ladyofleithian (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
ladyofleithian) wrote2011-06-26 02:18 pm
ladyofleithian) wrote2011-06-26 02:18 pm
Entry tags:
On a bit of a lighter note...
Just watched some Fellowship of the Ring on the way home from testing today. *Sighs* Tired hadhafang is tired, but pleased.
All I can say is, Fellowship was better than I remember it. It just seems to get better with each viewing. :)
Things I Loved:
-The prologue. Just...the prologue.
-Frodo. Granted, I do have some issues with the movie portrayal of him -- mostly relating to cutting out some of his great book moments, like defying the Ringwraiths at the Ford of Bruinen, as well as earlier on Weathertop -- but otherwise, Elijah Wood was just amazing. Hell, I don't think we could have found a better Frodo. :)
-The relationship between Frodo and Bilbo. It's such a small series of moments between the two of them, but considering the journey Frodo's about to go on, it's vitally, vitally important to have it. A bit of Calm Before The Storm, so to speak.
-Similarly, the relationship between Frodo and Sam. Friendship plays a huge part in Tolkien's trilogy, and I think Peter Jackson and co. did a brilliant job bringing it to the screen.
-Gandalf. Seriously. Ian McKellen was a brilliant Gandalf. :3
-The scene where Merry and Pippin (Frodo's mischievous cousins) steal a firework. Especially this exchange:
MERRY: You were supposed to stick it in the ground!
PIPPIN: It is in the ground!
MERRY: Outside!
PIPPIN: It was your idea!
Let's say Hilarity Ensues. :)
In fact, Merry and Pippin have several of these moments throughout Fellowship (in terms of funny), yet at the same time, they never come off as annoying or out of place. It helps that Dominic Monaghan and Billy Boyd are made of awesome, both on set and off. :) *Cough* The LOTR Cast Commentaries *Cough* ^^
-The Nazgul. Just the Nazgul.
-Saruman.
-Arwen's scene at the Ford of Bruinen. True, it kind of sucked that Frodo's moment was cut out, but Arwen more than made up for it, IMHO. Everything about the sequence is just perfect: the cinematography, the special effects (seriously, I still wonder how they managed to do it. 0.0), the music, the level of jeopardy, etc. And then, finally, there's the matter of Arwen herself, and Liv Tyler's acting. There are some people on the Internet -- not here, just...elsewhere. :) -- who really like to rag on Liv and say she can't act, anyone would have made a better Arwen than her, yadda yadda yadda. But I think she brought a great level of humanity and warmth to Arwen, and it really shows in this scene: she's terrified, that much is clear (who wouldn't be terrified in facing the Ringwraiths? I know I would) and yet she still manages to stand her ground and call the waters of Bruinen on the Nazgul to keep Frodo safe. From that moment, we care about Arwen -- especially as we go deeper into her relationship with Aragorn. Which brings us to our next point...
-The relationship between Aragorn and Arwen. It's a nice little bit of calm before the storm, and considering that one of the difficulties Tolkien had in writing LOTR was how to fit Arwen in without disrupting the story, I think Peter and co. did a good job of fitting it in. (YMMV, of course. :) It helps that both Viggo Mortensen and Liv Tyler are phenomenal actors.
-Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn.
-Sean Bean as Boromir. Hell, everyone was perfectly cast.
-The action scenes.
-And yet at the same time, it wasn't afraid to pause for a bit for quiet character scenes. :)
Things I Disliked:
Seriously, other than it dragging a bit, I really liked it. And the dragging's pretty small, really. :)
So, bottom line? Awesome. *Grinz* Now on The Two Towers. :) #Cue anticipation. :)
All I can say is, Fellowship was better than I remember it. It just seems to get better with each viewing. :)
Things I Loved:
-The prologue. Just...the prologue.
-Frodo. Granted, I do have some issues with the movie portrayal of him -- mostly relating to cutting out some of his great book moments, like defying the Ringwraiths at the Ford of Bruinen, as well as earlier on Weathertop -- but otherwise, Elijah Wood was just amazing. Hell, I don't think we could have found a better Frodo. :)
-The relationship between Frodo and Bilbo. It's such a small series of moments between the two of them, but considering the journey Frodo's about to go on, it's vitally, vitally important to have it. A bit of Calm Before The Storm, so to speak.
-Similarly, the relationship between Frodo and Sam. Friendship plays a huge part in Tolkien's trilogy, and I think Peter Jackson and co. did a brilliant job bringing it to the screen.
-Gandalf. Seriously. Ian McKellen was a brilliant Gandalf. :3
-The scene where Merry and Pippin (Frodo's mischievous cousins) steal a firework. Especially this exchange:
MERRY: You were supposed to stick it in the ground!
PIPPIN: It is in the ground!
MERRY: Outside!
PIPPIN: It was your idea!
Let's say Hilarity Ensues. :)
In fact, Merry and Pippin have several of these moments throughout Fellowship (in terms of funny), yet at the same time, they never come off as annoying or out of place. It helps that Dominic Monaghan and Billy Boyd are made of awesome, both on set and off. :) *Cough* The LOTR Cast Commentaries *Cough* ^^
-The Nazgul. Just the Nazgul.
-Saruman.
-Arwen's scene at the Ford of Bruinen. True, it kind of sucked that Frodo's moment was cut out, but Arwen more than made up for it, IMHO. Everything about the sequence is just perfect: the cinematography, the special effects (seriously, I still wonder how they managed to do it. 0.0), the music, the level of jeopardy, etc. And then, finally, there's the matter of Arwen herself, and Liv Tyler's acting. There are some people on the Internet -- not here, just...elsewhere. :) -- who really like to rag on Liv and say she can't act, anyone would have made a better Arwen than her, yadda yadda yadda. But I think she brought a great level of humanity and warmth to Arwen, and it really shows in this scene: she's terrified, that much is clear (who wouldn't be terrified in facing the Ringwraiths? I know I would) and yet she still manages to stand her ground and call the waters of Bruinen on the Nazgul to keep Frodo safe. From that moment, we care about Arwen -- especially as we go deeper into her relationship with Aragorn. Which brings us to our next point...
-The relationship between Aragorn and Arwen. It's a nice little bit of calm before the storm, and considering that one of the difficulties Tolkien had in writing LOTR was how to fit Arwen in without disrupting the story, I think Peter and co. did a good job of fitting it in. (YMMV, of course. :) It helps that both Viggo Mortensen and Liv Tyler are phenomenal actors.
-Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn.
-Sean Bean as Boromir. Hell, everyone was perfectly cast.
-The action scenes.
-And yet at the same time, it wasn't afraid to pause for a bit for quiet character scenes. :)
Things I Disliked:
Seriously, other than it dragging a bit, I really liked it. And the dragging's pretty small, really. :)
So, bottom line? Awesome. *Grinz* Now on The Two Towers. :) #Cue anticipation. :)