Dakkareth
First Post
... I am speaking of course of Peter Jackson's movies, not of the book. It hardly makes sense otherwise, doesn't it?
It is 4:32am and I just finished watching all three movies in a row, again. This post is about what I realized when I went for a walk between the first and the second part:
The Lord of the Rings movies are to me, what the Star Wars movies are to the generation before me. An integral part of the childhood/growing up experience. Something that has greatly influenced me. Something that is very important to me, which I will remember and hold in great esteem for many years to come. And of course this relationship may seem just as irrational to others as the love of Star Wars may seem.
Of course, the Star Wars phenomenon doesn't encompass a whole generation - it is far from being universal. But it has had a huge impact, this cannot be denied. I do not know, how great the influence of the LotR movies is/will be, but for me at least it certainly holds true. I see a similar thing in my sisters and I imagine there are many more.
I was 15, when FotR appeared in cinemas. I had heard of it half a year before and was the one to drag the family - who had like me read the books before - there. It was a revelation of sorts. I had not believed it possible to make a good movie conversion of LotR. But there it was, in a kind of quality in the execution I'd never seen before. It was, simply said, a fantastic movie. It was, for us, a conversion.
For this I might be stoned here, but I have only read the book once and it didn't do much for me. I read it mostly, because it was referred to everywhere, because everybody said it was good. And indeed, there were great parts, incredible world-building I would call it today, but it didn't particularily inspire me. A nice, if at times longish, read, but no more. I continue to lack the time to do another read, this time in English and including the Silmarillion, but I will do it eventually. Because the movies gave me a vision of Tolkien's works, that I couldn't see when I read it - maybe because I was too young at the time, maybe because it was too deeply hidden between long description and below the surface.
Now the movies ... fantasy that isn't a cheap flick full of stupid costumes, bad tricks, a stupid story and compressed into one and a half hour for the viewer's convenience. Instead, the very opposite of that. Twelve hours may not be 'enough' to capture everything, but it is infinitely better than anything before. I'm not even going to talk about the other technical aspects. In short, I was in love.
Since then we waited for the following parts every year and the special extended DVD after that. It became a fixed part of Christmas. In december, when school winds down, it's time for the Lord of the Rings. We have held on to this in the past two years, after the LotR releases had ended, too - watching the movies together from DVD is a must. And even with me leaving for university now, I expect that when I visit the family on Christmas, we will watch the movies together. It has become part of my life thus. One of my sisters has even become a real 'fan' - wearing a ring-with-chain, attempting to learn elvish at one point, etc. She's quite crazy, which is why she and I get along so well.
Anyway, it's this feeling that made me draw the comparison to Star Wars. I have never felt a connection to THOSE movies and from what I have heard from others, who watch the original movies now, it's similar - no particular impression. The reasons most often cited are, that the then-stellar technology is laughable today and, second, that for us (by which I mean people like me, who are too young to have witnessed it back then or simply haven't seen it for other reasons= Star Wars isn't part of the 'good old days of childhood' experience.
LotR is similar - the technology was utterly fantastic two years ago and still top-notch now, but in 20 years (and probably much earlier) it might be laughed off as antiquated. And, as I already said, it hit me at about the same age today's old SW-fans probably saw Star Wars for the first time. And of course, like any fan I am willing to either dispute or accept almost any perceived flaw, be they intrinsic to the movie or in the translation from the book.
Thus, my hypothesis. Please forgive me, if I'm being incoherent (looking through the post I realize I am, but oh well ...), it's rather late. And of course, it may be old news, but I just realized this today and this being the internet I'm damn well going to post about it
.
I bid you good night,
Dakkareth
It is 4:32am and I just finished watching all three movies in a row, again. This post is about what I realized when I went for a walk between the first and the second part:
The Lord of the Rings movies are to me, what the Star Wars movies are to the generation before me. An integral part of the childhood/growing up experience. Something that has greatly influenced me. Something that is very important to me, which I will remember and hold in great esteem for many years to come. And of course this relationship may seem just as irrational to others as the love of Star Wars may seem.
Of course, the Star Wars phenomenon doesn't encompass a whole generation - it is far from being universal. But it has had a huge impact, this cannot be denied. I do not know, how great the influence of the LotR movies is/will be, but for me at least it certainly holds true. I see a similar thing in my sisters and I imagine there are many more.
I was 15, when FotR appeared in cinemas. I had heard of it half a year before and was the one to drag the family - who had like me read the books before - there. It was a revelation of sorts. I had not believed it possible to make a good movie conversion of LotR. But there it was, in a kind of quality in the execution I'd never seen before. It was, simply said, a fantastic movie. It was, for us, a conversion.
For this I might be stoned here, but I have only read the book once and it didn't do much for me. I read it mostly, because it was referred to everywhere, because everybody said it was good. And indeed, there were great parts, incredible world-building I would call it today, but it didn't particularily inspire me. A nice, if at times longish, read, but no more. I continue to lack the time to do another read, this time in English and including the Silmarillion, but I will do it eventually. Because the movies gave me a vision of Tolkien's works, that I couldn't see when I read it - maybe because I was too young at the time, maybe because it was too deeply hidden between long description and below the surface.
Now the movies ... fantasy that isn't a cheap flick full of stupid costumes, bad tricks, a stupid story and compressed into one and a half hour for the viewer's convenience. Instead, the very opposite of that. Twelve hours may not be 'enough' to capture everything, but it is infinitely better than anything before. I'm not even going to talk about the other technical aspects. In short, I was in love.
Since then we waited for the following parts every year and the special extended DVD after that. It became a fixed part of Christmas. In december, when school winds down, it's time for the Lord of the Rings. We have held on to this in the past two years, after the LotR releases had ended, too - watching the movies together from DVD is a must. And even with me leaving for university now, I expect that when I visit the family on Christmas, we will watch the movies together. It has become part of my life thus. One of my sisters has even become a real 'fan' - wearing a ring-with-chain, attempting to learn elvish at one point, etc. She's quite crazy, which is why she and I get along so well.
Anyway, it's this feeling that made me draw the comparison to Star Wars. I have never felt a connection to THOSE movies and from what I have heard from others, who watch the original movies now, it's similar - no particular impression. The reasons most often cited are, that the then-stellar technology is laughable today and, second, that for us (by which I mean people like me, who are too young to have witnessed it back then or simply haven't seen it for other reasons= Star Wars isn't part of the 'good old days of childhood' experience.
LotR is similar - the technology was utterly fantastic two years ago and still top-notch now, but in 20 years (and probably much earlier) it might be laughed off as antiquated. And, as I already said, it hit me at about the same age today's old SW-fans probably saw Star Wars for the first time. And of course, like any fan I am willing to either dispute or accept almost any perceived flaw, be they intrinsic to the movie or in the translation from the book.
Thus, my hypothesis. Please forgive me, if I'm being incoherent (looking through the post I realize I am, but oh well ...), it's rather late. And of course, it may be old news, but I just realized this today and this being the internet I'm damn well going to post about it
.I bid you good night,
Dakkareth
![:]](http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png "Devious :]")
).
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