In the last week I've watched my DVD of "The Fellowship of the Ring" twice, once on my computer and last night on a tv with friends. I am sad that the stunning beauty of the long shots is lost on the smaller screens. The large fight scenes, the walls of Morder, and even Lothlorien lose some of the visual impact in other than full cinema scale. But the close ups are actually less distracting, which means I'm less overwhelmed by the perfection of Elijah Wood's skin (c.f. my initial review) and can pay more attention to the flow of the movie.
After thoroughly enjoying the opportunity to comment on the movie as it was playing, which I never do during theatrical showings, I realized I had changed my mind about some of the scenes. For instance, in the theater I didn't appreciate the scene where Sam follows Frodo's boat into the water despite his inability to swim, and his subsequent rescue and emotional reunion with his beloved friend. I just wasn't moved by it. I thought it was unnecessarily hokey. I couldn't even remember if it was in the book; I thought not, at least not the near-drowning part. I did remember Sam figuring out that Frodo would try to sneak away.
I think I must have been overwhelmed from the spectacle and intensity of the movie by the end of it. It was, after all, a nearly perfect visualization of the way I'd always pictured the places and people in the book. After three hours of it I was probably losing focus a little, stunned by the constant thrill of seeing one of my favorite books come to life. Seeing it more intimately, knowing how the script played out, gave me the chance to hold back a little. And this time, I cried when Frodo rescued Sam and embraced him. Because this time I really saw and empathized with Frodo's hesitation on the shore of the lake before getting in the boat, felt his sorrow and conflict as he struggled with the cruel realization that whether or not he achieved his goal of casting the ring into Mount Doom the outcome of his quest was certain death. Like Sam's hestitation to take that first step outside the farthest he'd ever been in the Shire Frodo needed to muster enough will and strength to accept irrevocable change. This time I saw that, and thus felt the incredible relief that he need not go alone.
I'm still cool towards Viggo Mortenson as Aragorn, I still think Liv Tyler is a tepid actress, and although I am reconciled to Cate Blanchett playing Galadriel her performance continues to confuse me. There's an unevenness to her portrayal just as there is a constant shift between her ordinary conversational accent and her "I am a mythological and archetypal being" Masterpiece Theatre accent which she whips out for the prologue voiceover and her private meeting with Frodo. I don't doubt this is on purpose, but I don't think it works. I know the elves are supposed to be merry as can be one moment, deadly warriors the next, but I was constantly distracted by Blanchett's accent and demeanor changes. Hugo Weaving managed his transitions beautifully. He's more skilled at layering his acting, perhaps. Elrond has depth. Galadriel has two modes. I am sorry for it, as I loved the character in the book. But at least Lothlorien was everything I hoped for, and more.
After we finished the movie we watched the Enya video on the special features disc because one of my friends had never seen or heard her. Then we watched the preview of "The Two Towers" which looks great although excuse me, Eowyn is a warrior maiden and ought to have a little meat on her bones, that skinny woman they cast would never hold up well in a battle in heavy armour. Anyway, we also watched the preview of the Special Platinum Edition of "The Fellowship of the Ring" to be released in November this year.
Bastards! There's thirty minutes of extra footage edited back into the movie. Important footage that illuminates the plot, sometimes simply beautiful imagery from the book that was cut from the theatrical release. And more interviews! And the director's voiceover! Four discs instead of two! I am so pissed off about this. Why? Because I absolutely have to have it. Had I known this was coming I wouldn't have put the shorter version of the movie on my wish list, and no one would have bought it for me, and I wouldn't end up with a redundant copy.
Not that I'm not grateful for the present, for indeed I am happy to have seen this movie twice in the last week, and yes, I know I didn't buy it so you may wonder what my problem is. I just think it's really shitty of Warner to release the first DVD without advertising the second one until a week after the other went out to stores. It's greedy. I don't appreciate it one bit.
Warner Home Studio must be run by orcs.
[Addendum 08/26/02: I have been informed Warner wasn't being deceptive, I simply wasn't paying attention to the various editions and release dates. True. I went solely by the listings on Amazon.com when making my choice and the Director's Cut wasn't listed in July. I should know better than to trust Amazon, they've fooled me more than once with misinformation or missing information.]
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