Dumbing it down

[Bêthberry]

Originally Posted by alatar

Not sure where else to post this. A Sequence-by-Sequence thread might have been better, but I couldn't decide which. Anyway...

The kids and I were watching, "Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger" (1977) yesterday, and they seemed to enjoy this old favorite of mine. What struck me is that the 'wizard' of the group (he's actually a scientist!), Melanthius, is another wise older man with a grey beard. Those familiar with the Harry Potter films, which I'm warming to, will know that (to me) the wizard on top of the food chain is Albus Dumbledore - also old, male and covered with grey-white scruff.

Isn't the caricature old male with grey-white hair 'shorthand' for wise? Why then, when we see Gandalf in the later LotR movies, is he the one who needs assistance/knowledge/reassurance from Aragorn?

I think it's a shorthand for many things, wise being only one aspect. For instance, that picture of Melanthius is very similar to many depictions of Moses. Think Charleton Heston with wild beard. Great find, though, alatar.

Now, Moses accomplished many things, but he did err himself and was denied the opportunity to live in the promised land because of his heavy-handedness. I think it is important to ensure that Gandalf not look too much the heavy authoritarian type of old wizened man in the move, so he turned to the pretty boy for aid. It's moves like this which ensure that mass appeal of popularity which is such a constant refrain from some here on this thread.