catapult magazine

Excellent! I just love this film. Even though you lose so much of the depth of the book it still captures the great story and the struggles each character goes through.
I especially like the the struggles of Faramir, Golum and Frodo. Doing the right thing for each of them has cosmic consequences. I tend to think that my obsessions, temptations and sins are insignificant in the grand scheme of things. It helps me realize that my own struggles to do the right thing do have significant impact. Doing the right thing always matters though we may convince ourselves it doesn’t.
Well that’s one little insight I picked up I was hoping to hear more from some of you.

I heard a rumor that they are holding off on the final movie until next May. Can you confirm that or should I kick the guy’s butt who told me this?

According to the Feature Release Schedule I have in front of me, Return Of The King is due to release on Dec 17th of this year. It is possible your friend was confused with the Matrix fiasco as the Wachowski brothers are duking it up with Warner Brothers to change the release date of Matrix Revolutions to May or June of 2004. As of now Revolutions is still set for November 7, 2003.

Okay, so you guys noticed the horrible adjustments made to Faramir’s character, too, but I haven’t seen any comments about Gimli. One of my friends mentioned her distress about his character to me, and after seeing TT a second time, I would agree: Gimli is transformed completely into comic relief. Nowhere in the book does it talk about him complaining while they ran to catch up with Merry and Pippen. In the book he is a noble, strong, and brave representative of his race. In the movie, he is rash, impotent, and whiny. He says almost nothing that redeems his character. This is not at all what Gimli was meant to be! Oh, the horror!

Another rumor to add to the post (or perhaps and extended rumor). A New Line rep told me today that they will be releasing Fellowship Of The Ring as well in an extended format prior to the third installment in the trilogy, Return Of The King. The concept is to release Fellowship Of The Ring (extended) first for a week or two and then The Two Towers (extended) will replace it in the theaters for a week or two and then BAM! Return Of The King will make it’s theatrical debut. For all of you who didn’t run out and buy the extended version of Fellowship on DVD this is your chance to see what you are missing. For all of you who did, this is your chance to see it on the big screen in 6.1. I will continue to post as I hear more through the grapevine and as information comes through on the various insider port production calendars I receive.

OK I am a tard. A quite distracted tard I must say. Farewell To The King? What was I thinking?

Jaybird, I love all the insider info! Keep it coming.

Sheri,

I’d agree. What they did to the dwarf was an insult to dwarves everywhere. Especially the short jokes. It bothered me a little that, although he slew his thousands, legolas was slewing his tens of thousands. To be sure, they have very different fighting styles, but I always figured that, while Legolas could pick off a bunch of people in a hurry, dwarves have the endurance to make a difference in the long run.

Can you tell I can’t remember if it is Gimli or Glimli (or maybe Gimpi)

The Two Towers has been at the Briew and View here in Chicago (a bar/movie house featured in High Fidelity). For anyone (you Winona Lakers!) who might be interested in getting together again, we could maybe attempt to see it there.

I’ll be right over…

Now that I’ve seen it, I’ll add to the list of characters that should have gotten more screen-time: the Ents. They’re my favorite. And I HATED how Mr. Director (is it Peter Jackson?) of The Lord of the Rings shoved extra dramatic effect into every possible nook and cranny. Is it really necessary for the characters to say “It begins” or “Here they come” when we have been watching the bloody army march toward the gates for twenty frickin’ minutes?!

And I concur with the Christian Books and Culture reviewer (http://www.christianitytoday.com/bc/2003/002/2.16.html) who detected the loss of essential elements to the story. After seeing the first movie, I had doubts about whether it should be associated with Tolkien’s story, ‘cause the battle scenes and gothic-looking characters clearly took precedence over the oh-so-merry drinking and singing bits belonging to Tolkien’s tale (Tolkien’s story is richly creative, charming, delightful and dark. Jackson’s is grotesque,“kool”, overly dark, and safe, though visually stunning). After seeing the second, I became severely suspicious of the movie-makers’ motives. I’m not against adaptations of books in general, but the makers of these movies have made a conscious choice, it seems, in favor of plot element similarities rather than to the real story Tolkien set out to tell. Did anyone feel the awkwardness of the speech at the end about the importance of staying the course and fulfilling one’s calling? Though the speech was in keeping with Tolkien’s story, it felt kind of wierd in the movie because the movie neglected to include that message throughout the rest of the film.

Oh the Ents! I concur. They were the most delicious part of the book to me and I so looked forward to them in the movie…I was disappointed…we didn’t get to know them at all there really.
Their language was missing….Hroom.hoom…..and we missed the slooowwnneeessss of the Ents and the wonder of Pippin and Merry and the friendship they grew with them. And, the waking of the trees. So much richness left out.

All criticisms of the movie aside, it has inspired many of my high school students to read the trilogy and that (to me) forgives much. I have the best discussions with students about the both the books and the movie now. And, I believe it will inspire them to read more!

And…in spite of all that is wrong with the movies and things that really, really bite that Jackson did or didn’t do, I can’t help but love them anyway because this best, biggest, story of all time has ‘come to life’ and who couldn’t be moved by the characters, the quest, the love, the loyalty, betrayal, redemption? And then be moved to ponder it all?