Review of "LORD OF THE RINGS: FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING (2001) -- Extended Edition"

Lights Out Entertainment ^ | November 6th, 2002 | Brian Balchack

[Skywalk]

Well, you're in luck because though it did not make it into the film, they did a little bit of filming and are packaging the sequence into a companion DVD: Tom and Goldbery--Aint Nobody Humpin Around.

[tjg]

Well, technically, since you have all those icky torture machines, I suppose, .....

[tjg]

My wife is wants me to go with her and the kids to see it on the 18th but I want to wait for the DVD. I've got a very nice home theater set up, and am about to improve it with a 50" plasma.

Also, I have an aversion to crowds in general and crowded theaters in particular. Tough phobia for a dedicated movie lover.

After I saw the first one, I reread all four books. I probably read them twenty five years ago and I think I enjoyed them more this time around.

Here's a question posed by my 7 year old. (After watching the movie several times.) In the beginning, where they show the mother of all battles, Sauran shows up and starts kicking major butt.

"Why", asks my little cherub, "isn't he invisible? He's wearing the ring."

[Pookie Me]

"Why", asks my little cherub, "isn't he invisible? He's wearing the ring."

Which is why Tom Bombodil is IMPORTANT! 'cause when HE wore the ring, he didn't turn invisible either. In fact, Tom Bombodil mad THE RING ITSELF disappear!

To sneakers - The swords from the Barrow ARE important, especially when you gets to the Return of the King with Merry and his fight.

Oh well, I guess I should be happy that LORD OF THE RINGS is one of the few movies I've watched that wasn't ruined because I read the book.

Pookie & Me

[Pookie Me]

A film like this is why guys like me love movies enough to take magic into other parts of life.

I love the movie too...but I don't understand this sentence.

You mean you don't take magic into YOUR OTHER LIVES EITHER????

Are you not of the body, friend? PEACE BE UNTO LANDRU...

Pookie & ME

[tjg]

The part about Tom Bombodil in the book struck me as odd. The whole thing about man eating trees and 'timeless' time and a guy seemly unaffected by anything that happened in Middle earth. It seemed it didn't fit into the story at all.

All throught the books though, whenever his name came up I felt like I had missed or overlooked something important. I can only conclude that Tolkien either mean for Tom B to have a signifigance that went over my head, or Tolkien orignially intended for him to have a part in the books that was later abandoned. (he wrote the books over a period of many years. He could have changed the course of the story many times.)

Also, I didn't give much thought as I read either time to metaphore or allusion. I took the books at complete face value. But stuff like this occurs to me and I wonder if I should have given the story more thought.

[freedom9]

Ezekiel 1:18 As for their rings, they were so high that they were dreadful; and their rings were full of eyes round about them four.

[artios]

Galadriel, Mithrandir/Gandalf and others don't disappear - the ones that don't disappear all of something in common as well....

ha!

one clue - if the Firey Balrok (who came from the depths where the drwarves had dug too deep) had found the ring - he also would not disappear and neither would Sauroman.

ok - one more - where did Gandalf come from - how come no lineage is ever referenced? If you know all his names the answer may be in the Silmarillion...

[condi2008]

ok - one more - where did Gandalf come from - how come no lineage is ever referenced? If you know all his names the answer may be in the Silmarillion...

My son responds:
Gandalf is a Miar. If you have never heard of the Miar, Valar, or even Iluvitar, they all live acrosss the Sea. Iluvitar made everything, he is the one greatest, his power goes on, and on, and on, (you get the picture). Valar are second in command. Miar are lower still. Gandalf was sent by Iluvitar to help Middle Earth (where Lord of the Rings was set). He is not allowed to actually physically fight Sauron, but he can assist others in doing so. Saruman is a Miar also, and he, Gandalf, Radagast (read LOTR to find out about him), and others make up the order of wizards: the Istari. By the way, Sauron was a Miar also, but was banished from the land across the Sea for assisting in evil deeds. I got all this from the Silmarillion, and Appendices in LOTR.

[artios]

I am quite impressed. Your son clearly has the wisdom of a Miar himself. My hat is off to such an one. Perhaps he too will assist mankind in fighting the evil one some day. God speed the both of you.

[condi2008]

Now his twin sister wants to get in on the conversation:

Read the Silmarillion again and you'll see. In TTT, he says, "Olorin I was in the West that is forgotten," and in the Silmarillion, (see the Valaquenta) a Maiar named Olorin is referred to as 'one who knew the original Sauron for who he was'. Gandalf won't touch the ring because he is as, if not more powerful. You remember, "but through me, It would wield a power too great and terrible to imagine." I think he is less powerful than Melian, but I'm not sure.

[condi2008]

That's m'boy!
Now if I could only get him to spend as much mental energy on his "real" school subjects...

Ps. 127:4

[Elenya]

We wants it!

I had to buy my first DVD player for the first one, and I decided to buy a 32" TV to watch the extended version. Jackson is going to bankrupt me but we loves it! Looks like the home theater will be for TTT, LOL!

[tjg]

If the ring holds no power for Tom, why is it a source of awesome power for Sauron.

[maquiladora]

I had to buy my first DVD player for the first one, and I decided to buy a 32" TV to watch the extended version. Jackson is going to bankrupt me but we loves it! Looks like the home theater will be for TTT, LOL!

Well, look at it this way. Next year, you'll have TTT DVD and the extended version DVD too, then after that RotK DVD and the extended version of that again.....

It's an investment for the future!

[Festa]

The class I took last semester on the Lord of the Rings posed the theory that Tom Bombadil was a valor.