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butterflySome background: I've decided to write a play by play reaction piece to the films (God help me). Just to let you know how insane I am, I'll give you some figures. Not quite eight minutes are in the prologue. It took me nearly two hours to write this while watching (obviously, a lot of pausing was going on). It covers five and a half pages longhand.
So, here it is, my reaction to the prologue. And it's here on my website.
Prologue
Just hearing the opening music puts a smile on my face. More any other film, this movie is an Event - nine or ten hours of bliss spread out over three films.
The Lord of the Rings has eclipsed every other film that I've seen. If each part is taken separately, then it has competition, but when considered one film, there is nothing that I have seen that can come close.
The first words that we hear are Elvish, immediately pulling us into a world that is more magical and mysterious than our own. In fact, the entire lead up to the title card is simply wonderful. We learn so much about the energy of the film before we even see the name. Then, as the title does come up, we get our first taste of the Ring theme - the Ring really is the first primary character that we meet.
And so begins our history lesson. Galadriel's narration is beautiful, informative, and fitting. She's the only person gifted with a ring of power who still carries it. (The red ring that we see one of the elf lords wearing can also be seen on Gandalf at the Grey Havens - Narya lives.) And I love Galadriel's very physical reaction to wearing the ring, which shows their power.
Another good thing about the prologue is that it sets up the major races that the hobbits will run into in the course of the film. We get to learn a little bit about them before we 'meet' them. And it's interesting that each elf ring is distinct, but that the dwarf rings all look alike, as do the men's. And I love the slow fade to black on the human kings, implying their fall into darkness. And here, again, it's fitting that Galadriel voice the narration, as I can't imagine Frodo or Gandalf putting that edge into "who, above all else, desire power".
Next we get our first map shot. I just adore the way that they use the maps in this movie - it really adds that sense of reality to it. Contributes to the illusion that Middle-Earth is/was a real place. Via the map, we move to Mordor to meet Sauron and the Ring in Mount Doom - the same place that we'll later see Frodo (Isildur never stood at the edge of the chasm). Interestingly enough, the make of his armour mirrors the very walls of the mountain around him.
Here is where they set up the sheer, unstoppable power of the Ring. It contains Sauron's malice, cruelty, and will to dominate. That is the burden tht Frodo walks under for months, a burden that grows with every step taken toward where the Ring was made. The Ring itself is quite beautiful, with gorgeous lines of words in flame. We also see that on Sauron, the Ring's words remain and Sauron doesn't disappear. Disappearing while wearing the Ring means that you aren't controlling it. If you disappear, then you aren't claiming the Ring, the Ring is claiming you.
The fire spreads, with lovely almost fades between the map and people running in terror from flaming buildings (here would be where I worry about my ability to find beauty in horror).
I love the odd tint on the battlescenes - they make it feel old, as if it were shot in a twisted sepia. Our first close-up Orc shot is quite convincing - looking at him, I can find it easy to believe that this is a broken, once a upon a time elf, because the reversal is so complete. Right away, we see how kick-ass the elves are at fighting when we see the first row shoot, duck, and the second row shoot without any hesitation. The scope of this first battle remains amazing. The sheer scale shows us right here and now that Peter Jackson and Co. are unafraid to take risks and pull out all the stops.
An arrow wizzes past Elrond's face and while he blinks a bit from the rush of air, he doesn't wince at all from the fast deadly thing that just went by his face. Oh, yeah, elves are bad ass.
Then Elendil kicks it and his son, Isildur, kinda takes over. (Would this be the battle the mountain men failed to show at? Because if so, I can see why Isildur was miffed at them, since his dad died and all.) Isildur, and I feel that I should mention this right away, has pretty eyes. Very golden and such. And he has the same type of hair that we later see on Aragorn.
The shot of Sauron's (almost) destruction is just damn cool. I love that his bits keep smoking.
Then we get our first look at Ring infatuation. Isildur's face here reminds me of Boromir at the Council of Elrond. Just that look of wonder. And they really do set up everything that we need to know about the Ring's power. We get our first look at how the Ring corrupts people - Isildur not only couldn't destroy it, but using it has become his first resort. He doesn't even try to fight, just slips on the Ring.
And we get our introduction to the vanishing effect of the Ring. At this point in time, we haven't been introduced to the tearing world of the Ring, but knowing it as we do now, it's easy to see how Isildur is led around by what the Ring desires and why he ends up in the water for the Ring to betray him (a neat reversal of this happens when the Ring betrays Frodo by putting itself on him in the Prancing Pony).
Next, Galadriel lets us know that two and a half thousand years pass between the Ring's disappearance and when it is found. The place where the Ring is lying does appear to be the same place we later see Smeagol and Deagol fishing in, but as a night shot. The shot of Deagol's hand is seen later, in context, as is, I believe, the shot of Gollum's hand clutching the Ring.
Then we get that absolutely amazing shot of Gollum in the cave. It's so gorgeous, the way the strands of his hair catch the light. Very much like a painting - that same rich feeling. We also get the handy information about another five hundred years flipping by.
Galadriel then sets up the motion of the piece by letting us know that things are about to start happening. We get another mention of the Ring as its own entity as it abandons Gollum (as it later tried to abandon Frodo in the Misty Mountains(?) with Boromir).
Finally, we're introduced to the race of Hobbits, via Bilbo finding the Ring and secreting it away in his pocket. We also get introduced to hobbit hair, which I adore above any other hair, ever. Love it. So much. Everyone should have hobbit hair - this is how much I love it.
Anyway, we learn an important thing here - the Ring did not intend for Bilbo to pick it up, which means that the Ring can be thwarted. Oh, and Bilbo's weskit (that's what the vests are called, yes?) is red/reddish brown. I'm sure that that means something. Oh, and from this angle, he looks a bit like Mel Brooks. Not sure if that means anything.
The her last bit of narration tells us that hobbits will be central figures in whatever tale is about to unfold.
Yay. Sounds like fun.
And now, I am so many kinds of tired. And that was just from seven-eight minutes! Dense film. Tomorrow, I'm going to try to do Concerning Hobbits.
So, here it is, my reaction to the prologue. And it's here on my website.
Prologue
Just hearing the opening music puts a smile on my face. More any other film, this movie is an Event - nine or ten hours of bliss spread out over three films.
The Lord of the Rings has eclipsed every other film that I've seen. If each part is taken separately, then it has competition, but when considered one film, there is nothing that I have seen that can come close.
The first words that we hear are Elvish, immediately pulling us into a world that is more magical and mysterious than our own. In fact, the entire lead up to the title card is simply wonderful. We learn so much about the energy of the film before we even see the name. Then, as the title does come up, we get our first taste of the Ring theme - the Ring really is the first primary character that we meet.
And so begins our history lesson. Galadriel's narration is beautiful, informative, and fitting. She's the only person gifted with a ring of power who still carries it. (The red ring that we see one of the elf lords wearing can also be seen on Gandalf at the Grey Havens - Narya lives.) And I love Galadriel's very physical reaction to wearing the ring, which shows their power.
Another good thing about the prologue is that it sets up the major races that the hobbits will run into in the course of the film. We get to learn a little bit about them before we 'meet' them. And it's interesting that each elf ring is distinct, but that the dwarf rings all look alike, as do the men's. And I love the slow fade to black on the human kings, implying their fall into darkness. And here, again, it's fitting that Galadriel voice the narration, as I can't imagine Frodo or Gandalf putting that edge into "who, above all else, desire power".
Next we get our first map shot. I just adore the way that they use the maps in this movie - it really adds that sense of reality to it. Contributes to the illusion that Middle-Earth is/was a real place. Via the map, we move to Mordor to meet Sauron and the Ring in Mount Doom - the same place that we'll later see Frodo (Isildur never stood at the edge of the chasm). Interestingly enough, the make of his armour mirrors the very walls of the mountain around him.
Here is where they set up the sheer, unstoppable power of the Ring. It contains Sauron's malice, cruelty, and will to dominate. That is the burden tht Frodo walks under for months, a burden that grows with every step taken toward where the Ring was made. The Ring itself is quite beautiful, with gorgeous lines of words in flame. We also see that on Sauron, the Ring's words remain and Sauron doesn't disappear. Disappearing while wearing the Ring means that you aren't controlling it. If you disappear, then you aren't claiming the Ring, the Ring is claiming you.
The fire spreads, with lovely almost fades between the map and people running in terror from flaming buildings (here would be where I worry about my ability to find beauty in horror).
I love the odd tint on the battlescenes - they make it feel old, as if it were shot in a twisted sepia. Our first close-up Orc shot is quite convincing - looking at him, I can find it easy to believe that this is a broken, once a upon a time elf, because the reversal is so complete. Right away, we see how kick-ass the elves are at fighting when we see the first row shoot, duck, and the second row shoot without any hesitation. The scope of this first battle remains amazing. The sheer scale shows us right here and now that Peter Jackson and Co. are unafraid to take risks and pull out all the stops.
An arrow wizzes past Elrond's face and while he blinks a bit from the rush of air, he doesn't wince at all from the fast deadly thing that just went by his face. Oh, yeah, elves are bad ass.
Then Elendil kicks it and his son, Isildur, kinda takes over. (Would this be the battle the mountain men failed to show at? Because if so, I can see why Isildur was miffed at them, since his dad died and all.) Isildur, and I feel that I should mention this right away, has pretty eyes. Very golden and such. And he has the same type of hair that we later see on Aragorn.
The shot of Sauron's (almost) destruction is just damn cool. I love that his bits keep smoking.
Then we get our first look at Ring infatuation. Isildur's face here reminds me of Boromir at the Council of Elrond. Just that look of wonder. And they really do set up everything that we need to know about the Ring's power. We get our first look at how the Ring corrupts people - Isildur not only couldn't destroy it, but using it has become his first resort. He doesn't even try to fight, just slips on the Ring.
And we get our introduction to the vanishing effect of the Ring. At this point in time, we haven't been introduced to the tearing world of the Ring, but knowing it as we do now, it's easy to see how Isildur is led around by what the Ring desires and why he ends up in the water for the Ring to betray him (a neat reversal of this happens when the Ring betrays Frodo by putting itself on him in the Prancing Pony).
Next, Galadriel lets us know that two and a half thousand years pass between the Ring's disappearance and when it is found. The place where the Ring is lying does appear to be the same place we later see Smeagol and Deagol fishing in, but as a night shot. The shot of Deagol's hand is seen later, in context, as is, I believe, the shot of Gollum's hand clutching the Ring.
Then we get that absolutely amazing shot of Gollum in the cave. It's so gorgeous, the way the strands of his hair catch the light. Very much like a painting - that same rich feeling. We also get the handy information about another five hundred years flipping by.
Galadriel then sets up the motion of the piece by letting us know that things are about to start happening. We get another mention of the Ring as its own entity as it abandons Gollum (as it later tried to abandon Frodo in the Misty Mountains(?) with Boromir).
Finally, we're introduced to the race of Hobbits, via Bilbo finding the Ring and secreting it away in his pocket. We also get introduced to hobbit hair, which I adore above any other hair, ever. Love it. So much. Everyone should have hobbit hair - this is how much I love it.
Anyway, we learn an important thing here - the Ring did not intend for Bilbo to pick it up, which means that the Ring can be thwarted. Oh, and Bilbo's weskit (that's what the vests are called, yes?) is red/reddish brown. I'm sure that that means something. Oh, and from this angle, he looks a bit like Mel Brooks. Not sure if that means anything.
The her last bit of narration tells us that hobbits will be central figures in whatever tale is about to unfold.
Yay. Sounds like fun.
And now, I am so many kinds of tired. And that was just from seven-eight minutes! Dense film. Tomorrow, I'm going to try to do Concerning Hobbits.
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Re: The Three Rings
Date: 2004-01-08 11:58 pm (UTC)