Do you think there should have been a contrivance to pre-empt the Eagles question?

[Nerwen]

Originally Posted by KamexKoopa

So virtually everyone ever who has seen the films without reading the books enjoys pointing out the "plot hole" that they could have used the Eagles all along, and should have just flown to Mordor.

The movies don't include any detailed information about who or what the Eagles are, so they could almost appear to be Gandalf's pets or something. I think I read somewhere that Peej didn't bother to include an explanation as to why they didn't fly, as it was obvious. But apparently, not obvious enough!

Nothing is obvious enough for some people. Really, the fact that a movie doesn't spell out something explicitly does not automatically make it a "plot-hole". It's a "plot-hole" if it can't be explained without dazzling mental gymnastics on the part of the audience.

Maybe there could have been a quick shot of one of the watcher towers shooting down anything that flies past, or perhaps an Orc shooting down a regular bird and saying to its friend "better safe than sorry!"

Once the Ring was destroyed, perhaps then the relevant tower could burst, and then we could see the Eagles swoop in?

Well, that would have been hilariously corny, I'll grant you that.

Maybe Boromir should have said, "One does not simply walk or fly into Mordor"?