[Child of the 7th Age]

Elijah Wood did the best job that he could, given the interpretation of 'Frodo as victim" which he was required to play. The problem does not lie in the actor, but rather in the director and the screenplay.<P>The Frodo in the book was so much richer than the damaged goods which PJ offers us in his fanfiction. Essentially, what we have in the two films is "half" of Frodo. Just as Gollum's personality had two sides, so also did Frodo's. PJ manages very well with the half of Frodo which is falling under the Ring's domination. <P>But what about the other half? It's just not there. This was the gentle hobbit who had the light of an Elf-friend in his eye, who saw visions, and who displayed amazingly courteous behavior towards Faramir which the latter actually commented on. This list could go on and on.<P>In the movie, Frodo's pity for Gollum seems to stem strictly from his own fear that he himself will be tranformed into a similar creature. Again, there is some of that in the book Frodo, but it's only part of the story. What about Gandalf's earlier plea that Frodo show true mercy, not tied to any self-serving motive? I get very little sense that the movie Frodo is consciously remembering that dictum.<P>Finally, there's that whole crazy problem of Faramir. In my mind the problem of Frodo and Faramir are linked. The "victimized" Frodo could never have participated in that lengthy interchange and discussion in the book (stretched over three chapters) that so highlights the nobility of both these characters, the hobbit and the man. When you start changing Frodo's character so sharply, it inevitably means that Faramir also must be modified, since there's no way those three chapters could come alive on the movie screen as written.<p>[ December 20, 2002: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]