Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring ( reviewed by Tolkien Scholar )

TORN ^ | 10th Dec | Daniel Timmons, Ph.D.

[maquiladora]

Friday night here in Toronto, I had the privilege of watching Peter Jackson's "The Fellowship of the Ring." Alliance Atlantis, the film's distributor in Canada, kindly invited me to the press preview screening. Given the enormous challenge Peter Jackson and his team faced, we should commend them for a wonderful piece of film-making.

To convey the vast and mythic scope of Tolkien's masterpiece in a three-hour film would have made most directors (and studios) recoil in dread. Yet Jackson and the other talented individuals have set out to present the greatness of "The Lord of the Rings". The film is magnificent visually. For instance, the opening draws on the history of the One Ring from various parts of the book and, with grandeur, dramatizes the essential information and establishes the serious epic tone. Throughout the entire film, we see key aspects of Tolkien's "sub-creation," his invented history and world. There are the necessary points, such as the wretched background of Gollum, and the more obscure, such as the origin of the different races of orcs.

The flim also portrays effectively the idyllic pastoral life of the hobbits. Jackson seems equally at home in the deep, dark dungoens of Isengard or in the light, lovely land of Lothlorien. (If the film doesn't win the awards for art direction and cinematography, a fix must be in.) There is a vivid blend of actual landscape, animation, and computer generated graphics. Readers will always have their own unique visions of the Middle-earth realms. Jackson and his great crew of artists, artisans, and crafts people created a spectacle that does reflect the essence of Tolkien's masterpiece.

Another strong feature is the sound. The score never seems to dominate the action or dialogue, but rather nicely augments the scenes. When the music is silent, the breathing, grunts, and clash of weapons heighten the tension. The ballads by Enya sound lovely. Many of us in the cinema stayed throughout the closing credits mainly to enjoy the music.

The acting, overall, was polished and genuine. Elijah Wood's Frodo appeared vulnerable and frightened, while still displaying inner fortitude. Sir Ian McKellen's Gandalf was indeed majestic. Ian Holm, Christopher Lee, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Bean, and Cate Blanchett also performed well. All the actors appeared committed to their roles and endeavoured to bring out the best in them.

The pace of the film is brisk. As a Tolkien scholar, I would have preferred more reflective and poignant moments. When Gandalf convinces Bilbo to give up the Ring is in the film, and it's very moving. Other scenes, such as those with Gandalf and Frodo, or Aragorn and the hobbits, or Gimli and Legolas are quite abbreviated, which may impinge on character development. I'm sure it was agonizingly difficult for the screenwriters to cut and condense so much of Tolkien's great text. Perhaps some of the action sequences could have been trimmed and more time given for calm reflection. A number of key moments do appear, such as Gandalf's words to Frodo about having pity for Gollum. The Saruman subplot receives significant screen time, with some added spectacular scenes, yet the time in Rivendell and Lothlorien was briefer than I would have wished.

Further, many Tolkien fans and scholars might object to the alterations and additions to the author's text. They would understand that screenwriters must edit and paraphrase the book's dialogue and scenes, especially with a work as rich and extensive as Tolkien's. Perhaps the writers were concerned that some of Tolkien's wordings might seem too archaic or formal to a general movie audience, one that hasn't read the books and doesn't know (or appreciate) the august nature of works like the Anglo-Saxon "Beowulf" or the Old Norse "Poetic Edda".

For many Tolkien enthuasists, "The Lord of the Rings is like a sacred text: you modify it at your peril. It remains to be seen if some changed scenes, such as the attack of the Ringwraiths at the edge of Rivendell or the Gandalf and Saruman confrontation, will upset Tolkien fans. When Tolkien's own wordings essentially remain, such as in the Gandalf and Balrog battle or in the Aragorn and Boromir scene near the end, they come across exceedingly well.

In the final analysis, anyone can find flaws and quibbles with any film, great or otherwise. Given the monumental task of bringing to the screen Tolkien's vast epic masterpiece, New Line Cinema and Peter Jackson have done an amazing and admirable feat. The film does display the lofty and serious tone of the books of "The Lord of the Rings" and honours its subject matter. Some people may quarrel with certain scene changes and dialogue choices. Still, the look, the feel, the overall impression is Tolkienian. And for that, this Tolkien admirer is grateful. Daniel Timmons, Ph.D.

[strela]

Tim, Tim Benzedrine
Hash, boo, Valvoline
Clean, clean, Clean For Gene,
First, second, neutral, park,
Hie thee hence, you leafy narc!

ROFL!!! Beats the heck out of "Neener, neener, so's your ma!" don't it?

[strela]

Heinlein? PUH-LEEZE! Talk about "overblown, tripemeister"!

I see from some of the responses that your low opinion of Heinlein is not universal on FR. Nothing further to add here on that subject.

You left Keith Laumer out of your replies - have you ever read him and what did you think of his work, particularly the "Retief" books?

[HairOfTheDog]

Not the Pig I sounded like in my rant, prisoner6

Because of your well-thought out response and accompanying apology to Reagangirl, I will take what you say at face value. Although I think it is hard to accidentally throw as many anti-woman slams into one post as you did, I will cautiously accept that you just didn't mean it the way that it came out. (which should worry you as a writer, by the way....)

Thanks... and I hope you enjoy the film!

[GatorGirl]

I haven't read through the entire thread yet, so at the risk of being repetitive:

HEY -- it's a kid's story about monsters and magic, people! Get real! Look out the window! There are no monsters in real life. There is no magic in real life.</ I>

I guess you don't think terrorism, abortion, moral relativism or myriad other real evils are present in the world, and I guess you've never been in love. Those are my monsters and magic. Here's hoping you at least find the magic, my friend! Gator

[LurkerNoMore!]

WHOA. Did that poster ever call us 'wimmin'?

I am all over JRRT, and I have a degree in ART!

(I think he needs to spend a lunch hour with you and dio in a true 'pub' watching 'football'!)

[Goldi-Lox]

I believe that Tolkein, in his own way, was every bit as talented as William Shakespeare. WS was a wordsmith and story plot virtuoso. JRRT was an imaginative story-telling virtuoso. That he created maps of the imaginary world, created languages, and cultures, and myths etc etc is simply mind-boggling.

[Goldi-Lox]

How'dja like "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress?"

[Goldi-Lox]

There's about a thousand Orcs right now over in Tora Bora fighting and doing evil.

[Goldi-Lox]

Maybe he's really Orc-Sama.

[Thud]

I'm taking the whole week of Christmas off and plan to see LOTR at least 3-4 times with one of my sons. The rest of my family (wife, daughter and another son) plan to see it at least twice each. So we'll do our bit for the economy, etc.

And I'll finally get a wide-screen TV with DVD player when this puppy comes out on DVD.

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

Yep. The genius is really clear in the context of his scholarship. His work on the text of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and his lectures especially. There are so many good books on him. Tolkien: A Celebration, edited by Joseph Pearce is very good. There's an archaic sort of English countryside pastoral at work in his prose. He writes directly from folklore with an observant ear for natural conversational style, the way people talk. A little perhaps like Twain or even Salinger, although in a different context, in this sense as well. And there is more than a little divine comedy at the heart of his mythopoetic imagination. I hope the film measures up. We can all use a good story now and then. Storytelling is very much a part of the American psyche, something that gets lost in our ideological PC combat. It's great sucks to libs that Tolkien was a Christian and not of their party.

[HowlinglyMind-BendingAbsurdity]

LOL! Good call! (Dr. Moreau)