Semi-Daily Journal

As a person who has read Tolkien enough times and with enough focus to be the person readers of the trilogy come to with questions--even though I haven't read the Silmarillion in years, I could do a decent job of recreating the House of Finwe geneology from memory--skimming this article leaves me with a simple response - these people are losers and fanatics. You're crying after the movie ended? The movie is perfect? Sheesh. I saw the movie last night. It is far from perfect, and if I went with anyone who cried from it, I would mock them for it for as long as both of us lived.

As long as you both lived? Heh. Mocking people after an intense religious like that might make that a rather short term of time. This *is* fandom, you know.

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Gollum goez GANGSTA
http://www.nedevett.com/gollum.swf

Okay, yes, that article was definitely the work of a gushing fan.

I'm not fan enough that I saw Return of the King open, but I did catch the brief run of the extended cut of Fellowship in theatres, and an amazing thing happened.

I presume that the audience was composed of people who, like me, have read the book and own the DVD and have watched it at least a few times. So when Gandalf dies on the bridge and the Fellowship emerges into the sun, ravaged by grief, it's not like we're surprised. It's not like we're even surprised by how Peter Jackson tells us the tale. Indeed, we all know that Gandalf will actually be back for more.

I heard a funny sound and I turned and saw that about a third of the audience is sniffling and weeping. They're mostly looking embarassed about it, and trying to choke it back, but they're weeping.

No, The Lord of the Rings is hardly perfect filmmaking -- that's something no director can acheive unless their name happens to be Akira Kurosawa. But it delivers the goods. There's no dishonor in shedding a sentimental tear for that.