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Morok Cloudkeeper
Nargothrond
Sep 9 2011, 6:44pm
Post #1 of 32
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Creepy parts of LOTR
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Do you think the creepy scenes in LOTR are creepy enough or even scary since most of us know that PJ.'s first movies were more like sick comedy-horror movies than just pure horrors? Are those scenes how they should be or maybe they should have been made that like kids have nightmares of them or people cover their eyes while watching them. Priscilla Tolkien mentioned in an interview that she really did have nightmares from reading the chapters of LOTR that featured the Black Riders. Do those scenes from the movies do Tolkien justice or do you think it would maybe spoil the overall mood and appreciation of the movies? Should the whole trilogy even be more serious than it is now? Not that I mind that I'm just wondering what you think.
the user formerly known as "Legos"
Power can be held in the smallest of things...
(This post was edited by Morok Cloudkeeper on Sep 9 2011, 6:46pm)
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duats
Hithlum
Sep 9 2011, 7:05pm
Post #2 of 32
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I didn't find anything particularly scary in the films
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Which is a shame, really. The Weathertop and Shelob chapters in particular were just begging to be adapted into frightening scenes.
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Bladerunner
Mithlond
Sep 9 2011, 9:20pm
Post #3 of 32
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I had given this issue some thought when I first saw the films and concluded that....
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since the films are marketed/presented as works of the fantasy genre, the scary elements were muted and not as pronounced as would be the case if they had been produced as "horror" movies.
As an example, during TTT, I thought to myself, wow - if just one or two of those Uruk-Hai would have been dropped onto Main Street, Anytown, USA, they would have wreaked major havoc and caused great fear, in your typical horror movie (like "The Hills Have Eyes"). The horror movie conventions would have been used fully to increase the tension and anxiety in the viewer. Yet, in a fantasy film, you could be surrounded by tens of thousands of Uruk-Hai and it results in Legolas shield-surfing into them, or Aragorn jumping from the parapet wall into them, or Gimli cracking jokes. That one glimpse in the trailer of Eowyn hiding from the Uruk-Hai in the glimmering caves was the closest thing to creepy/horror sensation (ala "The Descent") that I felt during the Helm's Deep battle and I wish that scene would have been added to the movie.
I did like the wringwraiths in the film, but I agree the book versions were scarier, likely for the same reasons. Shelob's lair almost reached horror-movie-level-scary but did not quite make it all the way there.
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Alientraveller
Menegroth
Sep 10 2011, 12:55pm
Post #4 of 32
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and I was freaked out by Gollum being tortured, the Ringwraiths and Lurtz.
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Alientraveller
Menegroth
Sep 10 2011, 1:15pm
Post #5 of 32
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What Peter Jackson said about horror in a January 2004 interview with Empire, and some other sources like his autobiography. He doesn't really like scary horror, which explains why his horror films were really gory comedies, all stemming back from his childhood memory of watching Monty Python's Sam Peckinpah parody. Personally I disagree because I find much of his films quite atmospheric and chilling.
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Bladerunner
Mithlond
Sep 10 2011, 3:58pm
Post #6 of 32
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I've never been a fan of gore horror....
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and definitely prefer the chilling/atmospheric psychological terror where tension is built gradually.
The scariest moments in the LoTR films that come to mind were those moments when there was an implied threat or warning and the danger was imminent but not yet happening. Interestingly, these moments were mostly audible and not visual in nature, Here is a sampling of those moments (not all encompassing, but just to provide a feel for the tone of the fear): - When Frodo yells "Get off the road!"
- Gandalf at Balin's Tomb: "They are coming..."
- Saruman: "Whom do you serve?" Lurtz: "SSARRUMAANN!!"
- Galadriel telepathically: "Welcome Frodo of the Shire. One who has seen the EYE!!"
- Celeborn to Aragorn: "Le aphadar aen!" ("You are being tracked!")
- Legolas at Parth Galen: "It is not the eastern shore that worries me....Something draws near, I can feel it."
- Boromir raging at Frodo: "What chance do you think you have! They will find you, they will take the ring and you will beg for death before the end!"
- The Uruk-Hai build-up at Helm's Deep just before the battle.
- Gothmog: "What of the Wizard?".... Witchking: "I will break him." (stated so matter-of-factly)
BTW - in "The Hobbit" films, I would like for the Necromancer/Dol Guldur scenes to be very terrifying, as in "Gandalf, hurry up and get the heck out of there, what are you guys waiting for?" scary.
(This post was edited by Bladerunner on Sep 10 2011, 3:59pm)
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Mooseboy018
Hithlum
Sep 10 2011, 5:02pm
Post #7 of 32
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A had a few friends that were scared.
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They were around 10 or 11 when FotR came out, and I remember one of my friends telling me he actually left the theater because he was so scared of the Ring Wraiths. And another friend left because of the uruk-hai I think.
Even when I was that age, I thought doing that was a bit drastic...but I guess different things scare different people.
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Bladerunner
Mithlond
Sep 10 2011, 7:40pm
Post #8 of 32
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If I were to suddenly be transported to Middle Earth, the first two things I'd want to know are:...
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1.) What age/year is it?, and 2.) Where the heck in Middle Earth am I?
Both pieces of information might be crucial to your survival. Depending on when/where you landed, Middle Earth could be a very dangerous place with even the good guys not being so welcoming, - on one hand, grumpy, ill-tempered isolationist dwarves, and on the other secretive, mistrustful, isolationist elves.
I'd keep a low profile until I could get my bearings and would certainly not go wandering through the woods or fields singing loudly then suddenly hear a pack of wargs howling in the distance or stumble upon a random band of marauding orcs ;-).
I'd also hate to be caught unprepared in the middle of the ambush at the Gladden Fields, or the Fords of Isen, or during the Dagor Bragollach in the first age, or in Numenor just before Ar-Pharazon sets foot on Valinor in the second age.
Once I was connected to the right folks ME would be a fun experience, but I'd definitely would need to start out with eyes wide open and not assume it to be some idyllic place.
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weaver
Gondolin
Sep 10 2011, 9:07pm
Post #9 of 32
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I was not scared because I knew the story so well...so my imagination didn't get the better of me, like it does in films where I don't know what's coming...
My two older sons said the scariest thing to them was Galadriel, when the Fellowship first enter Lorien and she says "One who has seen the Eye!"; they were expecting guys in black hoods and spiky armor to be scary, but this beautiful lady who was kind of ominous at first really freaked them out...they were 11 and 9 when FOTR came out. My husband and I debated taking them for a long time. We talked to them about the Black Riders, as we thought the bed-stabbing scene would get them especially, but they told us they'd seen scarier stuff on video games. We were pretty surprised by Galadriel being the thing that bothered them!
My youngest kid didn't get to see FOTR until it was at a drive-in, so we could talk to him without disturbing other folks if he was bothered by it. As a youngest son, he begged and begged to go, since he did not want to be left out, so we gave in eventually. He was pretty scared by Sauron -- the spiky helmet got him. Slept with his lights on for awhile after that and "Sauron in the closet" was something he would refer to as the thing that scared him most for a few years. I think in the long run it was good for him to go, as it helped him know he could "master" things that bothered him...
The weirdest reaction I encountered was from my sister-in-law -- she actually walked out of FOTR, calling it the most demented evil thing she'd ever seen. She was really disturbed by it, and couldn't believe we'd let our kids see it.
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Weaver
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moreorless
Mithlond
Sep 10 2011, 9:55pm
Post #10 of 32
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Avoiding distraction from Gollum/Smeagol?
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FOTR obviously pushed both the Nazgul and to a lesser degree Lurtz in a "horror" direction but I felt that in TTT and ROTK Jackson deliberately didnt want to overshadow Smeagol/Gollum.
In a story where we see little of Sauron and the Nazgul don't have much in the way of character the Rings effect on Smeagol should be THE more horrifing thing we see. Most obviously the flashback at the start of ROTK but some of the "debates" were chilling, not just the Gollum side either but the childlike Smeagol side going along with him.
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Bombadil
Gondolin
Sep 11 2011, 4:02am
Post #11 of 32
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If you have been a Reader for years and then see the Movies....Nothing
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was really scary, just very threatening, forbode-ing...because we READERS were knew what to expect,
BUT just so TRILLED, and interested in PJ's Take on it all...
sorry to say, but Jaded because of our Loyalty to the Books.
But Non-Readers I know, felt that,
Bilbo's Freak-out in Rivendale,
when he saw his Ring around Frodo's Neck...
made 2 of my Non-Readers friends Jump out of their seats...
I was very impressed with this Visual Trick
and yes,
SHOCKED, but loved PJ's Visual interpetation.
Another non-reader friend,
thought that Smegol/Gollum scene in the Waterfall Cave..
after getting Beat up by the Rangers...cowering agianst the wall,
having his Interrogation from Faramir,
was maybe TOO over the top for little kids to see.
Especially when his face gets really close to the screen and Screems "MY Precious.!"
Too psych-cotic for her taste.
But, for me, that scream will go down in History
as... finally... indeliably.... eventually, be the one Line in the Whole Trilogy of Movies
that will always STAND the Test of TIME!
YOU could in a
"Movie Montage of Famous Lines",
use that Shot to Sum up the Entire Work, since people probably find it the MOST memorable line.
So well done.
To me, the Creepiest Shot....
Gollum appearing over and behind Sam's shoulder at the Cracks of Doom! With Howard's Chorus Wailing...truly terrifying!
That Badass, Bombadil
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Wraith Buster
Mithlond
Sep 11 2011, 4:23am
Post #12 of 32
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Nothing is really scary for me at all
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I don't like when Gollum is being tortured but, it isn't scary - just kind of weird. That's all really.
Everything else I would consider powerful, not creey. Like when Boromir tells Frodo "They will find you, they will take the Ring and you will beg for death before the end", it's more powerful than creepy, IMO.
Pedich Edhellen? Lau? Hria cuilë.
End of line.
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Laguz
Lindon
Sep 11 2011, 11:41am
Post #13 of 32
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I can see why a lot of people aren't creeped out by the books and film, myself however, it's a different story xD
In the book FotR, I find the Black Riders quite creepy, especially at buckleberry ferry where it's crawling around on the floor, and you can imagine it sniffing.... *shudders* It seems so different for a 'bad guy' to be crawling around sniffing it really makes it creepy for me xD
I'm currently re-reading the books to refresh my memory since I've forgotten a bit, but I'm up to chapter 3 of TTT and I haven't yet come across any other creepy parts. I'll post back if I come across any more in the books =D
In the films, there's a few creepy/scary bits, not enough to make me jump, but sometimes I still get the 'urghh' feeling when I watch it, these are:
~ Bilbo's freak out
~ Shelob
~ The Witch King 'I will break him' scene.
They're not that scary, but they're creepy sometimes ^,^
I've had nightmares about the Nazgul as Black Riders, that was pretty freaky. xD
I don't think that there's not enough creepy scenes in the films. IMO, it works out fine, PJ made the black riders creepy, they were still mysterious, dark and 'sniffing'. I think the film flows well with creepy, excitable, funny, heart wrenching scenes, just like the books.
~Laguz~
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moreorless
Mithlond
Sep 11 2011, 12:47pm
Post #14 of 32
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In a jump out of your seat fear for your life kind of way but as I said I think the real tension in the book isnt based on whether characters will survive or not but rather whether they will be able to behave in a moral fashion in extreme situations.
As I said I suspect that Jackson took the view that the Ring should just be a part of an equally fantasical and dangerous world but that it should it something deeper and darker.
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Gollum the Great
Nargothrond
Sep 11 2011, 7:59pm
Post #15 of 32
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hm... not a ton of "scary" stuff
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at least , "scary" as in "suspenseful". But I don't like gore of any kind - I mean, ok, blood in a battle scene makes sense, but Gollum's fish eating scene? And the Dead Marshes-underwater-thing? NOT my kind of thing.
I much prefer suspense and "suggestive" creepiness. I found the ringwraiths much "scarier" than the nasty, slimy orcs, simply because you're really not sure what's under that hood, nor do you know exactly what this black rider is capable of.
The orcs, grotesque as they were, were just that - grotesque. They were a sort of "predictable" evil - you knew what they'd be like and do and all.
Still, I was sixteen before I was allowed to see LOTR (and btw I think that was very wise judgement on the part of my parents). If I had been younger, say seven, ten, even twelve or thirteen, I would probably have been pretty freaked out.
Lord Sméagol? Gollum the Great? The Gollum! Eat fish every day, three times a day; fresh from the sea. Most Precious Gollum!
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Flagg
Dor-Lomin
Sep 11 2011, 9:23pm
Post #16 of 32
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I find one scene mildly spooky
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When Frodo places the ring on his finger at Weathertop, and sees the Ringwraiths in their withered, emaciated, bone-white true forms. Apart from that, nothing really, but bear in mind that I am quite difficult to scare – the only film I've ever found truly disturbing is The Shining.
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aranelthehobbit22
Mithlond
Sep 13 2011, 2:31am
Post #17 of 32
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I found nothing so scary that I was afraid of every dark room or had nightmares. Bilbo's little.....well whatever that weas... in Rivendell for the Ring was surprising, but nothing lasting.
However when I saw the next film and Gollum was introduced, for some reason I was nervous that I would have nightmares about him. I don't know why. He became my favorite character as soon as we met him. I felt so sorry for him.
He really never scared me, I dunno why I was scared he would scare me...if that makes any since at all. But I really did feel bad for him.
For a girl at age 9 there wasn't anything worringly horrific about them. However I did know one little boy who wasn't allowed to watch them any more because he was scared of the cave troll.....
'Help oft shall come from the hands of the weak when the Wise falter.'
"Yet in that hour was put to the proof that which Mithrandir had spoken, and help came from the hands of the weak when the Wise faltered."
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Darkstone
Elvenhome
Sep 13 2011, 4:50pm
Post #18 of 32
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Here's a few off the top of my head:
I recall Gil-galad’s death in the prologue was cut because it was considered too disturbing and probably would have pushed the film into an R-rating.
Bilbo's eye-bulging 'My precious!" was creepy.
I remember Gandalf’s hand out of the dark at Bag End made the audience jump. I might have as well. There were many “jump” moments in the trilogy, like the ring speaking while Frodo and Gandalf converse, the sudden appearance of the Ringwraith after it doubled back for the ensuing chase to Buckleberry Ferry, and Bilbo’s monster face. Dunno if those qualify as creepy.
The way the Ringwraiths moved in soulless unison, entering the Prancing Pony, and approaching the hobbits at Weathetop, was very chilling to me.
Saruman was nicely creepy. I remember a few “uh-oh”s in the audience right before he revealed his treachery. Nice job by Christopher Lee.
That first glimpse of a face under a slimy membrane in the breeding pits under Orthanc was pretty creepy.
The balrog was scary to a lot of people, especially when it opened its mouth and hissed. For myself it looked too much like Ludo from Labyrinth to be scary to me. (I kept expecting it to say “Sawah!!”).
The sight of Theodred’s wounds made me wince, moreso upon rewatching him being bounced on Eomer’s horse.
In front of Fangorn, the second orc being dragged into the feeding frenzy and eaten alive is a pretty nasty scene. I’m surprised it made it past the censors.
I found the wargs creepy (especially their eyes), far moreso than if they had just been overgrown wolves.
Mushroom Theoden is disturbing on so many levels.
As is Grima.
In ROTK the sudden silence of Minas Morgul before the answering explosion to Mount Doom was very creepy, as was the rising of WiKi on his fell beast.
Shelob generated a lot of gasps and outright screams, especially that scene where she appears out of the rocks and sneaks up on Frodo. A lot of covered faces in the audience for that.
And Frodo having his finger bitten off and tossed away got a lot of horrified reactions.
Almost makes me wish I hadn't read the books before I saw the movies. Almost.
******************************************
How many months to Hobbiton?
Six and ten.
Can I get there by candle-light?
Yes, there and back again.
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RosieLass
Doriath
Sep 14 2011, 10:15pm
Post #19 of 32
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Shelob wasn't scary at all to me.
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I mean, I'm not fond of spiders, and I won't have them in the house, but they are natural creatures there's nothing scary about that.
I was disappointed, frankly, that they chose not to make Shelob a true monster, but just enlarged some footage of a real spider. I felt like I was suddenly watching a National Geographic documentary.
It is always those with the fewest sensible things to say who make the loudest noise in saying them. --Precious Ramotswe (Alexander McCall Smith)
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Eowyn of Penns Woods
Doriath
Sep 15 2011, 1:59am
Post #20 of 32
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NuFaramir, eh? ;)
**********************************
Who's the coverdwarf now, prettyboy!
NARF
NABOUF
Not a TORns*b!
Certified Curmudgeon
Knitting Knerd
NARF: NWtS Chapter Member since June 17,2011
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Darkstone
Elvenhome
Sep 15 2011, 2:02pm
Post #22 of 32
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"I knew Leo G. Carroll, was over a barrel, when Tarantula took to the hills."
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Not a big fan of the 1950s creature features, eh? The Attack of the Giant Gila Monster (1959) kept me peering through my fingers as a six year old. The dinosaurs of The Lost World (1960) (actually monitor lizards with various cardboard prosthetics) filled me with awe.
You kids today!
(Of course the giant killer bunnies of The Night of the Lepus (1972) inspired more giggles than fear.)
I do note, though, that Shelob is entirely cgi. She definitely has several non-spider characteristics, just like in the book.
******************************************
How many months to Hobbiton?
Six and ten.
Can I get there by candle-light?
Yes, there and back again.
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Gollum the Great
Nargothrond
Sep 15 2011, 3:26pm
Post #23 of 32
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Fans for a More Monstrous Shelob
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She should have been bigger (like, WAY bigger), her underbelly slimier, her claws clawier, her beak dripping venom and spit, etc.
At her movie size, she just looked to small, and it wasn't a huge surprise Sam overcame her.
Lord Sméagol? Gollum the Great? The Gollum! Eat fish every day, three times a day; fresh from the sea. Most Precious Gollum!
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RosieLass
Doriath
Sep 15 2011, 8:29pm
Post #24 of 32
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We weren't allowed to watch that kind of movie when we were kids.
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We were strictly G rated.
But even now, I don't really care for movies where the "villain" is just an animal doing what an animal does.
And making it 50 times bigger and sticking it in the sewer doesn't make it any more palatable. 
Maybe I would have been happier if they had modeled Shelob after a different kind of spider, something jointier and clawier and slimier, with big faceted eyes and a spittle-dribbling beak. That made noise.
It is always those with the fewest sensible things to say who make the loudest noise in saying them. --Precious Ramotswe (Alexander McCall Smith)
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RosieLass
Doriath
Sep 15 2011, 8:30pm
Post #25 of 32
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I'd still marry movieFaramir. 
He was just disappointing. 
It is always those with the fewest sensible things to say who make the loudest noise in saying them. --Precious Ramotswe (Alexander McCall Smith)
(This post was edited by RosieLass on Sep 15 2011, 8:30pm)
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