Texas2step's Lord of the Rings Movie Experience

me | 12/22/01 | Texas2step

[Wordsmith]

I agree, I expected the Christian outlook to be muted but rather it seemed enhanced. This is one of the big reasons I'm still wrestling over taking my 9 year old son (no way the littler kids are going). He's pretty sensitive, though, so we're leaning towards FOTR on video and TT in the theatre.

Ever since probably Paradise Lost's sophisticated Satan, there's been in great art the tendency to romanticize evil. In FOTR the absolute repugnancy of evil, and horror and fear it generates, is perfectly depicted.

[Wordsmith]

Oddities:

How did Gandalf get his staff back after escaping Isengard?

Isn't a bit of reach that ALL the orcs would bolt at the sound of the balrog's approach?

If Saruman knew that the Fellowship was going to attempt Moria, wouldn't he have wanted to prevent this to keep the Ring from being lost in the mines where he couldn't get it? Or wouldn't he have warned the orcs of the mines to be waiting for them?

Why did it seem like every creature had to grab Frodo by the leg and twirl him around? The Watcher at the Gate, the cave troll, wasn't there another too?

It sure did seem like Gandalf hung on the edge of the bridge for a long time. I guess that "time slows down" approach was also at work in the flight to the fords, where the horses all seemed to be moving at 3/4 speeds.

I'll probably think of more. Can't wait to go again!

[Constitution Scholar]

I believe Two Towers comes out next December.
yep. Part II Christmas 2002, Part III Christmas 2003

[ecurbh]

Part II Christmas 2002, Part III Christmas 2003

359 days and counting until Dec. 18, 2002!

[JohnHuang2]

GretchenEE, thanks for the ping.

I'm bookmarkin' to make sure I read it =^)

[doosee]

The fireworks from the wizard Gandalf. Super- I have already called our local mayor and told him that is what I expect next 4th of July. Great movie!!!!!

[mechadogzilla]

The worst part of the movie was when it ended because I didn't want it to end. I would have gladly watched six more hours like the first three. The locations are gorgeous, the monsters horrifying, the battles thrilling, and what a cast! Viggo Mortensen, Ian Holm, Hugo Weaving, John Rhys-Davies, Sean Bean and Christopher Lee are perfectly cast. Ian McKellen IS Gandalf. I cannot praise this movie enough!

Forget Harry Potter (which was great) - THIS is the real movie of the year. I just hope Peter Jackson can maintain this quality for the next two.

[PJ-Comix]

GO GET YOUR TICKETS NOW!!!

Um...no. I'll wait until after the beginning of the year when schools are back in session. That way I can see LOTR in the afternoon without having to sit in an audience filled with teenyboppers. This group tends to make the most noise.

[Godebert]

"The home viewing experience will be on a much more leisurely and intimate scale and I'm sure people are already looking forward to the DVD Director's Cut Edition."

How long 'till the DVD is available?

[dinodino]

Um, there was no ending because that was only the first book in the trilogy. If you want to know how it ends immediately, you could try actually reading the story.

[Overtaxed]

Oh yeah! It's much better the second time although I still want to take those snooty Lothlorien elves down a peg or two.

[mechadogzilla]

Um...no. I'll wait until after the beginning of the year when schools are back in session. That way I can see LOTR in the afternoon without having to sit in an audience filled with teenyboppers. This group tends to make the most noise.

The teenyboppers at the showing I was at were giggling and talking for the first thirty seconds. After that I think the movie had them under a spell. (It surely had me) They were totally respectful throughout and the only sound they made was to join in the applause.

Really great films can do that.

[RedWing9]

If you have not seen the movie, don't read any further. There will be "spoilers" throughout the rest of this "review".

Okay then, marking for later reading... :)

[RogueIsland]

We were also disappointed with the lack of an ending ... even the Star Wars movies each had a discernable 'ending'.

Actually, it was rather similar to Empire Strikes Back in it's lack of resolution and its setup for the next movie, and many people think Empire is the best of the Star Wars films.

The producers are planning in March to put the Two Towers trailer at the end of the Fellowship in order to both tease the next installment and probably to address the issue that some people are having in not understanding that LOTR is a trilogy of films (I admit, FOTR makes absolutely no effort to prepare the uninitiated for this fact. It would have been as simple as placing the words "Book I" in front of the "Fellowship of the Ring" title at the beginning. Also, the advertising campaign leads one to think that it's a self-contained picture. Odd).

[RogueIsland]

How did Gandalf get his staff back after escaping Isengard?

That was his "backup staff". He bought it in a private transfer, so the BATF was unaware that he had it.

Isn't a bit of reach that ALL the orcs would bolt at the sound of the balrog's approach?

I dunno. I think I would have bolted at the approach of "a demon from the old world".

If Saruman knew that the Fellowship was going to attempt Moria, wouldn't he have wanted to prevent this to keep the Ring from being lost in the mines where he couldn't get it? Or wouldn't he have warned the orcs of the mines to be waiting for them?

Interesting question. That's where Gollum comes in. I believe Gandalf pointed out that Sauron was using Gollum's link to the ring to track it through the mines.

Why did it seem like every creature had to grab Frodo by the leg and twirl him around? The Watcher at the Gate, the cave troll, wasn't there another too?

Because grabbing a Hobbit and swinging him around by the leg is just so much fun! Admit it, you'd do it if you had the chance too!

[ovrtaxt]

I, too went with my wife, who's not a Tolkein person, not even a fantasy/SF fan. She liked the movie, she followed the story, but she kept expecting the closure at the end too. I should have warned her. My kids are 7 and 4, they won't be seeing it for a while. And I agree with you about the Balrog. It looked demonic enough, but not as intense, or maybe chaotic, or violent as I imagined one to be. Your movie experience was almost exactly like mine. I had to comment because I know exactly what you're talking about with the concern for your wife's opinion, screening for the kids, etc. I felt like I could have written that review myself!

--Ovrtaxt, not overtaxed!

[Capt.YankeeMike]

mulder, do yourself a favor and go see LOTR. it has nothing to do with that other movie you mentioned. it is like comparing a cartoon to an epic classic, there is no basis for comparison, one was a waste of time, while LOTR is classic literature on the big screen.

[sneakers]

Same here. There were folks here from 7 to 70+ and, once the movie started, everyone was completely enthralled. There was no laughing, giggling, cutting up or rudeness from a single person there. Added up to a good movie-viewing experience.

[Busywhiskers]

Actually Gandalf gets his staff back when Saruman sells it on E-Bay in order to raise money for his evil and insidious plot.

[Restorer]

Only Frodo seemed mainly immune to the rings sway, but not completely.

Don't worry. Even his resistance gradually erodes as the story continues. Most of us know the ending, so I won't spoil it for those who don't.