Hey dol! Merry dol! Get lost Tom!!! - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

Boromir88 · 09-15-2004, 01:14 PM

Ungoliant:

Quote:

Besides, all the non-readers would probably have been quite confused about a character like Tom.

Even most BOOK readers have trouble figuring out who/what Tom Bombadil is. Since it is an unanswered question Tolkien left for us to endlessly bicker about, we will never know. So yes, I agree, putting in Tom would have caused an utter amount of confusion, especially with non-book readers, but also with book readers too. I mean many non-book readers can't understand the concept of the Grey Havens, Bombadil is much more difficult and complex then the Grey Havens.

Encaitare · 09-15-2004, 01:40 PM

I wish he was in there, but it would have been nearly impossible. Those who hadn't read the books would have been terribly confused, and those who had would probably have been displeased by the movie's interpretation of him or his appearance.

The Perky Ent · 09-15-2004, 02:12 PM

I agree with Son of Numenor...again

Tom is too advance for technology and Peter Jackson (although many great things in the movie weren't)! My mental image would go haywire, and I'd never remember. To give a better example: When I first read Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone (or Philosophers Stone if your British), I had a great mental picture for everything. It was so perfect. I knew exactly what Harry looked like. But when the movie came out, seeing someone play Harry destoryed my mental picture, and I couldn't remember what I actually thought. I missed that

It didn't happen for LOTR because that image was much stronger, and I thought about it more often. I don't want Peter to destory my image of good ole Bombadil!

Boromir88 · 09-15-2004, 02:19 PM

Perky:

Quote:

But when the movie came out, seeing someone play Harry destoryed my mental picture

I actually got that feeling with LOTR. I mean, he destroyed my mental picture of all the characters. For some reason instead of making Legolas a dark-haired elf, he was blonde, in fact a lot of his elves were blonde, and there were very few blonde elves. I thought no matter how great a role Sean Bean did, he wasn't big enough for Boromir, and he also should have had dark hair like most Gondorians. Boromir was the strongest, broadest member of the fellowship, he needed to be bigger, but I loved Sean Bean. I also pictured Elendil to be a lot taller, I mean he was "Elendil the Tall." But, these are just nit-picky things that didn't get me furiously mad and stomp off, just saying my mental imaginations were destroyed, now I can't read a Legolas line without picturing some expert mumak slaying blonde elf.

The Perky Ent · 09-15-2004, 02:31 PM

This is true, but I'm not as much as a nit picker as you

Bêthberry · 09-15-2004, 03:24 PM

In addition to what Son of Númenor says about wanting to preserve his own special image of Tom, I think there is another issue with the omission of The House of Bombadil and also of Fog on the Barrow Downs.

Both of those chapters provide initial scares for the hobbits. Gandalf even says, later in Rivendell ("Many Meetings") that Frodo's experience with the Barrow Wight was more harrowing than that on Weathertop. The book thus gives us a graduated development of the tension which the Black Riders cause.

The movie lacks this progression of fear and suspense and terror. Thus, the Prancing Pony and Bree in the movie must in effect become darker than those scenes in the book. And the movie has to rely on big screne action instead of finely wrought emotional development. In missing out on Old Man Willow, movie goers also have little foreshadowing for the likes of the Ents in Fangorn.

The Perky Ent · 09-15-2004, 04:12 PM

Merry: It's not even sharp!

Eowyn: A blunt blade's no good! To the smithy! Go!

PJ: Cut! Brilliant! This scene is a keeper!

Writer: Wait a minute, if Merry uses this blade, with no magical Numenorian power, it doesn't make sense that he stops the Witch-King. This scene throws off the whole plot!

PJ: Well...that's true.....but...that was a good scene, and I don't think we can do better! Let's just keep this, and remove the Barrow-Downs scene! This way, people who didn't read the book won't be confused!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ok, sure! I was exagerating! But you get the point. They didn't shoot the movies in order of Chapter by Chapter. They either thought they couldn't do it (which is what most likely happened) or they put a scene in the can, and later forgot it would conflict!

dancing spawn of ungoliant · 09-17-2004, 04:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boromir88

Even most BOOK readers have trouble figuring out who/what Tom Bombadil is.

Exactly!

I had terrible difficulties in picturing the elves in my mind when I first read LotR. After I saw the Fellowship, I adapted my frail image of the elves to correspond the movie version. I have same kind of difficulties with Tom. It would be easy if someone just showed me a picture: "Look, here's Tom, he looks like that." But since Tom is such a mysterious character, maybe it's appropriate to have a little blurred mental picture of him. Seeing him on the film would probably have been a disappointment.
Like The Saucepan Man said

Quote:

The difficulty would be in finding an actor who could portray the right mix of levity and underlying power.

09-15-2004, 02:12 PM	#3
The Perky Ent Maniacal Mage Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Setting sail for Umbar, with Firefoot at my side! Posts: 3,297	I agree with Son of Numenor...again Tom is too advance for technology and Peter Jackson (although many great things in the movie weren't)! My mental image would go haywire, and I'd never remember. To give a better example: When I first read Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone (or Philosophers Stone if your British), I had a great mental picture for everything. It was so perfect. I knew exactly what Harry looked like. But when the movie came out, seeing someone play Harry destoryed my mental picture, and I couldn't remember what I actually thought. I missed that It didn't happen for LOTR because that image was much stronger, and I thought about it more often. I don't want Peter to destory my image of good ole Bombadil! __________________ 'But Melkor also was there, and he came to the house of Fëanor, and there he slew Finwë King of the Noldor before his doors, and spilled the first blood in the Blessed Realm; for Finwë alone had not fled from the horror of the Dark.'

09-15-2004, 02:31 PM	#5
The Perky Ent Maniacal Mage Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Setting sail for Umbar, with Firefoot at my side! Posts: 3,297	This is true, but I'm not as much as a nit picker as you __________________ 'But Melkor also was there, and he came to the house of Fëanor, and there he slew Finwë King of the Noldor before his doors, and spilled the first blood in the Blessed Realm; for Finwë alone had not fled from the horror of the Dark.'

09-15-2004, 03:24 PM	#6
Bêthberry Cryptic Aura Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 6,003	Fear and loathing In addition to what Son of Númenor says about wanting to preserve his own special image of Tom, I think there is another issue with the omission of The House of Bombadil and also of Fog on the Barrow Downs. Both of those chapters provide initial scares for the hobbits. Gandalf even says, later in Rivendell ("Many Meetings") that Frodo's experience with the Barrow Wight was more harrowing than that on Weathertop. The book thus gives us a graduated development of the tension which the Black Riders cause. The movie lacks this progression of fear and suspense and terror. Thus, the Prancing Pony and Bree in the movie must in effect become darker than those scenes in the book. And the movie has to rely on big screne action instead of finely wrought emotional development. In missing out on Old Man Willow, movie goers also have little foreshadowing for the likes of the Ents in Fangorn. __________________ I’ll sing his roots off. I’ll sing a wind up and blow leaf and branch away.

09-15-2004, 04:12 PM	#7
The Perky Ent Maniacal Mage Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Setting sail for Umbar, with Firefoot at my side! Posts: 3,297	Merry: It's not even sharp! Eowyn: A blunt blade's no good! To the smithy! Go! PJ: Cut! Brilliant! This scene is a keeper! Writer: Wait a minute, if Merry uses this blade, with no magical Numenorian power, it doesn't make sense that he stops the Witch-King. This scene throws off the whole plot! PJ: Well...that's true.....but...that was a good scene, and I don't think we can do better! Let's just keep this, and remove the Barrow-Downs scene! This way, people who didn't read the book won't be confused! ~~~~~~~~~*~ Ok, sure! I was exagerating! But you get the point. They didn't shoot the movies in order of Chapter by Chapter. They either thought they couldn't do it (which is what most likely happened) or they put a scene in the can, and later forgot it would conflict! __________________ 'But Melkor also was there, and he came to the house of Fëanor, and there he slew Finwë King of the Noldor before his doors, and spilled the first blood in the Blessed Realm; for Finwë alone had not fled from the horror of the Dark.'

09-15-2004, 01:40 PM	#2
Encaitare Bittersweet Symphony Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: On the jolly starship Enterprise Posts: 1,814	I wish he was in there, but it would have been nearly impossible. Those who hadn't read the books would have been terribly confused, and those who had would probably have been displeased by the movie's interpretation of him or his appearance.