Oh yeah, I remember those now you mention it ....... - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

davem · 06-17-2006, 11:58 PM

Well, its a good few years since the movies were out. We've had the DVD's, the tie-ins, the conventions, but...

Will the movies stay around in the public consciousness, or was it all a brief candle that has all but guttered out, & which will now be gradually forgotten?

I remember reading that the movies were masterpieces which would be forever popular, even that one day the books would be forgotten & it would be Jackson's LotR which would be the one that survived & become 'Lord of the Rings'.

My problem with the movies was that the depth & background of the world Tolkien created was lost, the story was simplified to the point of triviality & the motivations of the characters was altered to the point of silliness in some cases. Along with PJ's tendency to go over the top with the violence & the 'comedy' (How we laughed at Gimli's flatulence & his tendency to fall off horses - as well as the 'short' jokes, the 'short' jokes, the odd 'short' jokes, & PJ's tendency, when all else failed, to resort to 'short' jokes.)

But enough of that. Will the movies live on as anything more than a cult thing for a while & then be forgotten? Nothing seems to be able to stop the rise of the books - we have more serious studies of Tolkien's works out now than at any point in the past, & more seem to be coming out all the time. Tolkien is becoming increasingly seen as a major literary figure, worthy of serious study - thanks in the main to CT's work on his father's unpublished writings. I know CT has been attacked for not selling the movie rights of The Sil - some of which attacks have been incredibly offensive (Google Christopher Tolkien & look at no 3), but, apart from giving us a few forgettable action movies & making a lot of money for the studios, would there be any point in making Sil movies?

In short, will the movies become a permanent part of 'Tolkieniana' or was the whole 'Ringers' thing a flash in the pan? Will it be the movies that are forgotten while the books go from strength to strength?

06-17-2006, 11:58 PM	#1
davem Illustrious Ulair Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: In the home of lost causes, and forsaken beliefs, and unpopular names,and impossible loyalties Posts: 4,240	Oh yeah, I remember those now you mention it ....... Well, its a good few years since the movies were out. We've had the DVD's, the tie-ins, the conventions, but... Will the movies stay around in the public consciousness, or was it all a brief candle that has all but guttered out, & which will now be gradually forgotten? I remember reading that the movies were masterpieces which would be forever popular, even that one day the books would be forgotten & it would be Jackson's LotR which would be the one that survived & become 'Lord of the Rings'. My problem with the movies was that the depth & background of the world Tolkien created was lost, the story was simplified to the point of triviality & the motivations of the characters was altered to the point of silliness in some cases. Along with PJ's tendency to go over the top with the violence & the 'comedy' (How we laughed at Gimli's flatulence & his tendency to fall off horses - as well as the 'short' jokes, the 'short' jokes, the odd 'short' jokes, & PJ's tendency, when all else failed, to resort to 'short' jokes.) But enough of that. Will the movies live on as anything more than a cult thing for a while & then be forgotten? Nothing seems to be able to stop the rise of the books - we have more serious studies of Tolkien's works out now than at any point in the past, & more seem to be coming out all the time. Tolkien is becoming increasingly seen as a major literary figure, worthy of serious study - thanks in the main to CT's work on his father's unpublished writings. I know CT has been attacked for not selling the movie rights of The Sil - some of which attacks have been incredibly offensive (Google Christopher Tolkien & look at no 3), but, apart from giving us a few forgettable action movies & making a lot of money for the studios, would there be any point in making Sil movies? In short, will the movies become a permanent part of 'Tolkieniana' or was the whole 'Ringers' thing a flash in the pan? Will it be the movies that are forgotten while the books go from strength to strength? __________________ “Everything was an object. If you killed a dwarf you could use it as a weapon – it was no different to other large heavy objects."