[Child of the 7th Age]

Davem,

The link to the picture is quite remarkable! And it does relate to the subject of this thread.

I have mixed feelings about what you've said. It's a toughie for me to come down on one side or the other of this issue. On the one hand, I understand your desire to reserve the "true" telling of Sammath Naur to the book reader who has taken the trouble to come through 900 pages with Tolkien, who understands the characters as Tolkien wanted them to be perceived. On the other hand, there are times when I fear that the subtle differences in the movie are not going away, and we'll still find PJ's interpretation creeping into the Books forum for a very long time.

The true irony is that I went to see the movie again this afternoon and suspended my 'book mentality' and enjoyed it very much. It was showing at the IMAX where your seat definitely shakes when the Nazgul come flying down! I think this dilemma of dual interpretation is going to be around a while in this thread and many others.

BTW, in the movie, Gollum does go over the edge after the second struggle, but that is still different than the book, as is the scene where Frodo "makes a choice" to let Sam pull him up.
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Helen,

Believe me, I am sympathetic to your desire to have had more of the book Frodo in the movie. And I certainly wouldn't mind what you are suggesting. You've said it very well, but my honest opinion is that this won't happen. And grafting on something like this won't change the basic portrayal of Frodo as a youngish and very vulnerable hobbit, albeit quite endearing, who does not display the wisdom of Tolkien's older, Elf-loving hobbit. And that does affect the portrayal of the Gollum/Frodo relationship and many other scenes from the book.

But good luck with what you are trying to do.

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 5:39 PM January 14, 2004: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]