Lord of the Rings Trilogy (Extended Versions)

Written 22 August 2005

Warning: This film review reveals some of the plot of the movie.

My favorite movie of all time is the Lord Of The RIngs trilogy extended versions. That's the whole three movies considered as one movie. Why? I loved the book as a youngster in high school. I read this book over thirty times, from cover to cover, each time finding new and more wonderful things. At that time, I could easily answer any trivia question about the story or characters or background without any problems. In fact, I could even tell you many of the lines by each character verbatim.

I didn't expect much from the movies. After all, how many movies do you know of that are even close to the book in any way? I was thrilled to discover the movie was incredible. Awesome. So tremendous that I even dragged Claudia to the first one, one of the rare times when she was able to get out of the apartment.

These movies are dark. They show the triumph of good over evil in spite of the most incredible odds. The complete evil of Sauron (who, by the way, has a master known as Morgoth barely mentioned in the books or movies, who is far, far more powerful) and his nine riders verses the humanity of the humans, the bravery of the hobbits, the strength of the dwarves and the goodness of the Elves. It is a story of betrayals (Saruman the White) and rescues (the king of the eagles rescuing Gandalf from Saruman's tower).

The story helped me get through some rough times in high school and college. I learned the value of true friendship by reading about Sam and Frodo, as well as Merry and Pippin and Legolas and Gimli. These were all friends, beings whom you could count on when the going got rough. I didn't have any friends at this time in my life and I trusted no one. This book gave me some hope that I could, at some point, trust someone at sometime in my life. Perhaps there was a friend out there somewhere for me?

I felt the movie really caught these friendships well. You can practically feel the affinity that Sam and Frodo share. These fine actors portray there parts so well it just comes natural and it's believable. That's true as well of the friendship of Gimli and Legolas. It's a totally different kind of friendship, but just as real.

The movie also captured the heroism of Merry as he stabbed a hugely powerful being, the leader of the Nazgul, in the battle for Minas Tirth. This mere hobbit, a being smaller than many children, aided in the defeat of one of the most powerful beings in middle earth. When I was in high school, this gave me strength. I could stand up to bully's and teachers and others in spite of their apparent power and authority. Even I, a "mere" high school student with virtually no rights, could have an effect on others.

There is love, as the love of Gilmi for Galadrial. You have to see the extended version for this, and read the book for a full understanding, but Gimli falls in love with Galadrial. Now, she's married and he's a dwarf, but there is love. Not a sexual thing at all, but love pure and simple. It's incredible, and it effected me strongly throughout my life. Love is not sex. Love is simply love. When the nine leave Lothlorian, she gives each a gift, and she could not figure out what to give a dwarf so she asks him what he would like. "a single lock of your hair" he answers, and she understands. He treasures that single hair more than you or I would treasure all of the gold in Fort Knox, and he would trade all of the Mithral in Moria for it without a second's hesitation.

The betrayal of Saruman, which came to within a hair's breadth of destroying Middle Earth forever, was brilliantly captured on screen. I especially liked the part where you see that Saruman has taken over the body of the king of the Rohan, Theoden. Now that was an incredible scene: I was in awe as Gandalf forced Saruman out of Theoden's body without killing the old king at the same time.

And the rage of the Tree Ent's as they surveyed the damage done to their forest, their children, by Saruman, was captured so incredibly well that I still marvel at the scene.

One thing that's clear in the book is the power of evil, and one of the most vile, evil characters is the Balrog of Moria. The Balrog is a direct servant of Morgoth, and they are supremely powerful. During the first movie, when the Balrog appeared, my first thought was "yes, I would run". You could feel the evil practically dropping from the screen. Way back in high school, this part of the book impressed me - the way that good, as Gandalf, was able to fight evil, as the Balrog, and actually win. Even to the point where Gandalf is killed (and that is much more clear in the book) and reborn.

The understanding that we make decisions and live by them is probably the most important lesson I gained from these books and the movie. We humans, stuck here on Earth, make our decisions and what we decide is what we get. Saruman decided to betray humanity, and he got his just rewards. Sauron decided to be evil (he could have decided to be good) and he was banished forever and doomed to a dire fate. Even Morgoth, Sauron's master, betrayed Illuvatar (not mentioned at all in the movie) and thus sealed his own doom. Sam decided to be Frodo's friend, and stuck with him until the end. And when Frodo lost his will and gave into the ring, at the very end, Sam had to choose: Frodo or the world? Sam chose the world, and thus saved Frodo from a fate far, far worse than death.

Add to that so many other things: the power and majesty of Aragorn, the strength of the dwarves, the goodness of the Elves, and the pure evil of the Orcs and Trolls, and you've got quite a story. Combine that with some awesome special effects (the huge elephants and the Nazgul) and you've got a movie that maintains interest all the way through.

By the way, be sure and catch the extended versions. They have filled in some of the little gaps and you will gain a much greater understanding of what the story is all about.