After slogging through this whole thread to get a feel for the opinions of folks on this forum, I was embarrassed to see all the bashing that was done to this film before anyone had even seen it.
THANK YOU!!! Finally someone else who recognizes the complete lack of objectivity that has been so inherent in many purists arguements. That's not even the worst of it, Longshanks. There are some other posts here with people saying they literally "cried in agony" during the
trailer. Or other folks saying that PJ has butchered Tolkiens book
months before having seen his movie. Yes, I agree. Embarrassing.
I have no problem with people not liking the movie. But I think that many, many folks from the "purist" camp were/are intent on bashing PJ's movies before even seeing them. And before anyone starts making noise, notice that I said "many", not all. You know who I'm talking about. In fact, most of those I'm talking about don't post here much any longer.
This film was as close to a masterpiece as you can come, visually stunning, entertaining and it left me longing for the next installment.
I agree. Regardless of what one thinks regarding it's trueness to the book, judged on it's own it
is a cinematic masterpiece, in my opinion easily matching the mythic sweep of the original Star
Wars (more often exceeding it). I can't think of any other "escapist" movie that comes close.
I would think true fans of
Tolkien, after having seen the movie, would thank Jackson on bended knees for doing such a good job. I've loved these
books for 30 years and this adaption is as true as I think is humanly possible, being translated from one medium to another.
I completely agree. In fact, I highly appreciate that you've posted, due to your vantage point of having read the book for 30 years. From that perspective it goes without saying that no adaptation can ever be
the LotR. It's only what it claims to be, an adaptation. Having said this, for those who have waited so long it is easier to look at the full half of the cup rather then empty half. In other words, Tolkiens tale exists regardless. At the very least, PJ can only keep it where it is. There is no way he can lower it's quality or legacy. As such, from that point of view, one sees how much he's
added. For those who have waited so long this
is a dream come true. To see
Middle-earth come alive, just visually, is on it's own incredible. To actually see carefully cast actors act out the charachters is leagues above anything we've previously seen. Then, to see the core
events of the tale play out in-front of us, with all the emotional weight they deserve, is heaven. The fact that the movie takes itself seriously is, in my opinion, what really separates it from other fantasy-film efforts. The actors have no second-thoughts about being dressed up as
hobbits,
elves,
dwarves,
wizards... They take thier roles seriously and act them poignantly.
I guess my point is that, for some (me included), it would have been enough to just capture Middle-earth visually. The fact that the movie is filled with actual feeling, the fact that this feeling is real, and perhaps most importantly the fact that it corellates with many of the same emotions Tolkien's book evoked, is more then I could have ever dreamed for.
It's important to keep this in persepective: This is an adaptation of a 50 year old book, a book that has stood (and will no doubt stand) the test of time. This book isn't some one-trick phenomenon. It has lasting appeal. In the history of the telling of this tale, PJ's movie is just one attempt, hopefully the first of many to come (though perhaps we won't live to see them all
). I was watching the DVD yesterday, and Brian Sibely said something that I've heard others say (and have said it myself). It summarizes my feelings on PJ's movie/s:
"J.R.R Tolkien was very aware that he had created a world that existed within his books. But he also said that it was a world that could be enhanced by the people, with paint, with music, with drama. And that is what I think Peter Jackson has done. Tolkien created a myth, a modern myth. And what has happened is that by turning it into a film, a film-maker has given it a new dimension, has taken that myth one stage further. Which is how myths are born, how they are carried through generation after generation. So in a way I see Peter Jackson as part of the mythic process that was begun by Tolkien when he first wrote the first line of the book."