Did you see the movies or read the books first?

I saw Fellowshipbefore I read it but I read TTTb4 I saw the movies.

[Coral]

I'm pretty sure this will get closed shortly but...You read TTT but not FoTR? This doesn't make sense. Did you watch the first movie, then get started on the second book?

[Legolas]

She saw The Fellowship of the Ring, read The Fellowship of the Ring, read The Two Towers, and saw The Two Towers, in that order.

[MLD-Grounds-Keeper-Willie]

I don't think it will get closed soon, just moved to novices and newcomers. I guess it will be three posts after mine that it is moved.

Anyways, I read the trylogy before I saw the movies.

[Pukel-Man]

Two more to go Willie!

I first read the Hobbit in 1977 and the LOTR in 1980- so what guess I'm trying to say is that I'm old.

[ February 06, 2003: Message edited by: Pukel-Man ]

[Elfstone]

I guess that makes me somewhat old, too. I read the Hobbit and the trilogy for the first time in '84 or '85. Tried the Silmarillion too, but it was a bit beyond me at that point. Thank god I gave it another shot!

[LadyMeg]

Suilad All,

I read the Books first before seeing the movies, it gave me better understanding of what the movie's were about LOTR, TTT and the up and coming ROTK which I cannot wait till it finally arrives at the cinemas.

Kind Regards: LadyMeg [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

[Gorwingel]

Read FOTR, did not understand it
Saw the movie, understood it, then read entire LOTR series.

[Inderjit Sanghera]

Saw the movie halfway through the book.

i saw FotR and then read the book, the i read TTT and then saw it.

I saw FOTR first and loved it so much that I read the book ( and liked the book better), so I decided to see the other two movies before reading the books, because I don't to be disappointed by the movies.

[the witch king]

Wow lots of you guys seen the movie befor you read the books! thort it would be the other way around. I read the books way befor the movies were even talked about! Personaly think thats the best way.

[Airehiriel]

I read the book before the movie came out. But only a few months before it came out, so the book was still pretty fresh in my mind when I watched it. I was so amused when they said lines right from the book, though a lot of the lines were in different places then they were in the book. Also missed some parts not being in the movie that were in the book.

[hobbit punk]

My stepdad was always bugging me to read the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings when I was a kid so of course I didn't. Then I started my teen years and it seemed more appealing. I had begun to get more interested in fantasy and then I remembered the Lord of the Rings. I started reading and never looked back! I read the trilogy and the hobbit and I am now starting the book of lost tales part one and then I have the Simarillion to get started on! When I found out that a movie was coming out about these incredible books, I was stoked and hoped that it would capture some of the grand scope of Tolkien's writing. On the whole the movies are good, esp. FOTR but trust me, the book is SO much better. Always read the book first.

[Eärendil]

I read the Lord of the Rings about 7 years before seeing the films. And now I don´t know what more to say...

[Nibinlondwen]

I read the works by J.R.R Tolkien before I saw the works of peter jackson,
I have to say that the books were far much better than the movies.
I guess that is because I love details, and in a movie one cant see all details.
And I love reading too, so I guess thats why I liked the books better than the movies.

[Balin999]

I first read the books when I was 14, and FotR came out when I was 19, so it's rather obvious.
After seeing the movies over and over again, I started to like them more than I did after I've seen them for the first time. But reading the books is still a lot better than just watching it in cinema and then judging the characters after the movie.
The movies are very good the way they are, but they can't match the books in any way. However, I'm really glad that P.J. decided to make them.

[The Saucepan Man]

The books ... a long, long time before the films came out.

But I'm only just reading the Silmarillion, having given up on it first time round [img]smilies/frown.gif[/img] .

[Meela]

i heard the hobbit when i was 3 ish
i picked up lotr around the same time as the movies

[thalioniathiel]

I had tried reading Fellowship of the Ring before the movies came out but couldn't get through it. I saw the movie and was immediately immersed into the story and characters and loved it and wanted to read the book properly. I started and finished reading TTT and RotK before TTT came out and then reread TTT and RotK recently. now I'm rereading FotR.
I think those of us who saw the movie first get more enjoyment out of the movies and books than the ones who read the books multiple times first. seems that too many "book purists" can't get over the differences between the books and the movies. even though some of the things in FotR (movie) didn't make sense when I saw it the first time, I certainly enjoyed it more than I did TTT the first time. the first time I saw TTT I was only thinking about the differences. [img]smilies/frown.gif[/img] but the second time I could enjoy it better. still, for me FotR (movie) has a magic about it that TTT doesn't. kinda like falling in love for the first time...

[ February 06, 2003: Message edited by: thalioniathiel ]

[The Saucepan Man]

I think those of us who saw the movie first get more enjoyment out of the movies and books than the ones who read the books multiple times first.

Hmm ... more enjoyment out of the films from seeing them first maybe, although I'm not one of those who lets the differences spoil my enjoyment of the films.

But, surely you can't be suggesting that people who see the films first enjoy the books more? If so, you're asking for trouble ... [img]smilies/eek.gif[/img]

[thalioniathiel]

But, surely you can't be suggesting that people who see the films first enjoy the books more? If so, you're asking for trouble ...

no, I just meant that it seems to me that people who saw the film(s) first could enjoy the movies without comparing them to the books and then read and enjoy the books to find out the details and "what really happened" so to speak. whereas it seems from comments I've read that many fans of the books can't/don't enjoy the movies as well because they immediately notice the 'differences' and to some degree don't 'get over' them. I've felt that way about TTT myself and my comment was more of a wistful looking-back sort of thing than a blanket statement of who can enjoy what better.

[propagandalf]

I saw FOTR first, then read the book. Then I read TTT and TOTK then saw TTT.

Now I am reading TTT again. Next month I am going to read TROTK again. Then I’m staying away from the whole thing (if I can) till the movie TROTK comes out. Then I’m probably going to read the book again (TROTK). When they’re available, I’m gonna get the extended editions of TTT and TROTK. Then I’m going to watch FOTR, TTT, and TROTK (extended editions) consecutively, with no breaks.

i gots a plan yo.

[Iarwain]

Read them all seven times, then these movies came along...

Eldest,
Iarwain

[Beren87]

I read them in in 7th grade...that was a while ago. I'd read them over a hundred times when the movies finally got here.

[Aeryn Evenstar]

I've read the books just before the movies came out. I just discovered Tolkien a few months before the movies came out. My brother had gotten into it and I was impressed with flipping through his book, so I got it, too. I hadn't even heard about the movies till my brother mentioned it. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

[Tar-Palantir]

Books for me started in 1982, movies in 2001. Reading the Hobbit for the first time (when I was 10, LotR at 12) was magical and something that was quite personal to me. Just what the doctor ordered. I am so glad it didn't come utterly surrounded by the crass commercialization like the books/films are today. That would certainly have taken much of the magic from the experience. When I read those books the first time, I had no knowledge of anyone else who had and for a very long while it was my secret adventure. Quite certainly, I'd rather have that memory than one of seeing the movie and then having to read the book to find out 'what really happened'.

I'm am not insinuating that the books are diminished by seeing the movies first, just that my experience of reading them would have been.
[img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

[ February 08, 2003: Message edited by: Tar-Palantir ]

[Balin999]

Errr... I just noticed that I really saw the movie before I read the books. Because I saw the cartoon-movie when I was still a child. I was mighty afraid of it, but when I saw the cartoon after I have read the books, I was really disappointed. I tend to believe that P.J. did a better job than the cartoon-guy.

[Krumtakh the Obtuse]

I read the books first. I'm kind of glad I did, I was able to form my own visions of middle earth and not just see PJ's version when I read the books.

[ Edit: I didn't realize how long my post had gotten. You guys don't want my life story. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]]

[ February 10, 2003: Message edited by: Krumtakh the Obtuse ]

[ilon]

I stumbled upon THE HOBBIT on 1997. But when I heard there's the movie on TLOTR trilogy a year before the first release, I hurriedly tried to find and finished the trilogy. I'm very glad i did that.

Now is SILMARILLION still published at the present?Hope I can find one.

Is there other books related to the middle-earth epic?

[Silmarien]

My Dad read me the Hobbit when I was somewhere between the ages of 8 and 12. It was great the only bad bit was when he would fall asleep [img]smilies/redface.gif[/img] and I'd give him a poke with my elbow then he'd read the line he'd already read and fall asleep again [img]smilies/redface.gif[/img] .
When we (finally)finished it we started tLotR. But I don't know what happened but we never got round to keeping going. So when I heard about the movies my first thought was COOL [img]smilies/cool.gif[/img] and my second was I should read the books ... so I did then I was so into them I read the Silmarillion. And LotR again ... and the Hobbit again...

So my answer I guess is I read the books first [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

[Iarwain]

Ilon, the Silmarillion is published today, there's currently a quite nice edition of it in circulation with illustrations by Ted Nasmith. They're good illustrations, but I like my torn up original copy better. It just has this rustic feel that I think the Silmarillion ought to have.

Lightly Humming,
Iarwain

[Eressië Ailin]

Well, my dad used to be a fanatic (he was really disappointed with the first movie), so he read The Hobbit to me when I was 5 or 6. Then I read it over and over again, and started on FoTR. After I read TTT, I got bored and stopped reading them. When FoTR came out, I reread all the books and RoTK. Now I'm on The Simarillion.

[ February 11, 2003: Message edited by: Eressië Ailin ]

[Cibbwin]

Started reading FoTR, did not understand it, stopped reading, watched movies, reading books right now.

[Rynoah, the Overly-Happy]

I read The Hobbit sometime around sixth grade (1996 or so) and then again in eighth grade. I had never even heard of the later trilogy until talk of the movies began to circulate. They didn't interest me, but I went to see The Fellowship of the Ring with my brother-in-law, sister and my b-i-l's brother anyway because, heck, I'm an X-Men fan; Ian McKellan played Magneto in the movie, so I figured it'd be worth something at least. I had a basic knowledge of what was going on because I'd read The Hobbit before, and I immediately fell in love with the setting, the story content and (of course) Boromir (don't say a word...). That prompted me to get the books from the library and read them, so I did over the course of two-three months. I want to read them again, but haven't found the time, unfortunately.

EDIT: Stupid UBB code doesn't support underlined text. *grumble*

[ February 12, 2003: Message edited by: Rynoah, the Overly-Happy ]

[Hirilaelin]

I was at Lothlorien in FoTR when I saw the movie, then finished FotR, then rapidly read the rest, and am now reading them all again. Is that too confusing?

Suilad,

~Eruanne/Hirilaelin, Mermaiden of the Misted Isle (If I can't have a title yet, I'll make one! Hah! [img]smilies/evil.gif[/img] )

[Finiel]

Not really Hirilaelin. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

As for me, I saw FOTR first before reading the hobbit and the trilogy. It was the first set of fantasy books that I really appreciated.

I never could imagine Gandalf in a white dress even after watching TTT. He's always the guy with a large pointy hat, gray beard, blue boots, and gray robes in my imagination.

[Aramacil]

I read the books a few years before the movie, but after the FOTR-movie I started to search for Tolkien on the internet and that's how I found this wonderfull site!

[Hirilaelin]

Grey suits Gandalf so much better than white. [img]smilies/tongue.gif[/img] [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

Hirilaelin, Dragon Sorceress of Doom

[Peri]

My mom already had the whole trilogy, and she gave them to me and told me to read them if I wanted to. I put off reading them until I saw that they were turning the books into films. I waited a little too long though. I still had about 50 pgs of FOTR to go when I went to see the movie. Oh well, I did read them all still. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]