From the book, when Sam wakes up and sees Gandalf: “Gandalf! I thought you were dead! But then I thought I was dead myself. Is everything sad going to come untrue? What's happened to the world?" "A great Shadow has departed," said Gandalf, and then he laughed and the sound was like music, or like water in a parched land; and as he listened the thought came to Sam that he had not heard laughter, the pure sound of merriment, for days upon days without count.
"I give Hope to men. I keep none for myself." The epitaph of Gilraen, the mother of Aragorn, whose elvish name is Estel, which translated means Hope. She brought him to Rivendell to be raised by Elrond after Arathorn was killed by orcs to protect her son. He visits her grave just before the Fellowship leaves Rivendell. So cool that PJ gave her props.
The thing is, there was no "lead" role in these films. Also, none of the Fellowship roles were technically "supporting" roles; they were an ensemble cast. The academy could have given multiple best leads though for this, since they all were technically lead roles.
One detail the movies don't show is that Denethor, the stewart of Gondor and father to Boromir and Faramir, was actualy a very noble, kind and brave ruler. But the death of his wive and the corruption of Sauron heavily affected him. He also had one of the Palantir, the seeing stones, and Sauron had infiltrated his mind through the years. Still, he resisted his influence longer than most men in history, which proves how great Denethor was before his descent into madness
Yes unfortunately many of the subtle details have to be sacrificed for time constraint. If this had been done as a three or four season series with the same production values where all the aspects of the books could be visited it would have been amazing.
Denethor is a "Steward" not a Stewart" a "Steward" is an old term/Title for a regent or placeholder of Authority in the absence of the rightful overlord. A "Stewart" is a Scots name.(Which probably originally derives from the same source!). It was big disservice to Denethor to edit out any and all references to his having used a Palantir (Seeing Stone)- remember that Gandalf warned Saruman that a Palantir is a "Dangerous Tool" While Sauron had either the Stone from Minas Morgul or Osgiliath (the master stone) he could not make it show falsehoods, but used it to infect Denethor with despair by showing him "Exaggerated"visions of Sauron's strength and of the Return of a King. Already tired, griefstruc by the death of his wife and then by the death of Boromir, Denethor was gradually driven to the edge of madness. (Denthor's wife died in childbirth (Faramir) and Denethor, rightly or wrongly, thought less of his younger son as a result.
@@ronweber1402 It was more of a financial constraint. Time constraint was for the theatrical release. That didn't stop Jackson from purposely filming more scenes for an "extended" version. The more you film the more the production budget rises. If they gave Jackson more money, he would have shot more scenes for the extended versions.
As many reasons there are to hate Gollum (I did too on my first watch), Frodo wanted to spare him because he had to believe he could come back to becoming a regular person. He felt the ring destroying him like it destroyed Gollum. Gandalf also mentioned that, in his heart, he felt Gollum had some part to play in the whole journey, and without Gollum, the ring would never have been destroyed. You see, as you get closer to Mount Doom, the rings influence becomes greater. And inside the mountain itself, the ring has absolute control over the ring bearer. Without Gollum, Frodo would never have accidentally dropped the ring into the lava, he would've just walked away, as per the rings command.
The way Jackson changed the destruction of the ring is one of the few moments where I think someone manages to improve on Tolkien. As great as the books are, it's sort of anti-climatic that Frodo is pretty much immediately sidelined (much like the movie version of Sauron) the moment his finger is gone. Him getting up and fighting to get the ring back seems more authentic to the story. Losing possession of the ring in that spot seems like it would make the loss of a finger seem so trivial that of course he would have gotten back up and fought. But, even though I think it's a better choice, especially in a film version, I think the reason the change was made was part of a larger adaptation issue. Because it has never been filmed, I'm not going to spoil the real ending of the book, of what happens when the hobbits get back to the Shire. But I need to bring it up because in the books, that is where Frodo gets his symbolic redemption for failing in his quest. I think the decision had already been made not to tell that part of the story though, but without it, you're just left with a Frodo that failed in his left hanging without a redemption like Boromir. Having him be actively involved in the ring going down, and the event shortly after provides that redemption in the movie. The movie ring doesn't get destroyed until Frodo makes the decision of hope over despair, and actually truly gives up the ring. When Sam is telling him not to let go, it's not just that he might from hopelessness or seeking peace, but the very real possibility that he might take it into his head to make a swan dive down into that lava on the off chance that he might be able to still save the ring.
@@paulrhome6164 I always thought Frodo's choice while hanging off of the cliff was between hope and hopelessness not that he thought he could save the Ring.
@@ronweber1402 I don't think it has to be one or the other. I think all of that is going on. Or, to put it another way, the hopelessness and the desire to possess and protect it are all emanating from the ring. The act of choosing hope is pretty much one and the same with abandoning the ring. I suppose you could even flip it and say that Frodo choosing to live was when the ring/Sauron lost all hope of getting out of this and the last of its will and power was gone.
@@cyrillweber1161 yes, my issue isn't with what exactly caused the destruction of the ring. It was more that it seems out of place that Frodo would just lay there cradling his hand instead of trying to get the ring back. It seems like the desire for the ring would have made the finger a non issue for him, as it was in the movie.
Cousins Sméagol and Déagol were Stoor Hobbits who lived east of the Misty Mountains. They were fishing on the Anduin river where Isildor lost it, not in the Shire. They were take by the Ring because they were a pair of sneak thieves.
Morality perhaps. I never liked the word morality. Sounded like an imposition. I would say ‘nobility of spirit’ - courage, friendship, integrity - it is not an imposition; it is a flowering from within. You don’t follow it - you become it - you be it.
Frodo deserved all honour because he spent every drop of his power of will and body, and that was just sufficient to bring him to the destined point, and no further. From letters of Tolkien, letter 192
To clarify the beginning of the film, Smeagol and his cousin Deagol were not in the Shire but rather much further east over the Misty Mountains near the Gladden Fields by the Anduin, or Great River. The Ring was in the river since that was where Isildur died when orcs ambushed him and his company during what would become the Disaster of the Gladden Fields.
Smeagol/Gollum has killed more than once before. The book says, "The wood was full of the rumour of him, dreadful tales even among beasts and birds. The Woodmen said that there was some new terror abroad, a ghost that drank blood. It climbed trees to find nests; it crept into holes to find the young; it slipped through windows to find cradles." (Gandalf talking to Frodo, The Fellowship of the Ring, chapter 2 The Shadow of the Past)
One incident that didn't make it into the movie occurred after Sam defeated Gollum on the slopes of Mount Doom. While Frodo is running off to the Sammath Naur to dispose of the Ring, Sam is left to finish off Gollum. But seeing Gollum sprawled in the dust, Sam, having borne the Ring himself for a little while, finally understands Gollum's despair, and sends him off with a kick in the rear. Gollum flees a few steps, then comes after the Hobbits with the light of madness in his eyes. After all is over, Frodo says, "But do you remember Gandalf's words: Even Gollum may yet have something to do? But for him, Sam, I could not have destroyed the Ring. The Quest would have been in vain, even at the bitter end. So let us forgive him!"
Sometimes good can't defeat evil, but evil always destroys itself. This is why Smeagol had to be there, to provide just enough conflict for the Ring to be destroyed even when Frodo couldn't do it. It was his Doom, which is yet another word for fate.
Tolkien was a soldier in WW1, and I read that the hobbits in this story were inspired by the young men who served in that war. Regular, simple people who had nothing to do with the big schemes of power, but who had integrity, and it was through their courage and constant effort and sacrifices that the war was ended. I also read that Sam in particular was inspired by the privates and the batmen that Tolkien met in the war (soldiers who apart from fighting were also assigned as basically servants to officers, with tasks like looking after an officers' kit, cooking and cleaning) and perceived them to be "superior to himself", even though they were of a lower social class. Sam is a gardener and basically a servant, a simple person contented with his place in life, who proves time and time again that he is exceptionally loyal, courageous and pure of heart. In the books we see that the ring uses different illusions to tempt different characters, which is very interesting because it is a window into who those characters really are. Sam is only tempted by the ring once, briefly, and what the ring uses to tempt him is the illusion of himself using the ring to destroy Sauron so he can use his power to create the greatest garden ever. That's the only thing the ring was able to perceive from Sam, and Sam overcame the temptation of the ring very quickly.
The fishing scene takes place on a river called Gladden, which we had seen once before in the series - in the prologue of Fellowship, when Isildur was attacked and killed there by orcs, and the ring slipped off his finger in the river. This river is not in or near the Shire - in fact it's on the other side of the Misty Mountains. On a map it is basically directly on the opposite side of the mountains from Rivendell, or close enough. It is a tributary of the river Anduin (the great river) which is the river we see our guys canoeing down late in the first film (after they've gone under the mountains thru Moria). Smeagol and Deagol are hobbits of a race/breed called Stoors, who were living near the river Gladden at the time.
"The ugliest Orc we have ever seen"! Was modeled on one of the original producers Harvey Weinstein with whom Peter Jackson had a seriously contentious relationship before he was able to extricate himself and make the film into what it eventually became. A couple of other comments responding to what you were asking during the intro. So, the first scene is not in the Shire, it was shot on the banks of the River Anduin where The Ring was originally lost by Isildur. As Gandalf had said: "The Ring wants to be found." Over the several thousand years after Sauron had been defeated and lost the ability to incarnate as a physical being, (which he never achieved) he had been slowly "re-collecting himself" as it were. Smeagol was a Stoor, and genetically a branch from the Hobbit genome, "River Folk" living on a branch of Anduin. He had a devious personality and was already known as a kind of sneak thief in his community. This is the main reason he was instantly overcome by the power of The Ring. Deagol was his cousin. Smeagol then had The Ring for 500 odd years, probably using it little because of the environment in the mountain where he stayed. When Bilbo found The Ring and took it, Sauron had still not yet awoken. As for Bilbo, although he also used it occasionally its hold on him was less severe because of his essentially good nature and the fact that he had spared Gollum's life in his escape from the caves. It was after Frodo received it that Sauron fully awoke, and It was only after Sauron had captured Gollum and realized that The Ring had been found that it became "activated" as it were, and then was a sort of "homing beacon" for Sauron and the Nazgul in their attempt to find it. I'm really enjoying your reaction and watching this story once again. Cheers! ❤
the Ring corrupts anyone who touches it; some quickly, some slowly. but sooner or later they all fall under its influence. remember, Gandalf & Galadriel both feared to touch it.
The Riddle of Strider by Bilbo Baggims: "All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king."
Love Rohan? it wouldn’t have existed without Galadriel’s help: She saved Gondor & enabled Rohan. She delivered Gondor from invasion and led to the foundation of Rohan, five centuries before the LotR. This is an account on the event. The Rohirrim were in origin the folk named Éothéod, who lived in the North. In 2510 of the Third Age Gondor was invaded by both Easterlings and Orcs at the same time. Borondir, a messenger, delivered a desperate request for aid from the Steward of Gondor to the Éothéod; for their forefathers had often been allies (check art by Julax). Eorl the Young, the King of the Éothéod rode out on his steed Felaróf (a forefather of Shadowfax), and his mounted host followed, seven thousand strong (art by Wouter Florusse). They rode along the Mirkwood forest until they came near Dol Guldur, where the Necromancer [Sauron] had his abode; and the attacks on Gondor were according to his will... Eorl turned away westward for fear of the dark shadow and cloud that flowed out from Dol Guldur, and then he rode on within sight of the Anduin river. Many riders looked toward the river, half in fear and half in hope to glimpse from afar the Dwimordene, the perilous land that in legends of their people was said to shine like gold in spring: Lórien. "But now it seemed shrouded in a gleaming mist and to their dismay the mist passed over the river and flowed over the land before them. Eorl did not halt. `Ride on!' he commanded. `There is no other way to take. After so long a road shall we be held back from battle by a river-mist?'" ~ Unfinished Tales; III; II (check art by Guillaume Tholly) But they saw that the white mist was driving back the glooms of Dol Guldur, and soon they passed into it, riding slowly at first and warily; but under its canopy all things were lit with a clear and shadowless light, while to left and right they were guarded as it were by white walls of secrecy: "`The Lady of the Golden Wood is on our side, it seems,' said Borondir." . Eorl was not as sure about that as the messenger but trusted in the wisdom of his horse Felaróf: "`He scents no evil. His heart is high, and his weariness is healed: he strains to be given his head. So be it! For never have I had more need of secrecy and speed.' Then Felaróf sprang forward, and all the host behind followed like a great wind, but in a strange silence, as if their hooves did not beat upon the ground." The host rode on, as fresh and eager as on the morning of their setting-out, during that day and the next (obviously thanks to Galadriel). At dawn of the third day they rose from rest and the mist was gone, and they saw that they were far out in the open lands. A crossing of the river was near and "they had come there at a speed beyond hope". The Éothéod arrived in the nick of time to rescue Gondor's army and defeat their foes (art by JB Casacop). The intervention by Galadriel both saved Gondor and ensured the foundation of Rohan, for in gratitude (and wisdom) the Steward gave Gondor's northern territory to Eorl. There the Éothéod settled, soon known as the Eorlingas or the Rohirrim, and held it until the LotR.
The opening scene is not in the Shire, but rather long ago on the banks of the river Anduin, where Smeagol's people used to live. The reason why the Ring takes hold of Smeagol so quickly is because he was not a nice person to begin with. But anyone who possessed the Ring would eventually succumb to it, it would just take longer for some depending on the person and their character. That is why Frodo is so merciful towards Smeagol, because it is very much a case of 'There but for the Grace of God go I."
I’ve seen these movies so many times and have watched reactions and it doesn’t matter, I get really emotional every time Aragorn says “You bow to no one” every freakin time lol great reaction!
The Ring tends to amplify negative emotions and feelings (Sauron himself preys upon those same emotions, and the Ring is part of him). In the books, Smeagol was already a bit of a creepy little dude, with a knack for larceny and jealous nature, so the Ring quickly took hold of him and amplified those tendencies. To be honest, I can't remember if he and Deagol actually *fought* over the Ring in the books, or if Smeagol just killed him and took it. They weren't actually in the Shire, incidentally. Smeagol and Deagol were not actual Hobbits, but rather "something close," and lived in small villages along the Anduin River, somewhere around the Gladden Fields, if I recall correctly. So the Ring was in the same river where Isildur had been killed by Orcs and the Ring had slipped off his finger.
With Smeagol, the ring had been abandoned since Isildur (Aragorn's ancestor) so it was desperate and hungry to find a new victim, waiting for thousands of years. Probably added to how fast it corrupted Smeagol. On top of that, some beings are more corruptible than others, and Smeagol is just very weak to its influence.
Something very important to remember about the hobbits. Tolkien based them off the people of Oxfordshire at the turn of the last century, he based them on the people he grew up around and lived around.
You are one of the few people in these reaction videos who recognized Merrys effort in bringing down the Witchking of Angmar for as important as it is even without knowing the backstory of the books. "Not by the hand of men will he fall" was the prophecy which the Witchking himself (wrongly) interprated as "no man (noboyd) can kill me". He "fell" on his knees by a Hobbit. And Eowyn killed him. The courage in facing the mightiest of the Nazgul is often overlooked. Very few withstood the terror of his mere presence.
keeping in mind (from the books) that Merry's (and Pippin's) dagger is actually an ancient artifact (found in the Barrows) that could harm the Witch King
The Ring was in the river Boromir died by. Many thousands of years ago, Isildor got ambushed, and put the ring on to turn invisible and tried to escape by swimming. But the ring betrayed him, and slipped off his finger at the critical moment. Visible, he was easy pickings for the orcs.
It took Peter Jackson and Co 438 days to film all three movies. All 3 movies became a masterpiece and box office hit. Before LOTR Jackson was known for low budget films. No one believe he could've pull it off but he did. Everyone involve in this project had a deep passion for this trilogy. The real mvps were the two guys linking chainmail for a whole year. The casting choice was perfect (A lot of them were not Peter's first choice but it was right decision). They even got JRR Tolkien great grandson Royd Tolkien to do a cameo in this movie.
Who were not the first choices? I know they had another Aragorn originally but I don't know about any others. It's weird to think anyone else playing any of the parts really.
Great reactions! In the beginning, Smeagol and Deagol were not in the Shire, nor were they Hobbits. They were a race related to Hobbits and in the land where Isildur died many years before.
When Frodo wakes in the Houses of Healing after he has destroyed the ring, the first thing he sees is Gandalf's face, similar to when he awoke in Rivendell after the Witch King stabbed him. But he also thinks Gandalf is dead. So for a moment there, he likely thinks he has died... It isn't until the rest of the fellowship shows up that he figures it out.
Aragorn's feelings fir Eowyn were always more avuncular. Like a grandfather or uncle. I mean he knew her uncle when he was a child so he looks at her the same way. Eowyn wasn't really in love with Aragorn but more what he represented to her. Adventure, glory and honor in battle.
Smeagol story shows that resistance to the ring is not really a hobbit thing, it's a Bilbo Frodo Sam thing. The ring needs some already innate desire or corruption in the individual to latch onto and exacerbate. Though not as bad as he would become, Smeagol was already a sinister little guy before the ring was found. The books refer to Deagol as a friend, but for some reason he's typically remembered as a cousin. Just saying this to show that well sméagol seem to have a friend, he also already had a reputation of sneaking and spying among his people. With that, and the fact that the ring hadn't had anyone to corrupt for 2,500 years I think led to the perfect storm of pretty much instant corruption.
This, and they are from a group called "The River People" who lived far upstream on the river Anduin, which is the large river that the fellowship travels down in the first movie.
in the caves of the Oathbreakers the King of the Dead was compelled not to kill Aragorn as the True King with the sword of the King as proof of identity. the sword's original name was Narsil, Red & White Flame but when it was reforged Elrond renamed it Anduril, Flame of the West.
The scene that always gives me chills is when Eowyn, Shield Maiden of Rohan, Blood of Kings, steps between her mortally wounded King and the Witch King of Angmar and proclaims "I will KILL YOU if you touch him". Probably the only scene in the whole trilogy that makes the tears swell up is when Eowyn is comforting Theoden as he dies mixed with when Eomer sees Eowyn lying on the field of battle, his cries for his sister just get to me as an older brother.
I agree that Eomer's anguish at finding his sister Eowyn lying apparently dead (when she was not supposed to be there) is my single most emotional moment in the 3 films. It was a shame that that scene did not make the edit, as I had waited for it. Eowyn is in my top tier of heros in LOTR.
When he sees her, Theoden says "I know your face" - the same thing he said when he recognized her after Gandalf broke Saruman's control. That line makes me tear up the most.
The best scene... of the film... and EVEN BETTER in the book... as we did NOT know it was Eowyn until she revealed herself when she said "I AM NO MAN." Tolkien hid her identity behind a helmet and she called herself "Dernhelm." When that moment happened in the book, I jumped for joy. JUST AN EPIC MOMENT among epic moments.
15:48 From memory after giving birth to Faramir Denethor's wife became very weak and died a couple of years later. So, he may blame Faramir somewhat for this. Also, Denethor values might over wisdom; Faramir was quite studious and took after his mother in this way. He even studied with Gandalf and learnt much from him (re: when he says *"... and not some WIZARD's pupil!!"* ). Boromir was more about strength of arms. The movie portrays Denethor as a bigger dick than he was (he was still a dick). For many years he did keep Mordor contained, thwarting Sauron's plans many times. He even wore Chainmail under his robes at all times; so, he was always ready for war! He would use the Palantir (the seeing stone) to look far afield to see what transpired in his lands and spy on Mordor. But Sauron knew of this and subtilty used the Palantir of Minus Ithiel (the spooky green witch-king's castle) to show little things to Denethor than made him more and more depressed about the future of Gondor. So he got worse.
Denethor would have seen Gandalf as being a path for Faramir to meet & befriend Aragorn,paving the way for him to step aside to let him pick up the crown.
Denethor also disliked Aragorn, because when Denethor was a young man, Aragorn (under the name Thorongil) served under Denethor's father Ecthelion. Thorongil made a surprise attack on Umbar (where the corsairs with the black ships came from) and burned their fleet, winning renown from Ecthelion, so Denethor was jealous of him. Some time later as the steward himself, one of the things Denethor learned from using the palantir was Thorongil's true identity of Aragorn--that's how he knew that Gandalf was supporting Aragorn in his desire to become king of Gondor.
He was VERY noble in the books. He wasn’t like this at all in the books. There is far more to it than you even mentioned. And his lineage is also very interesting too. Boromir and Faramir are both half Numenorean thanks to their mother Finduilas who was named after a well known Elven woman long ago of whom was involved with Turin Turambar. (it’s Tuor who’s with Idril and bares the half elven son named Eärendil!)
The ring acts on the bearer differently depending on how good or evil the person was in the beginning. It also grants power on the same principle. According to Tolkien, Smeagol/Gollum was already somewhat of an anti-social person to begin with. The ring amplified that trait. In the movies there isn't anyone who can resist the ring completely though some will last much longer than others. The more power or dominance someone has the greater their fall will be and the more evil they will cause. Smeagol and Deagol weren't in the Shire but much further south. They were distant kin to those known as hobbits.
One of the best scenes in this film is often overlooked--where Gamling says that they don't have enough men to break the siege of Minas Tirith, but Theoden says they'll meet them in battle nonetheless. It is a very Nordic fatalism, as the Norse religion taught of Ragnarok, where even their own gods would die fighting evil. The nobility of sacrificing yourself for the good of those you love is a deep theme in the books.
"I can't tell if Aragorn likes her, or..." I'd say he loves Eowyn. But rather in the manner of a father, who cares dearly, and wants to see the best things happen for her.
Smeagol and Deagol were cousins and best friends. They are near the great River (Anduin), east of the Misty Mountains, and not far from Lothlorien. This area was where Isildur was ambushed and killed by orcs and lost the ring. (seen in the "Fellowship of the Ring" prologue) At that time Hobbits were still wanderers and had only just discovered the Shire and Bree and begun to settle there. There were still clan groups living east of the Misty Mountains in this area (Called the Gladden Fields). The ring seized it's chance (Remember, it had been lost there for 2,000 years at that point, and would spend 500 more years with Smeagol/Gollum) to take Smeagol as it correctly judged Deagol to be the weaker of the pair - a Follower, not a "Leader" (It was Smeagol who decided wjhat they would do each day....)
I always like to think that after 2500 years in a pond the ring just wanted to stir shit up for a quick giggle so made smeagol and deagol fight over it. maybe thats just me
I have a similar thought - that after so long stuck in the Anduin it just wanted to GET MOVING towards Sauron (who was starting to regenerate as The Necromancer), so enhanced its own attractiveness, resulting in the fight.
What amazes me is I, watching your reaction at first, thought you were missing certain points. However, thinking back when I did not know the end myself, I could have(and often did) come to the same conclusions you did in the moment. Conversely there are MANY points where you make observations and predictions, that honestly seem prophetic. The point is, in this story of twists and turns, your foresight has been above the average! However the greatest thing about this story is, none of us could have clearly seen exactly how this story would come to an end before we read it (or in your case watched it). I've seen many amazing reactions to these films... yours is one of the best! Edit: Sam had a long happy life with Rosie, but she sadly passed away many years later. Thereafter Sam having been a "Ring bearer" (remember he held the ring for a short time after Shelob's lair) was invited to the Undying Lands himself and reunited with Frodo.
I'll be watching the trilogy on Christmas Eve. It's been my tradition for a long time now. The better part of 20 years. And after all that time and all those many viewings, it still gets me every time. One of the parts that gets me the most from Return of the King is when Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin finally return home to the Shire and go to the Green Dragon, just like we saw in Fellowship. But it's not the same. They're different. After everything they went through, they weren't the same innocent, carefree kids they were before. Which I'm sure came from Tolkien's experience in World War I, knowing that you can never go back to who you were before. Like Frodo said, there are some things time cannot mend. Some hurts that go too deep. That have taken hold. To me, the LOTR trilogy is without equal. There are many great movies, even phenomenal movies, but LOTR is, and likely always will be, peerless.
I love how Arwen just looks down, not knowing how Aragorn would react to her not leaving, and then he just handle her like A KING! So many details!! LOVE IT
anytime you hear the word "hope" think Aragorn. Tolkien was a massive language nerd so he liked to sprinkle wordplay in his invented languages into the text. as a youth Aragorn was sent to Rivendell to hide away until the time was right. while he lived there he was given a codename to protect his identity. the word they chose was Estel, Elvish for Hope.
"There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach."
Some notes: Frodo has to go to the Undying Lands because he is broken both physically (from the wound made by the morgul blade) and spiritually (from carrying the ring). Sam is also allowed to journey to the Undying Lands to join Frodo as he too was a ring-bearer. He doesn't go until after his children are grown and Rosie had died. When Pippin and Merry eventually die, they are laid to rest in Gondor to be next to Aragorn. Both were great leaders of the Shire before that. Gimli and Legolas continue their friendship and show each other great sights in Middle Earth that each hold dear. Eventually Gimli is allowed to accompany Legolas to the Undying Lands and is the only dwarf to have that honor. Gollum, while a despicable character, is crucial in the destruction of the ring (in the book he actually falls in on his own while celebrating that he has his precious). Tolkien himself stated that no being in Middle Earth could have let the ring be destroyed. The closer it got to Mt. Doom, where it was forged, the stronger it's influence became to the point of being irresistable. It was the ultimate fail-safe for Sauron. While Gollum truly deserved death on so many occasions, had pity not stopped first Bilbo, then Frodo, from giving him that death, the ring would not have been destroyed and evil prevailed. Pity and love are what ultimately triumphed instead of cruelty and malice. As Gandalf predicted, Gollum did indeed have an important part to play.
Thank you for being the first reactor I’ve seen that caught the fact that Merry was instrumental in bringing down the witch king. Honestly your love of the hobbits was touching.
the ruined city spanning the river is Osgiliath, the original capitol city until it was destroyed. & the river is the Anduin. Minas Tirith (Tower of Guarding) was Minas Anor, Tower of the Sun & Minas Morgul (Tower of Black Sorcery) was Minas Ithil, Tower of the Moon.
In the books, Merry doesn't know that it's Eowen till much later, she pretends to be a man named Durnhelm and the captain of that unit knew who she was for real, and he and his men ignored Merry, instead of tattling to Theoden on them it was really cool
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! 🎂 Thank you for sharing this experience with us. It gives us a chance to re-live our first time seeing it, but without the theater and the year-long wait between movies. Loved your reaction to all of the scenes. I hope it helps to know that as a ring bearer, albeit a short time, Sam was allowed to travel to the Grey Havens to join Frodo at the end of his days. You are a lovely lady and earned my subscription with your appreciation of these masterpieces. My Russian Blue cat, named Gandalf, of course enjoyed your reaction as well. Thank you!
Remember the Ring "has a mind of its own." It chose Smeagol because it knew he was vulnerable to its power. The Ring intended for Smeagol to hold on to it until Sauron was ready to take it back. Why did Sauron capture and torture Gollum? Because he was supposed to have the Ring. But remember Galadriel said in the epilogue, "Then something happened the Ring did not intend." The ring was picked up by a Hobbit. There are other forces at work in the world besides the force of evil. The supreme God of the world, Ilúvatar, intervened to have the Ring go away from Sauron's surrogates and be transferred to His surrogates, Bilbo and Frodo. Gandalf made reference to this when he said that Bilbo and Frodo were "meant to have it." The whole plot of LOTR is about the evil forces trying to get the Ring back, and the forces of good trying to destroy it. Long story short, the Ring affected Deagol and Smeagol so quickly because the Ring chose them specifically for their susceptibility to its power.
the tree in the courtyard comes from a fruit of Nimloth the Fair, White Tree of Numenor. when his family fled Numenor Isildur took a few things with him. the 7 Palantiri & a fruit of Nimloth were among them. towards the end of the film Aragorn wears a tunic with the symbol of the Royal House of Gondor emblazoned on it - "7 Stars, 7 Stones & one White Tree." the stars in the verse refers to a constellation called the Sickle of the Valar that symbolized their faithfulness to the Valar & to Eru. incidentally the tunic itself that Aragorn wears was made for him by Arwen in hopes it would be used one day.
Is that detail of Arwen making Aragorn's tunic a behind the scenes from the film makers? In the novel, Arwen made a banner with the White Tree crafted in mithril on it with diamonds as the seven stars.
The seed of Nimloth itself was taken from one of the seedlings of one of the two trees of Valinor--the White Tree of Gondor has as deep a lineage as Aragorn himself.
The thing that Gandalf is hiding is subtle even in the books I believe, but monumental in scope. More than anyone, Gandalf knows from the first moment that there is not the slightest chance in hell that Frodo can destroy the ring. No one could through deliberate action. Gandalf's "fool's hope"is that there is a slight possibility that Frodo can make it to My. Doom, and then...... That's where hope comes in. There are forces other than evil in the world, and they have a way of coming into play when good people do everything that is expected of them.
Well formulated, it always reminds me of the picture with a flow diagram where one box is labeled "big miracle". -> Gandalfs plan: letting the Hobbits sneek into Mordor to mount doom an then "insert miracle here".
Love the reaction. I just wish more people would film themselves watching the credits, as it might be the greatest credits sequence/song ever. The reason is I remember when I saw this at the midnight showing and EVERY SINGLE PERSON stayed until well past this sequence, all crying, all hugging.
"Sauron" is from the elvish language Quenya. Original form of the adjective is "saura" which in English means foul, putrid or evil-smelling. They often talked of smelling rather than sensing when referring to their intuition. (i.e I smell bullshit). He had other names before he turned evil. I think it's cool that he got kind of a mocking nickname. I don't think he himself called himself Lord rotten evil smell.
His name in Sindarin, Gorthaur, means Abhorrent Dread and sounds even more evil. And there is of course Annatar, Lord of Gifts, and the dozen titles he either bestowed on himself or was known by.
@@captaincoolbreeze9429 but I like Sauron more because it's less dreadful. Calling a powerful being Lord Stinky is a good FU even when you believe he will win
It's difficult to remember since so much happened, but when Frodo wakes up in Gondor, he is truly surprised that Gandalf is there because the last time he saw Galdalf was when Gandalf fell into the Abyss with the Balrog.
when Pippin touched the Palantir he was connected with Sauron himself who saw he was a Hobbit & tried interrogating him about the Ring. Pippin became a target for him to be acquired to finish the process. speed was essential to get him to Minas Tirith the capitol city of Gondor. luckily Gandalf had the services of Shadowfax, Lord of the Mearas, a special breed of horses with high intelligence, speed & stamina that made a deal with the ancestors of Rohan. he could carry one Hobbit at top speed but not two.
The opening sequence was originally intended to be in The Two Towers, right after Frodo calls Gollum byhis original name just before the ringwraith flies overhead. There are even two vestigial links, when Gollum says, "Smeagol. Yes, that was our name," in the Dead Marshes, and where he says, "You even forgot your name," at the end of the prologue sequence.
@@robbob5302 I think it does work better there. There's an axiom of modern story telling that advises the avoidance of flashbacks because they interrupt the forward flow of the story, and putting that origin sequence at the opening of the movie avoids that problem.
Regarding the title of the movie: Tolkien did not like the title of the book it represents, given to it by his publishers. (Tolkien wrote LOTR as six "books", but it was printed in three volumes as a "publisher's device" as Tolkien put it). He felt it revealed too much.
A big part that is missing in the movie is, that Denethor (father of Faramir and Boromir) also has one of the Palantirs (seeing stones) and has been feed wrong information by Sauron and Saruman. Some background on the way he is acting.
Smeagol and Deagol were brothers, sort of Cain and Abel here. They lived by a river where Isildur fell and lost the Ring. They were kind of prehistoric Hobbits called Stoors. The ring does affect everyone in this way. But one of the reasons the Ring didn't affect Bilbo as quickly was because he began his ownershuip of the Ring with an act of pity, by not killing Gollum when he had the chance. Gandalf references this when talking to Frodo in Moria. For the full story of that you'll haave read/watch The Hobbit.
Its always nice to see people rewatching this trilogy after the first time watching it. I particularly pay attention to people watching the first one again when gandalf arrives at the shire. Talking about how its so isolated from the world and one of the last true "good" places left. Its not something you will pick up on the first time watching (unless you've already read the book) but its nice to see people realize what he was talking about and why sam/frodo were really the only ones who could have gotten the ring through the journey.
Peter Jackson did an amazing job on this trilogy, no doubt, but he had to leave a lot out of them to make it manageable for the film format. You should react to some of the lore videos from channels like @MiddleEarthLore and @NerdoftheRings to get a deeper appreciation of this incredible story.
I've watched a lot of these reaction videos to LOTR, but you are the first one I've seen that acknowledged the Witch King was killed by no men--rather, a woman, AND a Hobbit. Thanks for acknowledging Merry's role. He and Eowyn killed the Witch King!
there's a bunch of reasons for Denethor's hatred. his wife died in Faramir's childbirth, he saw Faramir as too attached to Gandalf & through him Aragorn, he knew that if he'd sent Faramir to Rivendell then Boromir would be the one to capture Frodo & Sam & bring the Ring to Gondor & finally the Palantir, hotline to Sauron's manipulation for years. together it's a toxic brew.
But then the timeline would be changed. Faramir would likely have resisted the Ring longer so the Fellowship would have continued on together longer changing the whole chain of events where one of the other members of the Fellowship might have succumbed to the power of the Ring first. I'd bet on Merry. I feel the Ring would have used his curiosity against him like in the incident with the Palantir.
"I want amazing cinematic moments with epic music"...and...almost immediately...."The Beacons are Lit!" If you look up Epic in the dictionary it now says "see Lord of the Rings, Return of the King by Peter Jackson". You are right....SO much to unpack in this movie. Oddly one of the key things Peter changed from the books is having Frodo/Sam separate on the journey up the stairs". I LOVE the books...but the tension that change added ramped up the emotion to 11. In the end, the ultimate hero of the film has to be Sam. Everyone needs a Sam. Everyone should strive to BE Sam. Thanks for going on the journey. I wish you many more watchings in the future. These movies are like a fine wine...and only improve with age/viewings. There is a reason Return of the King won best picture and cleaned up an additional 10 oscars that year. If you need to satisfy your curiosity for things Tolkien....check out the RU-vid Channel "Men of the West" (and there are several other good ones too). The Lord of the Rings is but a part of the Tolkien Legendarium. As I'm sure someone will suggest you can also check out The Hobbit movies. I find them very entertaining, but not even close to as good as the LOTRs trilogy. Thanks again for an excellent series of review. Peace
Actually, a reading of the bookswould put Denethor in a slightly better light. His wife died in childbirth when Faramir was born, and use of the palantir stone in Mines Tirith put him under Sauron's influence, which clearly unhinged him.
The ocean Belegaer separated the Undying Lands from the western shores of Middle-earth. Only immortals and ring-bearers were allowed to live in this area. Eventually, Samwise Gamgee, and Gimli along with his great friend Legolas made the final journey to the Undying Lands.
21 years ago, me and 11 of my friends, rented a movie theater, 3 years in a row, in order to watch this trilogy without being in the middle of a noisy crowd. It was definitely worth it. It is a memory that will remain with me until my death.
Next Trilogy The Hobbit Extended Edition Of The Adventures Of Bilbo Baggin: (1) An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition (2) The Desolation Of Smaug Extended Edition (3) The Battle Five Armie Extended Edition
0:30 Hope you had an awesome birthday. 4:00 Yes, this would happen to Frodo eventually if he kept the Ring long enough. The reason it affected Smeagol so much faster is because there was evil in his heart already... the less evil you are, the longer the Ring takes to corrupt you, but if you started out kind of evil already it can start corrupting right away. 6:30 I think he likes her as a friend. There's a connection there, just not the kind of connection she wants. Aragorn's heart belongs to Arwen alone, because Tolkien was a devout Christian and major believer in monogamy. 23:00 It's a bigger, stronger battering ram made from the giant mace wielded by Morgoth (Sauron's boss) in the First Age. The book The Silmarillion (which has not yet been adapted for film or television) tells the tale of the war against Morgoth.
small addition: In the Silmarillion the Lord of the Rings is a "small part" of the story. It covers middle earth from it's beginning until the end of the Lord of the rings.
Tolkien grew up in South Africa, home of many very large spiders which he learned to hate the rest of his life. when he needed a monster to put in the tunnels, a spider was the obvious choice.
I had the miss fortune of watching another young woman react to this trilogy on her boyfriends channel entitled “Girlfriend Hater of Fantasy”. She criticized everything about the movie with such petty and cynical comments. I kept fast forwarding to see if by the third movie she had a changed heart, but no. She hated the whole thing. I love these movies so much … she made me angry and sad. In that context I watched your reaction and it was magnificent and insightful. Thank you so much for restoring my faith in young women. ❤ You may really enjoy reading the books. Absolutely beautiful prose. Tolkien was an Oxford English professor who studied the classics, including Homer’s Odyssey, another hero’s journey. Another influence in Tolkien’s life that is reflected in Lord of the Rings was his experiences in WWI.
3:09 Not the Shire, remember in the beginning of the first movie *"...and the ring betrayed Isildur to his death"* when it slipped off his finger and sank down to the bottom of the river? Sméagol and Déagol werent the most upstanding of the halfling folk. So, they were already a bit Dodgy.
This movie always hits the emotions. No matter how many times I see it, and no matter how many fresh eyes I see it though it always hits the emotions. There are some differences between the books and movies, but some parts are even better. Yes, you are right the "damage" the ring does to the bearer cannot be healed in Middle Earth so only sailing to the Western Lands with the elves can help them. Love the reaction, and always enjoy seeing you experience these movies (and others).
Wasn't it strange that Gandalf seems to have taken Pippin out with him to rescue Faramir and the Osgiliath soldiers? That's because Peter Jackson moved that sequence there from just after Gandalf and Pippin arrive at Minas Tirith.
@@robbob5302 They changed the order of events, that is, Faramir's retreat from Osgiliath, but they couldn't get Pippin out of the video. There are actually a bunch of errors, both intentional and unintentional, that avid LOTR fans have spotted by watching the movies multiple times. But with them all, the movies are still a great piece of storytelling.
Cool. When I first watched this movie it was my birthday as well (18 december). Actually, it was the day after the release of the film (18 december 2003). Holy, 19 years ago, already... Time flies.
the ball is called a Palantir. it's one of 7 that Aragorn's ancestors brought out of the island Kingdom of Numenor shortly before it was destroyed by the Valar. over time most were lost or captured by Sauron. with the the proper training & willpower they can see things far away or communicate with others of its kind.
Belated happy birthday.😍 Love your reaction. And yes, its a rollercoaster of emotions, laughing, hoping, crying. Still most captivating movie of all time. Its a pity your "generation" cant see this on a big cinema screen. Ride of Rohirrim or when "the beacon of Amon Din are lit", it pushes you even more in your seat.
I mean...Gollum was around 529 years old when he fell in Mt. Doom. Meaning he was around 460 when Bilbo took the ring...so he had a loooooong time to get good and basted in evil.
I saw this in theaters when it came out and you could hear everyone crying and sniffling, and you could see it when people were leaving. I think this is the best series of movies ever.
4:00 the Ring/rings of Sauron affect the different races of Middle earth differently; for Men it turned 9 kings into the Nazgul, for Elves it prolonged their habitats/kingdoms and gave them power, with Dwarves it made them more greedy, and hobbits it would appear it slowly corrupts them over time (i.e. Gollum and Bilbo) but seem to have incredible resilience to it for some reason
