Can the Film ever improve on the book? - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Marileangorifurnimaluim · 02-27-2002, 03:09 AM

I agree, Sean Bean's ironic "they have a cave troll" was a definate improvement that could only have been pulled off in a movie. Hard to say "improvement." I'd say I just enjoyed it more.Likewise Bilbo's birthday speech. The scene with the moth also was outstanding. I liked the scene with Gandalf & Saruman in Saruman's study. Visually rich. A wizard battle real-time was a good idea, but needed much more imagination (like the moth scene) rather than ripping off Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.I loved seeing the Last Alliance, especially watching Isildur turn away from the cracks of doom. More visually effective than telling of the history of the ring - in a movie. But in the book, The Shadow of the Past is my personal favorite. That would have been a pretty dull scene if they did it verbatum, the power was in learning Frodo predicament and his response to it.Many will disagree, but the scene in Elrond's study was excellent "our list of allies grows thin." Elrond's sarcasm could kill flies in midair.But - The pacing was not as good as the books. The Watcher in the Water scene was one of the worst offenders.In the books it foreshadowed, hinted at trouble beyond the doors of Moria. By not overdoing it, the scene built tension which wasn't released until the cave troll & the scene with the Balrog. Amping up the Watcher was a mistake, *poof* you lost the tension and the trek through Moria was a dull plod, not tense and scary. This may be sort of an adult observation, but it's like sex. Once there's release, you have to build it back up again. But if there's a tease, and then you back off, it does the opposite, the finale is that much more intense. (The BW may assign me to a blue forum for this analogy, but I felt it was necessary, to explain what I meant by dramatic tension. I did make my point, didn't I?)I call this kind of pacing the "Sinbad Syndrome." You know the old Sinbad movies? By the time you hit the third monster...

02-27-2002, 03:09 AM	#5
Marileangorifurnimaluim Eerie Forest Spectre Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Buried in scrolls of fanfiction Posts: 798	I agree, Sean Bean's ironic "they have a cave troll" was a definate improvement that could only have been pulled off in a movie. Hard to say "improvement." I'd say I just enjoyed it more.<P>Likewise Bilbo's birthday speech. <P>The scene with the moth also was outstanding. <P>I liked the scene with Gandalf & Saruman in Saruman's study. Visually rich. <P>A wizard battle real-time was a good idea, but needed much more imagination (like the moth scene) rather than ripping off Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.<P>I loved seeing the Last Alliance, especially watching Isildur turn away from the cracks of doom. More visually effective than telling of the history of the ring - in a movie. But in the book, The Shadow of the Past is my personal favorite. That would have been a pretty dull scene if they did it verbatum, the power was in learning Frodo predicament and his response to it.<P>Many will disagree, but the scene in Elrond's study was excellent "our list of allies grows <I>thin</I>." Elrond's sarcasm could kill flies in midair.<P>But - The pacing was not as good as the books. The Watcher in the Water scene was one of the worst offenders.<P>In the books it foreshadowed, hinted at trouble beyond the doors of Moria. By not overdoing it, the scene built tension which wasn't released until the cave troll & the scene with the Balrog. <P>Amping up the Watcher was a mistake, poof you lost the tension and the trek through Moria was a dull plod, not tense and scary. <P>This may be sort of an adult observation, but it's like sex. Once there's release, you have to build it back up again. But if there's a tease, and then you back off, it does the opposite, the finale is that much more intense. (The BW may assign me to a blue forum for this analogy, but I felt it was necessary, to explain what I meant by dramatic tension. I did make my point, didn't I?)<P>I call this kind of pacing the "Sinbad Syndrome." You know the old Sinbad movies? By the time you hit the third monster... __________________ Deserves death! I daresay he does... And some die that deserve life. Can you give it to them?