(no subject)
Presently my stress-related eczema and insomnia has flared up again, thanks to the latest inquisition by the ATO. As usual this is worst on my chest and back, a bit less so on my arms, and less again on my legs, nil below mid-thigh. In practice it is incredibly itchy, so I'm finding it nigh-impossible to get to sleep normally; whichever way I lie there is some discomfort, and it is very difficult from indulging in the practice described in Mr Nash's pithy limerick about the belle from Natchez. At the moment I am kept awake each night until I finally succumb to exhaustion by about 3 am, and suffer from interrupted sleep until 7 am when I have to be roused by Emma to shower and go to work. Not surprisingly my asthma has also reappeared after a long period of dormancy.
I rarely go to see movies more than once in the theatre, but Return of the King was an even better experience the second time round. The day started with a viewing of the extended versions of Fellowship and Two Towers at foxe's parents' house, with daharja and dinsor amongst others. Strategic breaks were built into the viewing by the contrivance of having to change discs; we then headed into the city for dinner (at a delicious Thai restaurant, Lemon Central) and movie (in the special screening room at Village on Bourke).
Return of the King looks and sounds superb. Revelations and eye-popping scenes abound, such as the first sight of Minas Tirith, unforgettably rendered from Tolkien's description. Denethor's hall brings to mind the wonderful polychrome architecture of the Duomo in Siena, and from what can be seen of the ruins of Osgiliath it is strongly reminiscent of Florence. The rising of the Nazgûl from Minas Morgul is a pure SFX set-piece, but nonetheless impressive for all that. Howard Shore's sweeping orchestral score as the series of beacons are lit over the Western Mountains to bring news of Gondor's peril to Rohan. The mustering of the Rohirrim and the incredible sight of the armies converging on the Pelennor Fields.
Despite all of these breathtaking images, the character drama is just as involving: during the siege of the city Pippin and Gandalf share a quiet moment to speak of life and death which seems to escape from time; the three-way tussle of Frodo, Sam, and Gollum as all of their loyalties are tested; the unrequited love of Eowyn for Aragorn, which presumably in the extended version will actually be resolved by scenes depicting her falling in love with Faramir and vice-versa. (Let's face it, any more bits with Miranda Otto and an oil-soaked David Wenham must be good.)
I was disappointed again by the depiction of the last struggle between Frodo and Gollum at Orodruin; the previous films have given us the visual metaphor of putting on the Ring by showing us the ringbearer's point of view, who is visible only in some dark spirit-version of the world. Instead, we have Gollum bouncing up and down on top of an invisible Frodo until he goes chomp, which looks ridiculous, frankly. The CG of the army of the dead is still pretty poor (in particular, one very unrealistic depiction of the ghostly horde swarming off the boats, at a speed and fluidity which appears impossible even for disembodied wraiths). Not nearly as off-putting, the omission of any scenes showing Saruman and Wormtongue and the tying up of their plot thread (regardless of whether the Scouring of the Shire is shown, or not).
For readers of the books, the extended versions are a vast improvement on the theatrical versions, though no subsequent movie version (!) will ever try to encompass everything to be found in Tolkien. The theatrical versions after all have to be an acceptable length, and had Return of the King been any longer it would have needed an interval (which theatres seem loathe to do nowadays). Knowing how badly Hollywood tends to adapt novels to the silver screen, Peter Jackson's vision and achievement in these films seems all the more incredible. Just as reading all of TLotR is a proposition of about 3 days of dedicated reading (allowing the occasional meal, and sleep), to see the whole thing demands about 11 or 12 hours (or it will, once the extended version of RotK is available).
I rarely go to see movies more than once in the theatre, but Return of the King was an even better experience the second time round. The day started with a viewing of the extended versions of Fellowship and Two Towers at foxe's parents' house, with daharja and dinsor amongst others. Strategic breaks were built into the viewing by the contrivance of having to change discs; we then headed into the city for dinner (at a delicious Thai restaurant, Lemon Central) and movie (in the special screening room at Village on Bourke).
Return of the King looks and sounds superb. Revelations and eye-popping scenes abound, such as the first sight of Minas Tirith, unforgettably rendered from Tolkien's description. Denethor's hall brings to mind the wonderful polychrome architecture of the Duomo in Siena, and from what can be seen of the ruins of Osgiliath it is strongly reminiscent of Florence. The rising of the Nazgûl from Minas Morgul is a pure SFX set-piece, but nonetheless impressive for all that. Howard Shore's sweeping orchestral score as the series of beacons are lit over the Western Mountains to bring news of Gondor's peril to Rohan. The mustering of the Rohirrim and the incredible sight of the armies converging on the Pelennor Fields.
Despite all of these breathtaking images, the character drama is just as involving: during the siege of the city Pippin and Gandalf share a quiet moment to speak of life and death which seems to escape from time; the three-way tussle of Frodo, Sam, and Gollum as all of their loyalties are tested; the unrequited love of Eowyn for Aragorn, which presumably in the extended version will actually be resolved by scenes depicting her falling in love with Faramir and vice-versa. (Let's face it, any more bits with Miranda Otto and an oil-soaked David Wenham must be good.)
I was disappointed again by the depiction of the last struggle between Frodo and Gollum at Orodruin; the previous films have given us the visual metaphor of putting on the Ring by showing us the ringbearer's point of view, who is visible only in some dark spirit-version of the world. Instead, we have Gollum bouncing up and down on top of an invisible Frodo until he goes chomp, which looks ridiculous, frankly. The CG of the army of the dead is still pretty poor (in particular, one very unrealistic depiction of the ghostly horde swarming off the boats, at a speed and fluidity which appears impossible even for disembodied wraiths). Not nearly as off-putting, the omission of any scenes showing Saruman and Wormtongue and the tying up of their plot thread (regardless of whether the Scouring of the Shire is shown, or not).
For readers of the books, the extended versions are a vast improvement on the theatrical versions, though no subsequent movie version (!) will ever try to encompass everything to be found in Tolkien. The theatrical versions after all have to be an acceptable length, and had Return of the King been any longer it would have needed an interval (which theatres seem loathe to do nowadays). Knowing how badly Hollywood tends to adapt novels to the silver screen, Peter Jackson's vision and achievement in these films seems all the more incredible. Just as reading all of TLotR is a proposition of about 3 days of dedicated reading (allowing the occasional meal, and sleep), to see the whole thing demands about 11 or 12 hours (or it will, once the extended version of RotK is available).