagon agrees and Gimli adds, "Don't tell the elf."