I watched the three Lord of the Rings movies in theaters with my two cousins, who are only a year and three years older than me respectively, and whose dad, my uncle and my dad's twin brother, recently passed away in March. The Lord of the Rings movies are sacred to us because of our dads, who were huge fans and showed us the movies growing up, and of course, they had at one point seen them all in theaters. For us, this was our first time seeing them on the big screen, so it was very special, and we all noticed how each movie seemed even better than the last.
We had a lot of laughs watching them in theaters (the humor in the movies was all the more obvious when the entire theater laughs with you!), and we couldn't help but notice that stretched on the big screen the special effects were more noticeable (Frodo running into Mount Doom was the funniest by far). But we still thought they were absolute masterpieces, down to the last nut and acorn, and we loved the atmosphere in the theaters, where people clapped and shouted and gasped and laughed along. We thought it hilarious on the first night when people clapped after Aragorn defeated the orc that killed Boromir, either applauding the fight sequence or the character's actual victory or both, it was hard to tell.
In fact, seeing it in theaters where you can't pause the movie or be easily distracted by a phone or conversation made it all the more obvious how each scene, each line, each song, and even sometimes just a single word or gesture, felt so iconic, and how we wouldn't change any of it for the world. It seems when you rewatch a movie enough times, you learn to love every second of it. I even found myself thinking in jest "I won't part with a ssssingle second" just like Smaug with his gold. They are precious to me!
Of course, we also shed tears, especially in light of my uncle's passing, but I was still surprised how movies that I've watched countless times can still bring me to tears so easily. When Boromir was struck down, or Gandalf fell and the Elves sang a song for him, the sadness was felt poignantly. Or Gandalf's description to Merry of what happens after death, which we listened to as if he were trying to comfort us too. For me, I struggled the most watching Eowyn's uncle's death, her grief too resembling of mine.
But in the end, it was the goodbye of Gandalf and Frodo before they board the ship into the West that moved us the most, especially after the grand, epic finale that is The Return of the King. Even though I knew I would rewatch the movies many more times to come, the goodbye felt more final somehow, as if we were saying goodbye not only to Frodo and Gandalf and Middle-earth, but also to a sacred moment in time where for a brief few days, we felt my uncle's presence near us, and with the end of the films we had to let him go and return to our lives, much like Sam has to, and write the rest of the story ourselves.
This is a beautiful reflection, Zoë. Thank you so much for sharing it with us all! Not all tears are an evil. Some are holy, sacred. You have given us all a gift. So glad this time was a time you could be close with your cousin and feel your uncle's presence. All goodbyes like this after grief are also hellos in a way, because you got to think of and be close to your loved one. But yes, we do eventually have to stop staring after the boat that has sailed away and return to the rest of the stories. Much love.
Zoë, I had watched Fellowship many times since it was on the big screen circa 2000, but all the same I cried three times last weekend. Grief is ennobled too.
haha, that WOULD be a different version of events 😳
I kept accidentally writing it instead of Haldir, so the real surprise is that I only made the mistake once! Thanks for pointing it out: it's updated on the web version
I know that movies give a narrow opportunity for communication, including range of characters, character development, geography, and even music. The focus stays on the "kingdom of the world" and rarely mentions the "kingdom of God." I keep going back to the books and their music.
Jerry, while I will always enjoy parts of the trilogy very much, I agree with you that I keep going back. In fact, seeing the movies this weekend has sharpened my interest and love for the books. If the echo is beautiful, how much more the voice! This world’s stories in turn are an echo too. So many layers here.
Josh, I also saw the fellowship of the ring this weekend. Thanks for pointing that out to me! Sunday was my birthday, precious, so I was crazy and ended up watching all three on Saturday Sunday and Monday. Thank you for your insights here. I would say that the fellowship of the ring ages the best in my opinion... possibly because so much time was put into planning the beginning. Two quick insights that I don’t think I ever saw before: 1) Frodo’s hand rescuing Sam from drowning is a vertical parallel to Sam’s hand rescuing Frodo at Mt. Doom (don’t know how I missed that), and 2) one of the only times that the ring of Barahir is shown is when Aragorn swears at Amon Hen that he wants to protect Frodo. He closes Frodo’s hand over the One Ring. To see the ring of Barahir close up is not an accident; I think this is a nod to the way Barahir protected Finrod in the First Age, resulting in the gift of the ring. In the past the only way I had noticed Aragorn‘s ring being used was to establish that he is the heir of Isildur in the Two Towers.
In the end, I still believe that the trilogy is a pretty good adaptation. But when it comes down to the synergy of plot and characters and setting as Tolkien describes them, FOTR is now my new favorite over ROTK. Have a great week!
It was truly a wonderful experience, seeing these films in the theater. With The Two Towers still to come in a couple weeks! And thank you so much for linking to my post, Substack friend.
My husband and I watched all three in the theater over the weekend and absolutely loved it. We weave LOTR into our life throughout the year. It's a lifestyle; I'm sure you guys get it.
But seeing them in the theater again was immersive. (The movies brought me to the books 20+ years ago.) A powerful and encouraging experience. I kept wanting to write down notes about what was standing out differently to me, but also wanted to just drink it in. So I did.
I keep thinking about a few parts like:
Sir Ian McKellen's delivery of the lines about what comes after death. "...white shores and a far green country under a swift sunrise."
"I do not believe this darkness will endure," spoken by Faramir in ROTK. What a relief to hear. I don't remember if it is in the book, but it echos the lines about Sam seeing the star above Mordor. "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." (I believe there was a post here about these lines too, and I ended up painting a little something based on them.)
"There's nothing wrong with celebrating a simple life." <3
I saw the non-extended version of Fellowship recently for the first time in years. My first thought was, "Wow, this feels just like a shorter version of the extended!" It sounds so obvious, but it really just literally feels like an extended version of the theatrical, and I'm impressed that it doesn't suffer anything for its length (although, thinking about it, Tolkien's works do thrive in length). I was astonished by how equally emotionally paced both were. The only real difference I could find was that after watching the extended for so long, the theatrical felt like a summary version. It used the minimum amount of scenes necessary to get its point across.
I balk at watching the films in the theater because of their runtime, but this post definitely makes it sound like it's worth it.
I haven't rewatched in the theater but I have seen Fellowship many times on video. I personally prefer the theatrical cut as, unlike with the later two installments, the extended doesn't truly add anything all that significant. Lately, I've also been wondering if maybe New Line and Jackson should've tried breaking up the trilogy into something like 5 movies around 2-2.5 hours way back in 2000. They certainly had enough footage for that.
Like, what if Fellowship Part 1 ended right after Gandalf and the Balrog fall and then Part 2 opened with them being found by the elves? I mean, not that I have anything against the elves, but Fellowship kinda peaks with Moria and everything that comes after sags, especially in the Lothlorien scenes. In fact, I recall Jackson himself remarking how the trip to Lothlorien probably wouldn't exist from a traditional screenwriting perspective.
Btw, I think in the Merrin and Pippin shot above they actually were briefly played by children to make the scene more convincing. They certainly look more like little boys in that shot than anywhere else in the movie.
I watched the three Lord of the Rings movies in theaters with my two cousins, who are only a year and three years older than me respectively, and whose dad, my uncle and my dad's twin brother, recently passed away in March. The Lord of the Rings movies are sacred to us because of our dads, who were huge fans and showed us the movies growing up, and of course, they had at one point seen them all in theaters. For us, this was our first time seeing them on the big screen, so it was very special, and we all noticed how each movie seemed even better than the last.
We had a lot of laughs watching them in theaters (the humor in the movies was all the more obvious when the entire theater laughs with you!), and we couldn't help but notice that stretched on the big screen the special effects were more noticeable (Frodo running into Mount Doom was the funniest by far). But we still thought they were absolute masterpieces, down to the last nut and acorn, and we loved the atmosphere in the theaters, where people clapped and shouted and gasped and laughed along. We thought it hilarious on the first night when people clapped after Aragorn defeated the orc that killed Boromir, either applauding the fight sequence or the character's actual victory or both, it was hard to tell.
In fact, seeing it in theaters where you can't pause the movie or be easily distracted by a phone or conversation made it all the more obvious how each scene, each line, each song, and even sometimes just a single word or gesture, felt so iconic, and how we wouldn't change any of it for the world. It seems when you rewatch a movie enough times, you learn to love every second of it. I even found myself thinking in jest "I won't part with a ssssingle second" just like Smaug with his gold. They are precious to me!
Of course, we also shed tears, especially in light of my uncle's passing, but I was still surprised how movies that I've watched countless times can still bring me to tears so easily. When Boromir was struck down, or Gandalf fell and the Elves sang a song for him, the sadness was felt poignantly. Or Gandalf's description to Merry of what happens after death, which we listened to as if he were trying to comfort us too. For me, I struggled the most watching Eowyn's uncle's death, her grief too resembling of mine.
But in the end, it was the goodbye of Gandalf and Frodo before they board the ship into the West that moved us the most, especially after the grand, epic finale that is The Return of the King. Even though I knew I would rewatch the movies many more times to come, the goodbye felt more final somehow, as if we were saying goodbye not only to Frodo and Gandalf and Middle-earth, but also to a sacred moment in time where for a brief few days, we felt my uncle's presence near us, and with the end of the films we had to let him go and return to our lives, much like Sam has to, and write the rest of the story ourselves.
This is a beautiful reflection, Zoë. Thank you so much for sharing it with us all! Not all tears are an evil. Some are holy, sacred. You have given us all a gift. So glad this time was a time you could be close with your cousin and feel your uncle's presence. All goodbyes like this after grief are also hellos in a way, because you got to think of and be close to your loved one. But yes, we do eventually have to stop staring after the boat that has sailed away and return to the rest of the stories. Much love.
Zoë, I had watched Fellowship many times since it was on the big screen circa 2000, but all the same I cried three times last weekend. Grief is ennobled too.
Thank you for sharing this!
And in your post Halbrand needs to be changed to Haldir. 😁
haha, that WOULD be a different version of events 😳
I kept accidentally writing it instead of Haldir, so the real surprise is that I only made the mistake once! Thanks for pointing it out: it's updated on the web version
I know that movies give a narrow opportunity for communication, including range of characters, character development, geography, and even music. The focus stays on the "kingdom of the world" and rarely mentions the "kingdom of God." I keep going back to the books and their music.
Jerry, while I will always enjoy parts of the trilogy very much, I agree with you that I keep going back. In fact, seeing the movies this weekend has sharpened my interest and love for the books. If the echo is beautiful, how much more the voice! This world’s stories in turn are an echo too. So many layers here.
Josh, I also saw the fellowship of the ring this weekend. Thanks for pointing that out to me! Sunday was my birthday, precious, so I was crazy and ended up watching all three on Saturday Sunday and Monday. Thank you for your insights here. I would say that the fellowship of the ring ages the best in my opinion... possibly because so much time was put into planning the beginning. Two quick insights that I don’t think I ever saw before: 1) Frodo’s hand rescuing Sam from drowning is a vertical parallel to Sam’s hand rescuing Frodo at Mt. Doom (don’t know how I missed that), and 2) one of the only times that the ring of Barahir is shown is when Aragorn swears at Amon Hen that he wants to protect Frodo. He closes Frodo’s hand over the One Ring. To see the ring of Barahir close up is not an accident; I think this is a nod to the way Barahir protected Finrod in the First Age, resulting in the gift of the ring. In the past the only way I had noticed Aragorn‘s ring being used was to establish that he is the heir of Isildur in the Two Towers.
In the end, I still believe that the trilogy is a pretty good adaptation. But when it comes down to the synergy of plot and characters and setting as Tolkien describes them, FOTR is now my new favorite over ROTK. Have a great week!
I wish I had the funds to go to the movies. The best I can do is replay my extended edition DVDs. 😢
saw all 12+ hours over 3 days. Feel like I've been on an extended journey & am slow to re-orient to daily life
It was truly a wonderful experience, seeing these films in the theater. With The Two Towers still to come in a couple weeks! And thank you so much for linking to my post, Substack friend.
Are the movies coming back to theaters again this year? I was living abroad while they were in theaters but would LOVE to go again.
there are still a few showings coming up!
https://www.fathomevents.com/series/the-lord-of-the-rings-trilogy/?utm_campaign=The%20Lord%20of%20the%20Rings%20Extended%20Edition
Great to read this post and the comments. :)
My husband and I watched all three in the theater over the weekend and absolutely loved it. We weave LOTR into our life throughout the year. It's a lifestyle; I'm sure you guys get it.
But seeing them in the theater again was immersive. (The movies brought me to the books 20+ years ago.) A powerful and encouraging experience. I kept wanting to write down notes about what was standing out differently to me, but also wanted to just drink it in. So I did.
I keep thinking about a few parts like:
Sir Ian McKellen's delivery of the lines about what comes after death. "...white shores and a far green country under a swift sunrise."
"I do not believe this darkness will endure," spoken by Faramir in ROTK. What a relief to hear. I don't remember if it is in the book, but it echos the lines about Sam seeing the star above Mordor. "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." (I believe there was a post here about these lines too, and I ended up painting a little something based on them.)
"There's nothing wrong with celebrating a simple life." <3
I saw the non-extended version of Fellowship recently for the first time in years. My first thought was, "Wow, this feels just like a shorter version of the extended!" It sounds so obvious, but it really just literally feels like an extended version of the theatrical, and I'm impressed that it doesn't suffer anything for its length (although, thinking about it, Tolkien's works do thrive in length). I was astonished by how equally emotionally paced both were. The only real difference I could find was that after watching the extended for so long, the theatrical felt like a summary version. It used the minimum amount of scenes necessary to get its point across.
I balk at watching the films in the theater because of their runtime, but this post definitely makes it sound like it's worth it.
I haven't rewatched in the theater but I have seen Fellowship many times on video. I personally prefer the theatrical cut as, unlike with the later two installments, the extended doesn't truly add anything all that significant. Lately, I've also been wondering if maybe New Line and Jackson should've tried breaking up the trilogy into something like 5 movies around 2-2.5 hours way back in 2000. They certainly had enough footage for that.
Like, what if Fellowship Part 1 ended right after Gandalf and the Balrog fall and then Part 2 opened with them being found by the elves? I mean, not that I have anything against the elves, but Fellowship kinda peaks with Moria and everything that comes after sags, especially in the Lothlorien scenes. In fact, I recall Jackson himself remarking how the trip to Lothlorien probably wouldn't exist from a traditional screenwriting perspective.
Btw, I think in the Merrin and Pippin shot above they actually were briefly played by children to make the scene more convincing. They certainly look more like little boys in that shot than anywhere else in the movie.