The Game Attempts: Part Twenty Three-Part Twenty One:
We continue with the hobbits, now joined by Strider, on the road on their way to Rivendell, which is explained in this scene. The hobbits whisper amongst themselves about whether or not they should trust this new party member, but Frodo is insistent that they have no choice. Aragorn finally tells them where’s leading when Sam asks, showing he heard every word they said, including Merry uttering “he seems foul enough”. The look on the Brandybuck’s face is priceless.
What follows is a montage of them following with a few short exchanges interlaces throughout, only unlike the Bakshi version, there are actual landscapes and actors who know what they’re doing present. They manage a humorous moment where the hobbits’ eating practices baffle Strider and then the group stumbling through a bog. Here, we get a helicopter shot of them in the bog. Sam is leading Bill the Pony. They skipped the scene where they got him, but anyone with any level of deduction can figure out they bought him in Bree, so it’s not a problem.
The problem with Bill’s presence in the helicopter shot mentioned is that he’s two guys in a suit, and looks like two guys in a suit. I can why that was cut, since if I noticed it on the DVD, it would have looked like a joke in theaters.
Later, we get a short scene of the group bedded down for the night. Strider walks through their little camp with a deer he killed slung over his shoulders. He sets it down and presumably butchers it for eating later. Instead of that delightful scene, we instead get an exchange in which Frodo listening to Strider sing the “Lay of Luthien”, an elf maiden who gave her love to Beren, a mortal man. He sings it wistfully and a sad and longing expression on his face. Now this scene, I don’t know why they cut it. It shows how much more Strider is than just a ranger even before the scene on Weathertop and its foreshadowing a huge part of his story is so nicely woven in this scene. Yeah, I get that his true allegiance is still supposed to be in question since the uninitiated aren’t yet supposed to know who he is (again, that you could buy a mug with his face on it at the time kind of gives away his hero status. Twilight fans could put these puzzle pieces together! Oh yeah, I went there). But then again, I’m biased and any scene of Viggo fluently speaking or singing Elvish is cool by me with that sexy voice of his. Did I just type that?
Frodo, awakened by the singing, asks Strider about the woman of the sing, and the ranger explain it as briefly as he can, obviously not wanting to talk about it or think about the implications concerning Arwen at the moment. This is just about the only scene where it is confirms that Frodo knows elvish, so there's another reason why this should have been in the theatrical cut.
Then we cut to Saruman in his oh so pleasant little Isengard tower. And by pleasant, I mean you’d have to be insane to want to live in this horrible place. The entire place is pitch-black, it’s designed to look like one wrong step and you’d be impaled on a sharp edge, and it has to be cold as hell in there.
The fallen wizard is using the Palintir to converse with Sauron, who commands him to build an army, one worthy of Mordor. To cut Saruman sitting in his office wrapped in a blanket, giving credence to my theory that it’s very cold in there, when some goblins arrive. They ask what they are to do.
Cut to them pulling down all the trees surrounding Isengard. The trees make extra groaning sounds apart from the sound of wood being pulled from the ground, indicating their status as living trees from Fangorn forest. And this is the exact moment Saruman seals his own doom, but more on that later in The Two Towers.
We cut to Gandalf, who awakens on the roof of Isengard. He overhears the tree’s groaning and walks over to the edge and sees the entire wood being torn down. He leans against one of the four points on the roof and shivers in the cold.
This sequence is short but informative. There’s really not much to say other than it’s very well done.
Then he cut back to Strider and the hobbits as they arrive at Weathertop. The hill wide shot is a combo of an actual hill and a CGI inserting the watch tower part of it, but that’s it. Looking at it in the theaters, I would have told you it was real.
The group sets up camp on the side of the hill below the top. Strider is off to check out the surrounding area and gives the hobbits swords to defend themselves with. It’s a reasonable substitute explanation for how the hobbits got armed since they skipped the Wights.
Later, we Frodo resting when he overhears his friends laughing amongst themselves and sees the fire glow everywhere and he rolls over abruptly and see the numbskulls cooking food over an open fire. Shocked at their stupidity, he stamps the food out ignoring their announcement about “tomatoes and nice crispy bacon” because fires are like freakin’ bulleyes in the dark. The camera cuts to a wide shot of Weathertop to show us just how far out the fire is showing and how far Pippin’s complaint rings out.
Then we hear the shriek of a Ringwraith. The hobbits crowd around the edge of the little hollow to see, and sure enough, five wraiths are riding up to the abandoned watch tower. They race up the top and stand in the middle with their backs to each other and their little swords drawn. The camera pans around them as they look frightfully in all directions in a borderline panicked state. All four of the hobbits’ acting is spot on. You can sense their fear.
Then the single creepiest moment of the film happens. Frodo turns to look at one of the many entrances leading into the center of the watch tower. Almost as if just appearing from the darkness, one of the wraiths emerged, like moving as if it were floating on air. The effect put my heart in my throat. The wraiths soundlessly all move closer to the little hobbits and pull their swords and begin their slow advance.
Samwise musters up enough courage to verbally rebuke them and attacks them. He only manages to get a few sword swings in before the wraith he’s fighting backhands into him a wall. Merry and Pippin then move in front of Frodo, but are pulled aside. Not a brave as Sam’s attempt, but they still get props for having the guts to just step between the Nazgul and their prey.
Now it’s Frodo standing alone. The central wraith, which also backhanded Samwise advances on him. Now, I know Frodo had the nerve to try to attack the wraith in the book, whereas here he just tries to run for it trips over his own feet. I don’t which is better, honestly. Attacking the wraith did him no good in the book, but he totally fails at just running for it here. Eh, there’s a reason neither book or film Frodo is my favorite character amongst the cast. He’s less competent than just about everyone else and duller than everyone else. At least in the books, though, he had negotiating skills.
Anyway, Frodo stupidly pulls the Ring out (facepalm) and immediately the wraith later revealed to be the Witch King is upon him. Frodo tries to scoot away (get up and run you idiot!) before scooting himself into a corner, Wood does his druggie face again before slipping on the Ring. There he sees the wraiths in their true form: The twisted forms of once men. The effect is excellent. The wraiths’ true forms are costumes, while the swirling shadow world is CGI. The Witch King reaches for the Ring and the Ring reaches for it in return. Frodo pulls his hand back and gets stabbed for his troubles.
Then we hear a battle cry as Strider enters the scene with carrying in one hand, his sword, and a flaming torch in the other. Frodo pulls off the Ring, but it pains him to do so now that he’s turning into a wraith. I have to say I buy that completely, considering the nature of the Ring and the wraiths. Sam regains consciousness and runs over to his master. Frodo calls pathetically out to him while Sam begins tending to him, a worried expression upon his face. Astin’s acting here is perfect. This is the first of many moments where I was touched by Sam’s devotion to Frodo.
Strider meanwhile single-handedly fends off the wraiths by setting their robes on fire. They all run off screaming like little girls. Given what they just did, the audience feels immense satisfaction in their sight. Finally, it’s down to Strider and one wraith. Of course, this is the now famous shot of him throwing the torch right into the camera (another angle that get a 3D effect in theaters these days) and the light-source lands squarely in the remaining wraith’s hood. It runs off screaming. This had pretty much everyone in the theater I was in going “…badass.”
Anyone else recall that Strider of the Bakshi film that was tripped up by the wraiths and by pretty much every other enemy and how he’d just barely break even in all his fights? Yeah, I’m applying Kainic Acid to my brain to try to forget him, too.
Sam calls over to the ranger and informs him that something’s wrong with Frodo. Strider identifies the blade that pierced Frodo and tell the hobbits that he will need elvish medicine, and soon.
The film cuts to a shot of Strider carrying Frodo through the woods. Everyone except for the Ring bearer is carrying a torch. Frodo begins calling out to Gandalf’s name. The film then segways back Isengard.
The camera pans over the ruined and gutted grounds of Isengard as the orcs work on the machines that create the Urak-Hai. Boy, am I glad Jackson had the good taste to leave out how to create a half-orc, which is what you get by (barf!) crossbreeding a man and an orc. Instead, we get straightforward (thank God) genetic engineering. Before getting a close look at the creation of the manmade monstrosities Saruman ill loose unleash, we head on up to the roof of the tower where he find Gandalf. He’s looking like he’s in pretty bad shape.
An odd moth flutters over to him and he causes it in his hands and whispers a message to it before setting it free again. Then the camera roller-coasters down into the depths on the pits the orcs have constructed for Saruman at last. The sets are intricate, each piece of equipment at least appears to serve some purpose, and the model builders, as always, really, outdid themselves.
We get some shots of the orcs building the gear which the Urak-Hai will use before we cut to the mud pit which has several odd pulsating sacks which some orcs are prodding with sticks. One apparently must be finished as the orcs pull back the sack, revealing Lurtz, the head Urak-Hai of the first film. The first thing the hideous beast of a half-man-half-orc-thingy does is grab an orc and straggle he/she/it to death.
Saruman oversees the operation and stops some other orcs from stopping Lurtz from killing. All the whole the corrupted white wizard wears the expression of a first time mother as he watches as Lurtz is born and then kills first thing. The set-up, the atmosphere, the build-up, and the payoff are all creepy like no one else’s business. It perfectly illustrates how far from grace Saruman was fallen and how horrible the abominations he has created are.
Then we go back to Frodo and company. Frodo drifts back into consciousness and finds himself face-to-face with a giant stone finger pointing directly to him. He looks around and finds himself in the, ah, stiff company of Bilbo’s trolls. The troll look amazing, by the way They’re frozen in an unmistakable position which indicates the argument they were having right before Gandalf’s ploy finally paid off.
Sam appears b y Frodo’s side to check on him. Frodo can only squeak and moan in response to him. I have no idea why the filmmakers decided that Frodo would be unable to even talk while suffering from the Morgal blade. Yeah, it hurt in the book, but he was still even able to crack jokes at Sam’s expense for crying out loud. Sam feels his employer’s forehead and announces that he’s going cold.
Strider announces that Frodo needs King’s Soil, which will help to slow the poisons, and he calls on Sam’s aid. He cut to a quick shot of Sam frantically searching for some amongst the brush while Aragorn scans the land in a more analytical fashion. HE finds some and bends, pulls out a knife, and prepares to cut some up.
Then a blade is suddenly at his throat. We hear a woman’s voice light-heartedly scold him for being off-guard. He looks back up at the person with a faintly amused expression.
Head’s up, I know I’m not being overtly detailed right now, but I find something the warrants heavy commenting, I’ll do so.
We cut back to an ailing Frodo As something lights up in the dead of night. He looks over and sees Arwen in her true. A shining figure of beauty in white. She speaks to him in flawless elvish and tells him that she is here to help. He coughs and loses consciousness again. He is officially The Load.
Now, on Glorfindel and Arwen: While I will admit that the loss of Glor’ is a shame, you just can’t have a character pop up to give Frodo a horse, then show up at the Council of Elrond, and then just vanish from the story. If you have a highly superfluous character like Glorfindel, you write him out with someone who will appear later. In this Arwen, who had absolutely nothing to do in the books at all, because Tolkien did not know how to write female characters, for the most part. Eowyn is far enough removed from a typical girl that she’s the exception and Galadriel was written to be mostly business-like. In fact, most people who just read the books once or twice will be hard pressed to remember Aragorn had a love interest, because she does nothing but show up in two wordless cameos. Here, we get to see her and see her in action, and see a bit of why Aragorn is in love with this woman so deeply.
Sorry, hardcore Tolkien fans who insist that Glorfindel was indispensible, but he is very, very dispensable. In fact, I have a harder time remembering he exists than I ever did Arwen.
Back to the film, Aragorn and Arwen tend to Frodo. Aragorn chews up the weed and then applies the now germ-covered paste he’s chewed it into onto the wound. Why couldn’t they have just cut to a boiling pot containing it and then Aragorn applies a rag he’s dipped in it to the wound? Anyway, Arwen comments that Frodo will not last long as the ranger hoists the hobbit onto the horse she brought.
Arwen insists on riding instead, and after a short argument, she wins out. Sam criticizes Strider for just letting the two go, but the man just wordlessly watches with a concerned look on his face. I like how this shows how much faith Aragorn has in Arwen ability to get Frodo and herself there, alive and well.
We cut to daylight as Arwen bears Frodo to Rivendell at full gallop. She passes through some trees and we get a glimpse of the wraiths riding up along-side her before they are fully revealed once in the clear. The music picks up and Arwen guides her horse away from them and an all out chase in which all nine end up on the elf and hobbits’ tails breaks out. The choreography and horseback stunts are amazing. I can’t even imagine getting a horse to do some of things witnessed here.
Finally, the chase comes to the ford, where Arwen makes her stand. A wraith I assume to be the Witch King demands that she give up the “Halfling”. She draws her sword and tells them to bring it. The wraiths pull their cursed blades and start across the river. Arwen calls up Elrond’s protection of Rivendell and a tidel wave in the shape of horses appears and washes away the wraiths. I would comment more, but it all happens almost exactly like it did in the book and looks great.
At this point, Frodo really slips off into wraithyland. Arwen lays him out on the ground to try to snap him out of it to no avail. He slips into a very deep sleep. He hugs him closely and lets loose some tears. Then things get kind of trippy as the screen goes light with images of a falling Frodo next to an image of a chanting Elrond play against the faint background of the camera pointed straight up at the ceiling in Rivendell. The effect isn’t bad, and it illustrates what the world probably looked like to Frodo in his haze. Finally, we cut to a lit image of him in bed asking where he is. And there is where we leave off.
