Review of extended scenes in Two Towers (spoilers)

[Shadowdancer]

The Legolas-horse jump. In the appendices, they talk about how they'd worked on an actual move for Orlando to try. Come time to shoot the scene, he had a cracked rib from a fall and couldn't do it, so they went CGI. The WORST special effect in the movie -either version- IMO. Think about this while watching it: Legolas is standing on the horse's right, facing the animal. He grabs the harnass with his right hand and swings IN FRONT OF THE GALLOPING HORSE onto its back from the OPPOSITE side. This means elf-boy has got to wrench himself around FROM A DEAD STANDSTILL to the far side of the horse; basically using just his wrist. He would have bounced against the right flank of the horse like a saddlebag. It would have looked more realistic and less obviously CGI to simply have him mount from the side he was already on.

I'm glad to see I'm not the only person who feels that way. The first time I saw the horse-mounting in the theater, I winced it looked so bad. Every time I've seen it since, I wince again. It is just horrible. After all the excellent work done in other places, to have them actually put that crappy effect in the movie -- what were they thinking?

I think the reason the Arwen flashback stuff seems shorter, or at least less annoying, is that it comes at a different point in the movie in the extended version, and makes more sense coming at the point where it does. I'm going to have to go back and watch both versions again to compare them more closely.

And I'd take Miranda Otto over Liv Tyler any day.

 

[Vocenoctum]

Ick. Ack. Yuck. I think Jackson was going for too many forced "moments" in The Two Towers, to the point that it weighed on the movie.

That's how I felt with parts of Fellowship. In the theater they're not bad, but in teh DVD I just FFed.

And if Pippin hadn't figure out by now why fighting Sauron was necessary....I mean, c'mon. Silly, silly, silly and all so Merry could have a dramatic moment. Blech.

Hey, leave the little pot head alone. He has no long term memory!

 

[WanderingMonster]

I'm glad to see I'm not the only person who feels that way. The first time I saw the horse-mounting in the theater, I winced it looked so bad.

You need to be more selective about the theaters you go to. At least make sure the mares are segregated from the stallions.

And I'd take Miranda Otto over Liv Tyler any day.

After TT, I's have to say that statement summarizes many of my recent fantasies.

 

[The Fool]

Yes Baby!

And I'd take Miranda Otto over Liv Tyler any day.

I swooooooon over Ms Otto every time i watch her

All the Eowyn stuff is wonderful, cant wait for ROTK!


The Fool

 

[kengar]

I think the reason the Arwen flashback stuff seems shorter, or at least less annoying, is that it comes at a different point in the movie in the extended version, and makes more sense coming at the point where it does. I'm going to have to go back and watch both versions again to compare them more closely.

And I'd take Miranda Otto over Liv Tyler any day.

I liked that some of the flashback stuff with Arwen came with Aragorn just sitting and pondering. IIRC, that was after the "stew" scene, wasn't it? It made sense that he was thinking of Arwen after that exhange with Eowyn. It helped to build the idea of Eowyn starting to fall for Aragorn and I liked the concept of him thinking that -if Arwen were gone to the West- maybe life with Eowyn wouldn't be a bad thing.

The Arwen stuff was less jarring when it wasn't piled on top of the goofy river scene, IMO.

Miranda v. Liv? Wow, that's a toughie. I think I'd go with Miranda, but I would have to date them both a few times to really be able to decide. (I sure hope my wife doesn't read this post! )


PS- I'm glad they touched on the fact that Aragorn is in his eighties. Though that doesn't change the fact that Arwen is a complete cradle-robber (she's 1600-ish. )

PPS- Chime in here, ladies. If guys are pondering Liv v. Miranda, I guess the equivalent in the male cast is Viggo v. Orlando. I know my wife is firmly in the Viggo camp, but I saw plenty of she-folk in the theater during TTT shrieking like bobby-soxers over Orlando.

 

[Storm Raven]

The one that still irks me is the Aragorn disappearance scene. Their explanation: "well, we considered cutting it, but if we did, then the whole warg scene would have been pointless"

Even with the Aragorn disappearance scene, the warg scene was pointless. Both should have been cut.

 

[kengar]

Even with the Aragorn disappearance scene, the warg scene was pointless. Both should have been cut.

The warg scene was fun, a bit mindless, but fun. I didn't really mind that it wasn't in the books. Aragorn dropping into the river was to help mix up the pacing a bit and to further develop Eowyn's feelings for him.

In the book, Theoden is riding for the border to bolster the defenses. He meets some men retreating fromt he onslaught of the orcs and they realize they have to regroup at Helm's Deep. Aragorn seeing the Uruks' approaching as he rides to catch up to his friends works well enough for this purpose, I suppose.

I didn't like the scene overall, but I if it HAD to be there, just have him fall into the river, then show him wash up onto the bank to be found by Brego. Just skip all the Arwen stuff, including the kiss.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

The Legolas mounting the horse scene nearly blew the roof off the theater I was in when I saw it at the theater. Everyone just went nuts at that moment, clapping and cheering. I liked it. If I can accept that an immortal elf is so graceful that he walks on TOP of snow I can accept him being able to do that. Now the sledding down the steps thing is another story....

 

[TiQuinn]

Even with the Aragorn disappearance scene, the warg scene was pointless. Both should have been cut.

I can understand why the scene was included. Not much was happening at that point in the movie, and it needed a little bit of a kick. Plus it also allows Aragorn to leave the main group for a little while and be able to come back with reports of Saruman's army.

 

[kengar]

The Legolas mounting the horse scene nearly blew the roof off the theater I was in when I saw it at the theater. Everyone just went nuts at that moment, clapping and cheering. I liked it. If I can accept that an immortal elf is so graceful that he walks on TOP of snow I can accept him being able to do that. Now the sledding down the steps thing is another story....

It wasn't that Legolas could jump on a galloping horse that bugged me, there are circus performers, etc. that can do that in real life. It was that he defied physics by swinging all the way around the horse while dangling from the harnass. Just have him mount the side of the horse he was already on and I would have been shouting "WHOA! Cool!" like everyone else.