Ahira's Hangar

Fid, I'm with you about that elf captain! I thought that it WAS Lord Celeborn when he first showed up!
I didn't catch the captain's name, either , Danlo.
I liked even more the second time around! Winter is Coming
Blood and Fire
Unbowed,Unbent,Unbroken<i></i>

I saw TTT last night and really enjoyed it. I definitely need to see it again.

I agree with those who didn't like the portrayal of Faramir. It was all wrong. He would not have taken them to Gondor, and he would not have taken the Ring. "...Not if it was lying by the roadside..." he said in the book.

Gollum was perfect, I loved how his internal conflicts/dialog was portrayed. And I also loved the portrayal of Gandalf's battle with the Balrog.

That whole bit with Aragorn going over a cliff I thought was unneccessary. Don't really see what the point of that was. But it was totally in character for Legolas to say, "You're late" to him when he showed up, as though he knew all along that Aragorn wasn't dead. I also like the way they showed Eowyn starting to run over to greet Aragorn and then hesitating when she saw him gazing at the necklace that Arwen gave him. I thought it was a good way to show her internal conflict and the feelings she had for Aragorn, when she knew he was in love with another.

The scene with Elrond and Arwen seemed wrong, too, although I guess Jackson was trying to show that it wasn't an easy decision for Arwen to love Aragorn. I still think the portrayal of Elrond is all wrong. He seems too frowny and petulant, instead of wise and benevolent.

The Ents were great. Loved the portrayal of them attacking Isengard. And the Battle of Helm's Deep was well-done, too.

The Hobbits are starting to come into their own as characters too.

I am sure I will more to say about the movie, but this will do for a start.

~MsMary~ "Does the walker choose the path, or the path the walker?"<i></i>

Was Arwen hiding and watching Aragon, disquised as one of the archers at Helm's Deep--or did she only walk off w/another group of elves? The way the commercial is presented it almost looks like Arwen is hooded and at the battle! The best and most msyterious part of the book is F & S w/Faramir & Co. and it was pretty much ripped 2 pieces! Xcept 4 the Forbidden Pool...

MsMary--as far as Aragorn and the cliff goes--when I watched that hour long promo show: Return 2 Middle Earth they showed scenes that explained the purpose--but when the middle scene went kablooey the whole sequence went down the drain. In that scene Aragorn is shown floating down the rapids unconscious, he comes around a big bend, is buffeted by a few rocks and then went straight in2 a huge boulder, feet 1st! Mortensen got sucked in2 a vicious undertow and came very close 2 drowning. He was under 2 minutes and had 2 push off the boulder, w/his feet, 3 times b4 he finally popped up!!!

The xtended version DVD will make that part of the film MUCH better 4 u... And now Danlo looked in that direction, too. He remembered that snowy owls mate in the darkest part of deep winter, and so along with this beautiful white bird perched in a tree a hundred feet away, he turned to face the sea as he watched and waited.

Ahira, Ahira, he called out silently to the sky. Ahira, Ahira<i>Edited by: danlo60 at: 12/24/02 5:28:29 pm
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danlo, you mean the DVD for TTT? Foamy has the one for FOTR, and I imagine we will be getting TTT when it is available too.

~MsMary~ "Does the walker choose the path, or the path the walker?"<i></i>

Yes TTT, patience is as virtue... And now Danlo looked in that direction, too. He remembered that snowy owls mate in the darkest part of deep winter, and so along with this beautiful white bird perched in a tree a hundred feet away, he turned to face the sea as he watched and waited.

Ahira, Ahira, he called out silently to the sky. Ahira, Ahira<i></i>

if that's a virtue it's something i'm sorely lacking in otherwise i wouldn't have been at the cinema on a raining Boxing Day crushed in a crowd of people twice my height. i must be mad
i won't rehash all my whinges and misgivings about the movie - must be that First Viewing Syndrome they're pretty much the same as most peoples - Faramir, all the Gimli jokes, the Ents were all right but i expected more from that. besides i think that most of these will change when i see it again - then i'll be able to get used to the changes.
that said it still had me holding my breath, laughing, digging my fingers into the armrest and fighting a losing battle not to cry especially with Haldir
i'll reserve judgement for a while longer though

now is everyone hanging out for TTT:SE and not just TTT ? - i know i am <i></i>

OH i AM so relieved at the critique of Fids and co .. I too hated the Jackson interpretation of Farrimir and taking Frodo and Sam to what only could have been Gondor .. and the siege never began at that time in history .. it happened later once PIppin or was it Merry?? when the one who went with GAndalf arrived at Gondor ..

I loved the battle scenes at Helms Deep .. stupendous agreed!!

I didnt fuss about the flashbacks between Aragorn and Arwen .. it did set the scene of his allegiance to Arwen in the face of Eowen's interest. Didnt make Aragorn look like the cad he may have otherwise loooked ..

The ents I loved but I didnt like the Jackson portrayal of their decision to join the cause of men and Middle EArth ..

that was all wrong .. and agree about the elven cloak .. why take out that scene?? some of the deleted scenes seemed meaningless and I could not see that they affected the story whether left out or left intact!! And I would have preferred them left intact to the original story.

All in all a 9/10 .. but not 100% happy with Jacksons interpretation of the story. For someone who should have done better and claimed to more than anything else held true to Tolkien's intent! pooh pooh Jackson!! health and healing<i></i>

I posted my full review at Hatrack, so I'll just copy it here:

didn't think TTT was better than FOTR, as a lot of people are saying. I didn't like what they did to Faramir, I didn't like it that the Ents had to be convinced to go fight, the Gimli-as-comic-relief bit was irritating, and the Wargs looked like freaking ROUSes. Gollum and the Ents were a little...off...particularly the Ents. Their legs were disproportionately long, which looked slightly odd. And I'm not sure what the point was of having Aragorn fall off that cliff...

That said, I enjoyed the movie. I loved the opening recap of Gandalf fighting the Balrog - that was the best scene in FOTR, IMO, so it was a great way to start. I liked seeing Sam's character develop - he's really transforming into the Sam I know and love. The changes in Merry and Pippen's characters were great, too.

Gandalf the White was wonderful. The scene where Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli meet him in the woods was very well done. And I love his new staff - very Rivendell-esque.

The romantic subplot was rather extraneous, but I didn't mind it that much. I thought Eowyn was good, and so was Theoden. Eomer seemed a little off to me, though.

Gollum may have been a little off physically, but his voice was great. I especially liked the ending, setting up for Shelob...

The Ents destroying Isengard was awesome. And I loved the scene where Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli find the pyre where the Riders burned the Orcs. Aragorn kicking the helmet and screaming in frustration was absolutely heart-wrenching - I think that was one part where the movie actually improved on the book.

The Elves showing up at the battle of Helm's Deep wasn't in the book, but I thought it was a nice touch to have Elves and Men fight together again.

The skateboarding bit was a little strange, but I loved the way Legolas got onto his horse - great Legolas moment.

I'm glad Legolas and Gimli's Orc-killing competition made it into the movie. And Frodo and Sam's conversation about a book being made about them someday - that's one of my favorite scenes in the book. And the rabbit stew, with Sam and Gollum discussing fish and chips. The crossroads scene didn't make it into this movie, but there's always room for it in the next one.

And I loved the Rohan theme. I can't wait to get the soundtrack.

(My dad is in the kitchen humming a theme from the first soundtrack. Hehe. )

Sky, I think you mean Minas Tirith, not Gondor...that whole land is called Gondor. And he didn't take them to Minas Tirith, he took them to Osgiliath. There was a battle there, too, but Frodo and Sam were never there.

~Foamy~ <i></i>

So much has been written/argued about vis-a-vis Faramir. I find that a bit odd because the character is not by any stretch of the imagination a major one. And as for his somehow being central to the story--how? Honestly, I don't get it.

My own opinion is that Faramir in the book suffers from what most characters do in the book--namely, they tend to be extremely static. Actually, that's not quite right. They don't "suffer" from it, because even Frodo and Gandalf are secondary. LOTR's hero is Middle Earth itself, and everyone else plays second fiddle.

This would never work in a dramatic format (although it works brilliantly in a literary one). Interestingly, the main characters in the films--Frodo, Aragorn and Gandalf--have all been given similar arcs (although I'd argue they simply "echo" Frodo's). And each film, so far, has had a specific theme. FOTR was about "accepting duty" while TTT was clearly all about "believing in hope." I've been very impressed with how rigorously the scripts focused on these.

Likewise, I was pleased with how Faramir was given an actual story. In the original book, he doesn't really "do" anything. My roommate--who doesn't read fantasy--upon hearing about the controversy, asked what Faramir does in the book. I said "He treats Frodo and Sam as his guests, finds out by accident Frodo has the Ring, then lets them go like the gentleman he is." My roommate's reaction: Where's the story?

Faramir in the film has a story. Unlike Boromir, he is not tempted to take the Ring for himself. Rather, he does what any sane commander would do with finding a pair of lying strangers behind enemy lines. In the end, he lets them go (although I *do* believe this will be expanded in the DVD) at great personal sacrifice. (Paranthetically, it really impresses me that in the films far more folks are genuinely tempted by the Ring--it always bothered me how many people seemed to have little trouble resisting it in the book)

But this is the really cool part. In the film, nearly every character we see is well and truly on the road of their arc. Aragorn is learning how to be a King, for example, while Gollum has a chance at healing which tragically goes wrong. Only two characters don't seem to really have much of a direction yet--Faramir and Eowyn.

Given their future together, it is a lovely piece of writing how they already "fit together" before having even met! "GOD created Man in his own image. Man, being a gentleman, returned the courtesy." -Voltaire<i></i>

Impressive analysis Zahir! And now Danlo looked in that direction, too. He remembered that snowy owls mate in the darkest part of deep winter, and so along with this beautiful white bird perched in a tree a hundred feet away, he turned to face the sea as he watched and waited.

Ahira, Ahira, he called out silently to the sky. Ahira, Ahira<i></i>

Quote:But this is the really cool part. In the film, nearly every character we see is well and truly on the road of their arc. Aragorn is learning how to be a King, for example, while Gollum has a chance at healing which tragically goes wrong. Only two characters don't seem to really have much of a direction yet--Faramir and Eowyn.

I never thought of that before, but you're right. That is quite cool.

~Foamy~ <i></i>