CLARIFICATION: when I accuse capitalism of being a big reason behind the failure of modern Star Wars, I am of course not implying that other studios and franchises do not also care greatly about revenue, nor am I trying to make some political statement. however, you have to admit there is a HUGE difference between the strategies employed by modern Disney, with their endless conveyor belt of rushed, low-quality CONTENT and who are not even TRYING to hide their greed these days... and the people behind the original LOTR trilogy who, yes, cared about money, but who also clearly wanted to make something good. but apologies, I don't really convey this well in the video lmaoo.
I'm glad you added this, because capitalism begets freedom. It is greed that takes away freedom. They are not the same thing. When actual value is in a product and you're not paying too much for that good, it is a win for both consumers.
@@JeremiahWdabullfrog "The love of money is the root of all evil." Lots of people try to lop off the first three words and pretend they haven't completely changed what is being said.
Can you please stop blaming capitalism of all things??? You seriously think the state would do a better job of making a film production?! What are you going to do? “Regulate” the vision of writers??? At least money gives you an incentive to compete for quality, particularly when you make it on your own rather than because the state decides it’s going to tempt you into political correctness. Capitalism is not the issue here. The reason the quality of film has been declining is because the quality of our culture has been declining, so much so that we havent accomplished anything important since the Gulf War. Tolkien is a DOG OF WAR(WW1 specifically) who, btw, happens to be religious and spiritual! Where did those things in our culture go?! In hollywood, it’s GONE! They barely even mentioned his commitment to Catholicism in Tolkien’s bio movie. We’re complacent, naive, ignorant, lacking in will, and lacking moral clarity. All of these things affect the literary world as well as the film industry.
@@thecozykinoshow i am surprised you didn't mention that source material might be one of reasons for why it was successful. you need good book to show a good movie. I wonder if they'll ever make a first age and second age movie. It will be tough to beat third age movies but perhaps someone with figure it out.
@@dodang_9147 not necessarily. it just needs to be respectful and well thought out. but those two things are just very incompatible with today's market of fast and cheap. rather than going slow and taking your time. the terminator was never a book and its still a very critically acclaimed movie, and the second one is arguably the best sequel to an original film ever. The people at the top have become so obsessed with money that they won't take risks anymore, and instead take the stale boring or preachy stance to try to make a quick buck instead of having faith in people to tell a fun unbiased story. It also doesn't help that so many people don't take criticism anymore and try to learn from their mistakes in today's age. People need to remember that it's not a bad thing to fail. If anything failure is necessary for growth...which is another thing that tlotr teaches too ironically. fail and grow, learn to accomplish the impossible with your friends and companions and overcome your shortcomings.
@@thecozykinoshowI feel sad that almost many newer fantasy series are imitating ASOIAF/Game of Thrones and the Witcher rather than Tolkien's works. I understand the appeal of more cynical, realistic and complex story-telling and settings but I just feel as though Tolkien's stories are not appreciated enough On the side of high-fantasy Tolkien's Middle Earth just feels very special and mythical compared to other high fantasy series which tends to rely a lot on over the top spectacle rather substance.
It has been several times. The production and scale of those movies was groundbreaking, but when it comes to story and characters it’s nothing special. Prime GoT laps LOTR with ease.
I recently read The Hobbit & all 3 LOTR books. I played Howard Shore’s score for the films in the background as I read the book & it made the reading far more engaging, especially when the music matches up to the content im reading
Yes. Though Dune is a technically accomplished piece of filmmaking, it lacks the heart and soul that made LOTR so great. Also, Peter Jackson’s camera work is much more dynamic vs Villenueve’s restrained shots imho
@@mahirakhtar8969 there are few a bit emotional scenes - like the death of father of Paul, and the death of his teacher (Jason Momoa) but realy after watching twice both parts of Dune I can not tell that I was realy smacked emotionaly and that I feel the tragedy and struggle of Paul, yea I can understand intelectualy that he has chosen to fight against the empire to help the planet to be again green and its good, but at the same time I know he is this kind of hero who in time become just another imperator, and also he is just a puppet of those ladies ("witches", "jedi", temple, religon - whatever) so that does not seem totaly ok for me, and maybe thats why I can not stick by his side so much as it was in the case of other heroes. :) He is not Frodo, Luke not even Jon Snow or Anakin. He is already "Game of Thrones" faviourite political faction to achieve the throne :D Its obvious that he will win, so its already boring :D
Practical effects!! The orcs were stunt men in prosthetics, Viggo is on record as saying they scared him when filming, because they looked like they wanted to kill him. You don't get the genuine reactions when orcs are in green body suits to be CGI'd in later. And things like the orcs banging spears before the fight of helms deep came about because the stunt men were bored between takes, so they were singing and dancing. One of them started banging their spear to the rhythm which producers saw and turned into the orcs banging them when they show up. Everything being CGI and green screens loses that organic realistic feeling
True, and in time I hope to see this get addressed or a workflow be introduced to help solve the problem. I think practical effects myself is still the absolute best, but it also comes at a cost. And I am not talking price (though that is a factor). Actor's Age. We Age. Part of the reason Lord of the Rings has worked so well is because it was a one and done deal that didn't need or leave room for an obvious sequel with the same cast. But take something like...Star Wars for example. And in this example more specifically, the Clone Wars. Aside from taking longer to make in Live Action, this is a six season series that is only supposed to cover 3 literal years. Now, it is a small example because like, your cast aging three extra years is nothing really. Sorry, four extra. It is seven seasons not six. Anyway... this can sometimes be obvious. It is one of the few reasons why Haden coming back in Obi-One and Asoka were both difficult. He has aged. It is harder to de-age someone VS pull up references for animation. There are plenty of projects that "could' have been as good as The Lord of the Rings but could not afford to deal with the uncontrolable problems natural aging causes when you are running a long project. I personally would love to do Live Action Practical effects for my own work but I can't. The overall story is going to take a minimum of 20 years to produce and several key characters do not age across this period. Much, much harder to work with in Live Action. Almost impossible. I could consider using CGI on just those characters and elements as they come up... but then I run the risk of very obvious issues of them not blending well with the Live Action. I get where you are coming from, but CGI was not made for the sake of cheep cheep heartless productions. There are pros and cons to Practical Effects. Just as there are Pros and Cons to CGI
The LotR trilogy includes a huge amount of CGI, it's just not used to the excessive amount that most modern movies do. The Balrog, the Fell Beasts, most of the wide army shots, and even Gollum are completely reliant upon CGI to work. However, it's used _when it needs to be,_ and the CG artists were given enough time to properly put their shots together. Practical Effects are important, but they aren't what make a movie *great.* They're the seasoning, and a great one at that, but they aren't the meat itself.
Also that same scene the sound is literally 20000 (or 30k I forget) cricket fans yelling and cheering. Jackson just went to a game and asked them to cheer for him.
And y'know why everything is CGI these days? It's because VFX is the only part of the film industry that isn't unionized across the board, which makes it cheaper for studios to make them do everything instead of only that which is appropriate to be done with VFX.
@@christopherpoet458not sure what human aging has to do with practical effects, or LoTR for that matter. All the practicals were made in 2 years of pre production and a bit less than 1 year of filming. There was no visible aging on screen because they didn’t age, all three movies were filmed at the same time. This problem definitely came up in the Hobbit, but those movies were awful for a myriad of reasons and that wasn’t really one of them.
I love that 20+ years later whenever I’m trying to think of who my favorite villain, favorite protagonist, or what my favorite scene is, in a movie, I have to first think: other than the lord of the rings.
Totally get it 😅 when I think of my favorite movie I exclude the lord of the rings. First of all because it is simply more than a movie trilogy to me and second if I didn’t my list would never change.
@@jakerudolph7937 it’s almost like a process of elimination lol like “oh my favorite movie score has to be interstellar… assuming we’re not counting LotR.”
Vry true. The 3 films themselves have uncountable scenes which can take the crown for being the best lol- Gandalf at helms deep, ride of rohirrim,i can carry you, sauron's defeat, you shall not pass, i am no man, for frodo, you bow to no one etc etc lmao. Other films cant even come close.
20 years later and The Lord of the Rings still remains absolute. The 2000’s were best times for skilled movie creation. From Pirates of the Caribbean to Harry Potter. Even Gladiator to Troy. Though nothing will beat Peter Jacksons sheer dedication to his craft and commitment in telling JRR Tolkiens tales.
@@vandalayindustries3057 Absolutely mate, why bother in this disastrous climate of modern day films. As a writer , hoping to be published one day in Epic Fantasy. You need to give the gift of relevancy onto creating stories contriving within Moral, heart and common sense. I absolutely agree with you my friend. Older films to about 2015 were still pretty well made. After that, everything drastically imploded in utter calamity.
@@vandalayindustries30572000s movies were all about terrorism. The dark Knight is a heavily political film. Most of the films in the 2000s were about not trusting the government. The reason movies are woke is because now the biggest problem is weeding out all the racist like you
@@vandalayindustries3057 It's not just the films though but everything around us. At the end of the day, those great films came to be because of people willing to go the extra mile at their job. However, this really isn't the case anymore because we know that the end goal has nothing to do with offering a great product/service and everything to do with getting the most money out of it, regardless of the quality.
@@titanscerwwhat? He was on a mission because he was going to do two films but Miramax wanted one. I forget the guys name from New Line, but at the end of Jackson’s pitch he asked “why isn’t this three films?” I need to go research his name again, but that man is a saint.
I remember seeing an interview where Bernard Hill said that the armour he wore even had the proper pattern engraved on the leather INSIDE IT, saying "I know no one will ever see that but it makes me feel like a king when I put it on, but yeah" he trails off. I think that's what made Lord of the Rings so great, was the goddamned stars aligned for them, the perfect time, perfect place, perfect people, who all shared a vision and brought a hundred and ten percent to their work, but weren't blinded by their goals.
Blame the studio, Del Toro dropped out and the execs gave Jackson a fraction of the time to prepare for the Hobbit trilogy. Had those films delayed production a year, maybe two I think we would have had much different films. Although I do enjoy them for what they are, LOTR is cinematic perfection.
I think what most people gloss over is that Peter Jackson as a director had focused pretty much entirely on horror films and/or character driven stories up until he ended up directing lotr, and it really shows especially in fellowship. You see all his strengths in the first film especially, Peter Jackson turned a fantastical adventure into a very grounded thriller with most of the focus being on the powerlessness and lack of agency in the individual, perfectly capturing the theme of the trilogy and the one ring itself and what it represents. There’s a real triumph felt seeing these characters, pulled by forces beyond their control, come together to overcome what feels like a predetermined doom.
@@asmith1022 It definitely feels like it in some of the shots, even innocent ones, like Farmer Maggot's scythe approaching over the crops in the beginning. Heck, Gandalf snapping Bilbo out of his paranoia gave me chills the first time I watched it.
If you’re ever sad, think of this. Humans have existed for of 300,000 years. Just be thankful you were here to experience these movies. That is an encouraging thought.
I saw Extended LOTR in the cinema last weekend as well. Twenty years after the first time I watched those movies, over 12h in the cinema and hell, I wasn't bored for a single moment. It doesn't matter I know most of the lines by heart. Those movies sure kept the ring, they have not aged despite the tech progress we've had since then. Also I noticed one more thing - 20 years of exposure to memes and jokes concerning those movies or using scenes from them does not affect me when I watch LoTR. Yes, I may smile here and there when I remember a meme, but that's all. All of that doesn't ruin the experience of watching. Not to mention that the screenings were fully booked
It's because everything in this movie stands out, from breathtaking cinematics, epic music, paintakingly accurate costumes, beautiful location models to outstanding acting of almost all of the cast. everything shines out (let's forget some flaws and a few cringeworthy scenes)
They really are just THAT good. Chokes you up thinking about the care that went into them not knowing whether or not they would turn out good or people would even like them. But here we are, over 20 years later reminding ourselves. These movies are some of the best cinema ever created, they will always be remembered.
These Books, and movies literally changed my life. The soundtrack accompanying me in each stage of my life, now is inextricably linked in my head to Tolkien's world, and even to my grandfather's death . LOTR inspired my lone travel to Middle Earth (New Zealand) and this restless feeling of longing ...for idyllic, ultimate place I know I came from....
I feel like many things you watch as a kid don't hold up when you rewatch them as an adult. They are often nowhere near as good as you remembered or, at best, just as good. However, with LOTR, the older I get, the better it gets. The more I understand and can relate to the characters, the themes, and the love and effort put into every frame. Then you look at what's being produced today and realize that it could only have been made exactly when it was and I'm so grateful for that.
yeah, even arguably better if you delve more into the lore. while ofc the change would annoyed you a bit but some references from the lore make it even more immersive.
The Witcher series is a testament on "I am more important than the source material" from a director. Jackson, like you said, didn't want to crowbar his own politics and views into Lotr and just his love for the world Tolkien made. While the director and most of the crew (Cavill excluded) didn't even like the books or its author.
and this is so sad, as Sapkowski's books are the most heartfelt and touching (to the point of crying over the book - that only happened to me one other time: with Tolkien) stories I've ever read, touching on so many aspects of the universal condition of man. So sad to see it demolished. Let's hope the Witcher gets a second chance someday.
Talking about Witcher, it's truly extraordinarily funny. Cavill is a nerd. Cavill is a huge fan of the original materials (including books and games). Cavill is a great actor and serious with his craft and projects. And Cavill is the sole A-list megastar who should be a dream cast you would ever want in a streaming production (to be honest, maybe the biggest star ever for a streaming production). In fan's eyes, Cavill IS the Witcher. But Cavill was treated like the third guy in his show, after two actresses who I don't even care to know (politic correctness, of course). Writers, directors and producers didn't care to listen to Cavill at all about the show, and Cavill was like the only one who actually know anything about the source materials. They even didn't mind to kill off THE WITCHER in the show of THE WITCHER. They just let Cavill walk out. These people who made the show were way more arrogant than the meaning of the word "arrogant" itself.
@@hksalsatom I don’t think they went out of their way to maliciously undermine Cavill or The Witcher; they just didn’t care and wanted to profit off of a popular brand - that’s all it is to them, a job. Sapkowski didn’t either really, after he was paid.
LotR was the peak of blockbuster cinema. They had the best score, groundbreaking CGI, some of the best practical effects we've ever seen, and the actors and entire cast put their heart and soul into the project, not for glory or fame (though these things certainly followed) but to do such a timeless story justice and make the best movie they possibly could. Everyone believed in it, worked around the clock for years, production seemed impossible, but they pulled it off. Along the way forming life long friendships, kicking off careers and creating a classic peice of cinema the likes of which we may never see again. LotR is my favorite story to read, period, and the fact that the movies are a gold standard for the medium of cinema as well is a fitting homage and a welcome addition to the lore and legacy of Tolkien's work. Universally loved, rewatched and appreciated for decades after and still to come.
13:00 Howard Shore's soundtrack is canonical for me. It's Lord of the Rings as much as the books. I consider games or new adaptations inconceivable without at least mentioning these songs.
I love how you spent more time discussing Howard Shore’s contribution to these films! I think the music makes up 50% of the entire LOTR experience. Though I can’t watch the movies as much as I want, the music is something I can bring with me all the time. Just listening to the complete score makes you re-live the experience, the emotions and all. It’s really just a bonus that the music and the visuals are inseparable. I can’t watch an LOTR footage with someone else’s music and vice versa. Truly a lightning a bottle!
As someone who first read the books 60 years ago, I dreaded, hoped and prayed that the films wouldn't be laughable or cringey. That was how low by bar was for the adaptation of books I had read multiple times. How wrong was I! The obvious care the filmmakers and actors and well, just everyone, did to make this magnificent trilogy is staggering. It was like finding an oasis in a vast desert. And if I were forced to name one as my favorite it would be the first one, The Fellowship. I know it doesn't have the great battle scenes and conflicts of the other two, but it did something even more challenging, building an entire world and condensing thousands of years of lore into a package that the non-Tolkien readers could digest, understand and buy into. Truly some very intelligent and thoughtful filmmaking.
@@luisuco17 72, 73 in March. Read The Two Towers first simply because I didn't know such a thing as a trilogy existed. How the world has changed since then with all the extended fantasy series we have today.
As someone who first read the books in the 70s, I agree with you on the dread! I had always thought that magnificent movies could be made from the books, but I didn't think anyone would put the money towards it. And I also grew up with the various animated attempts to tackle the materials. As nostalgically fond as we might be of the Rankin Bass Hobbit... none of those animated attempts were *great*, and some truly were just cringeworthy. It was hard, when you believed in the books so much, to see adaptations fall so short. I also just wanted to say, I'm with you -- Fellowship remains my favorite, if I have to name one. The way it sets the scene, brings the world to life, and establishes the characters always really hits me, from the very first moment I hear the Shire's theme.
I remember when The Return of The King was released and watched whole trilogy in the theatre with my family and friends. It finished at 6 in the morning. Ahhh one of my fond memories being excited about Lord of The Rings and sharing that time with the ones I love.
Was that the Trilogy Tuesday, or a different showing? I went to a premiere of ROTK that started with the extended Fellowship, then the extended Two Towers, and then the premiere of ROTK (by necessity, then, the theatrical cut). I don't THINK we got out at 6am, though? But we did get out VERY late, in the wee hours of the morning. I remember distinctly, as I was the one who drove, and the theater we'd gotten tickets at was an hour's drive from where we all lived. Still, completely magical experience; the energy of the audience was tremendous!
They’re reshowing The Trilogy because they’re starving & desperately trying to fill seats & Hollywood isn’t producing anything to help with that, so showing older films that people actually want to see is definitely a move they should make.
@@ДмитрийДмитриев-г7н1и "desperately trying to fill seats & Hollywood isn’t producing anything to help with that" Inside Out 2 has a good chance of becoming one of the top 10 highest grossing movies of all time.
It's so true what you said about sincerity. I remember watching all the MCU-movies and really enjoying them at first, but as they went on, I began to feel the lack of sincerity more and more. Instead of cashing in on how invested fans were in the characters by following up with great stories, Marvel instead just made me feel stupid for caring about the world and the characters by constantly making fun of and ridiculing everything. It really ruined the whole saga for me, and wasted what I considered a huge potential for excellent storytelling.
It was Ragnarok for me that did it. Sure the 1st Thor had it's issues, but it was authentic, it was sincere. Once I watched the 3rd and then the 2nd guardians, I realized I was watching a world that did not care about its own story.
@@landonmonday8920I enjoyed Ragnarok but I also realized that this movie was the main start of the cringy quips, dumb dialogue and forced humor that is now the MCU. It wasn’t over the top but it opened a door to the over the top stuff happening now.
I watched the extended edition at the cinema last week, and apart from being blown away again, I was also just angry that The Rings of Garbage is being made. You are so right about respect for the books. ROP only respects the chance to make money, and it's so clear.
12:14 and then when the Rohirrim come up over the hill, Theoden gives a rousing speech as the orchestral version of the Rohan Theme swells… into the charge, where the single violin plays as Theoden rides to his Doom against the ranks of Mordor
Last charge of the Rohirrim. God damn did they nail that scene haRd. When they start shouting "DEATH" i felt it to the core of my being first time watching and it immediately hit me "oh shit these men are gonna charge in to die".
Pippin's joke to me goes even deeper, it communicates to the audience that he is willing to throw himself into any adventure for his friends, without even knowing what he is about to face, this speaks exactly to the kind of character Pippin is. As Mr Plinkett would tell us "You may not have noticed, but your brain did"
I took off of work for the opening day of each of the movies so I could see the first showing at 1100am, they are still the best action movies ever made in my opinion.
That’s his opinion, although there’s still points where the film leaves you wondering why a Hobbit stabbing the Witch King in the foot would kill him when he’s supposedly impervious. The answer is that the short sword was from Tom Bombadil and enchanted. But I feel it’s still alright with missing scenes like that one
Excellent video, you really nailed just why the trilogy came together so well! Moreover, to add to your point of sincerity, the trilogy was a beacon of hopefulness and virtues of courage, honesty and friendship in an increasingly uncertain time. And while our own world has become more divided and volatile, this story’s themes and morals are all the more pertinent.
I have listened to the score of these movies every day since I first saw them in 2005. I've watched the movies 3 times a year ever since. I'm pursuing a career in filmmaking myself, and these movies are ALWAYS a reminder for me what true passion is. These movies were pure lightning in a bottle, and I really believe that they never will me topped. I'm so greatful that these movies exist, and I will cherish them forever.
JRR Tolkien was an on fire Catholic given gifts to share the Good News through storytelling. This is what he did, and that’s why this resonates so well with people.
First read the Lord of the Rings (LOTR) in 1965 when I was 13, and re-read the books many times. When I was young there were sections which I would skip, as they seemed to slow the story too much. Later on some of those chapters became cherished favorites. As it was with the books, so it has become with these fine films. After the surprise and delight of the first viewing, there are rewards to be had in savoring newly noticed details of the rich production. Much could be said about Professor Tolkien’s writing methodology. What is now regarded as Professor Tolkien’s pioneering method of fictional world building was criticized as cumbersome departures from the proper way to structure novels. It might be that some of deep, detailed, often stoically restrained but ever present emotion in the story stems the long dark period during which Professor Tolkien worked on the story. Led by the director Peter Jackson, the actors and the behind-the-scenes contributors worked incredibly hard, striving successfully to bring the rich detail of Middle Earth and of Tolkien’s epic story to our screens
i remember a comment by Bernard Hill during an interview. he Said Theoden's armor had engravings on the inside, something only he would get to see when getting ready for a scene. that level of care is what made the movies so good.
It's undefeated because whether it's the costumes, the acting and the cast, the landscape scenes, the practical effects, the dialogue, the writing of the script or its pacing, the character development and arcs, the over all moral messaging, the score, the production, or staying true to the source material it does absolutely incredible on every single front. Top notch on everything, even the special effects is okay for today and was top of the line when it was released. Movies can have issues trying to get even one of these elements right, let alone hitting it out of the park on absolutely every single one. This is why it's undefeated, there are a few than can compete, but comparing it to others measuring up against all elements, LOTR always comes out on top.
The amount of passion and love that went into this project is unrivaled. It's an incredible achievement of human story telling. Nothing will ever top these movies. They're the best movies ever made. And the people who made them will be remembered forever. ❤ Lord of the Rings is a home away from home. I belong there.
The reason why Lord of the Rings is not only undefeated but is frankly the GOAT is simple. Peter Jackson sold us why 20+ years ago. He didn't want to stick any of his own themes or messaging in it. Instead he simply wanted to tell us a good story.
Excellent video! I have been complaining about the scarcity of truly epic movies. The Lord of the Rings certainly has epic proportions along with sincerity. Thanks for this video!
Watched extended versions again recently and forgot how amazing these movies are! As you said, they are works of art in every way! Started reading the books again and I might take your advice and listen to the soundtrack while doing so! One of my favourite scenes(and music) is when the beacons are all lighting up 😍
02:19 - actually back-to-back EE screenings are more common than you think. I've done 3 x marathons of the EE editions at the cinema in the last 20 years and I know of at least another 4 that I didn't attend because it was in a different country.
It's simple as to why. CARE was embedded into everything. PLANNING. New tools. Intelligent directors, casts, and crews. I mean, say what you "believe" or desire about Peter Jackson, Fran, and the rest of NLC, but they bloody well knew what they were doing. Storytelling was KEY. Getting the right actors was paramount (and they did that). Howard Shore's music wasn't just some slipshod filler tones and chords, son. The costuming was brilliant, the props were off the charts, and the FORCED PERSPECTIVE SITUATIONS AND SHOTS were absolutely amazing. Who else would do all of that? No one.
i was lucky to watch these movies in the cinema when they first came out - was an amazing experience! the energy in the room was ... well i have no words
The disrespect towards the original author is transparent. Recently it was said that "The Witcher" producer's were actively mocking the source material (both the books and games). Star Wars actors are constatly demonstrating they didnt watch the original movies. Saying stuff like "Anakin destroyed the Death Star". Then there is politics... "Now Star wars is diverse"... Like for real? Did they watch the original movies? They were diverse. They are so diverse there are non Human Races! Then you get "Rings of Power"... They really thought they could do better than Tolkien!?
Great video, I agree LOTR will never be topped because it is a once in a life time coming together of the right people, the right time and truly epic levels of love for the source material (a truly great source material also helped of course) . The New Zealand scenery is also an important cast member.
I think one reason why lodr is so good is because it does not feel like it's trying to entertain you, it's more like you are put in this world to witness a story. It never feels like a movie to me. There is nothing fancy except a few legolas scenes.
0% sex But if, in Rivendell on their way out after the council, a couple of Elf hotties had lifted up their tunics and flashed the Fellowship and said “remember what your fighting for” I wouldn’t have objected.
For all the very, very well deserved praise for Peter Jackson and his entire crew and cast, its Tolkiens source material that is the reason for our passionate response. With the hobbits we identify, we care about them. Personally i dont give a crap about what happens to todays digital superheroes, they have no soul. Beginning the story in the shire as a contrast to the massive events in the outside world is genius. A pivotal moment for me is when Sam stops to ponder in the fields of farmer Maggins explaining to Frodo that if he takes one more step it will be the furthest away he ever been from his home. And when he takes that step he decides to risk it all. That is what life is about.
Damn, i just found your channel yesterday and looked if you had done a video on my favorite movie series ever. The lotr. Was sad that you hadn’t. Then I wake up to this !! Beautiful video. Thank you ❤
At 4:51, if you take a look at the model of Minas Tirith that was included in the ROTK DVD, you can see where Aragorn's tomb is located. Other movies would have shown an unrelated location, but this attention to detail is one of the things that make these movies so exceptional.
You really hit the nail on the head when you said that "EVERYONE" involved with this trilogy put their heart and soul into it, and it definitely shows.
I am watching the extended edition trilogy again. I watch it many times each year because everything else is just watered down gruel. And i used to love Star Wars. I was there in 1977 in the theater when Star Wars was released. Star Wars is dead to me now. I don't even feel bad about it anymore. Long live LOTR! Oh, if you haven yet, listen to Andy Serkis narrate the LOTR books on Audible. You won't regret it!
I would say that Star Wars isn't exactly dead to me; it's just that my love for it remains centered around the original trilogy. (Granted, a few of the one-off movies have been pretty good; but they haven't touched me the way the OT did.). Everything that has come after can't tarnish my love for the OT and the original experience of them.
LOTR from top to bottom was created by a team of extremely talented people who above all else deeply revered the source material and above all else felt a duty to honor it and humble individual egos. When a team like that is working with the greatest source material of all time, you get the greatest movie trilogy of all time.
The last 2 summers The Cleveland Orchestra has played Fellowship and Two Towers live along with the film, and it has been the coolest thing I’ve ever witnessed. Return of the King comes in August, and I cannot wait.
I recently rewatched The Hobbit extended version 3D trilogy at home and, for all it's warts, it absolutely blows away 99% of everything that has come after.
I would say the worst thing about The Hobbit is that it isn't as great as it's predecessor. Same thing with the Star Wars prequels. Neither was as bad as people said they were...we just had such high expectations.
I am a bit of a Hobbit apologist. I recognize its flaws; many of which were out of Jackson's control (this time HE was the one who didn't want a trilogy, and was required to do it by the studio). And I get that they didn't have nearly the same amount of time to prepare the sets and everything that they did for LOTR; and so in consequence, they rely more on CGI than I bet they would have preferred. But there ARE still a lot of places in which the movies shine, and I will go to bat for its cast any day. You CAN feel the love and care of the people who worked on it, I don't think anyone can say that they phoned anything in. But they were definitely rushed by outside forces (and thrown off-stride by having to take a big break in the middle due to Jackson's surgery and recovery). I think it's that care and deep-down love for the material that still makes those outshine other productions today.
Every time I see the Majesty that is Peter Jacksons Lotr I get misty eyed knowing that cinema has never ben the same since these movies. The trash they shovel out these days can't even compare. I have several copies of the same trilogy. The non extended, the digital, The Blu-ray extend, and now the 4k version. If Peter Jackson said hey I found an extra 30 mins of film I want to put in physical form and release, I would buy it in a heart beat. I am going to start a yearly tradition of watching these movies on new years, to never forget what real movies look like and not except the garbage movies now as the status quo and the new normal.
If Peter Jackson said he'd found an extra 30 minutes of film that he could spruce up and release, never mind all of us buying it -- he could fill theaters with it. Just as the recent re-release of the trilogy did; I think people would go even more nuts for a little bit of footage that was made back then. I know I would, and I haven't set foot in a theater since 2019.
Well done and well said. Thank you saying some of the things I've been thinking for some time, albeit much more concisely, smarter and well thought out.
Could not agree more. You perfectly summed up why this trilogy is hands down, in my opinion, the greatesy film trilogy that has ever been made and probably ever will be made. And it's funny that you mention Dune being this generation's equivalent of the LotR films, because I was thinking exactly that a couple days ago. We're on the same wavelength. 😂
There was one of these Extended showing back to back to back about a decade ago in Seattle WA. It has intermissions for pissing and buying more food and drink. Long experience. Yet no one left early.
All these movies are stupid, INSANE long. And yet they do not feel it. THAT is the mark of a good movie. 3 hours (4 for the extended editions) and you do NOT feel it.
@@xhagastim gonna personally disagree, I think return of the kings extended addition does feel long and actively hurts the pacing of the movie, i still love it but I think for that film the theatrical is better.
The one major thing that separates LOTR from a lot of movies is the fact that Jackson went searching all over New Zealand for a hill surrounded by flatlands and then with mountains in the background and that was meant to somewhat resemble Rohan was built on and after months of searching they found it. It was some isolated rocky hill with no roads leading towards it so they built a road leading towards the Rocky hill, built a town on top and begun filming. Majority of the town was CGI but the very top and the walls down below were all built. After months of building to film a few scenes they packed up and put back all the grass and plants they had to move and left without destroying the ecosystem. Peter Jackson with one billion dollars and completely creative freedom could have turned rings of power into an absolute masterpiece.
One thing I have to say about modern cinematic entertainment is that there’s no escapism. Instead, modern directors and story writers insist on constantly reminding us of modern issues and political values. When I watch Star Wars, game of thrones, house of the dragon, I want to be transported to a completely different world. Not have our current world shoveled down my throat.
I genuinely think you guys are just putting politics into everything you watch on your own accord. You're not suspending your belief and are looking for political dog whistles instead of just taking it in and reflecting afterwards. The Lord of the Rings can be massively political if you want to acknowledge those themes. If LOTR was acceptable escapism to you, then you have the ability to ignore political undertones and just enjoy shit. Try engaging with things in good faith.
Ignore that other guy. I agree with you, and I clearly see now that you express it so well. I think there's a huge difference between "allegory" and "applicability." The first lies in the determined domination of the author, mapping things from the world one-to-one onto the story. The second lies in the freedom of the reader. Yes that's a quote right from Tolkien. But when characters in movies act more and more in the *culturally-informed way unique to the last few years* it starts to feel like the films are deliberately chasing trends, trying to catch up (but never get ahead) of what's popular. That is an obvious thing, and it stinks to high heaven.
@@SkilletTRO You are not sufficiently distinguishing between allegory and applicability. Sauron looks like Hitler because evil kings are always evil and always need to be opposed. That's why fiction works: it's the same truth in another world. But you'd be wrong if you said Sauron *is* Hitler, because the commonality is importantly and entirely that they're both evil kings. Tolkien could have written a treatise on how evil kings need to be opposed and it would have been intellectual but pointless. He could have written about how Hitler was awful - whether using the names and places of history or substituting them for made-up ones - but it would have aged like milk and been irrelevant to the next evil king. Instead he wrote a book that makes us feel the hopeless determination of fighting the Evil King - of fighting *every evil king*, and so prepared us for them. It's not an allegory referring to a specific thing that's now in the past. It's applicable, meaning it's guiding us to think and feel about infinite things.
I’m a 77 year old woman from Australia 🇦🇺 and Lord of the rings is my favourite movie of all time.Recently I told my son to please keep my extended dvds as one of my treasured things after I die .Peter Jackson is a genius and Viggo was the perfect Aragon ❤❤❤❤
LOTR is everything the Rings of Power and the Hobbit isn’t. I’m so pleased they had the freedom to make this film and stay sincere to the books in most part. I don’t think it will ever be surpassed. Is it true that all the actors who were part of the fellowship had similar tattoos to mark their membership of the group.
Now my eyes are too weak to read for very long, I'm often listening to Howard Shore's score, because - to me, at least - the music is just as good at painting a scene from the film (which I watch about 3 times a year), and can eadily raise the same degree of emotion I feel when watching the film. How many other film scores can do that? I think it's the only music that can make me stop what I'm doing for a few moments to relive in my mind the lighting of the beacons, Gandalf and the Balrog falling as they battle, the arrival of Theoden's forces at Gondor, and Sam carrying Frodo up the side of Mount Doom. Reasonably short and even simple melodies, but somehow they 'bring you to your senses', if you know what I mean. It's amazing to think how old these films are now, and lovely to see these masterpieces become multi-ge erational in their appeal. But in my 58 years, I have never known another film gather together such a dedicated following. The original Stars Wars trilogy is close - but the sequel, prequel, and the 20-ish money-spinning spin-offs have taken some of the shine off its old reputation. Some might point out that the Rings of Power and The Hobbit should have the same damaging effect. But although The Hobbit is so greatly expanded from the book version, it has still been done with great care by people who actually love Middle Earth. As for the Rings of Power, it is just so incredibly, atrociously bad, such a complete and utter joke, it feels like another universe altogether, and shares no part of either Jackson's, Shore's or Tolkien's elegant, pristine world building - neither in visual form, or written form, or musical form. Thank goodness. And it is why people are calling Amazon's Galadriel - Guyladriel. Because she is so far removed from her written persona that she is unrecognisable, a creature of a different world. Some call RoP bad fan fic. In my opinion, I don't think it is polite even to label it as 'fan fic,' since I think we can all agree it has 'not' been created by anyone that's a 'true fan.' Besides, if you care to look about on RUclips, there is some rather good LOTR fan fic out there made by 'genuine, loyal fans' and not obvious money-grabbing, politically-motivated flag wavers. These true fans deserve more respect than to have their work termed alongside the calamity that is Rings of Power.
The back to back screenings of exrended editions were indeed a thing. I remember my mum used to go to them when i was little! I am pleasantly surprised they still do them
These stories mean so much to me, and these movies do as well. Where can I find these theater 4k releases? On the Hobbit subject. The Hobbit M4 Book Edit, also known as “The Hobbit Extended Edition”, is the only version one needs to see. One movie, much closer to the book. I encourage all to try it out.
The musical score is unreal; any1 notice how when Frodo /Sam have tender moments, the music changes. I love the scoreline when Sam says *i can't carry it f you but i CAN carry you;* The music really touches my heart
Henry cavill said a few years ago that the only possible way to adapt Warhammer 40000 is aspiring to get to peter Jackson's lotr level and not less. Which gave me a lot of hype when he got to lead 40k adaptation. Its a pity that amazon controls too much and they don't care about respecting the fantastic universe they are adapting as much as introducing modern world politics 😢
Great video. I think you got it right with Sincerity being one the film trilogy’s greatest strengths. I will say that with respects to comparing Dune and LOTR, Jackson, unless you knew his splatter horror films or saw the Frighteners, seemingly came out of nowhere. Villeneuve however, had a proven track record with stuff like Sicario and The Arrival and more. My point being that Jackson had a greater uphill battle to fight in trying to just convince New Line and others to even make the films. I’m sure it probably wasn’t exactly easy for Villeneuve but it was probably a lot EASIER with his track record. But that speaks even more to your point about Dune being a blockbuster that comes close to having the passion and sincerity that LOTR had behind it.
Even with sincerity and passion and immense competence, it's hard to beat Lord of the Rings because there is only one greatest novel of the 20th century to use as source material.
One gotta understand that LOTR is simply something else. There has not been a piece of literature so intricately crafted as Tolkiens world in the previous history of humanity. There just hasnt. One has to get to terms with it. There will NEVER be another lord of the rings.
A colleague told me that he rewatched LOTR on cable by accident and said that the movies have aged incredibly bad. Moreover he complained about the over the top „heavy with meaning“ dialogue. I replied that from now on we will only communicate work related stuff.
I have watched reaction videos of people from other countries and to see how profoundly these films affect them is startling. I'm 61 and to see young people go I have never imagined storytelling could be like this is just wonderful.
Sincerity, one of the reasons Top Gun Maverick did so well. And it's so evident with the prelim video that played before the movie in theaters in which Tom Cruise mentioned they put their heart and souls into it
Sorry to break it to you. Such epic movies come only once a generation. It was the original Star Wars trilogy for one generation and the Lord of the Rings trilogy for the next. The Generation after that got Dune. We will have to wait an entire generation for the next truly great movies, that their makers work their asses off for.
I think lord of the rings stands above those films because of the story. It’s the story at its core that make them the greatest films of all time across all genres and I don’t think it’ll be possible to match it.
7:12 "I think what'd happened was that I'd been so exposed to the post-ironic cynical way of storytelling which dominates cinema these days, that I did not recognise sincerity." You poor mistreated thing 😢
the greatest irony is that is if they ever adapted the Silmarillion properly it could easily eclipse LOTR. Some of the best stories are within those pages that are not allowed to be adapted to the big screen. I'll also add Children of Hurin as well.
CLARIFICATION: when I accuse capitalism of being a big reason behind the failure of modern Star Wars, I am of course not implying that other studios and franchises do not also care greatly about revenue, nor am I trying to make some political statement. however, you have to admit there is a HUGE difference between the strategies employed by modern Disney, with their endless conveyor belt of rushed, low-quality CONTENT and who are not even TRYING to hide their greed these days... and the people behind the original LOTR trilogy who, yes, cared about money, but who also clearly wanted to make something good. but apologies, I don't really convey this well in the video lmaoo.
Well they are not doing a very good job at being profitable by ruining one of the most loved brands in history over a couple of years, that it sure.
I'm glad you added this, because capitalism begets freedom. It is greed that takes away freedom. They are not the same thing. When actual value is in a product and you're not paying too much for that good, it is a win for both consumers.
@@thecozykinoshow
Appreciate the clarification. The same can be said of most industries including healthcare and education
@@JeremiahWdabullfrog "The love of money is the root of all evil." Lots of people try to lop off the first three words and pretend they haven't completely changed what is being said.
Can you please stop blaming capitalism of all things??? You seriously think the state would do a better job of making a film production?! What are you going to do? “Regulate” the vision of writers??? At least money gives you an incentive to compete for quality, particularly when you make it on your own rather than because the state decides it’s going to tempt you into political correctness. Capitalism is not the issue here. The reason the quality of film has been declining is because the quality of our culture has been declining, so much so that we havent accomplished anything important since the Gulf War. Tolkien is a DOG OF WAR(WW1 specifically) who, btw, happens to be religious and spiritual! Where did those things in our culture go?! In hollywood, it’s GONE! They barely even mentioned his commitment to Catholicism in Tolkien’s bio movie. We’re complacent, naive, ignorant, lacking in will, and lacking moral clarity. All of these things affect the literary world as well as the film industry.
Lotr will never be topped
never.
@@thecozykinoshow i am surprised you didn't mention that source material might be one of reasons for why it was successful. you need good book to show a good movie. I wonder if they'll ever make a first age and second age movie. It will be tough to beat third age movies but perhaps someone with figure it out.
@@dodang_9147 not necessarily. it just needs to be respectful and well thought out. but those two things are just very incompatible with today's market of fast and cheap. rather than going slow and taking your time. the terminator was never a book and its still a very critically acclaimed movie, and the second one is arguably the best sequel to an original film ever. The people at the top have become so obsessed with money that they won't take risks anymore, and instead take the stale boring or preachy stance to try to make a quick buck instead of having faith in people to tell a fun unbiased story. It also doesn't help that so many people don't take criticism anymore and try to learn from their mistakes in today's age. People need to remember that it's not a bad thing to fail. If anything failure is necessary for growth...which is another thing that tlotr teaches too ironically. fail and grow, learn to accomplish the impossible with your friends and companions and overcome your shortcomings.
@@thecozykinoshowI feel sad that almost many newer fantasy series are imitating ASOIAF/Game of Thrones and the Witcher rather than Tolkien's works. I understand the appeal of more cynical, realistic and complex story-telling and settings but I just feel as though Tolkien's stories are not appreciated enough
On the side of high-fantasy Tolkien's Middle Earth just feels very special and mythical compared to other high fantasy series which tends to rely a lot on over the top spectacle rather substance.
It has been several times. The production and scale of those movies was groundbreaking, but when it comes to story and characters it’s nothing special. Prime GoT laps LOTR with ease.
Howard Shore's score is so damn good that I literally can't read the books now without hearing it in my head for certain paragraphs
Try audiobooks on RUclips
Or listen to the Phil Dragash soundscape version with music, voices and sound effects from the films.
I recently read The Hobbit & all 3 LOTR books. I played Howard Shore’s score for the films in the background as I read the book & it made the reading far more engaging, especially when the music matches up to the content im reading
This is why I LOVE listening to the cinematic audiobook on RUclips.
The opening song of Fellowship when they're describing the ring being created is amazing. One of the best I've ever heard in a movie.
I agree with all of this except one thing..... this generations Lord of the Rings isn't Dune.... it's still The Lord of the Rings.
Yes. Though Dune is a technically accomplished piece of filmmaking, it lacks the heart and soul that made LOTR so great. Also, Peter Jackson’s camera work is much more dynamic vs Villenueve’s restrained shots imho
Dune part two is an epic disappointment.
I liked both parts of "Dune", its good, I gave them 7/10 but I dont think I need to watch it once a year :) And I still like the old version from 80s.
Dune is not even close. Epic cgi's and expanse shots doesnt make film great. Dune doesnt have single good emotional scene while lotr has no end of it.
@@mahirakhtar8969 there are few a bit emotional scenes - like the death of father of Paul, and the death of his teacher (Jason Momoa) but realy after watching twice both parts of Dune I can not tell that I was realy smacked emotionaly and that I feel the tragedy and struggle of Paul, yea I can understand intelectualy that he has chosen to fight against the empire to help the planet to be again green and its good, but at the same time I know he is this kind of hero who in time become just another imperator, and also he is just a puppet of those ladies ("witches", "jedi", temple, religon - whatever) so that does not seem totaly ok for me, and maybe thats why I can not stick by his side so much as it was in the case of other heroes. :) He is not Frodo, Luke not even Jon Snow or Anakin. He is already "Game of Thrones" faviourite political faction to achieve the throne :D Its obvious that he will win, so its already boring :D
LotR is perfection itself. Perfection is ever-lasting.
Only the theatrical versions are perfection.
Peter Jackson told as much to his cast: "pain is temporary, movies are forever."
exluding the green ghost army
@@DestinyAwaits19nah extended editions are where it's at the theatricals are awesome but the extended are even better
@@elishawilson5342 In what way?
Practical effects!! The orcs were stunt men in prosthetics, Viggo is on record as saying they scared him when filming, because they looked like they wanted to kill him. You don't get the genuine reactions when orcs are in green body suits to be CGI'd in later.
And things like the orcs banging spears before the fight of helms deep came about because the stunt men were bored between takes, so they were singing and dancing. One of them started banging their spear to the rhythm which producers saw and turned into the orcs banging them when they show up.
Everything being CGI and green screens loses that organic realistic feeling
True, and in time I hope to see this get addressed or a workflow be introduced to help solve the problem. I think practical effects myself is still the absolute best, but it also comes at a cost. And I am not talking price (though that is a factor). Actor's Age. We Age. Part of the reason Lord of the Rings has worked so well is because it was a one and done deal that didn't need or leave room for an obvious sequel with the same cast. But take something like...Star Wars for example. And in this example more specifically, the Clone Wars. Aside from taking longer to make in Live Action, this is a six season series that is only supposed to cover 3 literal years. Now, it is a small example because like, your cast aging three extra years is nothing really. Sorry, four extra. It is seven seasons not six. Anyway... this can sometimes be obvious. It is one of the few reasons why Haden coming back in Obi-One and Asoka were both difficult. He has aged. It is harder to de-age someone VS pull up references for animation.
There are plenty of projects that "could' have been as good as The Lord of the Rings but could not afford to deal with the uncontrolable problems natural aging causes when you are running a long project. I personally would love to do Live Action Practical effects for my own work but I can't. The overall story is going to take a minimum of 20 years to produce and several key characters do not age across this period. Much, much harder to work with in Live Action. Almost impossible.
I could consider using CGI on just those characters and elements as they come up... but then I run the risk of very obvious issues of them not blending well with the Live Action.
I get where you are coming from, but CGI was not made for the sake of cheep cheep heartless productions. There are pros and cons to Practical Effects. Just as there are Pros and Cons to CGI
The LotR trilogy includes a huge amount of CGI, it's just not used to the excessive amount that most modern movies do. The Balrog, the Fell Beasts, most of the wide army shots, and even Gollum are completely reliant upon CGI to work. However, it's used _when it needs to be,_ and the CG artists were given enough time to properly put their shots together. Practical Effects are important, but they aren't what make a movie *great.* They're the seasoning, and a great one at that, but they aren't the meat itself.
Also that same scene the sound is literally 20000 (or 30k I forget) cricket fans yelling and cheering. Jackson just went to a game and asked them to cheer for him.
And y'know why everything is CGI these days? It's because VFX is the only part of the film industry that isn't unionized across the board, which makes it cheaper for studios to make them do everything instead of only that which is appropriate to be done with VFX.
@@christopherpoet458not sure what human aging has to do with practical effects, or LoTR for that matter. All the practicals were made in 2 years of pre production and a bit less than 1 year of filming. There was no visible aging on screen because they didn’t age, all three movies were filmed at the same time. This problem definitely came up in the Hobbit, but those movies were awful for a myriad of reasons and that wasn’t really one of them.
The amount of ppl who STILL rewatch these movies annually (myself included) is all the proof you need that these movies are so extremely exceptional
Nope just underscores that there are a lot of fanboys of tolkien fantasy
These are Christmas movies, are you even celebrating the holidays if you aren’t going on an extended edition bender in December at least once?
@@seancarlson3490 Me and my Mom used to watch these films every year around Christmas time. It really brought us closer :)
Especially with the extended cuts being available on MAX, just rewatched them again!
I have my own viewings and then of course all the reactions on RUclips too!
I love that 20+ years later whenever I’m trying to think of who my favorite villain, favorite protagonist, or what my favorite scene is, in a movie, I have to first think: other than the lord of the rings.
Totally get it 😅 when I think of my favorite movie I exclude the lord of the rings. First of all because it is simply more than a movie trilogy to me and second if I didn’t my list would never change.
Dude for real I have to make sure I don't mention lord of the rings first 😂
@@jakerudolph7937 it’s almost like a process of elimination lol like “oh my favorite movie score has to be interstellar… assuming we’re not counting LotR.”
@@Mini_Hayley exactly! That's the perfect example of what I mean! 😂
Vry true. The 3 films themselves have uncountable scenes which can take the crown for being the best lol- Gandalf at helms deep, ride of rohirrim,i can carry you, sauron's defeat, you shall not pass, i am no man, for frodo, you bow to no one etc etc lmao. Other films cant even come close.
20 years later and The Lord of the Rings still remains absolute. The 2000’s were best times for skilled movie creation. From Pirates of the Caribbean to Harry Potter. Even Gladiator to Troy. Though nothing will beat Peter Jacksons sheer dedication to his craft and commitment in telling JRR Tolkiens tales.
@@vandalayindustries3057 Absolutely mate, why bother in this disastrous climate of modern day films. As a writer , hoping to be published one day in Epic Fantasy. You need to give the gift of relevancy onto creating stories contriving within Moral, heart and common sense. I absolutely agree with you my friend. Older films to about 2015 were still pretty well made. After that, everything drastically imploded in utter calamity.
@@vandalayindustries30572000s movies were all about terrorism. The dark Knight is a heavily political film. Most of the films in the 2000s were about not trusting the government. The reason movies are woke is because now the biggest problem is weeding out all the racist like you
@@nicholasczech6973you're probably a shitty writer lol
@@vandalayindustries3057 It's not just the films though but everything around us. At the end of the day, those great films came to be because of people willing to go the extra mile at their job. However, this really isn't the case anymore because we know that the end goal has nothing to do with offering a great product/service and everything to do with getting the most money out of it, regardless of the quality.
The 90s were pretty amazing too.
I'm both glad and amazed that they greenlighted and filmed all three together.
We're lucky Jackson told Weinstein to pound sand and left to go elsewhere. He wanted it done in 2
Jackson didnt tell them ...
@@titanscerwwhat? He was on a mission because he was going to do two films but Miramax wanted one. I forget the guys name from New Line, but at the end of Jackson’s pitch he asked “why isn’t this three films?” I need to go research his name again, but that man is a saint.
@@Show4224 It was Harvey Weinstein at Miramax that wanted it to be one movie...
@@Merecirand his personal assistant is now a star wars creator
I remember seeing an interview where Bernard Hill said that the armour he wore even had the proper pattern engraved on the leather INSIDE IT, saying "I know no one will ever see that but it makes me feel like a king when I put it on, but yeah" he trails off.
I think that's what made Lord of the Rings so great, was the goddamned stars aligned for them, the perfect time, perfect place, perfect people, who all shared a vision and brought a hundred and ten percent to their work, but weren't blinded by their goals.
Blame the studio, Del Toro dropped out and the execs gave Jackson a fraction of the time to prepare for the Hobbit trilogy. Had those films delayed production a year, maybe two I think we would have had much different films. Although I do enjoy them for what they are, LOTR is cinematic perfection.
Amen to that, brother, amen to that!
I think what most people gloss over is that Peter Jackson as a director had focused pretty much entirely on horror films and/or character driven stories up until he ended up directing lotr, and it really shows especially in fellowship. You see all his strengths in the first film especially, Peter Jackson turned a fantastical adventure into a very grounded thriller with most of the focus being on the powerlessness and lack of agency in the individual, perfectly capturing the theme of the trilogy and the one ring itself and what it represents. There’s a real triumph felt seeing these characters, pulled by forces beyond their control, come together to overcome what feels like a predetermined doom.
I've read good arguments that fotr is actually a horror film (and arguably book. )
@@asmith1022 It definitely feels like it in some of the shots, even innocent ones, like Farmer Maggot's scythe approaching over the crops in the beginning. Heck, Gandalf snapping Bilbo out of his paranoia gave me chills the first time I watched it.
he only made good movies until Lord of the rings turned him into a boring director...his last good movie was frighteens
especially bilbo jumpscare scene lol
If you’re ever sad, think of this. Humans have existed for of 300,000 years. Just be thankful you were here to experience these movies. That is an encouraging thought.
It's true. Really around 2000 give or take a decade, I think was the best time to be alive. Nice that we were able to experience it.
Yep, we experienced these movies while other some thousand years ago experienced similar events in person 😂😂😂
This is a soy take
We also got "The Expanse", another perfect adaption of a book series.
@@josephbrandenburg4373soy sauce ??
I saw Extended LOTR in the cinema last weekend as well. Twenty years after the first time I watched those movies, over 12h in the cinema and hell, I wasn't bored for a single moment. It doesn't matter I know most of the lines by heart. Those movies sure kept the ring, they have not aged despite the tech progress we've had since then.
Also I noticed one more thing - 20 years of exposure to memes and jokes concerning those movies or using scenes from them does not affect me when I watch LoTR. Yes, I may smile here and there when I remember a meme, but that's all. All of that doesn't ruin the experience of watching.
Not to mention that the screenings were fully booked
It's because everything in this movie stands out, from breathtaking cinematics, epic music, paintakingly accurate costumes, beautiful location models to outstanding acting of almost all of the cast. everything shines out (let's forget some flaws and a few cringeworthy scenes)
heh heh, kept the ring
When I watched them in theater the only dodgy bits of CGI was the fire ball from Saruman and a little bit of the Balrog scene
@@180lim I thought the Balrog might disappoint me seeing it now, but it still looked fantastic and gripping.
You are so right.
They really are just THAT good. Chokes you up thinking about the care that went into them not knowing whether or not they would turn out good or people would even like them. But here we are, over 20 years later reminding ourselves. These movies are some of the best cinema ever created, they will always be remembered.
These Books, and movies literally changed my life. The soundtrack accompanying me in each stage of my life, now is inextricably linked in my head to Tolkien's world, and even to my grandfather's death . LOTR inspired my lone travel to Middle Earth (New Zealand) and this restless feeling of longing ...for idyllic, ultimate place I know I came from....
I feel like many things you watch as a kid don't hold up when you rewatch them as an adult. They are often nowhere near as good as you remembered or, at best, just as good. However, with LOTR, the older I get, the better it gets. The more I understand and can relate to the characters, the themes, and the love and effort put into every frame. Then you look at what's being produced today and realize that it could only have been made exactly when it was and I'm so grateful for that.
yeah, even arguably better if you delve more into the lore. while ofc the change would annoyed you a bit but some references from the lore make it even more immersive.
The Witcher series is a testament on "I am more important than the source material" from a director. Jackson, like you said, didn't want to crowbar his own politics and views into Lotr and just his love for the world Tolkien made.
While the director and most of the crew (Cavill excluded) didn't even like the books or its author.
and this is so sad, as Sapkowski's books are the most heartfelt and touching (to the point of crying over the book - that only happened to me one other time: with Tolkien) stories I've ever read, touching on so many aspects of the universal condition of man. So sad to see it demolished. Let's hope the Witcher gets a second chance someday.
Talking about Witcher, it's truly extraordinarily funny.
Cavill is a nerd. Cavill is a huge fan of the original materials (including books and games). Cavill is a great actor and serious with his craft and projects. And Cavill is the sole A-list megastar who should be a dream cast you would ever want in a streaming production (to be honest, maybe the biggest star ever for a streaming production). In fan's eyes, Cavill IS the Witcher.
But Cavill was treated like the third guy in his show, after two actresses who I don't even care to know (politic correctness, of course). Writers, directors and producers didn't care to listen to Cavill at all about the show, and Cavill was like the only one who actually know anything about the source materials. They even didn't mind to kill off THE WITCHER in the show of THE WITCHER. They just let Cavill walk out. These people who made the show were way more arrogant than the meaning of the word "arrogant" itself.
@@hksalsatom I don’t think they went out of their way to maliciously undermine Cavill or The Witcher; they just didn’t care and wanted to profit off of a popular brand - that’s all it is to them, a job. Sapkowski didn’t either really, after he was paid.
LotR was the peak of blockbuster cinema. They had the best score, groundbreaking CGI, some of the best practical effects we've ever seen, and the actors and entire cast put their heart and soul into the project, not for glory or fame (though these things certainly followed) but to do such a timeless story justice and make the best movie they possibly could. Everyone believed in it, worked around the clock for years, production seemed impossible, but they pulled it off. Along the way forming life long friendships, kicking off careers and creating a classic peice of cinema the likes of which we may never see again. LotR is my favorite story to read, period, and the fact that the movies are a gold standard for the medium of cinema as well is a fitting homage and a welcome addition to the lore and legacy of Tolkien's work.
Universally loved, rewatched and appreciated for decades after and still to come.
13:00 Howard Shore's soundtrack is canonical for me. It's Lord of the Rings as much as the books. I consider games or new adaptations inconceivable without at least mentioning these songs.
I love how you spent more time discussing Howard Shore’s contribution to these films! I think the music makes up 50% of the entire LOTR experience. Though I can’t watch the movies as much as I want, the music is something I can bring with me all the time. Just listening to the complete score makes you re-live the experience, the emotions and all. It’s really just a bonus that the music and the visuals are inseparable. I can’t watch an LOTR footage with someone else’s music and vice versa. Truly a lightning a bottle!
As someone who first read the books 60 years ago, I dreaded, hoped and prayed that the films wouldn't be laughable or cringey. That was how low by bar was for the adaptation of books I had read multiple times. How wrong was I! The obvious care the filmmakers and actors and well, just everyone, did to make this magnificent trilogy is staggering. It was like finding an oasis in a vast desert. And if I were forced to name one as my favorite it would be the first one, The Fellowship. I know it doesn't have the great battle scenes and conflicts of the other two, but it did something even more challenging, building an entire world and condensing thousands of years of lore into a package that the non-Tolkien readers could digest, understand and buy into. Truly some very intelligent and thoughtful filmmaking.
How old are you mate? I agree with you the first film IS the best
@@luisuco17 72, 73 in March. Read The Two Towers first simply because I didn't know such a thing as a trilogy existed. How the world has changed since then with all the extended fantasy series we have today.
As someone who first read the books in the 70s, I agree with you on the dread! I had always thought that magnificent movies could be made from the books, but I didn't think anyone would put the money towards it. And I also grew up with the various animated attempts to tackle the materials. As nostalgically fond as we might be of the Rankin Bass Hobbit... none of those animated attempts were *great*, and some truly were just cringeworthy. It was hard, when you believed in the books so much, to see adaptations fall so short. I also just wanted to say, I'm with you -- Fellowship remains my favorite, if I have to name one. The way it sets the scene, brings the world to life, and establishes the characters always really hits me, from the very first moment I hear the Shire's theme.
it was more than just the crew, the whole of NZ got behind it in anyway we could.
Came here to say just that. ❤😁
Cuio NZ anann ! NZ Eglerio ! in Sindarin - " Long live NZ ! Glory to NZ ! " :)
Thank you!! From a grateful Brit ❤
A good portion of NZ was involved in it in some way.
Ten thousand sheep were sacrificed in a blood promise
You had me at ‘Sincerity’.
"Lighting in a bottle" - exactly.
I remember when The Return of The King was released and watched whole trilogy in the theatre with my family and friends. It finished at 6 in the morning. Ahhh one of my fond memories being excited about Lord of The Rings and sharing that time with the ones I love.
Was that the Trilogy Tuesday, or a different showing? I went to a premiere of ROTK that started with the extended Fellowship, then the extended Two Towers, and then the premiere of ROTK (by necessity, then, the theatrical cut). I don't THINK we got out at 6am, though? But we did get out VERY late, in the wee hours of the morning. I remember distinctly, as I was the one who drove, and the theater we'd gotten tickets at was an hour's drive from where we all lived. Still, completely magical experience; the energy of the audience was tremendous!
They’re reshowing The Trilogy because they’re starving & desperately trying to fill seats & Hollywood isn’t producing anything to help with that, so showing older films that people actually want to see is definitely a move they should make.
Yes! And if they just go on replaying these, I'll go on rewatching them.
What about the soon-to-be-crowned highest grossing animated movie of all time?
@@lordtrigon1733what's that? I didn't follow...
@@ДмитрийДмитриев-г7н1и "desperately trying to fill seats & Hollywood isn’t producing anything to help with that" Inside Out 2 has a good chance of becoming one of the top 10 highest grossing movies of all time.
They've been replaying movies in theaters since the beginning of theaters. Stop shoe horning everything into 'wah modern bad'
It's so true what you said about sincerity. I remember watching all the MCU-movies and really enjoying them at first, but as they went on, I began to feel the lack of sincerity more and more. Instead of cashing in on how invested fans were in the characters by following up with great stories, Marvel instead just made me feel stupid for caring about the world and the characters by constantly making fun of and ridiculing everything. It really ruined the whole saga for me, and wasted what I considered a huge potential for excellent storytelling.
It was Ragnarok for me that did it. Sure the 1st Thor had it's issues, but it was authentic, it was sincere. Once I watched the 3rd and then the 2nd guardians, I realized I was watching a world that did not care about its own story.
@@landonmonday8920 Precisely this! Couldn't agree more.
A significant difference is also that the source material has nothing of the gravitas of LOTRs.
@@landonmonday8920I enjoyed Ragnarok but I also realized that this movie was the main start of the cringy quips, dumb dialogue and forced humor that is now the MCU. It wasn’t over the top but it opened a door to the over the top stuff happening now.
@landonmonday8920 every Thor movie is garbage
Went to see the trilogy in theaters. The room was packed.
I watched the extended edition at the cinema last week, and apart from being blown away again, I was also just angry that The Rings of Garbage is being made. You are so right about respect for the books. ROP only respects the chance to make money, and it's so clear.
The Rings of Garbage. Love it.
12:14 and then when the Rohirrim come up over the hill, Theoden gives a rousing speech as the orchestral version of the Rohan Theme swells… into the charge, where the single violin plays as Theoden rides to his Doom against the ranks of Mordor
Last charge of the Rohirrim. God damn did they nail that scene haRd. When they start shouting "DEATH" i felt it to the core of my being first time watching and it immediately hit me "oh shit these men are gonna charge in to die".
Pippin's joke to me goes even deeper, it communicates to the audience that he is willing to throw himself into any adventure for his friends, without even knowing what he is about to face, this speaks exactly to the kind of character Pippin is. As Mr Plinkett would tell us "You may not have noticed, but your brain did"
Pippin is my absolute favorite character ❤
I took off of work for the opening day of each of the movies so I could see the first showing at 1100am, they are still the best action movies ever made in my opinion.
Same. They were on Wednesdays, I believe.
Tolkiens greatest student Christopher Lee said PJ's changes were for the best
That’s his opinion, although there’s still points where the film leaves you wondering why a Hobbit stabbing the Witch King in the foot would kill him when he’s supposedly impervious. The answer is that the short sword was from Tom Bombadil and enchanted. But I feel it’s still alright with missing scenes like that one
@@AdrianFahrenheitTepes it's not his opinion, it's scientific fact
@@watch-Dominion-2018 Well thanks for making me smile
Excellent video, you really nailed just why the trilogy came together so well! Moreover, to add to your point of sincerity, the trilogy was a beacon of hopefulness and virtues of courage, honesty and friendship in an increasingly uncertain time. And while our own world has become more divided and volatile, this story’s themes and morals are all the more pertinent.
I have listened to the score of these movies every day since I first saw them in 2005. I've watched the movies 3 times a year ever since. I'm pursuing a career in filmmaking myself, and these movies are ALWAYS a reminder for me what true passion is. These movies were pure lightning in a bottle, and I really believe that they never will me topped. I'm so greatful that these movies exist, and I will cherish them forever.
JRR Tolkien was an on fire Catholic given gifts to share the Good News through storytelling. This is what he did, and that’s why this resonates so well with people.
Well, he would say it’s not a Christian allegory, but yeah, how can it not be?
First read the Lord of the Rings (LOTR) in 1965 when I was 13, and re-read the books many times. When I was young there were sections which I would skip, as they seemed to slow the story too much. Later on some of those chapters became cherished favorites. As it was with the books, so it has become with these fine films. After the surprise and delight of the first viewing, there are rewards to be had in savoring newly noticed details of the rich production.
Much could be said about Professor Tolkien’s writing methodology. What is now regarded as Professor Tolkien’s pioneering method of fictional world building was criticized as cumbersome departures from the proper way to structure novels. It might be that some of deep, detailed, often stoically restrained but ever present emotion in the story stems the long dark period during which Professor Tolkien worked on the story.
Led by the director Peter Jackson, the actors and the behind-the-scenes contributors worked incredibly hard, striving successfully to bring the rich detail of Middle Earth and of Tolkien’s epic story to our screens
i remember a comment by Bernard Hill during an interview. he Said Theoden's armor had engravings on the inside, something only he would get to see when getting ready for a scene.
that level of care is what made the movies so good.
agree
It's undefeated because whether it's the costumes, the acting and the cast, the landscape scenes, the practical effects, the dialogue, the writing of the script or its pacing, the character development and arcs, the over all moral messaging, the score, the production, or staying true to the source material it does absolutely incredible on every single front. Top notch on everything, even the special effects is okay for today and was top of the line when it was released.
Movies can have issues trying to get even one of these elements right, let alone hitting it out of the park on absolutely every single one.
This is why it's undefeated, there are a few than can compete, but comparing it to others measuring up against all elements, LOTR always comes out on top.
The amount of passion and love that went into this project is unrivaled. It's an incredible achievement of human story telling. Nothing will ever top these movies. They're the best movies ever made. And the people who made them will be remembered forever. ❤ Lord of the Rings is a home away from home. I belong there.
The reason why Lord of the Rings is not only undefeated but is frankly the GOAT is simple. Peter Jackson sold us why 20+ years ago. He didn't want to stick any of his own themes or messaging in it. Instead he simply wanted to tell us a good story.
Commenting for the algorithm. This video is too good to have anything less than 100k views!
Excellent video! I have been complaining about the scarcity of truly epic movies. The Lord of the Rings certainly has epic proportions along with sincerity. Thanks for this video!
Movies are all style and no substance now.
Watched extended versions again recently and forgot how amazing these movies are! As you said, they are works of art in every way! Started reading the books again and I might take your advice and listen to the soundtrack while doing so! One of my favourite scenes(and music) is when the beacons are all lighting up 😍
02:19 - actually back-to-back EE screenings are more common than you think. I've done 3 x marathons of the EE editions at the cinema in the last 20 years and I know of at least another 4 that I didn't attend because it was in a different country.
Now I want to watch it again. I wish I didn’t have to go to work tomorrow.
Call off work and when they ask why tell them, "They're taking the hobbits to Isengard!"
We will tempt you to be naughty! Call in and say you have rohirrim of the bowels!
This was such a beautiful retrospect of a phenomenal series. Well done. Gonna go watch the trilogy again
appreciate the kind words!
It's simple as to why. CARE was embedded into everything. PLANNING. New tools. Intelligent directors, casts, and crews. I mean, say what you "believe" or desire about Peter Jackson, Fran, and the rest of NLC, but they bloody well knew what they were doing. Storytelling was KEY. Getting the right actors was paramount (and they did that). Howard Shore's music wasn't just some slipshod filler tones and chords, son. The costuming was brilliant, the props were off the charts, and the FORCED PERSPECTIVE SITUATIONS AND SHOTS were absolutely amazing. Who else would do all of that? No one.
A masterpiece
i was lucky to watch these movies in the cinema when they first came out - was an amazing experience! the energy in the room was ... well i have no words
Me too , I was blown away 😮😮😮😮❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
The disrespect towards the original author is transparent.
Recently it was said that "The Witcher" producer's were actively mocking the source material (both the books and games).
Star Wars actors are constatly demonstrating they didnt watch the original movies. Saying stuff like "Anakin destroyed the Death Star". Then there is politics... "Now Star wars is diverse"... Like for real? Did they watch the original movies? They were diverse. They are so diverse there are non Human Races!
Then you get "Rings of Power"... They really thought they could do better than Tolkien!?
Great video, I agree LOTR will never be topped because it is a once in a life time coming together of the right people, the right time and truly epic levels of love for the source material (a truly great source material also helped of course) . The New Zealand scenery is also an important cast member.
I think one reason why lodr is so good is because it does not feel like it's trying to entertain you, it's more like you are put in this world to witness a story. It never feels like a movie to me. There is nothing fancy except a few legolas scenes.
let's not forget about this:
0% Sex
0% Wokeness
100% pure values
@@MajaNowakowska-y9q It's an important point.
0% sex
But if, in Rivendell on their way out after the council, a couple of Elf hotties had lifted up their tunics and flashed the Fellowship and said “remember what your fighting for” I wouldn’t have objected.
@@jasonandkathleenbarker6306 lol, I mush have missed that part 🤣👌🏻
For all the very, very well deserved praise for Peter Jackson and his entire crew and cast, its Tolkiens source material that is the reason for our passionate response. With the hobbits we identify, we care about them. Personally i dont give a crap about what happens to todays digital superheroes, they have no soul. Beginning the story in the shire as a contrast to the massive events in the outside world is genius. A pivotal moment for me is when Sam stops to ponder in the fields of farmer Maggins explaining to Frodo that if he takes one more step it will be the furthest away he ever been from his home. And when he takes that step he decides to risk it all. That is what life is about.
Damn, i just found your channel yesterday and looked if you had done a video on my favorite movie series ever. The lotr. Was sad that you hadn’t. Then I wake up to this !!
Beautiful video. Thank you ❤
At 4:51, if you take a look at the model of Minas Tirith that was included in the ROTK DVD, you can see where Aragorn's tomb is located. Other movies would have shown an unrelated location, but this attention to detail is one of the things that make these movies so exceptional.
You really hit the nail on the head when you said that "EVERYONE" involved with this trilogy put their heart and soul into it, and it definitely shows.
I am watching the extended edition trilogy again. I watch it many times each year because everything else is just watered down gruel. And i used to love Star Wars. I was there in 1977 in the theater when Star Wars was released. Star Wars is dead to me now. I don't even feel bad about it anymore. Long live LOTR! Oh, if you haven yet, listen to Andy Serkis narrate the LOTR books on Audible. You won't regret it!
I would say that Star Wars isn't exactly dead to me; it's just that my love for it remains centered around the original trilogy. (Granted, a few of the one-off movies have been pretty good; but they haven't touched me the way the OT did.). Everything that has come after can't tarnish my love for the OT and the original experience of them.
LOTR from top to bottom was created by a team of extremely talented people who above all else deeply revered the source material and above all else felt a duty to honor it and humble individual egos. When a team like that is working with the greatest source material of all time, you get the greatest movie trilogy of all time.
Yep. LOTR was made with love, free from today's woke propaganda.
The last 2 summers The Cleveland Orchestra has played Fellowship and Two Towers live along with the film, and it has been the coolest thing I’ve ever witnessed. Return of the King comes in August, and I cannot wait.
I recently rewatched The Hobbit extended version 3D trilogy at home and, for all it's warts, it absolutely blows away 99% of everything that has come after.
Does the The Hobbit extended edition add a lot of new scenes?
I would say the worst thing about The Hobbit is that it isn't as great as it's predecessor. Same thing with the Star Wars prequels. Neither was as bad as people said they were...we just had such high expectations.
I am a bit of a Hobbit apologist. I recognize its flaws; many of which were out of Jackson's control (this time HE was the one who didn't want a trilogy, and was required to do it by the studio). And I get that they didn't have nearly the same amount of time to prepare the sets and everything that they did for LOTR; and so in consequence, they rely more on CGI than I bet they would have preferred. But there ARE still a lot of places in which the movies shine, and I will go to bat for its cast any day. You CAN feel the love and care of the people who worked on it, I don't think anyone can say that they phoned anything in. But they were definitely rushed by outside forces (and thrown off-stride by having to take a big break in the middle due to Jackson's surgery and recovery). I think it's that care and deep-down love for the material that still makes those outshine other productions today.
Every time I see the Majesty that is Peter Jacksons Lotr I get misty eyed knowing that cinema has never ben the same since these movies. The trash they shovel out these days can't even compare. I have several copies of the same trilogy. The non extended, the digital, The Blu-ray extend, and now the 4k version. If Peter Jackson said hey I found an extra 30 mins of film I want to put in physical form and release, I would buy it in a heart beat.
I am going to start a yearly tradition of watching these movies on new years, to never forget what real movies look like and not except the garbage movies now as the status quo and the new normal.
You only start that tradition now? How many good years have you missed out on?!
If Peter Jackson said he'd found an extra 30 minutes of film that he could spruce up and release, never mind all of us buying it -- he could fill theaters with it. Just as the recent re-release of the trilogy did; I think people would go even more nuts for a little bit of footage that was made back then. I know I would, and I haven't set foot in a theater since 2019.
Well made video you've earned yourself a subscriber
“My brother, my captain, my king”…Sean Bean ate that scene. It’s one of the best of all time.
Well done and well said. Thank you saying some of the things I've been thinking for some time, albeit much more concisely, smarter and well thought out.
Could not agree more. You perfectly summed up why this trilogy is hands down, in my opinion, the greatesy film trilogy that has ever been made and probably ever will be made.
And it's funny that you mention Dune being this generation's equivalent of the LotR films, because I was thinking exactly that a couple days ago. We're on the same wavelength. 😂
There was one of these Extended showing back to back to back about a decade ago in Seattle WA. It has intermissions for pissing and buying more food and drink. Long experience. Yet no one left early.
All these movies are stupid, INSANE long. And yet they do not feel it. THAT is the mark of a good movie. 3 hours (4 for the extended editions) and you do NOT feel it.
@@xhagastim gonna personally disagree, I think return of the kings extended addition does feel long and actively hurts the pacing of the movie, i still love it but I think for that film the theatrical is better.
The one major thing that separates LOTR from a lot of movies is the fact that Jackson went searching all over New Zealand for a hill surrounded by flatlands and then with mountains in the background and that was meant to somewhat resemble Rohan was built on and after months of searching they found it. It was some isolated rocky hill with no roads leading towards it so they built a road leading towards the Rocky hill, built a town on top and begun filming. Majority of the town was CGI but the very top and the walls down below were all built. After months of building to film a few scenes they packed up and put back all the grass and plants they had to move and left without destroying the ecosystem.
Peter Jackson with one billion dollars and completely creative freedom could have turned rings of power into an absolute masterpiece.
One thing I have to say about modern cinematic entertainment is that there’s no escapism.
Instead, modern directors and story writers insist on constantly reminding us of modern issues and political values.
When I watch Star Wars, game of thrones, house of the dragon, I want to be transported to a completely different world.
Not have our current world shoveled down my throat.
I genuinely think you guys are just putting politics into everything you watch on your own accord. You're not suspending your belief and are looking for political dog whistles instead of just taking it in and reflecting afterwards.
The Lord of the Rings can be massively political if you want to acknowledge those themes. If LOTR was acceptable escapism to you, then you have the ability to ignore political undertones and just enjoy shit. Try engaging with things in good faith.
Ignore that other guy. I agree with you, and I clearly see now that you express it so well. I think there's a huge difference between "allegory" and "applicability." The first lies in the determined domination of the author, mapping things from the world one-to-one onto the story. The second lies in the freedom of the reader. Yes that's a quote right from Tolkien. But when characters in movies act more and more in the *culturally-informed way unique to the last few years* it starts to feel like the films are deliberately chasing trends, trying to catch up (but never get ahead) of what's popular. That is an obvious thing, and it stinks to high heaven.
@@SkilletTRO You are not sufficiently distinguishing between allegory and applicability. Sauron looks like Hitler because evil kings are always evil and always need to be opposed. That's why fiction works: it's the same truth in another world. But you'd be wrong if you said Sauron *is* Hitler, because the commonality is importantly and entirely that they're both evil kings. Tolkien could have written a treatise on how evil kings need to be opposed and it would have been intellectual but pointless. He could have written about how Hitler was awful - whether using the names and places of history or substituting them for made-up ones - but it would have aged like milk and been irrelevant to the next evil king. Instead he wrote a book that makes us feel the hopeless determination of fighting the Evil King - of fighting *every evil king*, and so prepared us for them.
It's not an allegory referring to a specific thing that's now in the past. It's applicable, meaning it's guiding us to think and feel about infinite things.
Shows you that film has dual purpose: profit and cultural manipulation. Often times the second being much more important...
One word, PASSION !! the movie is about passion and Peter Jackson captured captured it.
6:53 Sincerity!
MY BROTHER!... MY CAPTAIN! ....my King.
EFFORT & PASSION!
I’m a 77 year old woman from Australia 🇦🇺 and Lord of the rings is my favourite movie of all time.Recently I told my son to please keep my extended dvds as one of my treasured things after I die .Peter Jackson is a genius and Viggo was the perfect Aragon ❤❤❤❤
It’s so good. Loved this commentary
LOTR is everything the Rings of Power and the Hobbit isn’t. I’m so pleased they had the freedom to make this film and stay sincere to the books in most part. I don’t think it will ever be surpassed. Is it true that all the actors who were part of the fellowship had similar tattoos to mark their membership of the group.
Now my eyes are too weak to read for very long, I'm often listening to Howard Shore's score, because - to me, at least - the music is just as good at painting a scene from the film (which I watch about 3 times a year), and can eadily raise the same degree of emotion I feel when watching the film.
How many other film scores can do that?
I think it's the only music that can make me stop what I'm doing for a few moments to relive in my mind the lighting of the beacons, Gandalf and the Balrog falling as they battle, the arrival of Theoden's forces at Gondor, and Sam carrying Frodo up the side of Mount Doom. Reasonably short and even simple melodies, but somehow they 'bring you to your senses', if you know what I mean.
It's amazing to think how old these films are now, and lovely to see these masterpieces become multi-ge erational in their appeal.
But in my 58 years, I have never known another film gather together such a dedicated following.
The original Stars Wars trilogy is close - but the sequel, prequel, and the 20-ish money-spinning spin-offs have taken some of the shine off its old reputation.
Some might point out that the Rings of Power and The Hobbit should have the same damaging effect. But although The Hobbit is so greatly expanded from the book version, it has still been done with great care by people who actually love Middle Earth.
As for the Rings of Power, it is just so incredibly, atrociously bad, such a complete and utter joke, it feels like another universe altogether, and shares no part of either Jackson's, Shore's or Tolkien's elegant, pristine world building - neither in visual form, or written form, or musical form.
Thank goodness.
And it is why people are calling Amazon's Galadriel - Guyladriel. Because she is so far removed from her written persona that she is unrecognisable, a creature of a different world.
Some call RoP bad fan fic.
In my opinion, I don't think it is polite even to label it as 'fan fic,' since I think we can all agree it has 'not' been created by anyone that's a 'true fan.'
Besides, if you care to look about on RUclips, there is some rather good LOTR fan fic out there made by 'genuine, loyal fans' and not obvious money-grabbing, politically-motivated flag wavers.
These true fans deserve more respect than to have their work termed alongside the calamity that is Rings of Power.
Dude this was beautifully said. You articulated exactly how I feel about the movies in better words than I could have 🙏🏾
Can't agree more about Dune. I called my brother after watching Dune 2 and told him to watch it as it would be our generation's LoTR.
Thanks
This video is amazing, you need more views man
The back to back screenings of exrended editions were indeed a thing. I remember my mum used to go to them when i was little! I am pleasantly surprised they still do them
These stories mean so much to me, and these movies do as well. Where can I find these theater 4k releases?
On the Hobbit subject. The Hobbit M4 Book Edit, also known as “The Hobbit Extended Edition”, is the only version one needs to see. One movie, much closer to the book.
I encourage all to try it out.
The musical score is unreal; any1 notice how when Frodo /Sam have tender moments, the music changes.
I love the scoreline when Sam says *i can't carry it f you but i CAN carry you;*
The music really touches my heart
My main gripe is around here they only had 1 showing of each of the films, which sold out in no time.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this. Especially the part on Howard Shore and how his music enhances the story so.
Henry cavill said a few years ago that the only possible way to adapt Warhammer 40000 is aspiring to get to peter Jackson's lotr level and not less. Which gave me a lot of hype when he got to lead 40k adaptation. Its a pity that amazon controls too much and they don't care about respecting the fantastic universe they are adapting as much as introducing modern world politics 😢
Only sincere people can bring sincerity to their work.
I also saw the recent re-release of the LOTR. It was THE BEST 11 hours spent in a theater for me this year! EPIC!! ❤❤❤❤
Great video. I think you got it right with Sincerity being one the film trilogy’s greatest strengths.
I will say that with respects to comparing Dune and LOTR, Jackson, unless you knew his splatter horror films or saw the Frighteners, seemingly came out of nowhere. Villeneuve however, had a proven track record with stuff like Sicario and The Arrival and more. My point being that Jackson had a greater uphill battle to fight in trying to just convince New Line and others to even make the films. I’m sure it probably wasn’t exactly easy for Villeneuve but it was probably a lot EASIER with his track record. But that speaks even more to your point about Dune being a blockbuster that comes close to having the passion and sincerity that LOTR had behind it.
Even with sincerity and passion and immense competence, it's hard to beat Lord of the Rings because there is only one greatest novel of the 20th century to use as source material.
One gotta understand that LOTR is simply something else. There has not been a piece of literature so intricately crafted as Tolkiens world in the previous history of humanity. There just hasnt. One has to get to terms with it. There will NEVER be another lord of the rings.
A colleague told me that he rewatched LOTR on cable by accident and said that the movies have aged incredibly bad. Moreover he complained about the over the top „heavy with meaning“ dialogue.
I replied that from now on we will only communicate work related stuff.
An excellent video and very well said.
I have watched reaction videos of people from other countries and to see how profoundly these films affect them is startling. I'm 61 and to see young people go I have never imagined storytelling could be like this is just wonderful.
A masterpiece is and will be forever a masterpiece!
I never get tired of watching lotr. Every time I watch, I learn something new
Sincerity, one of the reasons Top Gun Maverick did so well. And it's so evident with the prelim video that played before the movie in theaters in which Tom Cruise mentioned they put their heart and souls into it
The time and effort u put into this vid is as good as lotr
Sorry to break it to you. Such epic movies come only once a generation. It was the original Star Wars trilogy for one generation and the Lord of the Rings trilogy for the next. The Generation after that got Dune. We will have to wait an entire generation for the next truly great movies, that their makers work their asses off for.
I think lord of the rings stands above those films because of the story. It’s the story at its core that make them the greatest films of all time across all genres and I don’t think it’ll be possible to match it.
7:12 "I think what'd happened was that I'd been so exposed to the post-ironic cynical way of storytelling which dominates cinema these days, that I did not recognise sincerity."
You poor mistreated thing 😢
Comments on this LOTR thread are so wholesome ❤
Thanks for creating this video essay. It is always to hear the reflections from a fellow LOTR fan.
the greatest irony is that is if they ever adapted the Silmarillion properly it could easily eclipse LOTR. Some of the best stories are within those pages that are not allowed to be adapted to the big screen. I'll also add Children of Hurin as well.
some things are beyond the ken of man
13:34 the fact that a choir is quoting Faramir from the book, in elvish, in Boromir's death scene. It is barely audible but it is there.