[The Saucepan Man]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR> The changes Jackson made to the story from book to film, resulted in the film being unworthy of the book Tolkien wrote. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>Hmm, I see what you're getting at. It probably is, in the sense that Tolkien gave us one of the all time greats of literature while, at the same time, telling a darn good story that is accessible to more than just your average literary scholar. The films are just fantasy/action films commercially made for the mass film-going public (among which I include myself).<P>But this is just was I was trying to get at. I agree with almost everything that Gryphon Hall says. There is scope in the books to make an absolutely wondrous film. But that is an ideal. In reality, there had to be a compromise - either on the storyline/emphasis (more action/less dialogue etc) or on the visualisation. And that is what "sell out" means - it means compromising values for the commercial realities. Like "alternative" comedians who go mainstream and end up doing adverts for banks or West End shows with Andrew Lloyd-Webber, because that puts more bread on the table than "alternative" comedy. They are criticised, but I can understand why they do it.<P>So, no, the films most certainly do not do the books that JRRT wrote full justice. But it is difficult to imagine how, in the real world, any film ever could. (I take Gryph's point about "anime", although I actually think that this would be far better suited to the Silmarillion.)<P>In my view, the films are great fantasy/action films, marginally blighted by a few holes in the plot and some rather unfortunate editing errors. That is all they are. Nothing more. And that for me is not a problem. If people who watch the film and enjoy it choose not to read the books, then than that is their loss. If they do read the books and love them, then so much the better.<P>That is my view, and I can understand why others feel diiferent. It is not a question of shame. I am unabashedly unashamed of enjoying the films. We are all different. But, what we do have in common is our love for the books, the cultural value of which clearly and considerably outeweighs that of the films. <p>[ January 21, 2003: Message edited by: The Saucepan Man ]