return of the king

Return of the King Rant

This is a list of things in Peter Jackson's film version of Return of the King that differ from J.R.R. Tolkien's original book. There is no way Jackson could have covered or depicted everything in the book, but did he make the right choices on which scenes to cut/add/change? I've listed my opinion below.

Spoilers abound below, so if you haven't seen the movie or read the book, you may want to just skip this page and find another useless web page to read.

Changes I liked:

The opening sequence of Smeagol's "acquisition" of the Ring and the time lapse of his physical transformation

crucial setup for his later scenes.

The time compression of the muster of Rohan

a good way to speed up the story a little.

Gollum uses the Ring to turn Frodo against Sam

a powerful addition to that storyline, emphasizing the power of the Ring and Gollum's treachery.

Skipping the Druadain (aka, Pukel-Men)

would have confused the audience, good scene to cut.

Addition of Rohirrim fighting the Mumakil (aka, Oliphaunts)

killer special effects.

Leaving out the scene where Aragorn and Eomer meet in battle

these scenes where people stop in the middle of a frenzied battle to have a conversation always puzzle me and was a good scene to cut, imo.

Time compression of the crossing of the Gorgoroth plain and march to the Black Gate

another time-saver.

Changes I didn't mind:

Skipping the chat w Saruman at Isengard

given the excising of the Scouring of the Shire, it was fine that we don't see any more of Saruman, would have needlessly dragged things on.

Time compression of the Paths of the Dead

losing the horses makes Aragorn's long journey less plausible and the missing Dunedain also bother me (see below) but following his journey through the mountain to the Stone of Erech and on to Belfalas would have been too much to ask of the audience, so this is a six/half-dozen issue for me.

Merry does not offer his service to Theoden

I didn't mind skipping this scene, but I was bothered by the continued portrayal of Merry (and Pippin) as nothing more than brainless scamps. With few exceptions, any alterations to these characters throughout all three movies were in the direction of buffoonery.

Eowyn at Theoden's death

the book's powerful version where Eomer witnesses the death of Theoden and fall of Eowyn thus turning his battle lust to a death wish was replaced here with a more heartwarming scene.

Skipping the Houses of Healing and the wounds suffered by Merry and Eowyn

another plot thinning opportunity.

Skipping Sam's break-in at Cirith Ungol where he gets patch the Watchers

probably would have been a difficult scene to portray on film, w/o a lot of voiceover/internal monologue from Sam.

Heavily compressed denoument, no Scouring of the Shire

With the exceptions noted below, I'm resigned to the ending that Peter Jackson chose. I was exhausted after 3 hours of battle and drama, anti-climactic can't begin to describe what another 2 hours would have been like.

Changes I did not like:

Skipping the meetup w the Dunedain (aka Rangers) and Elrond's sons

maybe these would have added more characters for the audience to have to keep track of, but you've got to wonder where Aragorn's kinsmen are during the war (Kari actually asked me a related question during the movie).

Denethor's madness and his first meeting w Pippin

Denethor was portrayed here as foolish and insane, the book portrays him as a powerful leader of men who eventually succumbs to despair. Also, Pippin's choice to offer his service was not a rash or foolish decision in the book, but brought about by his sincere desire to honor Boromir's death.

No mention of the romance between Eowyn and Faramir

this may be added in the extended cut, but Eowyn deserves more than a smiley scene w Faramir during Aragorn's coronation.

The searchlight Eye

that was just a little too corny. I understand that PJ may have had trouble w a Dark Lord who is not personified other than in the shape of a huge throbbing eye, but the searchlight and cheesy doubletakes at the end were too cartoonish and not suitably fearsome.

No parley with the Mouth of Sauron

another powerful scene in the book that was cut. When the Mouth of Sauron displays the mithril coat and other evidence of Frodo's capture, despair wells up in Aragorn & Co. who then convert that despair into a fierce resolve to battle to the death.

Gimli holding the crown for Gandalf to place on Aragorn's head

there is absolutely no good explanation for that. Zero. Especially given the specifics of the book where Aragorn asks that Frodo bear the crown to Gandalf. It may seem a minor point, but was a glaring mistake when so many other details have been preserved unless there was some good reason. I can think of no good reason here.

The coronation crowd bows to the hobbits (all four)

this should have been reserved for Frodo and Sam only, as in the book. Especially, given the buffoonish portrayal of Merry and Pippin (and the goofy looks they are wearing on their faces when they are being bowed to).

Merry and Pippen no longer are in the service of Rohan and Gondor

why aren't they wearing their uniforms after the battle? or what was the whole point of the "'til death takes me" part of Pippen's oath?

Frodo does not leave Bag End to Sam & Rosie

i thought it was cool that they showed the address number on Sam's house (#3 Bagshot Row), but why didn't he inherit Bag End from Frodo as in the book?

Arwen, Arwen, Arwen

my biggest gripe. Granted, they needed to make her role bigger than it is in the book, but they screwed it up. Tying Arwen's fate to the Ring was pure cheese. They made their point early on about Arwen's choice to forsake the ships at the Grey Havens, which was fine, but they then dragged it out w sappy scenes b/t Arwen and Elrond. Meanwhile, Eowyn, the real heroine of the film, is riding off to battle and killing witch-kings. Which woman do you think Aragorn should end up with?

That's all the ranting I can handle for now. Feel free to leave a comment with your own rant.