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balbo biggins
Rohan
Feb 20 2015, 2:51pm
Post #1 of 23
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LOTR fotr do you remember the first time?
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I love the LOTR films and was anticipating them all through out my school college and university days, and i have over the years come to love them for their own merit as much as the book, you cannot imagine the relief that they were taken seriously and made real back then, and not some 'fantasy; cliche film,
but do you remember the first time you saw it when it came out? (obvioulsy not everyone here did) i think the passage of time and the repeated viewings has helped softened some things about it, and initially i remember being very unsure how to process it?
some parts were spot on , gandalf in particular, but having to sit there and accept elijah wood as frodo was quite hard, the speed of which we got to bree felt like a whirlwind compared to the book, where was gildor? what about the old forest i remember thinking! i knew things would be missing, but at the time they felt so important not to include. elrond was nothing like i imagined, and arwen at the fjord was a real annoyance at the time. but i remember being impressed with galadriels turn, all of moria, and the prologue was perfect!
my main feeling i remember when watching the film was the ending! although i enjoyed boromirs death greatly, i was very annoyed, why didnt we get the cliffhanger, people didnt like the DOS one, but the FOTR book ends with one too, and i was shocked it was changed, its perfect, the company in disarray, orcs , boromir gois after the ring, it would have been such a great ..whats happens next, moment
so i was just reminiscing about how i felt when i initially saw it, it was almost too much to take in! and it wasnt the way i feel about it now, what did you think when you got out the cinema that fateful december night in 2001?
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arithmancer
Grey Havens
Feb 20 2015, 5:09pm
Post #2 of 23
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Oh yes, I remember! Not something I can imagine forgetting...
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I was not aware of these films as they were being made, but as a lifelong Tolkien fan I of course had to go see FotR when I learned form the papers that there was a blockbuster adaptation of "Lord of the Rings" by some guy from New Zealand that I had never heard of, with a first installment already in theaters.
I was a bit nervous. While the same paper I had read gave it a decent review, I had seen (as a child) Bakshi's attempt at a film adaptation (which, actually, I did like a little back then, if only for trying...) So, I went to the theater hopeful, but not entirely sure what to expect. I went alone, as I did not have any Tolkien fan friends in my life living nearby, at the time.
The opening (black screen, lovely female voice speaking in a language I was pretty sure must be Elvish) really impressed me, it "felt" very Tolkien, and very not-generic-fantasy-film. I was excited by the Prologue and its visuals - there in the first 5 minutes I could see these folks had the budget and the know-how to bring the epic scenes that would be coming in later installments to brilliant life. The Shire looked great, Gandalf looked great, the main Hobbit characters looked as a group good enough not to alarm me.
And towards the end of the Shire segment, there came a specific moment, that I recall very clearly, at which I sat back and stopped thinking and started 100% just enjoying, because I knew that these filmmakers who created what I had just seen, *got* the material so thoroughly I would like whatever they chose to do from there on in. For me, this was the (film only) moment when Sam and Frodo walk together through a field, and Sam stops just short of a scarecrow. Frodo asks what is wrong, and Sam replies that if he takes another step, he will be further away from home than he has ever been. Frodo smiles at him (I am not a huge fan of Wood, but his wide-eyed happy smile is irresistible...) and tells him it's OK.
From there, I can remember a list of what were instantly favorite moments.
"It comes in pints?" in Bree.
The introduction of Strider, with the glowing eyes.
Gimli's attempt to destroy the Ring in Rivendell.
Everything about Moria, (my favorite sequence of the book, incidentally) but especially the musical moment when Gandalf shows the Fellowship "The ancient . . . Dwarrowdelf", the sequence on the collapsing stairs, and the amazing Balrog.
Boromir's death scene ("My brother, my captain, my king." GAH.)
Sam's determination to accompany Frodo.
At the end of that first viewing, it was already my favorite movie, ever. And I made everyone I knew see it, including my ex, a non-Tolkien fan. (Even he agreed it was a good movie). And went back to see it a few times, life allowing. (The ex was not a big enough fan to come with me more than once, so opportunities were limited...But I bought all the EEs and watched them over and over when my sons were babies and I spent a lot of time feeding them and letting them sleep in my lap!)
(This post was edited by arithmancer on Feb 20 2015, 5:10pm)
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balbo biggins
Rohan
Feb 20 2015, 6:07pm
Post #3 of 23
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And towards the end of the Shire segment, there came a specific moment, that I recall very clearly, at which I sat back and stopped thinking and started 100% just enjoying, because I knew that these filmmakers who created what I had just seen, *got* the material so thoroughly I would like whatever they chose to do from there on in. For me, this was the (film only) moment when Sam and Frodo walk together through a field, and Sam stops just short of a scarecrow. Frodo asks what is wrong, and Sam replies that if he takes another step, he will be further away from home than he has ever been. Frodo smiles at him (I am not a huge fan of Wood, but his wide-eyed happy smile is irresistible...) and tells him it's OK.
i remember thinking if he managed to get away with his west country accent on this bit lol
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Meneldor
Valinor
Feb 21 2015, 12:22am
Post #4 of 23
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Opening with the epic backstory, instead of concerning hobbits? Well, that's not the way I would have gone, but it works, and it is EPIC!
Bilbo's desk, and there's the map of Erebor, with the dragon inked in red, just as JRRT drew it. Wow, this crew is really dedicated to getting the little details exactly right! A very good sign!
These hobbit characters couldn't possibly look more hobbity.
The ancient halls of the Dwarrowdelf. Awe-inspiring. This is what IMAX screens are for.
Very good fight choreography. Boromir actually keeps his shield between himself and the enemies, unlike many medieval/fanatasy movies.
Boromir's been shot! Of course I knew it was coming, but it wasn't supposed to hurt like this!
Those ridiculous, laughable, pitiful hobbits. Those worthy, heroic, self-sacrificing friends.
They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters, these see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep. -Psalm 107
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Patty
Immortal
Feb 21 2015, 2:08am
Post #5 of 23
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I remember my first experience with fellowship because I was the line party leader in Indianapolis...
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We met outside the theater on release day, because there were no midnight showings of this one in our town. By the time of the two towers, the theaters had wised up that they had a phenomenon on their hands.
It was cold of course, and we lined up outside. I had bought hot chocolate in thermoses, and another one of the attendees in the line party had bought donuts. I remember seeing BagEnd for the first time and gasping. It was just so right. I gasped again when I saw Peter Jackson and his cameo. I remember weeping a little, too. I had waited for this movie for so many years, and it was so perfectly done.
The line party people and I went to O" Charlie's after the movie was over to discuss the movie and have lunch. One of the high points of my life.
Permanent address: Into the West
(This post was edited by Patty on Feb 21 2015, 2:11am)
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swordwhale
Tol Eressea
Feb 21 2015, 5:25pm
Post #6 of 23
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waiting for this since 1978....
then my Dad went into the ER....
two reactions:
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! YOUCAN'T DIEEEEEEEEE!
and
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I CAN'T MISS OPENING NIGHT OF LOTRRRRRRRR!!!!!!
(PS, he was fine, for a few more years until old age caught up).
Na 'Aear, na 'Aear! Mýl 'lain nallol, I sûl ribiel a i falf 'loss reviol...
To the sea, to the sea, the white gulls are crying, the wind is blowing and the white foam is flying...
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Mooseboy018
Grey Havens
Feb 21 2015, 7:29pm
Post #7 of 23
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I was 11 at the time. I usually have a very good memory for these sorts of things, but I honestly don't remember much about seeing it for the first time in the movie theater. At least not my reactions to specific things about the movie itself.
I remember seeing it with my dad and my best friend at the time. My friend and I had recently finished reading The Hobbit, and Peter Jackson's trilogy sort of came out of nowhere for us. I'd watched the animated Hobbit movie several times, and I'd seen The Lord of the Rings and Return of the King too but didn't enjoy them as much as The Hobbit. I think I only saw one TV spot for FotR and that was it. And I think I bought the Merry and Pippin action figures that came with a Moria Orc before I saw the movie. But other than that, I didn't really know much about Peter Jackson's movies before they came out.
The only thing I really remember about watching the movie itself was waiting for Gollum to show up, and I was really excited when he finally did (after the prologue), even though it was very brief. I didn't really become obsessed with Peter Jackson's movies until I got FotR on DVD in August of 2002. I think seeing the trailer for the extended cut is really what got me hooked.
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Roheryn1
The Shire
Feb 22 2015, 1:11am
Post #8 of 23
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I heard of the greenlighting and found this website, then watched the first trailer mesmerised. I still remember the music .
Finally saw the movie in Dec. 2001. Liked the prologue, liked the Shire, wasn't bowled over by Aragorn and was disgusted that Sam knew about athelas and HE didn't. Didn't approve of Arwen popping up post-Weathertop (still don't) but found the flight to the ford exciting.
An hour passed with my general if not enthusiastic approval. I was waiting for the Balrog. And when he appeared I reeled back in my seat , dazzled by his terrifying and majestic ferocity.
They did it. They really did it. I had seen a Balrog and I will die happy.
Boromir's last stand and death moved me - I had never trusted book-Boromir but Sean Bean found his nobility and self-doubt. Loved Aragorn's tear-filled eyes.
I came home a complete Jackson fan.
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Faleel
Rohan
Feb 22 2015, 1:50am
Post #9 of 23
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Aragorn knew about Athelas.....
(This post was edited by Faleel on Feb 22 2015, 1:50am)
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Roheryn1
The Shire
Feb 22 2015, 2:06am
Post #10 of 23
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I stand corrected.But he didn't seem to make as big a thing about it as book-Aragorn did. I do remember it annoyed me at the time.
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Kirly
Lorien
Feb 22 2015, 8:24pm
Post #11 of 23
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I've told this story before so I'll try to be brief.... I was a complete skeptic that this could ever be put to film satisfactorily so I had no plans to see it. A large group was going to see FOTR so I was finally convinced and joined them. I was hooked instantly- literally. I became obsessed and, I'm certain, a bit annoying. Fortunately for me, my friends found it amusing. They all thought I'd lost my mind taking 4 weeks off work between Thanksgiving & New Years taking off on a LOTR movie location tour by myself while also expressing envy.
I'm still just as obsessed. Love Tolkien and love the LOTR & TH movies.
My avatar photo is Lake Tekapo in New Zealand's South Island. Taken by me in 2004 on a Red Carpet Tours LOTR Movie Location Tour. 'Twas the Vacation of a Lifetime!
pictures taken while on the tour are here:
https://picasaweb.google.com/Kirly7/LOTRNewZealandTour#
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dormouse
Half-elven
Feb 23 2015, 4:04pm
Post #12 of 23
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I had huge misgivings about it because I picked up one of the the tie-in books a few weeks earlier and was horrified to see that Arwen had taken over Glorfindel's role (I'd always loved Glorfindel) and there was a whole lot about somebody called Lurtz. I think the only thing that tempted me to go was the look of the film stills and the knowledge that Alan Lee and John Howe were involved.
I remember the opening, when the screen went black and Galadriel spoke out of the darkness; that sent a shiver down my spine. But after that I sat through the whole film on edge, fearful of what the next scene might be, hoping that they didn't change or miss out the things I liked best from the book. It was only leaving the cinema, with the closing song still playing in my head, that I realised the film was something very, very special and I hadn't really seen it at all. I'd been too busy dictating what I wanted from it.
So I few days later I went back, let go and just watched the film. Then I loved it, and I've loved the films ever since.
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shadowdog
Rohan
Feb 23 2015, 4:18pm
Post #13 of 23
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when I first heard these movies were being filmed. I love the books and read them many many times over the years. I saw the film made years earlier and was very disappointed. When I heard that some guy in New Zealand, Peter Jackson was making a trilogy, I was nervous and leery. Never heard of him and most people I talked to knew very little about him. So I went to see Fellowship with trepidation and was blown away by what I saw. Went back to see it again. Was almost in tears from relief and wonder at how he captured Middle Earth and the legends of what occurred there. I was also elated when he took the time to create the extended editions instead of just adding deleted scenes to the DVDs which was the usual practice. Also all the behind the scenes extras showed the care and dedication Peter had for this project.
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Legomir
Rivendell
Feb 24 2015, 8:30am
Post #14 of 23
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I was 7 and living in England at the time when I saw the adverts on the television for the first film. I remember thinking it looked amazing and asked my parents if we could go see it. Their response was something like "Lord of the Rings? Isn't that part of the Hobbit?" and they said I couldn't see the film unless I read the Hobbit first. But then for whatever reason they never got me book and I didn't end up reading it.
Fast-forward to summer 2002 and we were visiting family in Louisiana when my uncle had the DVD and popped it in for me. I watched from Gandalf arriving at Minas Tirith to just after Gandalf's death. And I was basically completely stunned. Immediately, my favorite movie went from Jurassic Park to The Lord of the Rings, though I was a bit mad at my uncle for spoiling that Gandalf didn't die. I didn't watch the whole movie from beginning to end until the next day when I saw it with my grandparents.
To put it mildly, I loved every second of it.
We almost bought the DVD on that trip, but didn't for some reason. Then a couple months later we rented the Extended Edition and saw the special features and it made me love the movies even more. I thankfully convinced them to let me see The Two Towers in theater.
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RosieLass
Valinor
Feb 25 2015, 4:53am
Post #15 of 23
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And though I have grown to like FOTR very much, my strongest impression at the time was that if I hadn't already bought tickets to come back to the evening showing with a group of friends, I probably wouldn't have bothered to see it again at all. And might not have bothered with the rest of the movies, either.
In hindsight, it's kind of amusing, since FOTR is the most faithful to the book and, IMO, the best of the six films.
"BOTH [political] extremes are dangerous. But more dangerous are team fanboys who think all the extremists are on the OTHER side." (CNN reader comment)
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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Farficom
Rivendell
Feb 26 2015, 2:45am
Post #16 of 23
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It is so nice to see another fellow Hoosier on here... and I might have joined the line party had I known about it back in the day. None the less, I still have my ticket stub for the 10 pm showing of Fellowship on 12/19/2001 even though it is a little faded after all these years. One of the best parts of the whole thing was going to see it with a couple of friends and my uncle who stated emphatically that he hadn't been in a movie theater since the first Superman movie came out, hehe.
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Patty
Immortal
Feb 26 2015, 9:29am
Post #17 of 23
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Oh great, another person from Indy!
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There used to be at least 3 more of us here, 3 that I have met and knew well. They have been swallowed up by RL though, I believe.
Permanent address: Into the West
(This post was edited by Patty on Feb 26 2015, 9:32am)
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Bombadil
Half-elven
Feb 26 2015, 10:29am
Post #18 of 23
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five Stagehands in my Van
Got to the theater {The Largest Screen @ the Time}
But, my Friends were More interested in Buying as many Snacks
as they could carry into the Theater, THAT by the time
we got inside?
AND they insisted to
ALL sit together?
WE ended up in the Very LAST Row...
& Kept asking me questions,
which wasn't cool...distracting me.
It was like being the Father of some very Crazy 40something? kids..
Anyway Needed to go to it right away with JUST Goldberry
Then JUST with another Tolkien Freak
Then with my brother {Who originally bought me the Books in 1966}
But even he had NOT read it? "IT's not my thing.."
Eventually, bom just went again alone...Bom had given UP
trying to Turn people on it anymore..
www.charlie-art.biz
"What Your Mind can conceive... charlie can achieve"
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banaili
Bree
Feb 26 2015, 4:02pm
Post #19 of 23
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I can never forget this moment...
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I was 12 years old. We were going to visit my grandmother, who lived in the city (my family lives in the countryside). On the way to her house, we stopped at the movie store to pick up a film to watch with her. My sister and I had always loved fantasy, so when we saw Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Rings on the shelf for "new movies", we immediately picked it out to try at our grandmother's house. (Bonus points that Legolas on the cover reminded us a lot of Link from "Legend of Zelda," a game series we adored back then! :P)
Brought the movie to our grandmother's house, and I remember how that night in the city was really, really quiet. We watched the film with her all night, and ended up in awe over how amazing the film was. The breathtaking scenery, the epic adventure, the all-around interesting and lovable main characters...The ending was a masterpiece all of its own, especially with the addition of Howard Shore's score!
I can't forget, not only because of the magic of FotR, but because of how very precious my grandmother was to me, too. (Our relationship was one very much like Bilbo's and Frodo's~) Seeing the film for the first time, and with my grandmother, is something I will forever cherish and never, ever forget. 
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Farficom
Rivendell
Feb 27 2015, 9:27am
Post #20 of 23
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I try not to ever let RL get in the way of my love of J.R.R. Tolkien, or these Middle-earth movies for that matter. As I went to see all of the movies over the years the theater changed names, and I got a little older... but the excitement never went away. I'm glad I lived to see all 6 of them, and seeing this journey through to the end that started when I first picked up the books my dad had kept on the bookshelf when I was 13-14 years old.
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Fimbulfambi
The Shire
Mar 18 2015, 9:33pm
Post #21 of 23
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The film was released the winter when I turned 10, but I don't remember if I saw the film before or after my 10th birthday (29 dec, 2001).
However, I had read the Hobbit and pretty much half of FOTR when I saw the film for the first time. It was at the cinema with my mum, dad and brother (it is the last time I remember all of us did anything together, my parents had separated four years earlier). So that memory have kind of stuck for more than one reason.
I was very impressed and I had not been much of a movie-enthusiast before I saw this film. I remember commenting some changes/differences between the film and book. Like, I know I reacted regarding Arwen meeting up with the Hobbits and Strider. I also wondered about not having the barrows, because I had trouble imagining it when I read it so I kind of wanted to see that. I of course jumped out of the chair on the jumpscare moments of Bilbo wanting the ring in Rivendell and the troll looking for Frodo around the pillar in Moria.
However, I was very excited by the end of the film and since I read TTT and ROTK before TTT was released in the cinemas I was probably even more excited about the coming films than my classmates because I knew about the scale of the events.
I think that visit to the cinema was a major life changing moment for me.
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entmaiden
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
Mar 18 2015, 10:32pm
Post #22 of 23
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My siblings and I were long-time book fans, and we waited a couple weeks after it opened so we could see it together at the Christmas holidays. We arrived at the theater in separate cars from different parts of town, so after the movie we mutually agreed we would not talk about it until we arrived at our parents house. We talked for over an hour about our favorite parts, and the few moments that didn't work, but overall we were almost giddy with happiness. Our parents just watched, bemused, since they had never read the books.
We started a tradition that year that we would watch all he movies together. It was difficult, but we always managed to watch the first time together for all six movies.
I had been tainted by Bakshi and went in hoping that FOTR would not be embarrassing. The first Harry Potter was released around that time, and all the noise in the media was about Harry Potter. FOTR was not on anyone's radar screen. Fortunately, I wasn't embarrassed. 
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Farficom
Rivendell
Mar 19 2015, 6:36am
Post #23 of 23
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In 2001 I was all of 19 years old myself, and had not been much of a reader except for when I had to for school... and when it came to the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien. All of that changed for me at that point, and I started reading a lot after that (mainly biographies/historical stuff), and haven't seen a lot of other movies in theater since then because I find myself thinking that nothing can top those experiences in the early days of seeing The Lord of the Rings. Maybe that isn't fair, but I can't help it.
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