The White Council

Re: "Hey you with the pointy ears!..." [warning: long rant about purists]

Tolkien and Inklings Discussion

: [Begin major and possibly offensive, though well-intentioned, rant]

: "Hey you with the pointy ears!... Have you ever kissed a girl?!"

: Ah, the wisdom of the great Master thespian Bill Shatner.

: The Saturday Night Live sketch where he tears into the purists and the zealots of Star Trek has been ringing in my ears of late.

: In the past few days, many new production pics have surfaced from the set of Peter Jackson's rendition of our beloved LotR. Not only have we seen Arwen, the Nazgul, and Frodo, but also the advancing creation of Helm's Deep. Previously, we've seen Hobbiton, Bree, and an early concept sketch of the Lidless Eye him(it?)self. We've seen pictures of possible locations of Caradhras, Mirrormere, and Mordor. We've talked to extras, and heard mindblowing reports from people how have seen Gollum. We've been graced with nine wonderful production composites, had a chance to digest the awesome amount of talent being tapped for the principle charactors, and been lucky enough to speak with the writer/director himself.

: Frankly, I'm amazed. I've been flabbergasted. I'm in awe. To my mind's eye, a great and wondrous film is taking shape. A masterpiece of mythological fiction is being molded and shaped into a movie; and have no doubt that simply doing that is a work of art in itself - balancing content, with time (and timing), with budget, with modern taste, and with the desire to entertain and move people with the creation of something that has never been attempted before.

: And I come here and find people bitching (excuse the language, but no other word conveys the exact combination of vehemence and triteness) about prosthetic feet that are two sizes too big, ears that are the slightest bit pointed, and the fact that the director has decided to go with a medieval look for his portrayal of a preindustrial society ("The cad! What is he thinking!"). Upon seeing a picture of Elijah Wood (Frodo) eating, instead of reveling in the delicious irony and making jokes about hobbit appetites, these zealots would rather complain about his shoe size. For many of these self-proclaimed experts, they would rather nothing whatsoever be done about making a movie of LotR, than one in which anything that deviates from their own narrow interpretation of the novel was changed. It frankly makes me ashamed.

: Many people have no idea what goes into the making of a movie ( though probably some do). The reality is that movies and novels are two completely different media. When both are of a simplstic quality, things can translate quite well (e.g., Michael Crichton). But when both take advantage and use their strengths and individual attributes to their potential, then translation among the two can be quite difficult (e.g., Tolkien), or even impossible (e.g., Kafka).

: With respect to Tolkien, he uses the medium of the novel to give us the illusion that we are reading something that is part history, part myth, part diary, and part oral tradition. The names and events which he refers to and evokes with an almost casual ease present many problems when being translated to movie farmat. For example, in a novel, an author can introduce a minor character, give us his/her history, give us a bit about his/her emotions and motivations, and have him/her say a few words, and move on; and when that character appears a few pages (or even a few chapters) later and says or does something, it could be very significant. If you forget who this character is, you can always stop and go back a few pages, or pick up a companion volume or look in the index.

: In a movie, this simple bit of narration has the potential to be incredibly confusing and disrupting (not to mention time-consuming and therefore expensive).

: A writer/director is then presented with a choice: nix the minor character (and piss off the purists), or keep the bit in (and risk making the movie inaccessible to those unfamiliar with the original novel), or you can try to alter the scene so that it makes sense (and risk getting attacked from all sides if you fail to do it just right).

: Now try doing this with a celebrated and complex novel that is over a thousand pages, with hundrds of characters, which talks about the history of many lands and countries during the past thousand years, and has a devoted and sometimes obsessive base of fans.

: Why am I writing this? I don't know precisely. I like to think I am wise enough to know that debating over the internet has rarely, if ever, lead to the solution of a single problem; never in the history of the universe has so much debate concluded so little. (In my experience, most "debates" end up with someone saying something along the lines of "Screw you, you *#^#@!!!" - through rarely in words so polite.) So I guess I'm not doing it to change anybody's mind.

: But I guess I do simply want to register a message of dissent. There are those among us that do not agree with (what I see as) the puritanism and haughty attitudes of some on these boards (and the greatest offenders are not here on the WC; which is why I felt comfortable posting this on this board as opposed to others).

: I'm sorry if I have come across as rude or flippant or insulting. That is not my intention (necessarily ;) ). But I did want to at least attempt to provide what I would call a reality check to some people who simply don't understand or appreciate what goes into a film production.

: Personally, I am looking foreward to PJ's production. Would I do things differently? Sure, you bet. But absolutely nothing that has come out has suggested that the spirit or feel or tone or point of the original novel will be compromised. Nothing has been prostituted or bastardized. Nothing has been Hollywoodified. No one has sold out. Everything at which many are expressing disappointment and outright disgust are choices made within the realm of legitimate interpretation. (BTW, please don't take this as a blanket endorsement of PJ; the first time I can confirm that he is seriously betraying the spirit of Tolkien and selling out to Hollywood studio pressure to dumb-it-down or insert a gratuitous sex scene or whatnot, I will be up in arms with the rest of you. But until then, I prefer to hope for the best - it's easier on the nerves.)

: Remember, Tolkien wrote a wonderful piece of literature. PJ has never professed to do more than bring his vision of it to the world of cinema. I wish him and the cast and crew the best in their endeavors, and hope they remain true to the spirit and creativity of an author we all admire.

: Thanks for reading.

: Cheers.

: Dave C-Q

*HANDS CLAPPING UNTIL THEY TURN RED"

I tried to find something to "snip" but could find absolutely nothing. So I leave this message for another showing of triumph so that everybody will have to read it, or at least part of it, twice!