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Legolas · 10-24-2005, 07:45 PM

For popular consumption, it fits the movie.

For Tolkien's purpose, and those who think through the motives of the characters, it leaves the story hanging. Why would Gandalf choose four hobbits to compose almost half of the group carrying the Ring to Mount Doom? It is given that he knows about hobbit-kind in general - their strong resolve and character - but that alone is not reason enough to risk the journey on four weak, untrained boys.

They were chosen for the mission as part of their training. Gandalf knew the Shire too would eventually face evil forces, and at the time, it would have been impossible for it to defend itself. With Merry, Sam, and Pippin going along on this treacherous adventure, the Shire gained the leadership it needed. The movie ignores this purpose, leaving the viewers with the false notion that the world simply returned to the way it was unmarred.

The 'time problem' with the ending going on too long could've been solved easily by removing the unnecessary Jackson-conceived scenes (such as Aragorn going over the cliff, Elrond and Arwen debating). This would've allowed the story to remain in sync with the book's pacing.

The consequence of those scenes was the Two Towers movie not finishing the plot of the Two Towers book - neither the Rohan path nor the Frodo/Sam path reached its conclusion. This meant both the encounter with Shelob (Frodo/Sam's climax of TTT) and Orthanc's end (the conclusion of the Rohan path) had to be moved to Return of the King (or in Saruman's case, deleted).

So in terms of books:

The Fellowship of the Ring movie covered The Fellowship of the Ring and the beginning of The Two Towers.

The Two Towers movie covered the midsection of The Two Towers.

The Return of the King movie covered the last part of The Two Towers, and the first half and last chapter of The Return of the King.

I see this as unjustifiable. The Two Towers covered the least amount of time and the least amount of vital plot (due to the slow-moving Frodo/Sam chapters) of the three volumes, yet its movie was unable to fit it all in, even after being given a head start with The Fellowship of the Ring movie covering Boromir's death.

10-24-2005, 07:45 PM	#3
Legolas A Northern Soul Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Valinor Posts: 1,847	For popular consumption, it fits the movie. For Tolkien's purpose, and those who think through the motives of the characters, it leaves the story hanging. Why would Gandalf choose four hobbits to compose almost half of the group carrying the Ring to Mount Doom? It is given that he knows about hobbit-kind in general - their strong resolve and character - but that alone is not reason enough to risk the journey on four weak, untrained boys. They were chosen for the mission as part of their training. Gandalf knew the Shire too would eventually face evil forces, and at the time, it would have been impossible for it to defend itself. With Merry, Sam, and Pippin going along on this treacherous adventure, the Shire gained the leadership it needed. The movie ignores this purpose, leaving the viewers with the false notion that the world simply returned to the way it was unmarred. The 'time problem' with the ending going on too long could've been solved easily by removing the unnecessary Jackson-conceived scenes (such as Aragorn going over the cliff, Elrond and Arwen debating). This would've allowed the story to remain in sync with the book's pacing. The consequence of those scenes was the Two Towers movie not finishing the plot of the Two Towers book - neither the Rohan path nor the Frodo/Sam path reached its conclusion. This meant both the encounter with Shelob (Frodo/Sam's climax of TTT) and Orthanc's end (the conclusion of the Rohan path) had to be moved to Return of the King (or in Saruman's case, deleted). So in terms of books: The Fellowship of the Ring movie covered The Fellowship of the Ring and the beginning of The Two Towers. The Two Towers movie covered the midsection of The Two Towers. The Return of the King movie covered the last part of The Two Towers, and the first half and last chapter of The Return of the King. I see this as unjustifiable. The Two Towers covered the least amount of time and the least amount of vital plot (due to the slow-moving Frodo/Sam chapters) of the three volumes, yet its movie was unable to fit it all in, even after being given a head start with The Fellowship of the Ring movie covering Boromir's death. __________________ ...take counsel with thyself, and remember who and what thou art. Last edited by Legolas; 10-24-2005 at 08:03 PM.