[alatar]

Originally Posted by Essex

The (in)famous bedroom scene......You won't be surprised to hear that I have no problems with this scene. I think PJ has said somewhere that his characters deserve this 'ending' - we've been with them for nigh on 11 hours now and they have been through a lot. Some people may see this as corny, but hey, come on - Frodo (and Sam) have saved Middle-earth - frodo's seen a great friend who he knew was dead come back to life - his cousins bound in and are overjoyed to see him - who wouldn't do exactly the same in merry or pippin's place?

Me and many other people I know that consider Merry and Pippin's behaviour weird, excessive and/or smarmy.

laughing and joking and comparing war wounds with Frodo now that the ME is 'free' and saved from Sauron? they are entitled to their 'immaturity' here - joy can overcome our maturity and turn us into kids now and then.

But the whole story arc for these two was that they 'grew.' We saw even Pip take responsibility and care for Merry. Now we have these two narcissists hogging Frodo. If you must bounce and hug Frodo so be it, but get it out of your system and give the others a chance (can you imagine eight persons on the bed doing the same thing? Hey, they beat Sauron, and so it's okay... ).

I cried like a baby when Aragorn and co bowed to the hobbits because of my joy - it doesn't make me 'less mature' - but I admit I did cover my face in the cinema when I was balling my eyes out trying to be more adult LOL!

I well up as well, and I do not consider tears immature, but if you balled at every sappy commercial on TV or laughed/cried each time a cloud passed in front of the sun, I might consider that you have issues. My issue is that I had to suffer the diminuation of Gandalf as it moved the story along or whatever and yet I cannot have the bouncy beans take a chill pill as that's what they (the actors) I guess wanted to do.

It's amazing, throughout this trilogy, what PJ can get his actors to convey with just a look. This one surpases most of them. You can read SO much into this look - love, completion, and a sense of the two hobbits being 'equal' in stature - though Sam would never accept this of course.

Exactly. Do we really need Merry and Pippin to be so excessive in their joy (I'm suddenly thinking of excited dogs, but won't go there) when we have so much more said in a simple look?

I really don't give a monkey about whether none book readers thought the film was over or not. Too bad. Should have read the book first you phillistines!

Typically people want more for their money, yet here...I guess there should have been a warning not to exert oneself (getting up out of one's seat after a bucket of popcorn and Coke) until the credit rolled. What were these people trying to do - beat traffic?

My favourite part of the Trilogy. I still well up when I watch it now. Sacriligeous I know, but this works even better in the film as it does in the book where Aragorn kneels to Sam and Merry in the Field of Cormallen.

Agreed. It works without bouncing on a bed.

Very clever use of the pumpkin to show that these 4 little hobbits (well 2 of them not so small now!) who are 'amongst the Great' are just bog standard normal peopl in the eyes of the Hobbitons. It shows their great modesty and maturity that they don't go jumping up exclaiming to the crowds what they've done and how great they are. the look on their faces (again great direction from PJ) says it all.........

Couldn't think of how to work that point in, but it's clear to those that see that the Pumpkin of Incredible Size is more newsworthy than the four heroes of the age. I'm not surprised.

I was cried out at this moment from the last 15 minutes or so, so this doesn't have the impact the Book has on me every time I read it. There's a few chapters between the events of the last 15 mins in the book of course (scouring, saruman etc)

Seeing it is much more emotive than reading it. It's the looks, the tears, the music - it all gets you in that place where you keep your jar of loneliness and loss.

I'm not sure whether it works or not, not having Frodo crying as he gets ready to say goodbye to his friends for the last time.

My illiterate sister noted this and it bothered her. She thought that the reason that Frodo had to leave was that he was sick - couldn't 'feel' and so went to die somewhere in the West.

Finally, and this goes against my main stance for the past 17 months on these discussion boards, but I've got to start at some point(!) - I'll end with a couple of down points for now!

Now I've seen everything!

I was dissapointed that we had no extra scenes all the way from Gollum's attack on the slopes of Mount Doom to the end of the movie - REALLY dissapointed.

What else would you have liked to have seen in regards to PJ's story? A shot of Legolas and Gimli departing for their new adventures? A drunken Gimli snogging Galadriel?

And was also sad in both versions, that we don't have the follow on scenes for the rest of the fellowship - when I read these scenes in the tale of the years they still make me shed a tear.

All good things - even many bad things - eventually come to an end. Isn't it interesting that the life of the Fellowship, in book and movie form, can evoke such emotions but the persons down the street are below one's radar?

Anyway, 'tis done. Well done to Alatar and all the posters on these threads. Now what can we think to discuss next? PS - added my thanks to the Feedback and suggestions board - maybe others would like to follow.

You've been far too kind, and let's not discount the role that you and others have played in this collaborative work as well.