Moviescore, a site dedicated to tracking film music, reports that New Zealand composer and award-winning music editor Stephen Gallagher has been tapped to score the music for Kenji Kamiyama’s The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.
Gallagher is probably best-known to Tolkien fans for his work on The Hobbit where, as well as working as music editor on all three films, he composed the songs ‘Blunt the Knives’ and ‘The Torture Song’ for An Unexpected Journey.
Perusing IMDB reveals that Gallagher has previously composed music for a range of documentaries and short films, but arguably this is his most prominent compositional role to date.
He also has a decades-long career as music editor spanning big productions like Avatar: The Way of Water, District 9 and Wolf Warrior 2 to niche films such as Amy Berg’s West Of Memphis and Peter Jackson’s The Lovely Bones. Last year, he won an Emmy Award for his sound work on Peter Jackson’s The Beatles: Get Back.
IMDB states that he’s currently based at Park Road Post Production in Wellington — a facility that’s owned by Peter Jackson’s WingNut Films.
The War of the Rohirrim is slated to release on April 12, 2024. Director Kenji Kamiyama is also currently co-directing on the final season of Ultraman with Shinji Aramaki which will debut on Netflix sometime in 2023.
SPECULATION
A speculatory post-script.
I was idly chatting with TORn staffer Justin about the leak/confirm and he wondered if the selection of Gallagher could indicate a return to the style of music that was the hallmark of the Rankin Bass animated features. After all, Blunt the Knives in An Unexpected Journey is very much a homage to the sing-along style of the animated Hobbit of 1977.
Personally, I’m inclined to say no.
I feel that both Blunt the Knives and The Torture Song (as sung by Barry Humphries) owe more to a combination of the children’s tale-nature of Tolkien’s novel and the comedic sensibilities of Peter Jackson (Meet the Feebles, anyone?).
On the other hand, the tale of Helm Hammerhand is far grimmer. It’s also a little tempting to add that Kamiyama animes typically play the material straight, but then the quirky Tachikomas (AI spider tanks/mechs) of the Ghost in the Shell: Standalone Complex animated series are a spectacular outlier. Kamiyama leverages them in multiple ways: surreal comics, action heroes, philosophers, and ultimately as beings capable of self-sacrifice. The “cute” Tachikoma moments don’t devalue the serious ones. In fact, they make them more rounded characters (I dare say, more human — a crucial point to the story Ghost in the Shell explores).
So, if Kamiyama could see a way that a quirky, lyrically focused tune would serve the needs of the Helm story, he absolutely has the chops to pull it off.
Neverthless, I think it’s probably better to calibrate musical expectations more in line with the thoroughly grounded nature of Kamiyama’s acclaimed adapatation of the fantasy story Serei no Moribito. If nothing else, it’s still difficult to get folks to take anime as a serious artform that’s not “just for kids” without hobbling your production with a bunch of cutesy tunes. I’m surer Warner Bros. will be keenly aware of that.
All that being said, we know that Miranda Otto has a very fine singing voice. If, as Éowyn, she’s relating this tale to someone (like her grandchild Barahir) there’s certainly an opportunity for her to sing in the intro, or some lament as the outro at the end. I like that idea.
It hasn’t been ten years since TORn last caught up with Stephen Hunter, but it has – astonishingly – been ten years since the first of the three Hobbit movies premiered. Where has the time flown to?? We’ve been remembering press events, red carpets and theatre viewings; so we were delighted to have a chance to chat with Bombur himself, from his sunny home in Sydney, Australia.
Hunter has been very busy lately, with roles in projects such as Ruby’s Choice, Heartbreak High, and The Tourist, as well as his full work load as an acting coach. But that didn’t stop him taking the time to tell us when he last had a chance to catch up with Hobbit cast mates, show us some goodies he has from set, and share his thoughts on The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Second breakfast with fellow dwarves in London, pub crawls with Sylvester McCoy, and Dwarvish lightsabers?! All will be revealed:
Last weekend we sat down again with our friend Daniel Falconer, to catch up on what he’s been doing, and all things Weta Workshop. We were able to steal two hours of Daniel’s time – and this conversation is a classic. I believe you all are going to love the topics we touch on. As always, thank you for the support!
Due to some technical issues, there has been some realignment to the programming schedule at LACC and TheOneRing.net has a slight change in our programming slot.
Our ‘Dispatches from Middle-earth: The return to Middle-earth’ panel is still in room 303 AB on Saturday, December 3, but now our start time is at 5:30 PM and ending at 7:00 PM, giving us nearly a full 90-minute panel. Join us as we talk about all things Tolkien, past, present, and future. And remember, we love seeing Middle-earth themed cosplay, and this is the weekend to really bring it.
But wait, there’s more Middle-earth goodness to be had. Elijah Wood and Sean Astin will be on the Main Stage on Saturday, December 3 from 3:00 PM to 3:50 PM. Both will be doing autographs and photo ops on Saturday as well, check the L.A. ComicCon App for details.
Elijah Wood and Sean Astin
There is one more surprise coming tomorrow for cool, geeky Middle-earth-themed fun happening at LACC, so check back tomorrow morning.
Stansborough is a name which will be familiar to many fans of Peter Jackson’s Middle-earth. Their amazing wool made those magical Elven cloaks, gifted to the Fellowship in the first Lord of the Rings movie. Spun through with silver thread, the Stansborough weave appeared again as Gandalf’s scarf in The Hobbit trilogy; and their fabrics have even been used recently in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power!
Tolkien lovers who have made pilgrimages to New Zealand may have visited their mill, to see their sustainable fabrics being created; and many of us have purchased items from them over the years. We’re delighted that this family run business is still going, still making magic – and they have generously sent us some goodies to giveaway!
Staffers Madeye Gamgee and greendragon had the pleasure of opening the exciting package which travelled across the ocean to arrive in the US; take a look to see what was in the box:
Your chance to win
If YOU would like to be in with a chance to be one of the lucky winners who will receive one of the goodies from Stansborough, all you need to do is complete and submit this form. The contest is open within the USA only (sorry, folks elsewhere in the world!); you have until 11.59pm PT Monday 28th November to enter. On Tuesday 29th we’ll pick three winners at random, and send each one of those lucky folks one of the three items.
If you’re not in the US, or if you aren’t a winner, you can still treat yourself to something wonderful from Stansborough; just visit their website to see all the goodies available. I’ve got my eye on one of their mini Gandalf hats (as seen above) – the perfect tree topper…! (Hmm, perhaps for a tree decorated with flaming pine cones…?)
Big thanks to our good friends at Stansborough for their generosity.
The rollout of the Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power TV series has re-energized Middle-earth fandom, and one thing is clear, we all love to get together, online, at conventions, and at the theater and talk Tolkien.
Reading The Hobbit during the Baggins Birthday Bash
The Baggins Birthday Bash, coming to Los Angeles at 11:30am on September 24 at Griffith Park’s Mineral Wells picnic area is the perfect way for SoCal Tolkien fans to gather and party like Hobbits. There will be games, there will be food, there will be plenty of Tolkien discussion going on, and I’m sure we can fit some fun in there somewhere.
Regarding food, in the before times it was a big buffet, and last year, we decided to ask everyone to just bring enough food and drink for their own party. This year, it will probably end up being a bit of a hybrid. Some will just bring what they want to eat, and a few will bring shareable dishes, and we’ll let the food and drink sort itself out. It would be nice if some folks bring extra picnic plates and cups, maybe some paper towels, and of course, everyone should bring a portable chair or blanket and a popup if you have it.
We would like to bring back the Cake or Cupcake contest for the best Middle-earth designed desserts. We’ve had some really creative and beautiful designs in the past, so start contemplating now on how to wow your fellow fans this year. Costumes are welcome, as usual, especially any new 2nd Age costumes. If we do trivia, there is a decent chance it will include some references to the Rings of Power show, since the 5th episode will have screened just 2 days before the picnic.
Please do RSVP on our Facebook Event page, located at: https://www.facebook.com/events/1271178800320132/ and read through the About Details, including selecting ‘see more’ to access the directions for those driving from different sections of Southern California in order to get to Griffith Park and the Mineral Wells section of the park.
