FigwitBook Club Moderator & Misty Mountain MonsterPosts: 1966 Send Message |
|
| Minyalhawwen |
|
| Luthien_Telperien |
|
| Nyérëven |
|
| snowystingray |
|
| Eruantalincë |
|
| snowystingray |
|
LinweSingolloMovies & Casting Mod, Resident Hobbit & Frodo's FootstoolPosts: 3292 Send Message |
|
| elvishgal |
|
| Eruantalincë |
|
| Aervir |
|
| drunken_elf |
|
| sarumans_wolf |
|
| Foggy |
|
| Anfauglir |
|
FigwitBook Club Moderator & Misty Mountain MonsterPosts: 1966 Send Message |
 RE: ROTK Sequence by Sequence #13: The Coronation / The Grey Havens
on: May 29, 2004 10:03
|
|
This is really a very beautiful sequence. Not my favourite (that would be 'The Charge of the Rohirrim' and 'Morannon/Cracks of Doom') but definitely one of the reasons why I couldn't wait to see 'The Return of the King' as soon as we got the DVD.
First of all I have to say that I love all the black screens. I was terrified of seeing it end, so while a lot of people found the ending a bit stretched, I simply couldn't get enough of it. Also, the first time I saw it was after the marathon and I was both physically (sitting down for almost 9 hours is not a good idea) and emotionally exhausted, so I cried with almost everything (even Sam kissing Rosie). I can watch it now without going all pathetic, but I still cry so much: when Sam enters Frodo's room, when Arwen giggles, when they all bow to the Hobbits, the scene in the Green Dragon (that is sooo sad), the entire Grey Havens scene and of course the end titles ('Into the West' makes me cry when I'm completely happy and hyper, so imagine what it does to me after sitting through all that pain and misery for three hours  ).
The fluffy mushy Frodo-recovers-from-nasty-adventure scene: you didn't like that, did you?
I don't like the Mushy-Frodo-recovers-and-gets-jumped-on scene. It looked fake.
It starts out with 'Oh... that's not right', then Frodo looks at Gandalf in that cheesy way and next up Gandalf starts doing his much feared 'Happy Santa' imitation.
I could stand Merry and Pippin, they're sort of cute, but Gimli's definitely a psycho and Legolas and Aragorn... *shuts herself up out of fear for the fangirls*
I do adore Sam's look when he enters the room though.
And another thing: the lighting in this scene is very special, sort of a golden honey yellow kind of grading that was done. It reminded me a lot of the light in Rivendell after Frodo awakes there and especially when he sees Merry and Pippin again. I thought that was a nice parallel.
...it went on, and on, and on...
~Luthien_Telperien
Exactly what I was thinking! I was half-expecting Faramir, Éowyn, Éomer and Arwen to come sailing in too after Aragorn appeared – or Boromir, that would have been nice  . It was just too much sugary stuff, and personally I think the mushy stuff was handled much better in other scenes (like the Sam & Frodo bits on Mount Doom).
I asked myself over and over why everyone was surrounding him, but he did not even give a hint to Sam, his true partner in crime, servant and saviour, to enjoy the little bed-party. I still could not find an answer, though...
~ Eruantalincë
Well, I think it's because Sam and Frodo might not be too comfortable around each other? I know it wasn't like that in the book, but the psychology of these characters was altered so drastically that we can't really say what 'should be' and what should not.
Personally, I loved that moment. You can see that Frodo is waiting for Sam, it's in his expression, and Sam looks a bit shy like he's not really sure if he's welcome but he just really wants to check on his master.
It's also a very touching moment because you can sense that something has fundamentally changed between them: the others seem to consider Frodo a real hero, and they're very glad to see he's alright. Sam knows a bit better, he knows what happened and he was there. That must have altered their relationship, even if only for a little while.
I might be way off the mark here, but I liked it.
Did you like the coronation? What did you like about it, what would you have changed...?
Yes I liked it, a lot even. Again, it wasn't like the book so I was sort of lost in these scene – but I think that's a good thing in this case, because when everyone bowed to the Hobbits I was just so moved... I just wanted to find Peter Jackson and hug him.
This movie is clearly the Hobbits', and I am really grateful for that.
But let's begin at the beginning:
- Aragon's crowning: I liked it. He looks chubby and he's grown a bit soft (I have to agree with Eruantalincë that the contrast with the speech at the Black Gate is huge) but I do like this Aragorn a lot better than the book version, so I find that moment when he looks up at Gandalf with a bit of an uncertain look very sweet and very moving.
The speech itself was fine but I didn't like Mortensen's delivery. Perhaps it was meant to look that way, but it looked forced like a school kid citing a poem in front of the classroom. I did adore the song, however strange it was, it was very Tolkien to have a song (in Elvish!) in the middle of a scene. That seemingly pointless moment was really a salute to the good professor, and one I believe he would have appreciated a lot.
- Faramir & Éowyn were great, and they do look wonderful together. It makes me look forward to the Houses of Healing even more! I especially liked that look they share, it's a very sweet and loving look, and Éowyn looks so contented... *sighs* They messed with her character, but at least the outcome's okay, so maybe I'll be able to live with it afterall. As for Éomer, man, I agree with snowystingray: he looks great all clean and stuff. And he FROWNed, man! I actually cheered most of the times that I saw it when he appeared on the screen...
- Elves: they were amazing. They finally looked like I imagined they should: they seemed joyous, young, pleased... I especially adored Arwen's little giggle there, amazing. And her gown was so beautiful, the green was really beautiful. What does bug me though, is the really ugly Elf standing next to Elrond. Yikes! If they had run out of pretty guys to stand around, they could just as well have dressed Sean Bean up as Elf, no one would have noticed . Or Pj...
- Which of course brings me to the highlight of this scene: Hobbits. Hobbits rock. I could watch chubby Aragorn, silly Gimli, flower petals and ugly Elf a thousand times if it would mean seeing those four faces again and again and again... They are both the sweetest and the funniest thing in the entire movie, and so typical: Pippin just looks mighty pleased with himself, Merry seems to be thinking something along the lines of 'Got to remember this one to tell to folks back home', Sam looks totally baffled and a bit embarrassed really, and Frodo... that is one look. Elijah Wood, all the Hobbit actors actually, blew me away in ROTK.
'The Return of the King' is about the battle in the first place, but the entire trilogy is about the four Hobbits: they are the heart and soul of the books, and even if you don't like Hobbits you have to acknowledge that. PJ did with this movie, and this scene was the masterpiece: because without them, no one would be standing there.
Would I have changed something? Yes: I want to see Faramir be turned to Prince of Ithilien. I half expected the marriages wouldn't be in it, so I didn't really miss that, but I do miss some kind of recognition for the last heir of the House of Stewards. I'm hoping the EE will make up for this.
Return to Hobbiton: would you still want to add the Scouring? Wasn't Sam's wedding the cutest thing?
Yes & yes, but what I found most stunning about these scenes was how much older those Hobbits looked! And my, they all look fine in their dashing new outfits! Especially Frodo looked ten times as good when he rode his pony into Hobbiton as in your average Frodo-looks-dirty-but-still-sort-of-nice shot.
I also adored the moment when they're all just sitting inside the Green Dragon, and nothing has changed, no one notices them. No big celebration, no heroes welcome: that's enough to bring a guy down to earth in three seconds. But they've all changed, and you can see it on their faces: no more drunk dancing on the table, no idle talk, no wasting time. I loved the complete silence when they drank their pint, and then Sam walking up to Rosie... it makes me cry everytime, because it's so spot on. It shows as effectively as Tolkiens own lengthy exposé on how Frodo didn't get any recognition, why in the end they couldn't stay there. Only Sam remained in Hobbiton, because in truth he's the only one that wasn't changed through the journey: he became who he already was. But the others are really transformed through their experience, and that shows so beautifully in this scene...
The Grey Havens: were they as you expected? Did you miss something or someone? Did you cry (yes you did!)?
Of course I did. I'm a big cry-baby . The worst moments, for me, are when Gandalf says 'I will not say 'Do not cry', for not all tears are an evil' and Sam looks up to him and you can see that he understands, he really does; when Frodo hugs Sam and gives him that kiss on his forehead and (this absolutely breaks my heart) when he's standing on the ship and you get that last shot of Frodo Baggins, and he gives you that breathtaking smile, but at the same time it's also a very sad smile.
I missed Círdan saying something or doing something (though I hadn't really expected that), but what bugged me most was that their was no closure for Legolas or Gimli. That was weird.
But the Grey Havens themselves were really beautiful, and that shot of the ships leaving always reminds me of this illustration, it's just perfect.
Although I don't like Sam, I liked the end. It was the perfect end, because it was Tolkien's end.
- Did you like the credits? Which one did you like best?
I absolutely adored the credits! Awesome! I agree with Luthien_Telperien, some of the non-actor drawings were funny but also amazingly beautiful (I have to add).
My personally favorites are...
1) 
This one is my favorite: the only Tolkien drawing in my book, and a symbol of the rich mythology that's ever in the background when you're reading LOTR.
2) 
This shouldn't be a surprise . I was mighty pleased to see him, so he got a big applaus, and not just from me
3) 
I adore this one because it has the book. It's a logical choice, but somehow it really moved me.
4) 
:love:
5) 
Great one, this one, very beautiful... I like the look on her face, so cold and sad, combined with the drawing of her helm.
|
|
| NienorLalaith |
|
| Navalina |
|
| luthienkenobi |
|
| Rilain |
|
Author
! B.t.w. I asked myself over and over why everyone was surrounding him, but he did not even give a hint to Sam, his true partner in crime, servant and saviour, to enjoy the little bed-party. I still could not find an answer, though...
. I would like to see Frodo get out of bed, look to Minas Tirith while it was build up again. That would have make sense, explain why he was out of bed at the time of the coronation. It was a nice scene, but way too long. 
