The Lord of the Rings Insights: Books Vs. Films

The Lord of the Rings Insights: Books vs. Films
Moria to Amon Hen
In the book, the entrance to Lórien is longer. The Fellowship is intercepted by Haldir who leads them deeper into the forest. That evening they sleep in the trees and a party of Orcs passes below. Frodo also spots Gollum lurking about. The following day there is a confrontation between Haldir and Gimli when Galdir says that he must wear a blindfold. Aragorn diffuses the situation by saying that they entire Fellowship will wear blindfolds.

Once at Caras Galadon, they meet Celeborn and Galadriel. After several days, Galadriel brings both Frodo and Sam to the Mirror of Galadriel. Sam is shown The Shire being destroyed and he fights off the urge to leave for home. Frodo then looks in and sees many things and then the Eye of Sauron. He then offers the Ring to Galadriel, who declines it. They later depart Lórien after being given boats by Celeborn so that they do not yet have to decide which side of the river on which they will go. Galadriel also gives them some gifts.

As they float down the Great River, Frodo spots Gollum following them several times. Aragorn tells Frodo that he has tried to catch Gollum. They encounter some rapids and stray toward the eastern shore. They are fired upon by Orc archers.They struggle back upstream and back to the western bank. Once there, Legolas fells a dark, winged creature. They again debate on which way to go. Boromir wants to leave the river and make for Minas Tirith, but Aragorn wants to continue to Amon Hen before deciding. At Amon Hen, after Boromir argues with Frodo, Frodo and Sam slip away.

Comments:
Again some changes are made for length. No signs of Gollum following them into Lothlórien. The major change is that Sam is not tested at the Mirror of Galadriel. Galadriel's gifts were put into the extended addition. Only one scene of Gollum following them on the river is enough. There is no close encounter with Orcs along the eastern shore, which would be Orcs loyal to Sauron. Instead, there are intercut scenes of Saruman's Uruk-hai led by Lurtz, which again elevates Saruman as the main villain of the first film.

The sequence at Amon Hen is changed around. In the book, Frodo does not encounter Aragorn and then Merry and Pippin before leaving with Sam. In the books, Merry and Pippin do not know Frodo's fate at Amon Hen until much later in The Two Towers. Also in the books there is more tension because there are Saruman's Uruk-hai and Sauron's Orcs temporarily working together, but not necessarily allied.

Actually the end of the first film is taken from the first chapter of The Two Towers. Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas arrive at Amon Hen only after the Orcs, Uruk-hai and the Hobbits were gone. Boromir dies before he can say what the fate of the Hobbits was beyond their being taken. It is only after they make a funeral boat for Boromir do they notice that two packs are missing. Aragorn remembers that Sam had turned back. If played differently, the sequence could have made a for an interesting cliffhanger.

The Lord of the Rings Items Available at eBay - Scroll for additional items

Available at Amazon.com:

Peter Jackson Films:

Middle Earth Collection:
Theatrical Blu-ray
Extended Blu-ray
Collector's Blu-ray

The Hobbit Trilogy:
Theatrical: Blu-ray + DVD
Extended: Blu-ray | DVD

An Unexpected Journey:
Theatrical Edition:
Blu-ray | BD 3D | Prime Video
Soundtrack: CD | MP3
Extended Edition:
Blu-ray | BD 3D | DVD | Prime Video | Soundtrack: CD | MP3

Desolation of Smaug:
Theatrical Edition:
Blu-ray | BD 3D | Prime Video
Soundtrack: CD | MP3
Extended Edition:
Blu-ray | BD 3D | DVD | Prime Video | Soundtrack: CD | MP3

Battle of the Five Armies:
Theatrical Edition:
Blu-ray | BD 3D | DVD | Prime Video | Soundtrack: CD | MP3
Extended Edition:
Blu-ray | BD 3D | DVD | Prime Video | Soundtrack: CD | MP3

LotR Trilogy:
Theatrical: Blu-ray | DVD
Extended: Blu-ray | DVD
Posters

Animated Film Adaptations:

The Hobbit:
DVD | DVD (SE) | Prime Video
The Lord of the Rings:
Blu-ray | DVD | Prime Video
The Return of the King:
DVD

Books by J.R.R. Tolkien:

The Lord of the Rings Set
The Hobbit
The Fellowship of the Ring
The Two Towers
The Return of the King
The Silmarillion
The Unfinished Tales
Beren and Luthien
The Children of Hurin
The Fall of Gondolin

Audio Presentations:
The Lord of the Rings:

BBC Dramatization (CD)
NPR Dramatization (CD)
Unabridged Reading (CD)

The Hobbit:
BBC Dramatization (CD)
NPR Dramatization (CD)
Unabridged Reading (CD)

The Fellowship of the Ring:
BBC Dramatization (CD)
NPR Dramatization (CD)
Unabridged Reading (CD)

The Two Towers:
BBC Dramatization (CD)
NPR Dramatization (CD)
Unabridged Reading (CD)

The Return of the King:
BBC Dramatization (CD)
NPR Dramatization (CD)
Unabridged Reading (CD)

The Silmarillion:
Unabridged Reading (CD)

The Children of Hurin:
Unabridged Reading (CD)