What’s all this excitement about `Rings’?
By Patrick T. Reardon
Tribune staff reporter
Here’s my problem: Everyone in the universe, particularly every movie reviewer from the loftiest to the most humble, seems to think the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy is the greatest thing since sliced bread. And I just don’t get it.
Critics have praised its storytelling, its landscapes, its imagery. In fact, they’ve had little criticism to say about either the first or second movie. But I sit watching dumbfounded, or perhaps just dumb.
How much don’t I get it? Well, I came away from the first movie in such bad humor that I couldn’t believe it was as bad as I remembered (especially after hearing at every turn how great the film was). So, when “The Fellowship of the Ring” came out on video, I rented it, and, halfway through the tape, I discovered part of my problem.
Smack dab in the middle of watching the movie the first time, I’d fallen asleep. There were battles and characters and plot turns that I’d never seen before.
Familiar story line
Not that the extra hour added anything to my cinematic enjoyment. For me, the movie was still dreadfully dull. All I could get of the plot was that the Elijah Wood character had a ring that he needed to take somewhere or the world as we know it would end. Basically, the story line of umpteen hundred other movies.
The dialogue often consisted of a lot of dirty, unshaven, disheveled soldier-types huffing and puffing about something. (I could never quite figure out anyone’s name or even whether Sauron, for instance, was a person or a place.) Or it involved one or another pretty lady (Liv Tyler and Cate Blanchett) talking airily about I don’t know what. Or there were a bunch of short people and tall people pledging to take some action to keep bad stuff from happening.
It was basically the same story for me when I went recently to watch the second installment in the series, “The Two Towers.”
This time, I did pick up the name of one of the major characters, Aragon, like the place in Spain. (It was only later, while reading a story in the Tribune, that I realized the name is spelled Aragorn.)
But this film, like the earlier one, seemed to be oppressively dark or (in the Tyler flashbacks or flash-forwards or whatever they were) oppressively sweet. Wood’s character was still a mystery to me. He comes across as this big zero around which all the action happens. (And I like Wood as an actor.) The range of emotion he’s permitted runs from breathing heavily to express great unrest or breathing very heavily.
The Gollum character is cool, I acknowledge. For me, he was the saving grace that made the second movie slightly more watchable than the first. He struck me as a first cousin to Dobby in the second installment of the Harry Potter opus. He also struck me as more human — in the sense of having a variety of emotions — than anyone else in the movie.
And, I have to admit, midway through the second movie, I started to doze off. I never dropped off completely into sleep. That was progress. But my eyes grew heavy and my attention wandered.
The fault I’m sure is in me. I didn’t read the books, for one thing. So it’s as if I’m walking into the middle of someone’s party.
It’s not prejudice
But I’ve never read the Brian Aldiss short story that was the basis for Steven Spielberg’s “A.I.: Artificial Intelligence.” Nor have I read Winston Groom’s novel “Forrest Gump,” the basis of the Robert Zemeckis film. Yet, I enjoyed both of those movies.
And it’s not that I have a prejudice against the-battle-of-good-versus-evil sorts of films. I thoroughly enjoyed John Boorman’s nitty-gritty take on the King Arthur legend, “Excalibur,” and was delighted with George Lucas’ “Star Wars: Episode I — the Phantom Menace,” particularly with the way the movie used special effects to create other worlds.
I don’t have a prejudice either against Peter Jackson and his “Lord of the Rings” films because he’s from Down Under and filmed in New Zealand. One of my favorite movies is “Moulin Rouge” by Australian Baz Luhrmann.
My point is: I’m confused. I like movies. I like epics. I like films that challenge the viewer. But I fall asleep during “Lord of the Rings.”
Everyone, it seems, believes these films to be cinematic masterpieces. But, for me — I don’t know. I can’t see it.
Maybe this is a medical condition. Or a psychological syndrome. It can’t be that the movies actually are turgid, overblown, overhyped Gargantuas — cultural curiosities that will look silly 10, 20 years down the road and lead future generations to ask, “What were they thinking?”
No, it couldn’t be that.
Maybe for the third one, I’ll bring along No-Doz
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via_hobbit writes: This is from the January edition of Empire magazine (UK) and it features a little bit about RotK:
“This is it. The grand finale, the showdown, the big finish to one of the most adored movie trilogies since the original series of Star Wars films. While Jackson and co. are trying to hold back their suprises (and any book deviance)- despite the ravenous attention of the web site geeks- Professor Tolkien can give us some guidance as to what awaits us when Frodo’s quest reaches its dramatic conclusion.
The full weight of Weta’s technical achievements will come to bear on a storyline infused with battle scenes, hordes of the creatures and potentially stunning new locales. The next big CGI question mark hangs over the arrival of Shelob, a giant spider who will attack the Ringbearer, contained within a labyrinth of dark tunnels that should feel far more claustrophoibic than the Moria sequences of film one. While for the rest of the fellowship it’s the toil of battle- the siege of Minas Tirith looks set to be the series’ crowning glory.
There are two new minor characters to finally enter the fray: Denethor II, Boromir’s father and Steward Of Minas Tirith (John Noble), obstensibly the current ruler of the land of Gondor who has gone mad, and The Mouth Of Sauron (Mad Max’s Bruce Spence). This deformed human being is basically the bad guy’s PR who has grim news for the army of good. And, it seems likely, we’ll get also a glimpse of the head kahuna himself, Sauron. “You cant reduce him to being a big guy striding around in black armous, but he can’t be limited to a flaming eye (as in the book) either”, says Jackson. “Imagine not seeing Darth Vader for all three Star Wars films. You can’t do it.”
With Oscar attention inevitable and a legion of fans ready to weep and wail at the end of it all, more of the same is exactly what is required. No doubt the final Matrix will cast a long shadow, but New Line’s risky investment will go down as the best bet since MGM first decided to gamble on some guy called James Bond.”
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Jason Averett at Entertainment Weekly dropped us a line with the inside scoop on the forthcoming Oscar race edition of EW.
Thought you might be interested in next week’s issue of ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY, the magazine’s annual “Oscar Race Begins.” The editors forecast the five most likely finalists for the top Academy Award categories, and “The Two Towers” is predicted to be among the nominees for Best Picture, Best Director (Peter Jackson), and Best Adapted Screenplay.
For each category, the magazine also offers a “For Your Consideration” nominee. This is someone the editors don’t believe will make the final cut, but really should. In the Best Supporting Actor category, Andy Serkis is Entertainment Weekly’s “For Your Consideration” choice:
“We admit it: Even we’re not sure what to do with Andy Serkis, the British actor whose every tic, twitch, and hiss brings Gollum to such brilliant life in ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.’ There’s no precedent for the way his work straddles the border that separates performance from visual effect. But about this we’re certain: The Academy had better start thinking about the issues that Serkis’ performance raises, because his work — however it’s categorized — is Oscar-caliber.”
The issue will be on news-stands everywhere Monday, January 13 … the Oscar prediction package will also be on EW.com Friday, January 10 by 6 PM ET.
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BIG NEWS for all LOTR TCG Fans and fans of LOTR Collectibles alike. Here is some very exciting news fresh from the desk of Kevin Reitzel – who reports in from the Decipher, Inc. Marketing Department:
From Kevin:
Sméagol Retail Sales Incentive Program
This program is much like the Éowyn retail program that we [Decipher] did last year. For every $10 (or US equivalent) that a consumer spends at a participating retail location worldwide, they will receive a Sméagol, Old Noser alternate image (AI) preview card from Battle of Helm’s Deep (the next expansion in the Two Towers TCG series)!
This program starts in retail stores on Feb. 15 and lasts until March 31 (while supplies last). Every Retail Fellowship store will receive 50 of these preview cards and a ‘counter card’ (a small standee that informs customers of the program that sits next to the register) to start with, but will be able to re-order more if they need them. All these details will be announced in full through a web story that will be posted next week on www.decipher.com (with the image of Sméagol!).
There will also be several translations of these cards, including:
German
French
Portuguese
Polish
Swedish
Spanish
Italian
Hungarian
English
Thanks. (End of Report)
Please begin planning your stampede now! Don’t forget to put away that preciousssss 10 bucksssessss.
Later –
Lao of Gondor
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Todd writes: The Academy announced the seven finalists in the Visual effects and Sound Editing categories today. The Two Towers made the cut in both cases. Academy branch members will review the seven nominees and whittle them down to a final three nominees, which will be announced along with the regular nominations on February 11th. Biggest surprise is the lack of a sound editing nomination for Attack of the Clones.
Special Visual Effects:
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Men in Black II, Minority Report, Spider-Man, Star Wars Episode II Attack of the Clones, XXX
Sound editing:
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Minority Report, Road to Perdition, Spider-Man, We Were Soldiers,
XXX
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PippinRules emailed us about two English teen magazines that feature cast from The Lord of the Rings, something that might interest the photo-collectors amongst us…
“Sneak” magazine (7-13 January) has a two page spread of photos of the hobbits buying computer equipment in New York and Dom’s birthday party in Paris, which also includes Andy Serkis, Bernard Hill and Liv Tyler.
January 2003 “J17” magazine has a lovely full page photo of Elijah who appears to be trying to shake off his boyish look and appear like Aragorn by narrowing his eyes and pursing his lips…
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