dramatic departures from the text, but no less wonderful for it

Rating: Null/10 (26 May 2004)

**SPOILERS**
It's difficult to imagine what these posts would have looked like had I written them when I first viewed these films. Now, I'm writing them having seen the extended editions of FOTR and TT and the advantage of having seen ROTK more times than I care to admit. I know that some of the issues I had with TT were resolved in ROTK - the main one being the apparent character assassination of Faramir. In the book he rejects the ring utterly, yet in the film he comes close to falling under it's spell. However, the extended edition and ROTK highlights the nature of his relationship with Denethor and things start to make much more sense.
TT also sees the introduction of my favourite character in the books - Eowyn. Although I enjoyed Arwens extended pony ride with Frodo, I'm not sure why Jackson felt he needed another feisty female when Eowyn was waiting in the wings. Fortunately he came to his senses and Arwen went back to hanging around looking pretty and pale. I've never understood how Aragorn can choose Arwen over Eowyn, but hey, his loss is Faramir's gain.
Miranda Otto was absolutely superb as Eowyn. She was strong, yet vulnerable, beautiful and cold, everything she should have been. Her scenes with Wormtongue really stood out for me, and the dialogue that belonged to Aragorn in the text fitted well in the scene over Theodred's death bed. And I can't talk about Eowyn without mentioning Theoden. Bernard Hill broke my heart completely in both this and ROTK. His rejuvenation by Gandalf, his love for his niece, his internal conflicts, and above all, his grief for his son. Bernard made Theoden a better man than he was in the book - where he comes across as a reflection of Denethor without the rings corrupting influence. His tendency to doom and self destruction is still there, but Aragorn's influence tempers that.
Merry and Pippin continued to delight me as faithful portrayals of their characters from the book. They make a refreshing contrast from the heavier stuff with Sam and Frodo. And of course, Gollum. Watching Smeagol struggle to overcome his demons and ultimately failing is gut wrenching. And considering that he's a CGI character that's incredible. Unlike the awful Jar-Jar, one completely accepts Gollum as a real person. Even though he doesn't like po-tay-toes.