J.R.R. Tolkien's LORD OF THE RINGS

......and it all begins with the Fellowship Of The Rings......then..The Two Towers....and finally... The Return Of The King.

"One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all, and in the Darkness bind them."

The Legend comes to life....

For many years, fans across the world have dreamed of the day when The Lord of the Rings trilogy could be brought to life on the screen. Up until the present time, the technology needed to make film versions of J. R. R. Tolkien’s massive epic novels simply did not exist. Now, with the recent amazing advances in computer technology in the movie industry, it is entirely possible to visually recreate Tolkien’s landscapes, locations, and creatures for the screen. With the proven power of the source material, the limitless possibilities offered by computer technology, and the sheer amount of talent amassed for the project, it is abundantly clear that there has never been a better time than the present to bring these stories to life. And the fact that the studios financing the films are almost assured a wealth of profit from both the movies themselves and promotional tie-ins doesn’t hurt, either.
All evidence points to the fact that Peter Jackson and collaborators are trying to stick as closely as possible to Tolkien’s original storyline in their film adaptation. We do know that the love story between Arwen and Aragorn will be beefed up for dramatic effect, which in turn makes it necessary for the role of Arwen to be expanded as well (though she will not be a member of the Fellowship, as has been rumored). The death of Boromir will be moved from the beginning of The Two Towers to the ending of The Fellowship of the Ring. Sauron’s active involvement will be increased so that he will have more of a presence in the movies, a requirement for the visual impact that is provided by a tangible villain. Reports and some early artwork, however, indicate that the increased presence of Sauron will be an advantage to the film, not a drawback. The character of Rosie will be expanded slightly, in order to allow us to see the origins of her relationship with Sam before his departure from the Shire. There will be several additional changes that will be necessary for the dramatic structure of the films; for example, The Two Towers will intercut back and forth between the adventures of Sam and Frodo and the happenings with the other characters in various locations, instead of being divided down the middle like the structure of the novels. Also, events that were told through flashbacks in the books will have to be told visually in the movies, such as the defeat of Sauron during the Second Age, Isildur’s death, Gollum’s history with the Ring, and Gandalf’s imprisonment by Saruman at Isengard. The important thing to remember is that literature and film are two entirely different mediums of storytelling, and that changes are inevitable and necessary in order to translate the written word properly to the structure and flow of film.
Since there is no possible way to bring every single element of the novels to life in the films, mostly due to time constraints, some aspects and characters that are not crucial to the advancement of the story will have to be left out of the adaptations. Jackson has assured fans that any character removed from the story will be "clean lifts," not merges with other characters. One of the biggest (and most controversial) changes will be the absence of Tom Bombadil, an understandable omission since the first film will have plenty of other characters and plot elements to keep the story going. Jackson has also stated that the journey of the hobbits to Rivendell at the beginning of the novels will be made briefer to tighten up the flow of the story, but not entirely omitted. Early indications also point to the fact that some, but not all, of the songs found in the novels will be used in the films.
The film version is an adaptation of the trilogy, not a literal word-for-word translation, and it will be difficult to achieve a balance that satisfies diehard fans of the trilogy as well as audience members who are not familiar with Tolkien's written word. Jackson said it best in his interview with Ain't It Cool News: "You shouldn't think of these movies as being The Lord of the Rings. The Lord of the Rings is, and always will be, a wonderful book - one of the greatest ever written. Any films will only ever be an interpretation of the book. In this case my interpretation." Many Tolkien purists will need to take these words to heart and see the films with an open mind in order to enjoy them.

For information on working with Weta, the company producing the special effects for the film trilogy, visit their website at http://www.wetafx.co.nz/. It's too late to become an extra in the movies, as filming has already been completed.

So now we await for the Two Towers.....

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