Sequence Analysis

[HCIsland]

I think sometimes we lose sight of how complicated this story is and what a job Jackson did getting it’s elements on the screen in a comprehensible fashion. Not only are there a wide variety of characters and locations to link together, the story has to be linked into the past. Jackson has to connect the events of the past with the characters and events of this story. He does this so cleanly that it appears simple, but it is not.<P>Below is a description of one of my favourite sequences in the film and how Jackson uses is to force us to see the connections between Isildur and Aragorn. What’s wonderful about this is that he does it without any exposition, but instead through snippets of dialogue and the environment the characters walk in itself. He even has time for a little character development. This is all done is a space of a little over two minutes. It seems so simple and subtle that the sequence just flies by.<P>Gandalf and Elrond are talking in Rivendell before the council. Elrond has just finished recounting his tale with Isildur in the battle of the Last Alliance.<P>Gandalf: There is one who could unit them, one who could reclaim the throne of Gondor.<BR>Elrond: He turned from the path a long time ago. He has chosen exile.<P>Cut to a close-up of Aragorn making an obvious implication he was the one they were talking about, connection one.<P>Boromir enters and the camera pans with him as he studies a fresco of Isildur holding up the broken Narsil against Sauron (this is virtually his introduction, though we did have a previous shot of him riding into Rivendell several minutes earlier). Jackson then cuts to a Boromir close-up and then to a close-up of the painting, focusing on Narsil and paning up to Sauron’s visually distinctive helmet. There is no doubt that this is the same scene as in the prologue. This is now the fourth time we have seen this event portrayed: the prologue, the scroll of Isildur, Elrond’s recounting and now the fresco. With the close-ups on the painting, one would have had to be asleep not to connect the fresco to the prologue. We now have a very solid connection between the present and the past.<P>Five seconds later we get a zoom in close-up of the actual Shards of Narsil when Boromir turns around to examine the statue and pedestal behind him. Again, the audience can’t help but connect the sword from the prologue to the sword that Boromir is now picking up.<P>Boromir: (his first line in the movie) The Shards of Narsil, the blade that cut the Ring from Sauron’s hand.<P>Boromir cuts his finger.<P>Boromir: (surprised) It’s still sharp.<P>That is, this weapon is still capable of drawing blood. I would call this symbolism but it’s too literally true. PJ is really drawing out this scene as we need to remember it two movies later.<P>Boromir turns and makes eye contact with Aragorn. Cut to close-up of Aragorn watching Boromir which is virtually the same shot as the one that was cut to after Elrond. Again connections are being made, Aragorn and the sword as well Aragorn and Boromir, who form one of the most important relationships in this film.<P>Boromir: But no more than a broken arrow.<P>He goes to place the sword back on the pedestal but it falls off and clatters to the floor. Cut to shot of Boromir’s back as he leaves. He pauses and almost turns like he is going to pick up the sword but then he walks away. This is a wonderful bit of symbolism giving the audience and glimpse at the conflict in this character, a conflict between the past and his future, a conflict between respecting the lineage that the sword represents and his own desires to blaze his own path.<P>Aragorn then walks over and reverently places the sword back in its place. Again we have symbolism surrounding the sword. Boromir has abandoned the past but Aragorn, at the very least, respects and honors it. It is interesting how in the theatrical version there are no lines between Boromir and Aragorn here. They are already creating tension between these two characters and separating them. Even in the special edition their conversation is terse and awkward and Jackson never holds puts them together in a single shot.<P>Arwen enters from behind Aragorn and moves to stand right in front of the Fresco of Isildur and Sauron again drawing the audiences attention to the history behind these characters (very literally in this case).<P>Arwen: Why do you fear the past? You are Isildur’s heir, not Isildur himself. You are not bound to his fate.<P>It has now been just over a minute and a half since the cut from Elrond to Aragorn. In that brief time we’ve gone from our first hint of Aragorn’s lineage, to Aragorn reverently holding the sword that we saw in the prologue and now it being stated right out that he is Isildur’s heir. A first time viewer not familiar with the books would likely have trouble remembering the name of Isildur in a film with a dizzying amount of detail, but Jackson is doing everything he can to help this person out. The name has actually been spoken aloud on a number of occasions, right up there in count with the names of the main characters, and the last time it was spoken was Elrond’s very dramatic yelling of it at the Cracks of Doom only a few minutes earlier in the film. And just in case you haven’t been paying attention, when Arwen speaks this line she is behind Aragorn and behind the both of them is that fresco of Isildur. Aragorn, Arwen and the fresco are all facing the camera. Again, you would have to be asleep not to realize that Aragorn is the descendent of the guy in the painting and the guy we saw at the beginning of the film, even if you’ve forgotten his name again. <P>This means that when Legolas announces to Boromir that Aragorn is heir to the throne of Gondor in council, that it is information that we already know (or at the very least it is no longer surprising) which means that PJ can focus the scene (and the audience) on the reactions of Boromir and Frodo.<P>That’s movie making.<P>H.C.