Fellowship: Film and Book

While I won't be listing an exhaustive account of my thoughts while watching the extended edition DVD of The Fellowship of the Ring today, I will continue with some highlights.

I know it's been done, and by many a person - but I would love to one day write a paper all about the religious, political, and social themes rampant in this story... though probably more so the religious and spiritual than the others.

I digress.

Disclaimer - I do not say any of the following things to dismiss or suggest that I do not like the films. At any point where I seem overly critical, it is for the sake of humor and hyperbole. A lot of these observations come from the fact that I know have a much *greater* appreciation for the films, having read the books. I don't care that they left some things out, because it was still a 3 hr and 20 minutes (or so) film that was entertaining, engaging, and all the better understood now that I've read the source material!

Exeunt:

Oh, hey Cate Blanchett... it's a real shame I don't really like you all that much - cause you're narrating right now... instead of the unnecessarily proper, story-telling extraordinaire, British gentleman voice that I thought all the narrative in. You are strikingly different from that voice.

Backstory! At the beginning! Well... it's good for the uninitiated, but it sort of removes a lot of the mystery surrounding the beginning of things...

Oh, that's because the beginning of things is extremely rushed compared to the novel. Right. Bilbo's gone, Gandalf's back, HIT THE ROAD!, hey Pippin... and Merry - you're supposed to be at Crickholl-oh, right - we skipped the leisurely and mysterious, but still purposeful feel of Book One, we're running for our lives from an enemy that we weren't supposed to see for a while and have already made it to Bree!

No Tom Bombadil, no fatty Bolger, no friendly farmer, no Barrow-downs, and heck! let's remove the last bit of suspense from the chase to the Ford by establishing before Bree that the Nazgul don't like water! Thanks for that! Oh, and we get to see everything going on with Gandalf.

(Editor's Note: for me this was a mixed bag - seeing things play out chronologically was nice, but so was having it recounted by a angry and wounded old Wizard in Rivendell and at the Council of Elrond as it was in the book.)

Yay - Butterbur... oh, you didn't formally introduce yourself... sad. Who's that mysterious guy - Pippin, what the hell are you doing! Oh crap, he tripped. Oooh, everything's all gray and stuff. Hi Strider, nice to meet- WE HAVE TO RUN AGAIN!

Shoot.

That's a lot of mosquitoes, hello Weathertop, hello FIRE! Drat, Frodo didn't even get to slice the Wrightwraith, he just pansy-d out and got stabbed. And is dying immediately. No toughing it out. Sad, doesn't set him up to be a very strong fella. Hello trolls. Hello... Arwen? Well that's disappointing. I liked Glorfindel. He was a BA. Oh, we're running again.

"Don't worry, if we make it to the river, the power of the Elves will help us."

Facepalm. Way to let the tension build during that chase *until the water shows up* - Oop, there they go.

Wakey wakey, eggs and- Oh, Hey Gandalf!

Oh, Boromir comes across as much less amicable in the film. There's another disappointment.

(Editor's note at this juncture - while for the most part I am going about this like I've never seen the films - I have. This is a crucial point in that because the first time I saw this film, I never once felt a good vibe from Boromir. 'Twas a poor job of developing him as a loyal, albeit torn character - he always felt duplicitous to me, so the breakdown at Rauros came as no surprise to me when I saw it, and I was just confused when he started crying after the Ring got far enough from him that he snapped out of it...)

"I will take it." Chills.

HOLY CRAP BILBO LOOKS TERRIFY-oh, good it's over.

"Mordor, Gandalf - which way?"
"Left"
Very loud laughter.

Marching, Marching, Marching...

Oh look, more extra-literary activity at Isengard. Hi, Christopher Lee!
Avalanches and no wolves... makes Bill's departure (despite having no formal introduction, anyway) less sad. Which was okay with me.

TENTACLES OF THE DEEP!

Moria.

Gollum, there you are, you creepy little bugger!

*Metal voice-over* "Alright, guys, it's the first point in the story where people get the junk killed out of them - let's make it a lot, lot longer than it was in the book."

No complaints, it was awesome.

Hey, thanks for the flashback earlier showing an illustration of the Balrog, it makes his introduction and subsequent chase a lot less dramatic than having his first appearance for the characters be his first appearance for us. But kudos on making him super-imposing and pants-wettingly scary looking.

"You shall not pass."

Neither shall you.

I really like this first scene outside of Moria. Lots of emotion, and the necessarily push to carry on. This was moving.

Lorien... aw, not near enough banter from Gimli. Or blindfolds. Sad. Celeborn is kinda coming across as a jerk. Oh... hey again Cate Blanchett.

Aw, Sam didn't get a box of soil... this doesn't bode well for my hope that the reclamation and restoration of the Shire is in the extended edition of the Return of the King.

Orcses! Nasty Orcses!

Aw, the scene where Boromir loses his composure and resolve. It makes a lot more sense now having read the books and getting that third person omniscient look into his character. Poor, tragic guy. HOLY CRAP LOOK AT HIM KILL SOME HOMIES.

Arrowed. Arrowed. Arrowed. Ow.

Hey Aragor-ouch, that guy just lost his head. And he got decapitated, too.

Farewell, Boromir - I liked that in the book you had several Orc blades at your feet, but you look pretty cool in the boat here, too.



Okay, so perhaps there was more in there than my initial estimates when I started typing. I got carried away. But I left some stuff out, I promise.