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Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (202?)

Anduin

By Anduin
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Anduin

Anduin

A Lord of the Rings prequel anime, directed by Kenji Kamiyama and written by Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews. It will focus on the Rohirrim leader Helm Hammerhand. Who is Helm? Who are the Rohirrim? For the laypeople, not the obsessed types like myself, he's a historical king who kicked the barbarian Dunlendings out of Rohan and built the great fortress we see besieged in The Two Towers. The Rohirrim are the Anglo-Saxon inspired culture we see in TTT and Return of the King. Their most prominent member was Éomer, played by Karl Urban.

I'm cautiously optimistic. I hope it's good, because I'll be seeing it no matter what.

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Anduin

Anduin

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So this is relevant here. WB renews their rights to make new Lord of the Rings movies, and plans to do so. If anyone is going to produce new Tolkien content, I'd like everything under one roof. But since that isn't going to happen, it's very much a wait and see situation. I mean, consider the Hobbit movies. That isn't a big vote of confidence. OTOH, maybe they've learned their lesson about meddling. I'm going to try and keep an open mind at this point.

Oh, and it looks like War of the Rohirrim will come out in 2024.

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rmontro

rmontro

On 6/12/2024 at 2:35 PM, Harvey said:

That does NOT look good. It looks like a generic anime. Oh well. I hope it will be good somehow in the end.

It doesn't look full anime to me, but it appears to borrow from it.  I'm not fond of that style either, but I can't deny it's popular.  Anyway, if the story is good I'm sure it won't be too big a distraction.

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tv echo

tv echo

(edited)

THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE WAR OF THE ROHIRRIM – ANIME EXPO EXCLUSIVE
Published by: Anime Expo   Jul 3, 2024
https://www.anime-expo.org/2024/07/03/the-lord-of-the-rings-the-war-of-the-rohirrim-anime-expo-exclusive/b

Quote

Under the direction of award-winning filmmaker Kenji Kamiyama, New Line Cinema’s original anime feature “The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim” returns audiences to the epic world brought to life in “The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy, based on the revered books by J.R.R. Tolkien. Though not the first time the Tolkien world has been animated, this is the first time it has been rendered in beautiful anime style. It is also the first story from the Tolkien realm with a heroine leading the charge.
*  *  *
Kamiyama says, “In Japanese animation, it’s not uncommon for a female protagonist to be the main character, but it’s more rare in the live-action films made from The Lord of the Rings. Our film has a strong female lead in Héra, and our story is narrated by the noble Tolkien figure Éowyn, so women are very well represented. I think there are a lot of fans who really like Tolkien’s original work, so I hope those people will enjoy it. Making this movie has been a fun challenge.”

Set 183 years before the events chronicled in the original trilogy of films, “The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim” tells the fate of the House of Helm Hammerhand, the legendary King of Rohan.  A sudden attack by Wulf, a clever and ruthless Dunlending lord seeking vengeance for the death of his father, forces Helm and his people to make a daring last stand in the ancient stronghold of the Hornburg—a mighty fortress that will later come to be known as Helm’s Deep.  Finding herself in an increasingly desperate situation, Héra, the daughter of Helm, must summon the will to lead the resistance against a deadly enemy intent on their total destruction.

Edited by tv echo
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rmontro

rmontro

This movie is not based on any Tolkien tale that I am familiar with, it is only set in Middle Earth.  So why does this feel more respectful to Tolkien's work than Prime Video's Rings of Power series, which IS based on various Tolkien tales (yet butchers them badly)?  Obviously I guess it's because they are not overtly changing the lore.  Creating new stories should be just fine, because I believe Tolkien had said he wanted to build a mythology that others could add to.

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Harvey

Harvey

5 hours ago, rmontro said:

This movie is not based on any Tolkien tale that I am familiar with, it is only set in Middle Earth.  So why does this feel more respectful to Tolkien's work than Prime Video's Rings of Power series, which IS based on various Tolkien tales (yet butchers them badly)?  Obviously I guess it's because they are not overtly changing the lore.  Creating new stories should be just fine, because I believe Tolkien had said he wanted to build a mythology that others could add to.

Interesting comment, because if you read the comments under the trailer a lot of people find it distasteful that they made this girl the main character who does not even have a name in the literary texts and removed the focus from Helm Hammerhand.

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baldryanr

baldryanr

12 hours ago, rmontro said:

Obviously I guess it's because they are not overtly changing the lore.

??? In the lore Helm, his sons, and his nephew are the ones leading the action.  There's no mention of his daughter engaging in duels and who " must summon the will to lead the resistance".  This is 100% changing the story.

The only positive for the woke goes broke crowd who are ready to pillage this film is that they had to keep the characters white.

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rmontro

rmontro

4 hours ago, baldryanr said:

??? In the lore Helm, his sons, and his nephew are the ones leading the action.  There's no mention of his daughter engaging in duels and who " must summon the will to lead the resistance".  This is 100% changing the story.

I never said it was perfect, just better than Rings of Power.  Peter Jackson gave Arwen a more active role when she engaged with the ringwraiths too, plus there was the addition of Tauriel in The Hobbit.  There were complaints about that too, but those movies are lauded (well, maybe not The Hobbit).

I would prefer a more faithful adaptation as well, but this shouldn't be unexpected.  This story was not highly detailed by Tolkien as far as I remember, there's bound to be some embellishment.

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baldryanr

baldryanr

2 hours ago, rmontro said:

There were complaints about that too, but those movies are lauded (well, maybe not The Hobbit).

Heh, reminds me of what Christopher Tolkien said about the LoTR movies - they "eviscerated" the spirit of the books. 

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rmontro

rmontro

6 hours ago, baldryanr said:

Heh, reminds me of what Christopher Tolkien said about the LoTR movies - they "eviscerated" the spirit of the books. 

I have a number of problems with the movies, but if I'm being honest, Jackson did about a good a job as anyone could reasonably expect.  There are always going to be compromises when you adapt a book as complex as LOTR to film.  I doubt if those films could be made today, there would be too many woke demands.

You really don't think The War of the Rohirrim looks good at all?  I don't really mind the addition of a strong heroine here, we already have the model of Eowyn in that land to follow.

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Harvey

Harvey

17 hours ago, rmontro said:

I never said it was perfect, just better than Rings of Power. 

That is an extremely low bar.

Spoiler

Although truth be told, I am rooting for them to get it together for season 2. So far it does not look promising, but I will give it a chance.

 

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rmontro

rmontro

10 hours ago, Harvey said:

That is an extremely low bar.

It is at that.  I'll say this for it, it's a very nice looking show.  And if I interpret the previews correctly, they are going to have my favorite character on this season.  Interesting that despite its flaws, apparently we both watch it.

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baldryanr

baldryanr

12 hours ago, rmontro said:

Interesting that despite its flaws, apparently we both watch it.

I'm not saying this applies to anyone here, but never underestimate the number of people who will hate watch something just to complain about it.  This is how Velma earned a second season.

But back on topic, it's still surprising this is getting a theatrical release instead of going straight to streaming instead.  20 years ago it made more sense to pump out more content like this, but the brand is tarnished after the Hobbit and Rings of Power.

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rmontro

rmontro

8 hours ago, baldryanr said:

I'm not saying this applies to anyone here, but never underestimate the number of people who will hate watch something just to complain about it.  This is how Velma earned a second season.

Well, speaking for myself, I've been watching it mainly because I'm a huge Tolkien fan and I've been very curious about how they were going to approach it.  Even though at times it's been a bit like watching a trainwreck, and you can't take your eyes off of it.  It would have to be pretty bad for me not to watch it, but that day may come depending on how it goes.

As for the theatrical release, I don't expect it to make big box office, but I hope they can be profitable so we might see more movies like this in the future.

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Anduin

Anduin

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Maybe we can make this a general LOTR movies thread, because Ian McKellan is talking about the Hunt for Gollum. He's saying it's going to be two movies. The fan film was only 40 minutes. Maybe I should watch it again, but as I remember it didn't outstay its welcome. It did what it needed to do and then ended. Maybe if you include all Gollum's wanderings you could stretch it out. The whole of Gollum's adventures from where he disappears in the Hobbit and pops back up in TTT. Among other things, he went to Mordor, where he was captured by Sauron's forces and also made some kind of deal with Shelob.

But it feels thin. Like butter scraped over too much bread. We saw what happened with the Hobbit movies, surely Andy Serkis doesn't want that!

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Anduin

Anduin

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4 hours ago, Morrigan2575 said:

I saw that, I was hoping it was just speculation because I don't see how they can stretch it for 2 movies. 

They do need Gandalf, Aragorn and either Legolas or Thranduil to cover the story. 

 

There was something from Orlando Bloom the other day. Apparently Andy Serkis said they could de-age him with AI. My reaction is no. I don't want any AI nonsense in my Tolkien. Not anywhere, but Tolkien especially. If we have to get anyone, Lee Pace still looks like he did in the Hobbit movies. Other than that, recast or get a couple of new characters.

Again, assuming this gets made. I remain cynical.

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Palimelon

Palimelon

(edited)

It looks like a generic late 90s anime series with some CGI effects thrown in.

Even though it's in English, I kept expecting one the characters to throw out a "Nani?" or "Masaka!" at some point.

Edited by Palimelon
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proserpina65

proserpina65

On 8/24/2024 at 10:34 PM, rmontro said:

You really don't think The War of the Rohirrim looks good at all?

Nope.  It looks awful, imo.  And I don't need another badass girl boss in Middle Earth.  There are stories where that idea works really well, but this isn't one of them.

 

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Harvey

Harvey

(edited)
On 12/6/2024 at 8:12 PM, proserpina65 said:

Nope.  It looks awful, imo.  And I don't need another badass girl boss in Middle Earth.  There are stories where that idea works really well, but this isn't one of them.

 

 

On 11/16/2024 at 1:10 AM, Anduin said:

It's a great tune, but I still can't find any desire to actually go see the movie.

I was in the same place you guys but went to see it today with very low expectations, because a friend made me. I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised. The trailer does not do this movie justice. The story is so well-written and the victories feel earned. At the same time, there are real stakes - it is not a contrived story at all. I was very shocked by the end with how much they covered and how well it all came together. And the visuals looked excellent on the big screen.

I can only recommend giving this one a chance.

Edited by Harvey
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proserpina65

proserpina65

1 hour ago, Harvey said:

 

I was in the same place you guys but went to see it today with very low expectations, because a friend made me. I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised. The trailer does not do this movie justice. The story is so well-written and the victories feel earned. At the same time, there are real stakes - it is not a contrived story at all. I was very shocked by the end with how much they covered and how well it all came together. And the visuals looked excellent on the big screen.

I can only recommend giving this one a chance.

Maybe when it hits cable.

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Morrigan2575

Morrigan2575

3 hours ago, Harvey said:

 

I was in the same place you guys but went to see it today with very low expectations, because a friend made me. I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised. The trailer does not do this movie justice. The story is so well-written and the victories feel earned. At the same time, there are real stakes - it is not a contrived story at all. I was very shocked by the end with how much they covered and how well it all came together. And the visuals looked excellent on the big screen.

I can only recommend giving this one a chance.

I've seen a good review online and I looked there are sold out theaters on Thursday and Friday which surprised me. I'm on the fence, I may go see a matinee if I get bored on my PTO.

45 minutes ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I thought this was on streaming?

One of the articles I read said this is (in part) a rights retention movie, as they have to release a theatrical film, every 10 years to retain the rights. 

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Harvey

Harvey

8 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I thought this was on streaming?

It's predicted to hit streaming in January, for now it is in cinemas. I would say it is worth seeing it on the big screen though - the visuals are better than the poorly made trailer will have you believe.

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iarwain

iarwain

On 12/6/2024 at 2:12 PM, proserpina65 said:

Nope.  It looks awful, imo.  And I don't need another badass girl boss in Middle Earth.  There are stories where that idea works really well, but this isn't one of them.

Seems like they are trying to insert a retro Eowyn type character.  On the one hand, that's redundant.  Or else they're saying there's precedent for her.  

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