The Lord of the Rings trilogy

[Earth 2 Chris]

As I said in the Hobbit thread, I somehow managed to miss the LOTR trilogy, both in theaters and then on DVD. Well, I did see "The Fellowship of the Ring" when it came to DVD, but due to my son being born and small when these were released, and the many super hero movies taking up my limited theater time, I missed out. So I decided to remedy that when I found the DVDs for $1.96 the day after Black Friday.

Me and my 11-year old watched them and really got into them. It was fun to take 3 hours out of the last several weekends and experience them together. Overall I think I liked the 2nd film better. "The Return of the King" had way too many epilogues. I should say that I have never read the book, so I'm only going by the movie here. I was ready for the movie to end several times, and felt it really should have when Aragon told the Hobbits that they should bow before no man.

Some things did bother me though. First off, why didn't Gandalf just fly one of the eagles over Mount Doom and just drop the frickin' ring in, in the first place?

Why did Aragon dispatch the undead army before defeating Sauron?

Why was Frodo still a pansy at the final movie's end? To me, Sam was clearly the hero of the piece. Actually Merry and Pippen had more growth than Frodo, who remained a whiner throughout. I kept waiting for that moment when he really just went for it and did the right thing, but everyone kept doing it for him. Short of saying he'd take the ring, that's about as brave as he got.

Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed the movies, but I have to say Frodo was probably my least favorite major character. I was kind of hoping Sam would just push him and the ring in the lava and get it over with.

Just my take as an outsider viewing these for essentially the first time. I'm anxious to see the Hobbit now.

Chris

[TomStrong]

Frodos journey carrying the ring wounded him supernaturally, his hurts from knowingly carrying an inherently evil thing could not be fully healed in Middle Earth. The other Hobbits were all certainly heroes and grew personally in the quest but Frodos sacrifice was a supreme gift for all the free peoples of Middle Earth. But I have to agree with you that the movie makes him come across as a bit whiny. In the end Frodo is unable to overcome the lust of the ring because its physical and supernatural power are too great for a mortal being to resist, much as we couldn't overcome a demonic force without God's intervention. I think the rings power corrupts both from within and without. Mans weakness for power and domination is his own downfall coupled with the external demonic evil of the will of Sauron make it a supremely powerful and addicting weapon. The representation of such an evil by a ring is a brilliant idea. We have a hard time telling if Frodos weakness for the ring makes him yield to its temptation or is it the malevolent will of the ring? Sorry if I rambled.

[k2]

i think it is stated somewhere in one of the books the eagles don't fly near mordor for some reason and also they are kinda selfish and feel like the fight has nothing to do with them

i would love to hear from some tolkien experts on this

[fallensaviour]

First off, why didn't Gandalf just fly one of the eagles over Mount Doom and just drop the frickin' ring in, in the first place?

Why did Aragon dispatch the undead army before defeating Sauron?

Why was Frodo still a pansy at the final movie's end? To me, Sam was clearly the hero of the piece.

1.)Gandolf=Go back to the first film he even states why he cannot take the ring.He knew the dark power it carried would be too much for him to handle he is man after all.If he took in hopes of doing good he would become corrupted by the ring.

2.)Aragorn=The army of the dead fulfilled their promise they had made to his forefathers and thusly they were honourable men and he let them be free from their curse.He freed them because he is an honourable man.

3.)Frodo=He succumbed to the power of the ring in the end.The real Pansy of the fellowship was in fact Boromir who fell to the ring in what a half an hour....LOL
He was man easily corrupted by the ring.
Thats it in simplest of explanations.

[TomStrong]

The Eagles are rather proud and rarely left their eyries in the Misty Mountains. By the time they retrieve Frodo most of the forces of Mordor are defeated or witless after the destruction of the ring and thus Sauron that its a little safer for them to fly in. I think had they done so before this the would most assuredly been killed. In the Hobbit the Eagles won't bear the dwarves all the way to the Lonely Mountain either.

[TomStrong]

I would just like to say Earth2Chris rocks for starting a Lotr thread!

[ScottA]

I confess I haven't seen any of the LOTR films.

[toys2cool]

The best trilogy ever for me....I'm a diehard freak

The 2nd one is definitely my fave , I honestly don't get into all that eagle drop the ring nonsense ..If you think that way it'll kill it for you...I think the films are perfect as they are, the only part that bothered me was Aragorn was leading on Eowyn she got dissed big time , i don't blame him cause Arwen is hotter but I still felt bad for her

[stevenlore]

Howitshouldhaveended felt the same way about the eagles.

[torgospizza]

To me, Sam was clearly the hero of the piece.

In one of his letters, Tolkien said Sam was the "chief hero" of the trilogy. It wasn't any blatant heroics that saved the world, but common decency and character inherent in rural people.

...the only part that bothered me was Aragorn was leading on Eowyn she got dissed big time , i don't blame him cause Arwen is hotter but I still felt bad for her

But she married Faramir, who was a phenomenal guy. He had a lot of the strengths of his father and brother without their character flaws, and became Steward of Gondor in his own right, so he had a decent gig. After the War of the Ring, Eowyn genuinely fell for him, so it worked out great and bound Rohan and Gondor together stronger then ever before.

[Earth 2 Chris]

1.)Gandolf=Go back to the first film he even states why he cannot take the ring.He knew the dark power it carried would be too much for him to handle he is man after all.If he took in hopes of doing good he would become corrupted by the ring.

Yes, I remembered that. I should have said Gandalf took Frodo AND the ring on an eagle ride and threw it in the volcano.

Apparently more should have been made of the eagles. As it stands in the films they are a plot device to show up as needed.

I understand Frodo sacrificed a lot to carry the ring...but his presentation in the film was still less than satisfying to me. And yes, Boromir was apparently a bit like his weak father in giving in so quickly to the ring.

Again, I really liked the films. They are without a doubt the best fantasy films I have ever witnessed. But I was surprised about how much I didn't care for Frodo at the end. I really cared for every other major character.

Chris

[Sideshow Spock]

Again, I really liked the films. They are without a doubt the best fantasy films I have ever witnessed. But I was surprised about how much I didn't care for Frodo at the end. I really cared for every other major character.

I'm with you in that I think Wood was the weakest link among the Hobbit actors, and maybe that's what you're feeling at the end. Sean Astin was terrific, as were Monaghan and Boyd. Wood's performance didn't pack the personality or punch of any of those three, IMO.

[johnmiic]

Why did Aragon dispatch the undead army before defeating Sauron?

Why was Frodo still a pansy at the final movie's end? To me, Sam was clearly the hero of the piece. Actually Merry and Pippen had more growth than Frodo, who remained a whiner throughout. I kept waiting for that moment when he really just went for it and did the right thing, but everyone kept doing it for him. Short of saying he'd take the ring, that's about as brave as he got.

I felt Aragorn could have used the dead in the final battle at Mordor's gates. They seemed to be the one weapon Sauron had no defense against but if they had fought till the end, decimating the Mordor army, where's the suspense?

In the book when the Ring Wraiths discover Frodo & Co. at the abandoned watchtower, Frodo decides to fight the wraiths rather than let them take the ring and falls injuring himself. Contrast that with the film where he puts it on thinking they won't see him but discovers they see him and he them, even more clearly. I do agree tho that Frodo was to carry the ring stealthily to it's destruction and it took a heavy toll on him. He was the only one who could resist the power of the ring long enough to get it done.

Did you watch the extended cuts? There's a quite lot of talk on the bonus discs about the power of the ring. It is given a voice in the films but one of the scholars examines the implications of whether it's really the person's lust for power or the actual power of the ring that turns people. Lots'a good stuff on the bonus materials.

[Earth 2 Chris]

In the book when the Ring Wraiths discover Frodo & Co. at the abandoned watchtower, Frodo decides to fight the wraiths rather than let them take the ring and falls injuring himself. Contrast that with the film where he puts it on thinking they won't see him but discovers they see him and he them, even more clearly. I do agree tho that Frodo was to carry the ring stealthily to it's destruction and it took a heavy toll on him. He was the only one who could resist the power of the ring long enough to get it done.

See that would have changed my whole perception of the character. His bravest inclinations were only to flee, beyond taking the ring on it's journey.

Did you watch the extended cuts? There's a quite lot of talk on the bonus discs about the power of the ring. It is given a voice in the films but one of the scholars examines the implications of whether it's really the person's lust for power or the actual power of the ring that turns people. Lots'a good stuff on the bonus materials.

No, I just have the normal cut DVDs. I think I'm good with that. I thought the last film was padded enough as it is!

Chris

[Figuremod73]

Just adding my 2 cents:

Some things did bother me though. First off, why didn't Gandalf just fly one of the eagles over Mount Doom and just drop the frickin' ring in, in the first place

The Eagles knew that to enter Mordor was certain death. Not only did Sauron have unseen power ( even in his weakened state), The wraiths were ready and waiting at his command.

Why was Frodo still a pansy at the final movie's end? To me, Sam was clearly the hero of the piece. Actually Merry and Pippen had more growth than Frodo, who remained a whiner throughout. I kept waiting for that moment when he really just went for it and did the right thing, but everyone kept doing it for him. Short of saying he'd take the ring, that's about as brave as he got.

Frodo became a vessal and not only lost his innocence, but the remainder of his life. He knew he would slowly die if he stayed in Middle-earth.