**RotK - Gollum**

[Estelyn Telcontar]

What do you think of Gollum's portrayal in the third movie?

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

I liked Gollum. I always like Gollum! But his dastardly scheme to break apart Frodo and Sam had me angry (although it wasn't Gollum himself that I was angry with, if you know what I mean).<P>His fight scene with Frodo at Mount Doom was very exciting, and when Gollum finally laid hands on the Ring, the scene was both terrifying and hilarious at the same time. This little wretch suddenly becomes truly horrifying simply because he's standing up straight, clutching a ring, and surrounded by fire! (he was also surrounded by the most spine chilling music ever heard)<P>Genius. (In a different way from Tolkien's genius)

[Iris Alantiel]

I think they did a really great job portraying Gollum. I was worried that they would make him as sympathetic and loveable as they did in the second movie - which I enjoyed, don't get me wrong, but I didn't think it would fit so well with the events of RotK. Well, I was pleased to find that, thanks to that trick he pulled trying to drive Frodo and Sam apart, I hated him with a passion, just as I'd hoped. Sam is my favourite, always has been, always will be, and I could have quite happily throttled Gollum for the way he was trying to turn Frodo against Sam. And then of course, I'm never a fan of *anyone* who tries to feed others to spiders . . .

[Diamond18]

I loved Gollum. I thought that, in the prologue, Andy Serkis may have used too much of a 'Gollum' voice for Smeagol right off, but it was great otherwise. Loved the transformation shots. Disgusting, in a good way. <P>I didn't like the thing with leaving Sam behind, but that has more to do with Frodo and Sam than Gollum. I missed Gollum and Sam fighting outside Shelob's Lair, but there was already so much fighting between them before then that I didn't miss it terribly. You know, it would have looked the same.<P>Missed the touching scene where he touches Frodo's knee (I'm too lazy to fix the pun) but I think it's okay because they had those tender moments in TTT. They needed to undo sympathy at this point, not make it. So all in all I really liked Gollum, he was as evil as he needed to be.

[burrahobbit]

Am I dumb, or was the Gollum CG better this time?

[MLD-Grounds-Keeper-Willie]

Well, it's not hard to guess whether I liked it or not (I didn't like it, in case you couldn't tell). I really think that they could have been so much better if they followed the book's way. It was too far from the book. Gollum's struggle was missing a climax (The Stairs of Cirith Ungol). I was very dissapointed that the scene was not there. It didn't truly show Gollum's character. It seemed that the whole Gollum/Smeagol thing was a bit overdone. It made it like they were two completely separate characters in one body rather than what I saw it through the books as one character with two different aspects. For me, Gollum's presentation was very disappointing.

[Essex]

The one thing I now realise after seing the film is that I did not ONCE think of Gollum as a CGI character. Amazing.<P>Anyway, down to Serkis's peforemance. It is perfect. The very first few seconds of the movie we can see Smeagol as a fun loving character. This (and where Gollum is told 'don't touch me!' by Frodo in the Marshes) are the only 2 times I actually feel sorrow for his character. Which to me is correct. I did not feel much towards Gollum when reading the book.<P>The pool scene where he drops the stone was brilliant. Then he cunning way of looking stunned and afraid when Sam has attacked him after this was inspired.<P>I love the few times you can see Serkis's face perfectly in Gollum.<P>The look of joy on Gollum's face when he is sinking into the larva was brilliant, even though the pain he must be going through is unbelievable, he has the ring, and his mind is set fully upon it. Very clever idea from the filmakers, this.

[Lily Bracegirdle]

Gollum was very well acted and animated. I found him less interesting this time around because there was no more internal conflict. He was now "all evil all the time". At the same time, this set up some great scenes with Sam. The "sneaking" scene was especially good. I didn't like the transformation sequence because a real human in prosthetics doesn't look nearly as good as the CGI character. Kudos to the animators, motion capture guys and Andy Serkis.<P>-Lily

[Lindolirian]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR> Am I dumb, or was the Gollum CG better this time? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>Yes.

[Orofaniel]

I think Gollum was brilliant in all three movies. I really liked him...<P>The one thing I didn't like about Gollum(Frodo and Sam) in the third movie was the small "conflict" Gollum created between Frodo and Sam. I don't think it resembled with the book, and it was very disappointing when Frodo said to Sam that he should go home - because what Gollum had told Frodo.<P>Otherwise I think he did a pretty good job. (And I don’t think that I can "blame" the "conflict" on the actor, he didn't writer the manuscript, did he? )

[Catherine]

I love Gollum!!!! I liked how they gradually changed Smeagol to Gollum in the begining. Scary but cool!

[Finwe]

All through the movie, I kept forgetting that Gollum was a CGI character, and not a real person. I especially loved the end, where, amid all that flame and eerie music, Frodo tackles Gollum and they both go over the edge. It was just so terrifyingly hilarious when Gollum kind of floated down into the lava and melted. I didn't know whether to shudder or to laugh.

[Jjudvven]

Gollum was done amazingly well in the RotK. I liked him in TTT, but I liked him even more in this one. Simply fantastic!

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

The scene where Gollum appears as an old Hobbit looking at a sleeping Frodo should have been there. Sam's snap and Gollum's turn back into 'the dark side' would have made a fantastic scene, as well as creating more sympathy for Gollum.<P>It would have been infinitely better than the ridiculous lembas scene.

[Finwe]

Yes, but you have to admit, that dratted lembas scene did show the true extent of Frodo's deterioration. When we find out that he doesn't even trust Sam (dear, SAM!) anymore, we really know that Frodo is going downhill.

[The Human Of Our Time]

I was hoping to have more pity for him like I had in TTT but it was probably better this way. I was hoping to want to cry when I saw him die but he seemed almost happy and I couldn't cry after seeing what he has done in this movie. But he was great in the movie of course.

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

Put simply, Frodo would not trust Gollum more than he would trust Sam.

[Lady Snickerdoodle]

I think that, in a way, Gollum is the best actor in the whole movie. Not that the others are bad, far from it, its just that his part is extremely hard to pull off but he did it perfectly. (granted, he had lots of computerized help..) In a way, I was sad because his Smeagol side was kind of funny, and I liked the arguing scenes, but still, I clapped along with the rest of the audience when he fell.

[QuickSlash]

I loved Gollum in this movie, minus something many others have said. The *entire* lemba scene was disappointing to me, and it's one of my least favorite parts of the movie. Another part that I didn't like, though not to that extreme, was that in Mt. Doom. I didn't like how he just could not feel the lava. I just can't believe that the ring had so much power over him that he couldn't feel the incinerating heat of the lava. Made him seem much less like a hobbit to have such a high tolerance to heat. ;\

[BoromirsBeard]

Yes, Gollum sank into the lava much like the Terminator into the molten steel. But of course, he did have his precious. If it's strong enough to make him murder his brother after laying eyes on it for 30 seconds, then it's enough to preoccupy him while he fries <P>Didn't like the transformations - like Lily said, the costumes just weren't as good.<P>And him piggybacking invisible Frodo made me want to laugh in a scene where there should not be any laughing!<P>Otherwise, his menace was palpable, his sickness disturbing. Wonderful job from Serkis.

[doug*platypus]

I thought it was a real shame to see the greatly simplified version of Sméagol/Gollum that appears in <I>The Return of the King</I>. But I have to say that from the point of view of the movie, he does work very well. We can't feel any more empathy or pity for him, and even from the outset he is portrayed as evil. <P>The prologue is great because it shows us how this one evil deed has shaped his entire future, and also it's an incredible piece of filmmaking. I don't think I've ever seen a murder portrayed with the violence and horror that it should be shown with. I think it's quite ironic that they can show something like that in a PG-13 movie, but couldn't show unrealistic splatter scenes at battles like Helm's Deep.<P>PJ chose to have Gollum engaged in an interior struggle only in <I>The Two Towers</I>. At the end of the movie he is completely decided, and this is quite believable given his treatment by Faramir and what he saw as a betrayal by Frodo. The Extended Edition makes the victory of Stinker over Slinker much more believable. In terms of the whole trilogy, Gollum in ROTK works fine, although his disappearance and reappearance isn't very credible (at least in the cinema version).<P>I still prefer the book version though, and I miss most of all the pitiful begging that Gollum does as Sam threatens him on the slopes of Mount Doom. Something about how if the Precious is destroyed he'll turn into "dusst". The image of him picking up the dust of Orodruin and letting it slip through his fingers is a real loss, IMHO.

[Arwen Imladris]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR> Am I dumb, or was the Gollum CG better this time?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>I agree, it did seem better, but only in parts. I think part of it is that I am just more used to seeing gollum, I am a little less critical now. <P>I liked the fact that they showed more of the Smeagol story at the beggining, but I didn't really like how they showed it. Trust PJ to start the last movie with this creepy looking creature who we haven't met yet playing with a gloobery worm! And his progression was really weird. None of the stages that we saw had enough points that were similar to really work. <P>I usually pictured gollum as a more evil character in the books, so I am glad that we saw more of that in this film. <P>My one complaint, for now, at the end, when Gollum is fighting an invisible Frodo, it looks very computer animated.

[Elennar Starfire]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR> The look of joy on Gollum's face when he is sinking into the larva was brilliant, even though the pain he must be going through is unbelievable, he has the ring, and his mind is set fully upon it. Very clever idea from the filmakers, this. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>Yes, that was wonderful. Also loved the way he was holding the ring up, as if he was trying to protect it.<P>And that Slinker/Stinker moment at the beginning was excellent. When Smeagol says "We hates hobbitses, we wants to see them...dead," it seems to me that Smeagol really doesn't want to kill them, but doesn't want Gollum to think he's a wimp. Gollum is like the evil parent ordering the little kid to do these things, and poor Smeagol has no choice.