tgshaw said:
As for Elijah’s future projects, I’m like honeyelf in that I sometimes worry about his career running of steam because he gets overlooked. But I think his versatility – he really is a character actor – should at least keep him going with leads in smaller movies and independent films. I'd like to see him do some comedy, and some more extrovert roles; and get away from ingenue-geek. He's still very young, and I think it will be fascinating to see what directions he does go in.

I think he's a character actor in the truest sense - he disappears into his characters and you don't get Elijah Wood playing so-and-so, you get so-and-so.

I doubt that he'll be overlooked, even if he disappears from the acting world for a while to pursue his music/production/whatever dreams. He is *so* well-known in the movie business, despite what the Paris-Hiltonwood media would have us think, that I think he's a bit hard to overlook. Remember the interview where he met some reporter for lunch, and a fairly big star sitting in the restaurant yelled "YOU ROCK!"? He's impressed the heck out of a number of big names over the years and I suspect there's a lot of mutual respect between the One Lad and Mel Gibson, wazzisname who directed the Mummy movies, anyone he's worked with. I think his reputation is excellent.

Johnny Depp said, when interviewed by James Lipton, that he had to be willing to make a total fool of himself. So Elijah will happily pick roles that make him look geeky, or dorky, or amoral, or evil, or naive, depending on what production is lucky enough to get him, and he'll pick the roles on the basis of if it's interesting and if it will make the most of his abilities. Whoever hires him already knows that he will disappear into the character, eliminating the worry that the character won't be convincing. That's important, because he's got one of the most famous faces in the world, and it would be unfortunate if he couldn't convince the audience that they're not seeing EW playing Frodo Baggins playing <insert name of character here>. They also know that he's thoroughly professional and easy to work with and direct. What more could a director want? For us, it means that we may never see him in a movie that doesn't have some sort of serious conflict or really, really embarrassing moments for the character.

And if a promising blockbuster comes along, I wouldn't be surprised if he took the part, though I suspect he has the same problem as we do in that any movie of epic proportions comes in a remote second after LotR.

Re: Gray Havens: :::: sniffle :::: I agree. In the book, it was certain that he was going; last time I watched RotK, I noticed the look of anticipation during the good-byes, followed by an almost crestfallen look, until Gandalf said "Frodo, it is time."

Pardon me while I go and bawl my eyes out. ::: sniffle :::

~grumpy

Well, I just want to agree with everything zkg said--except for my name being in that first quote :p -- 'cause I really don't worry about Elijah too much, at least regarding his career (I'll worry about his lungs :( ).

I'm especially glad someone else had the same thoughts I did about the Grey Havens--sometimes I think I see things that aren't there (and sometimes I'm sure I do ;) ). OTOH, sometimes it's too easy to "work from the book" and think, "Now why does he have that weird look on his face when he's " and not catch that, gee, maybe he's feeling something [i]different here than he was in the book :rolleyes: .

Intresting discution as usally!
Goodmorning ladies!!

Here comes other pics from that goodbye "sniff"

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v399/erendil/2556As-you-turn-and-walk-away.jpg

Sorry, have to dry my eyes!! :(
Everytime i see that last nod it is like he looks right into my,oh sorry
the audiens eyes to say: Everything is going to be okey!!
I think that he knows he is going to go away and just waiting for the signal
from Gandalf! :(

loveyou/wood

Maybe it's all the talk of Grey Havens, but I'm feeling very Hobbit-deprived tonight. I think I need to read the book again.

And now you've got me crying, Wood! :k

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v377/honeyelf/seansbook15.jpg

Hugs,
Honey!

I think he's a character actor in the truest sense - he disappears into his characters and you don't get Elijah Wood playing so-and-so, you get so-and-so.

True.
This is just speculation of course (I don't even think that I've ever been in the same country as Elijah...so, I certainly don't claim to 'know' and 'understand' him) but that's it. On the screen, you don't get Elijah or "Elijah pretending to be so-and-so ... see me act". No, you get so-and-so.
Judging from the way people react to him when they meet him: he seems to be very genuine and interested in the people he meets. He doesn't seem to have this 'facade' when meeting people.
The really big stars, the A-list stars seem to have a 'bigger than life' image not just on the screen.

With Elijah Wood, there's something different going on. He has something very special. He does have charisma and star quality. Just look at the way various people describe him when they do meet him.
At the same time, he manages to have a 'the guy next door' image, which is odd and rare when you take into consideration that he's grown up in Hollywood.
So, it's that (IMO) rare combination of having something special (acting ability, charisma, screen presence,...?) but coming across as the guy next door at the same time (having normal hobbies for a guy his age, approachable, doesn't behave like he's better than the rest when he's meeting people with a 'you know you adore me' smile on his face,...)
The real A-list stars seem to have their 'bigger than life' identity switched on most of the time. I assume that this is not an easy thing to have to live with. Sending out the 'I'm special' vibes, when you yourself feel that you're just like anybody else really. To find the right balance is not easy, judging from the way certain celebs seem to exaggerate. I think that most celebs have a 'public persona' and that seems to be normal (ordinary people also adapt themselves depending on the environment: work, holiday, family, meeting new people, doing new things). It's just that some celebs seem to lose themselves in their public persona where others manage to keep both things seperate.

Okay....I think that i'm rambling too much on this beautiful friday morning. Forgive me. Autumn is approaching. You can smell it, see it, feel it. I love that season!
I'm a bit hyper at the moment...should probably stop drinking coffee...I've had 4 cups already and it's only 9.30 a.m.



I was watching Frodo throughout that last scene again recently, and am wondering if perhaps he didn't know for sure if he was going to be leaving (in the movie). He looks as if he's watching for a sign from someone--Gandalf or one of the Elves? He looks down twice, once just after the Elves have gone onto the ship, then again after Gandalf turns and starts walking away, almost as if he's realizing he's being left behind. Gandalf's "It is time," would have a deeper meaning than it does in the book, where Frodo already knows that it is time for him to leave Middle-earth. (Somehow I can't imagine Frodo running down the wharf shouting, "Wait! I'm coming, too!")
Interesting!
I always had the impression that he 'knew' that he was about to leave, just because of the way he looks and behaves right before and during Bilbo's stepping on that boat.
The hesitation from his part - at least, the way I saw it - comes from the difficulty of having to leave The Shire, Sam, Merry, Pippin,... and not as much from not knowing for sure that he was going to be leaving.


I don't think Frodo was surprised by Gandalf's call. He seems to know that he might be leaving, or he wouldn't have been watching for a sign--and wouldn't have brought the Red Book with him. OTOH, his tenderness with Bilbo in the cart would be even more touching if Frodo thought it might be their last time together.
This is why I love this place. You've made me look at these scenes from a different angle: "Could it be?"
:k

We don't have either of those events in the movie, but if it's a "special honor," we need to see it being offered to him, which is what Gandalf does when he calls him and holds out his hand. I'm wondering if those enigmatic looks on Frodo's face as he's walking toward Gandalf (which we've talked about before) aren't what Phillippa refers to as his "surrender" at the end of the movie. I think there's something more going on than "just holding hands" when Gandalf holds out his hand and Frodo takes it. It seems like an offer, and the acceptance of that offer.
To me, I always saw this as Gandalf sensing Frodo's hesitation and anxiety of having to leave the others behind and him offering his hand is his way of encouraging Frodo to take that step. 'I know that this is difficult for you, but you're not alone in this, Bilbo's here, I'm here...we'll do it together'


ETA this:
In 2001, Lord of the Rings star Elijah Wood was crowned ‘Best Actor of All Time’ after winning a chicken-wing eating contest in a campus classroom.
:D

From here (http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=503370)

tzgrumpy wrote:

Elijah will happily pick roles that make him look geeky, or dorky, or amoral, or evil, or naive, depending on what production is lucky enough to get him, and he'll pick the roles on the basis of if it's interesting and if it will make the most of his abilities.
That’s the way he seems to have operated most of the time so far: choosing roles that interest and challenge him – and also working with people he admires. That kind of career path would certainly be consistent with his talents. Your analogy to Johnny Depp’s career is a good one. As for Elijah having “one of the most famous faces in the world,” that’s true; but as I’ve said before, he is also something of a chameleon. Compare Frodo and Patrick and the upcoming Jonathan, none of whom really look like Elijah.

tgshaw: Thanks for raising the issue of Frodo’s seeming uncertainty at the Grey Havens. I had wondered about that myself. I think I agree with Flourish that it’s more hesitation at having to take that step and break the news to his friends (who are already in tears over parting from Gandalf), rather than lack of foreknowledge that he’s leaving. Beautiful screencaps, tg. Does anyone know whether that shot was filmed at the same time as the rest of the Grey Havens scene (which I understand was done quite early on)? Frolijah looks so rosy and cherubic on the ship, just after he looked so pale and angular while standing on the quay. Is it all “just” makeup and acting, or did some time elapse?

BTW, my niece, who has a sense of humor and is often willing to indulge her aunt's eccentricities, sent me a RotK 2004-2005 "student planner" yesterday. It has one page per week, with stills from the film on facing pages. I took it in to my office and tore out a very nice Aragorn picture (from August) for a coworker who has a Viggo thing. She was flipping through the rest of the book, and came across several Frodo pix. "He is so weird looking!" she remarked. I was deeply offended. But then I remembered that up until a few months ago, I would have said the same thing!

Simulposted with Pelagia: I may be remembering this wrong, but I thought part of the reason the Grey Havens was filmed early on was because of Ian Holms's schedule, which would mean the scene on the quay would have been early, but wouldn't say anything about the one on the boat. But, in typical EJW fashion, IMHO Frodo looks younger than usual when he gives his friends that innocent smile and older than usual when he begins to turn away :confused: . (How does he do that?) But I have to confess my first thought is "Well, they certainly redid his makeup for that!" It looks to me as if they laid the makeup on pretty heavy to get that pale appearance.

...At the same time, he manages to have a 'the guy next door' image, which is odd and rare when you take into consideration that he's grown up in Hollywood...

...It's just that some celebs seem to lose themselves in their public persona where others manage to keep both things seperate...
I wonder if growing up in Hollywood (and, even more, in acting itself) wasn't a help in handling the public persona thing. To Elijah that is normal life, and he's been dealing with it since his first interview (which was at 9 years old, if not earlier). It seems that often the celebrities who get into trouble--spending all their money, doing drugs, etc.--are the ones who get thrown into it suddenly and don't know how to handle it. Or, like Moondancer says, those who begin to "believe their own publicity" and can't keep it separate from who they really are.

Makes me think of an incident when I was 8 or 9 years old and was grocery shopping with my mom, who was an elementary school teacher. Another little kid saw us and "whispered" (not very softly ;) ) to his mother, "Look! It's Mrs. Shaw!" I'm sure it was a revelation to him that Mrs. Shaw went grocery shopping--and did other regular-person things--when he only thought of her as a teacher. Where to me, of course, with both of my parents being teachers, it was perfectly normal. Interesting, maybe, that my mother did, indeed, have a very different "persona" when she was teaching as she did in "private life" and could (and still can, when it comes up) switch back and forth between the two at a moment's notice, much as Elijah can with his acting. My father, OTOH, didn't really have a distinction between the two. And it was my mother who was a "born teacher," while teaching was always a struggle for my dad. Gee, this discussion is as good as psychotherapy sometimes, isn't it :p ? Without going into their life histories, I could almost make the statement that my mother "grew up" in teaching, while my father came to it as an outsider--although I think there were also personality elements that played into her ease with it, as I'm sure there is with Elijah in his acting.

Somewhat connected with the above is a quote from Elijah posted here recently that I've been trying to keep in mind (he was so wise, even at 16): "We make our own normality." He was referring to his lack of a "normal childhood." I'm trying to apply it to what I see as a "normal adulthood" and how that can differ from how society defines it (but realizing that I do still need to define it for myself and not just float along--because if I don't define it for myself, I only have society's definition and I'll always be "abnormal" by those standards). ---- Well, I think it helped me to write that out, even if it doesn't make any sense. I figure if no one in this thread can understand it, I might as well forget trying to explain it to my psychiatrist ;) .

Rambling? Who's rambling?? :lol: ...

Okay....I think that i'm rambling too much on this beautiful friday morning. Forgive me. Autumn is approaching. You can smell it, see it, feel it. I love that season!
When I was a kid, I hated autumn because it meant going back to school (it surprises people sometimes when they find out how much a straight-A student hated school). Now that life is pretty much the same for me year-round, I've really come to love the season. The only negative thing about it now is that the days are getting shorter, but until the end of October that's not really much of a problem.

This is why I love this place. You've made me look at these scenes from a different angle: "Could it be?"
:k
Oh, yes, definitely :k . And I love that the movies were made in such a way as to make different interpretations possible. IMHO, it's one way that the movies kept the spirit of the book. People have been talking about the book in that way for 50 years, and I think the movies will have some of that same quality. :) And, to get back on topic for a moment, IMHO Elijah's acting fits right in. Amazing that his acting can tell us exactly what the character is thinking/feeling and yet be so enigmatic--sometimes at the same moment!

from Pelagia
"He is so weird looking!" she remarked.
This is actually a pet theory of mine. We have all heard this remark by various people in various contexts (reviews, if nothing else). Well, Elijah undoubtedly has, too. I think this kind of lack of appreciation keeps him humble. He has to remind himself when he hears these things, "It doesn't matter what I look like; I'm an actor. If I can get a job in an interesting role, I'm happy."

He's not famous because he has a pretty face. He landed the Frodo role because of his enthusiastic audition video and Fran saying he looked "interesting." Not pretty; Elves are pretty. For their other-world fantasy, the Jacksons wanted somebody other-worldly looking. They got it in spades with Elijah.

Some people see it as beauty. Some people see it as weird. Elijah had to figure out his own interpretation between these two diametrically opposed opinions, and came up with "I'm a regular guy who acts." This was undoubtedly reinforced by his family. Keeping Hanna around may serve as a real-world reminder as well. (I can never forget Tom Selleck saying in an interview that he instructed his three larger brothers to beat him up if he ever became arrogant.) :p Anyway, the "real guy" approach has served Elijah well, and I applaud him for hanging onto it in the storm of post-LOTR publicity, which truly could have turned him into something hideous otherwise.

[/pet theory]

I forgot to thank Honey for that great picture of the post-quest hobbits. I think that's the best one I've seen.

And I forgot to thank wood for reminding me of another real, true "gasp-out-loud" moment I had during RotK--when Frodo turns and does, indeed, seem to be looking into each member of the audience's eyes.

--Because now I can go over to the Trilogy forum and post that thought... and because Mariole (whose pet theory I think is spot on, BTW) came in-between, that's one more post here... :rolleyes: Please don't hurt me :z: . This is very temporary. The goal is to hit 2000 posts by sometime tomorrow and to do it, well, as legitimately as possible. (Now if that quote game could just get rolling again :rolleyes: !)

This is one degree removed from the estimable Mr. Wood, but Jonathan Safran Foer (author of "Everything Is Illuminated" and the forthcoming "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close") has had a (very) short story published on the Op-Ed page of the New York Times today. It's called "The Sixth Borough" and is a surreal New York fantasy, mysterious and very moving.

You can find it online at the New York Times website--I don't know whether I am allowed to link it?--but it is easy to figure out what it is (there is no "the" in the URL and you will type nytimes for the name of the paper).

If you are not already registered at the NYTimes website, registration is free (and so is access to the story for up to 7 days from today). You will not receive any junk mail as a result of registering.

Anyway, I know some people here have enjoyed this author's work and I thought you might like to check out this story.

Have a good weekend, everyone!

Delurking very briefly (forgive the long absence - RL claiming me with both hands, not to mention feet) to quote Mariole:

He's not famous because he has a pretty face. He landed the Frodo role because of his enthusiastic audition video and Fran saying he looked "interesting." Not pretty; Elves are pretty. For their other-world fantasy, the Jacksons wanted somebody other-worldly looking. They got it in spades with Elijah.

I believe PJ's first words on seeing Elijah's audition video were "Wow, he has an extraordinary face!" PJ was right. That face is extraordinary - probably the least "ordinary" face I for one have ever seen. (And I've seen it in RL :p )
That the lad can act too - and how! - is an incredible bonus. And then there's his otherworldly wisdom. Erm, better stop right here or I'll be banging on yet AGAIN about how unbelievable EJW is. You've heard it all before .... :)

More when I get more time .... bye .....

tgshaw said:

But, in typical EJW fashion, IMHO Frodo looks younger than usual when he gives his friends that innocent smile and older than usual when he begins to turn away
I agree; but I think that’s partly because, as he turns away, he does that thing with his eyebrows – that quizzical look. That always bothers me a bit, because it doesn’t seem to go with the extraordinarily sweet smile that preceded it, and that your screencaps showed so well.

From Mariole, on his looks:

Some people see it as beauty. Some people see it as weird.

I think it’s the combination of the huge, prominent eyes and the pouty mouth with the very strong bone structure (especially the square jaw) that makes him look so unusual. I remember that I really had to force myself not to look at the eyes, and to look instead at the rest of his face, before I decided that he was attractive.

And regarding his apparent humility: I've read elsewhere (and I'm sure that people have posted here as well) about how he has said his mother drilled into him that he shouldn't believe he was better than other people, or deserved special treatment, just because he was an actor. I remember reading an account on a fan site by a girl who met him when he was filming All I Want in Vancouver. She just stood there crying when he walked over, and his first words were, "It's OK. It's just me." Which I thought was perfect.

I agree; but I think that’s partly because, as he turns away, he does that thing with his eyebrows – that quizzical look. That always bothers me a bit, because it doesn’t seem to go with the extraordinarily sweet smile that preceded it, and that your screencaps showed so well.
I think that's why I like the turn so much--the smile preceding it is too sweet and innocent for my vision of Frodo right then. IIRC, Elijah said he wanted it to look as innocent as possible, to show Frodo reclaiming his innocence, and that's fine, but IMVVHO Frodo stays "all grown up" and still carries the hard-bought wisdom and maturity he's earned. So it's when he's turning away, looks somewhat "knowingly" over his shoulder and gives that little nod, that I see my Frodo saying good-bye.

(And, in general, yes, I think looking older sometimes and younger sometimes is a combined "trick" of Elijah's unusual looks, his ability to manipulate them, and, sometimes, canny choices of camera angle.)

I believe PJ's first words on seeing Elijah's audition video were "Wow, he has an extraordinary face!"

Oh, the times when I'd love to be a fly on the wall! It would be so neat to know what was said, thought, discussed, etc, when they were doing casting. I'd also love to be in the room when that picture was taken of Elijah's and Sean's first trip through the script - that shot in, I think, PJ's house with EW curled up on the couch, and the body language that showed that they were strangers to each other.

Something's been sticking in my mind since I saw Wood's "naive" caps from the CoD scene, when Frodo turns around to face Sam. Before he says "The ring is mine", he tilts his head, quizzically, or almost like he doesn't quite understand what's just happened (my cats do that when they're really flummoxed by something), or like he doesn't really recognize Sam. A similar expression was when he started walking toward the ship after the last :::: sniffle :::: goodbye. There's an expression of growing awareness of - something - that leads to the red-cheeked hobbit turning around and smiling at the others :::: snorch ::::. It's almost like he started feeling better - perhaps the ties to Middle Earth :::: sob :::: and the horror of the Ring's hold on him were already beginning to fade. It's like when you walk out of a really crummy job on the last day, the realization that it's *over*, that you never have to go back there again. (one also has the urge to leap around waving arms and legs, yelling "Smeagol's FREE!") ;)

~grmpyu (and teary)

On the topic of Elijah's public persona versus his real self: I think he might be a good deal darker than what shows through interviews and fan encounters.
He strikes me as polite, almost overly polite, warm and sympathetic. Now, in a way, isn't that the best cover you ever saw for a guy who wants to protect his true self? I am not saying Elijah isn't sincere. This is probably all part of him, of who he really is. But it's also a great way to keep people from rummaging through your dirty laundry, meaning your dark sides, your angst and idiosyncracies and pet peeves.
Like E. Forrest wrote in that article from an Oscar party: Elijah has been an actor all his life and can play it cool when a drunk girl comes to sit on his lap. I think she is pointing to something important if you want to understand Elijah.
I have a feeling he is one of the smartest people there is, and his ever-so-nice public persona is the side of himself that he choses to show us. I dont mean to say that it's an act, I don't mean it that way. But it might be his shield against a world in which everyone wants a piece of him. I hope you will understand what I'm getting at...

Something's been sticking in my mind since I saw Wood's "naive" caps from the CoD scene, when Frodo turns around to face Sam. Before he says "The ring is mine", he tilts his head, quizzically, or almost like he doesn't quite understand what's just happened (my cats do that when they're really flummoxed by something), or like he doesn't really recognize Sam. A similar expression was when he started walking toward the ship after the last :::: sniffle :::: goodbye. There's an expression of growing awareness of - something -
OME!! I love that expression at the CofD--and that tilt of the head! Sends shivers down my spine. It's almost as if the Ring has just found itself within this body, looking out through these eyes, and is trying to figure out what's happened.

The expression at the Grey Havens is also quizzical, but IMHO there are big differences between the two. What chills me at the CofD is that I see a completely cold, non-human intelligence in operation. (Pod people, anyone? :eek: ) There's no question in my mind that it's not Frodo looking out of those eyes. Whereas, of course, at the Grey Havens, it's very much Frodo who has that questioning look that gradually resolves itself as he accepts what's happening.

...It's like when you walk out of a really crummy job on the last day, the realization that it's *over*, that you never have to go back there again. (one also has the urge to leap around waving arms and legs, yelling "Smeagol's FREE!") ;)
When I saw that bit with Smeagol, with him basically switching his dependency from the Ring to Frodo, my immediate thought was, "Now there's a relapse just waiting to happen." :rolleyes: But I think there's hope that Frodo's higher power (the one Phillippa talks about him surrendering to at the end) won't "betray" him the way Smeagol's newly claimed higher power did at the Forbidden Pool.

I think the entire "End of All Things" scene is Frodo's original it's over moment. Not just when he says the words, but when he's getting his memories back and when he embraces Sam. Tolkien said that book-Frodo is at peace then; he doesn't feel the guilt he does later, because he expects to die then and there. It's living afterward that causes him problems--"unreasoning" [JRRT's term] guilt, memories, the pull of the Ring even though it no longer exists, which, in some ways, could be harder to bear than when it was around his neck ("It's gone, gone forever. And now all is dark and empty." [approximate quote]).

And, IMHO, movie-Frodo has that same kind of peaceful moment just after the Ring is destroyed. It's afterward that we see signs of problems creeping in, as we do in the book. I'm not sure I can quite put my finger on what I'm trying to say, here... But it seems to me as if Frodo (in both the book and the movie) has to come to a point where he realizes the moment of peace was the truth and he's able to reclaim it. (But that's not quite right, because he doesn't just return to where he was--he moves beyond it.)

---------------

Eandme--I think I understand what you're saying. I thought something like it after seeing Elijah on the Conan O'Brien show one night, and then seeing him on the Today Show the same morning. Very different audiences, and Elijah looked and sounded very different. But he seemed to be himself both times, and just showing different parts of it.

Someone asked him once about the very question you're bringing up, and he replied that when someone smokes and chews his nails, you know there's something going on (but, of course, he didn't say what his "something" was). I think you're right that he wants to show his fans a positive side of himself, and also that he wants to preserve his personal privacy, and for both of those reasons isn't about to discuss any serious problems publicly. But I also think--and hope--that between his family and friends there are people who are close enough to know all sides of him, and can be supportive when he needs that. (One reason I'm glad that he made some close, permanent friends while making LotR--something he said he'd never had prior to that. With PJ deserving big thanks, IMO, for knowing he had to choose cast members who could get along in "close quarters" with each other for a long time.)

from Eandme:
his ever-so-nice public persona is the side of himself that he choses to show us.

Us and everyone else, including all his friends, co-stars, crew members, miscellaneous acquaintances, people in hotels and restaurants and airports and on planes and in the street, and by all accounts his family too. It's often been reported that EJW is the one celebrity in Hollywood about whom NO-ONE has a bad word to say. The quotes about him (do we really need to repeat them all?) leave no doubt whatsoever that Elijah doesn't transmogrify into a monster the moment the interviewer's back is turned. Not that that is quite what you're saying, of course, Eandme.

Oh OK, just one teeny little quote: our dear Shireling, wishing to know whether EW is really as nice as he appears to his fans, asked his former assistant at Collectormania what he was like to work with. Her answer: "Oh, he was an absolute angel".
'Nuff said?

Maybe not: Carl Jung (for one) maintained that everyone has a shadow personality that will out. But I suspect EW is well aware of his and keeps it under control. I'd contend that THAT is what being "nice" really means.
EDIT after reading Tg's simulpost: It probably accounts for the nail-chewing too.

And I simulposted with the edit :D --
Carl Jung (for one) maintained that everyone has a shadow personality that will out. But I suspect EW is well aware of his and keeps it under control. I'd contend that THAT is what being "nice" really means.
Oh, very, very good thought! That would be part of Elijah's "1000-year-old wisdom" methinks. As long as he doesn't let the "control" turn into "stuffing" his emotions--although I think he realizes when he does that, too, from his statement about smoking and chewing his nails.

Grumpy said:
when Frodo turns around to face Sam. Before he says "The ring is mine", he tilts his head, quizzically, or almost like he doesn't quite understand what's just happened ::snip:: or like he doesn't really recognize Sam.

To which TG responded:
OME!! I love that expression at the CofD--and that tilt of the head! Sends shivers down my spine. It's almost as if the Ring has just found itself within this body, looking out through these eyes, and is trying to figure out what's happened.


I agree. To me, it's plainly the Ring's conciousness that we are seeing when he looks up. And then he sees Sam and, recognizing the devotion in him, smiles that very chilling smile, as though thinking of the uses It can put such devotion to. ::shiver::

ETA (much later): Well, Lady Wendy, on your say so, I've finally gotten round to watching "Trainspotting." I must say, for the genre, it was a really excellent piece of film-making. And yes, it could be just the sort of thing that would banish that little, pointy-eared, big-footed hobbit fellow from the public conciousness for our One Lad. ;)

It rather amused me too, from another perspective. In poking about on IMDB recently, I found a thread with some self-appointed expert whinging on about how Elijah Wood, at "five-feet, nothing" and with his designer ward-robe, was no Hooligan! This gentleman seemed rather incensed at the very idea! Which got me thinking: I think this -ahem- imagination-impaired gent, and his friends are a bit threatened by the entire idea of EJW representing their very gender, let alone "Hooligans!" Nor did it seem to occur to this person that perhaps the very unlikelyhood of a smallish American being drawn into the esteemed art :rolleyes: of Hooliganism is rather near being the point of the film.

Goodness knows Renton, Sick-Boy, spud and Tommy were such fine, strapping, glowilingly healthy examples of soccer fans, and man-hood in general! ::snerk::

Silly man.

Honey! blathering on about nothing in particular again

I want to know if Jimmy Falon first appeared on SNL when Elijah was doing the episode, "The True Test" on the "Homicide" tv show. :confused:

http://overthebrandywine.com/birthdays/tg04.jpg

Welcome to the ever growing 'Ringbearer Age' Society here at KD. :D


And while we're at it teeg, I'll re-ask the question you so rudely ( ;) ) ignored a week or so ago... when's the Faculty going to have a meet?

.

Happy Birthday, Tg!

Here's somebody else who wants to raise his glass to you!
http://www.uliante.com/numenor/images/partyfrodo.JPG


http://pnavy.com/frodofreaks/albums/cartoons/41_G.jpg

Another Frodo drawing (It's a great one but the more I look for Frodo drawings, the more I come to admire Whiteling's art! In this one, there's something about the jaw that isn't right IMVVHO)
http://www1.shellkonto.se/eldalie/images/frodo.jpg
That's from this site (http://www1.shellkonto.se/eldalie/index.php?n=g) and you can buy the prints.


And finally (I'm really going to stop after this but...this is a special birthday after all)
http://www.artisticenigma.com/oekaki-frodo.jpg
That's from this site (http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.artisticenigma.com/oekaki-frodo.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.artisticenigma.com/oekaki.html&h=300&w=300&sz=33&tbnid=vcKZCdqIEwcJ:&tbnh=111&tbnw=111&start=199&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dfrodo%26start%3D180%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26sa%3DN) and it's done with digital art software.


Eandme,
I wanted to reply but while I was looking for the following interview, I saw that Serena and Tg had perfectly said what I wanted to say (and better than I would have said it...great Jung quote, Serena)
This is a bit from an interview he did for The Rolling Stone magazine, done in march 2002 (the beginning of this quote is about his father):
He was in the house?

"Yeah. But someone can physically be somewhere and not actually emotionally be present. He just wasn't capable... how can I put this?... He just wasn't an emotional guy. You look at the idea of a mother, and the mother kind of nurtures you and cares about you and is concerned with every detail of your life and upbringing... and my dad just wasn't. He was incapable of it. The relationship was never bad. It just wasn't there. I think some of that also had to do with the fact that I was gone a lot. I have to thank my mom for everything in my life, the person I am today. She sort of overcompensated to raise the family, so I never felt a lack."

Wood says that once his father moved back to Iowa "I didn't really feel the need to call him. We don't really stay in contact. It's off and on."

Does your dad want more contact?

"I think he does, yeah. It's awkward to create a relationship with someone you didn't have a relationship with in the first place... There are probably certain behaviors that I'm angry about that I could get very specific about, but there's no real need to."

But it must have had some effect on the kind of person you are...
"The lack of a father? It very well could have. I'm conscious of..."

Sitting here during this conversation, the striking thing is not how awkward it is or how troubled Wood seems about it but the reverse; though he's talking about something serious and recognizes that, as he talks about it he is never anything other than breezy.

Astin acknowledges that nothing can be as clean and simple as it sometimes appears with Wood. "There's definitely a quality that is searching," he says. "He smokes these clove cigarettes all the time and... it's trying to fill something. It's a very primal..."

Peter Jackson explains how, at first, he had to spur on Wood to inhabit the darker side of Frodo. "He was having to summon up feelings of genuine hatred that he didn't enjoy doing," says Jackson. "Those were the times when I had to say to Elijah, 'I'm not quite believing it - let's do it again.' " And when they did it again, he was there.

I propose to Wood that when darkness doesn't appear easily in someone, especially someone as upbeat and positive as he, one wonders whether there's no darkness there, or that it's buried very deep. And is even darker.

"Because it doesn't get air," he nods, considering the notion. "When something doesn't get air, it smells worse."
The rest of it is here (http://www.elijahfan.com/elijah/rollingstone.php) (elijahfan.com)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TG!!!! I HOPE YOU WILL HAVE
A WOUNDERFUL DAY!!!!! :k :k
Here is a little present too you hope you like it!!!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v399/erendil/762524_13.jpg


love/wood

TG: I also found this, if i`m not too wrong it is from
one of your favorite movies with Elijah!!! Just want to golden your day!!!! :k



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v399/erendil/thewar-045.jpg

hope you like them!!! love/wood

I have lots of posts to catch up on, but had to come in and say:

:HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Tg!

As usual, lovely presents from everyone.

Hope you like your birthday gif(t) (http://www.imagemagician.com/images/blossom/Tg.gif)

Wishing you a wonderful, happy day. It's not so bad being 50. :)

I'm off to catch up.....

Happy Birthday, Tg!

If you don't exactly enjoy the way how the number 50 looks, you can always switch from decimal to hex, thus converting it to the pretty harmless 32 :).

...thus converting it to the pretty harmless 32.
Oooh, thanks, Brunhild--then I'm not even "come of age" yet! :p :)

And thanks for all of the birthday wishes and lovely gifts! :k

Blossom, since it's Saturday, I could even look at your .gif right away :) -- besides the choice of such wonderfully expressive shots, your variety of special effects just keeps growing. Wood, thanks for the pics of the present and the past Mr. Wood--The War's not only one of my favorite Elwood movies, but having just looked at Blossom's .gif, I detect a strong Froshadowing in that particular shot of Stu ;) . I'll have to remember it for future use.

Moondancer--Well, that "jolly old Frodoll" really likes to party, eh? :D And I agree about the jaw--looks to me as if pictures with two different camera angles may have been combined, and the jaw doesn't quite fit (unless that's the artist's aim: to combine FotR Frodo with a late-RotK one); interesting, anyway. And the anime one is lovely--thanks. I don't know what it is about Frolijah as anime that just captures the essence of the charcter so well for me, even though it doesn't look exactly like him--the big eyes, I'm sure, and I think the touch of elven nature that shows through :) .

Ezzie--lovely, low-carb ;) cake, and even better Frodo pics. Thanks. (That dark one of him holding the phial is interesting--such a different effect than the original.) But, y'know, people keep asking me questions I don't know the answer to. First some guy on TV asks, "Why should you shop anywhere else?" and I say, "I don't know! Tell me the answer!", but he doesn't :confused: . Then you ask, "When is the Faculty going to have a meet?" and I don't know the answer to that one, either! Right now, my own finances and life are such that I can't plan anything for myself, much less for anyone else.

It might be fun to combine a get-together with a con, of which there are several in this part of the country. There are "standing" annual ones in Kansas City and Minneapolis each year that are pretty good, and I just saw some kind of a tentative notice for one in Chicago next year... just an idea. But there are also a number of Faculty members on or near the East Coast, so maybe something in that direction?* (I don't think there are quite so many on the West Coast, although it might just be that I don't know where some people live.) I'd l-o-o-o-v-e to get to Oxford next fall, for the big LotR 50th anniversary party, but have no idea at this point if I'll be able to do so, or how that would fit with other people's plans. Might work at least for some of the Brit and European members, of which we keep getting more :) !

I'm just a fountain of decisiveness, aren't I? ;) But I'm being very honest when I say that right now I don't see how I can go anywhere in the near future (we do have a great zoo here in Omaha... ;) ...no cons, though; they tried one once and it was pretty pitiful :rolleyes: ).

-----------

*Indiana's kind of in the middle--maybe we could all meet at Sheryl's house. [Test to see if Sheryl is reading this :p .]

Happy Birthday, TG! Your posts are ever enlightening and thought-provoking. Hope you have a great day!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v32/bunniebugs/misc/AnimePicture.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v32/bunniebugs/LOTR%20photos%20-%20misc/mine.jpg

Happy Birthday, TG!!!
(do try to stay out of trouble ;) )
http://bagendinn.com/group/images/costumed/exdvd/features/theroad/cap497.jpg

Moondancer, I'm glad you posted that interview in which Elijah talks about his father. When Eandme posted the suggestion about Elijah having a dark side, that interview popped into my mind. A dark side does not need to imply that one is hiding something sinister or that Elijah's beautiful nature is a false front. But it just might mean that he might have some pain, or worries or issues that he keeps to himself. I don't know. But if it were true, it certainly doesn't make of the complimentary things said about him untrue. And in fact he can have pain and possibly be very wise in dealing with it and not letting it overrun who he wants to be in the world--a kind and good person. (In some interview didn't he say he wanted to be a good person first). It takes strength and wisdom to rise above one's pain--rather than to give in to a bitter outlook. All of this is just speculation....

Happy Birthday, Trudy. Thanks for bringing me here all those months ago and for all your friendship and love. I hope you have a day as wonderful as you are!

:k Ann

Happy Birthday tgshaw!

I know I'm new to the group and at one point made a negative comment regarding Paradise :( but I would love to meet you all someday along The Great East Road. I read this on TORn and decided for my daughters and I, it is not to be missed. Maybe a gathering around this time would be fun to do. It would be an appropriate occasion and plenty of time to make plans... Just a thought. :D

'Lord of the Rings' exhibit will visit the Midwest
Middle Earth is coming to the Midwest -- though it's going to take
awhile to
arrive. Indiana State Museum officials announced Thursday that the
museum
will open "The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy -- The
Exhibition"
on Oct. 6, 2005. The touring show features original costumes, jewelry
and
hundreds of other props, as well as activities based on the blockbuster
film
series.
http://www.theonering.net/perl/newsview/1/1094861441

Again, Happy Birthday!!

Shelbyshire--That could be a possibility. Is the museum in Indianapolis, or some other city? Through December 31, it says--tickets not on sale til next summer! Wonder if there's a place with a schedule of where that display is going to be showing. I checked quickly on the official site and didn't see anything, but don't have time to look "seriously" right now.

I'm going to an afternoon movie with a friend whose birthday was yesterday--so we usually do something together. She always says, "Let's see what trouble we can get into," but that usually means a somewhat "compromise movie" (we don't always like the same stuff) and a hamburger, so, Alyon, I don't think you have to worry too much about us getting into trouble :). BTW, I'm guessing the boys are in that "fake snow" for the Caradhras scene, because it looks awfully deep to be the real thing--nasty stuff to inhale by all accounts (I saw a pic from the filming, and the crew members were all wearing protective masks--it was one of the things that made me think maybe actors do deserve the money they make--at least some of them :p ).

Ohhh, another anime Frolijah! (And his less angelic counterpart.) Thanks, Bunnie :) .

Achila, so glad you decided to come along for the ride :) . You've added so much not only to the discussion but to the whole feeling of Fellowship here.

And thanks to all for the good wishes.
:k :k

Have to run now, but will be back later. Since I've missed all my high-minded goals of things I was going to have accomplished by the time I was 50, I want to at least get those 2000 posts in :p .

{{{Faculty}}}

Dear Trudy .....

http://webplaza.pt.lu/barbara/2556I_m-glad-you_re-with-me-med.jpg

I'm so glad you're with us!

What would we do without your wise words, your insight, your knowledge, your honesty, your loyalty, your humour and your unending patience with the rest of us? Not to mention your wondrous Other Site?

You're a truly beautiful person and I hope you are having a

VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY !!

Love,
serena

Omigawd! BunnyBugs and Moondancer! I LOVE the anime Frodos! Anime is so cool anyway, but to see Frodo in that medium is twice as nice. Where can I find more good ones like that?

((((tg)))) I hope things get better for you. What a good suggestion to have a gathering at some centralized convention. Maybe the Chicago one would be a nice idea (if it’s a convention worth it’s salt. I’ve never heard of them).

OK, who’s the gif Queen over here? I keep forgetting because i don’t visit often enough. :rolleyes: I always want to credit tg with the effort (well worthy), but she had to disappoint me by being truthful instead of basking in the lime light… (so noble). When my computer crashed in July I lost my collection of gifs and sure would like to rebuild them. Also, anyone know where I can get the LOTR film trailers that came out on-line over the past three years? I lost them too. :(

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TG
May all your wishes come true this year...

Look....even Frodo is raising a tankard in your honour...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v449/wendylady1/FrodoGreenDragon.jpg


Ezzie,
The online trailers can be downloaded from here...I think these may be the ones you mean !!

Trailers (http://www.lordoftherings.net/trailers/)

...and the esteemed and talented Blossom is your local gif-queen around here...

Happy birthday, Trudy!

You make the Faculty the wonderful home it is. Thank you!

:k :k :k :k :k :k :k :k :k :k :k :k :k :k

Happy Birthday to the Dean of the Faculty, TG!!!!!!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v389/carrolb/party1.jpg

Ezzie, I've been saving Blossom's (and everyone's!) gifs for a long time, and have a lot of them on my computer. (I also have a lot of clips from shows and other various similar things saved as well.) Do you have an e-mail account that can accept large files? I could try e-mailing them to you.

I did some homework/research :D Of course it isn't the homework/research for my Biology class but it is a whole lot more fun... :cool: ...

The link to the Indiana State Museum is:

http://www.in.gov/ism/MuseumExhibits/lotr.asp

You can sign up to get an email update when tickets go on sale! The exhibit is now in Boston until October 24th. It then goes to Sydney from December 2004 to early 2005. Nothing is schedule between then and when it comes to Indianapolis in October 2005. The Indiana State Museum did have this on their site:

The Indiana State Museum is proud to announce it is the last international venue to host The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy – The Exhibition Oct. 6, 2005 through Dec. 31, 2005.

The last venue... :(

Happy Birthday, TG!!!

You've reached that "adventurous age," and here are four Princes of the Halflings ready to whisk you away in their chariot! http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v377/honeyelf/hobbits_inahelicopter.jpg


Dear Faculty sisters, I will be in New York, New York at the end of October. I would sure love to see any of you who live out that way. Maybe we could have dinner or something, as my husband will be at conference funtions must of the time.

And I'm all for an official Faculty moot! That would be too :cool: ! The exhibit would be a wonderful excuse.

Honey!

A very happy birthday, tg! Age is just a number, you know... :cool:

If any of you have a chance to see the LOTR exhibit I do urge you to go---I went up to Boston with my kids in August just for that purpose, and it was a wonderful trip and a truly memorable show. There are costumes and accessories/weapons for Aragorn, Legolas, Galadriel, Gandalf, Saruman, and of course FRODO and many others. Sauron is there, Gollum clings to the wall, the effigy of Boromir lies in the Elven boat, and the Ring is suspended in a column of light in the middle of a small, round, room while the voices of those who have possessed it or coveted it whisper in the darkness. We were able to hold Glamdring (with gloves on) and of course clamber into Gandalf's famous cart to experience the scaling effect. There are cases of weapons and jewelry, video clips, a motion-capture experience, and a wall against which you can measure yourself to determine whether you are human, hobbit, elf or (*shudder*) a Ringwraith....

The gift shop, at least in Boston, had only the familiar items--various editions of the books, the DVDs, key chains, and bookmarks. There is absolutely no photography allowed in the exhibit, so splurge and get your picture taken in the cart ($5).

We spent two hours taking it all in, and I will never forget that when we came out and drifted, dazed, into the gift shop, ROTK was on the monitor, and Frodo was just saying, "I'm glad to be here with you, Sam, here at the end of all things." Did you ever nearly swoon in public? In front of your kids? :o

Honeyelf, I live in the NY area! I am not sure who else does, but perhaps we can meet during your stay. It would be a pleasure--just PM me if you like.

Did you ever nearly swoon in public? In front of your kids?

On Trilogy Tuesday my husband, 17 year-old daughter and I went to the theater in costume. (My daughter as an Elf, my husband as PJ, and me in "drag" as a male Hobbit!) As we sat there, on a sunny lovely December day in California, a gentleman came around handing out cards from the LoTR trading card game. Mine looked like this;

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v377/honeyelf/LOTR-EN00027.jpg

"YES!" I enthused, "I got FRODO!!!"

At which point my daughter gave me a withering look, and said "Mom, we all got Frodo."

:o :o :o

Honey!

PS Flourish, I pm'd you! :)

But wouldn't this run into the "region" problem again? VCDs work everywhere, but I don't have an "all region" VCR or DVD drive. I wonder if, when the DVD copiers do their copying, do they save the video actually onto their computer drive? If so, it may be possible to save it onto CDs as a VCD. ainon is our resident VCD expert--at least she's sent me a couple that she copied herself ;) --so she may know how that works. Once something is on a computer drive, I believe it's possible to copy it as a VCD using just a regular CD drive--Yes? That would avoid any region problems, and it's still possible to make screencaps from it although they aren't as good as from a DVD.
Ooohh...didn't think of the "region" problem.
OK....I think that my brother-in-law has an all region DVD recorder but I'm not sure (don't know about the machine of my brother).
I'll ask him about the VCD thing (or if it's a DVD, which type) once I get the videotape (thanks, Whiteling...take your time to send it...you have more important things to think of first )

In either case, let's just hope he can make a copy for your region, Tg. (if not directly, than maybe indirectly maybe through somebody who can make a VCD copy from a DVD....so, consider this as a plea for help to anybody out there who can help us get a VCD copy...any advice is welcome :) ).


Shelbyshire,
Thanks for posting that.
It's from Dougie Brimson's site and that's indeed been linked to a couple of times without any problems.
http://www.brimson.net/

Hallo too you all!!! I found it! It`s about Elijahs part in Sin City! What do you think about this? Someone called t-joint wrote it in Imd-messenger board about Sin city!! There was other ansewrs too but it was this one i was asking about in my earlier post!!

Don't worry, you'll love this film then. Yes, everyone else knows how big his part is already, and no, Elijah doesn't have a big one. In fact, his part keeps getting smaller as the film goes on, eventually reduced to a head shot (yes, I'm now doing my bastard dance , thank you very much). His facial expression doesn't change throughout the film though, so that might lead to some disappointment on your part. However, you're in good company. Mickey Rourke's character tries unsuccessfully to change Elijah's expression and is disappointed, too.

Incidentally, try cruising the threads a little, including the F.A.Q. page. You'll get more info on "Kevin" and his fate. You likee


What do you think about it??

Love/wood

Edit: Thanks for the news about The Holigans! I am abit worried about
this I told you so bit,but in the end it maybe not mean anything!!
Just krossing my finger it will turn out to be a great movie for our lad!!!!

a-ha, the IMDB movie message board.

I wouldn't worry too much about this, wood.
I'm guessing that they don't know more about Kevin in Sin City than you and I and what you can find on the internet. Everybody is entitled to their opinion of course but there are a couple of troublemakers on that message board (not just on the Elijah related topics) and that makes that board not the most pleasant place IMO.

I've seen that particular thread some time ago.
It begins like this:
"He had one facial expression in Lord of the Rings that he used throughout the entire movie for every situation."
:rolleyes:
Now, to me, that says enough about how perceptive that person is. A couple of others jumped on the bandwagon after that.
There were others who tried to talk some sense into them concerning Elijah Wood's acting ability but frankly, I don't understand why they even bothered to do that. I mean, it's not much use talking to people who can only see one facial expression in the LOTR but maybe I'm being a bit too harsh on them.
Anyway, it's their loss.

Okey!! Thanks Moondancer i thought it coulde be something like that!!!

Well i guess its no juse trying to convins other people on
something they already deside not too like! Belive me i have
tryed make people to see Elijahs spciell talent for no good!!
Sometimes i think they say the other way around just to
"piss me of" sorry for the languedge!!!


love/wood

Had an email from The Fat Hobbit at "Hobbits for President," announcing that they now have T-shirts for sale, along with their bumper stickers. The link to see them is: http://www.frodoandsam04.com/page/page/984756.htm

When I went there to look at the shirts, I also checked out a few of the partner sites that I hadn't seen before. One small site called "Brave Little Hobbits" had so many ads that my computer froze up :rolleyes: , but I did pick up one bit of Elijah info I don't remember seeing before. IIRC, we've wondered at times how much "regular" schooling he'd had. This site's bio of him said that for kindergarten through grade 3 he attended St. Patrick's Catholic School (in either Cedar Rapids or Marion, I assume, although it didn't say), and was homeschooled after that. Since third grade would be about 8 years old, that fits pretty well.

I can't vouch for the site, but the bio was obviously "lifted" from somewhere else, and the rest of the info was correct. It was very old--but although Elijah's favorite food may no longer be "homemade potato salad" :p , his history shouldn't have changed. :)

Hello everybody :k !Dear colleagues, I have good news and bad news...

The good news is, I have "Day-O" on video tape.
The bad news is, it is dubbed in German :haha: :o :(


(But I must confess that I have major difficulty with Delta Burke. Her acting style is quite the opposite to the fluently multiple expressions we know from our Elwood... her sledgehammer acting isn't my cup of tea at all, I'm afraid.) Ah, but Delta Burke surpassed herself as Suzanne Sugarbaker.

::::trying to imagine The One Lad playing Suzanne Sugarbaker ::::

:::: brain shorts out :::::

IIRC, wasn't it Tg who is looking for ages for "Day-O"? Maybe anyone of you is interested in this movie, so I can send it. Or perhaps there is anyone who can make copies of it? Don't know if it makes any sense for non-German speakers, but I wanted to let you know. Well, we have compared the One Lad to a silent movie actor. We can just turn the sound off. ;D

And...

:::: ahem ::::

:::: preen ::::

:::: whistling nonchalantly ::::

I just went up to Arlington yesterday and picked up a shiny new iMac G5 with a DVD RW drive. Once I figure out how to connect a vcr to the machine, I can make copies. If you want to trust me with this priceless object, I'll be glad to copy it.

Provided, of course, that it's a format that I can read on my north american VCR. Which I suspect it isn't, being dubbed in German and therefore from the other side of the puddle. :(

Bummer.

~grumpy
What are we talking about, here, six or seven seconds? Sure, it's great, but it's nothing like someone putting a crown on your head or shopping! -- Suzanne Sugarbaker (or something like that)

hmmm,

Grumpy, it seems that you're stuck with the same regions problem.

Other suggestion:
you can't copy a European format VCR videotape to your DVD RW drive but would you be able to make copies off my DVD copy?
Or make VCD's off my DVD copy (I don't have a DVD drive on my computer)?
If that would be possible, I could make the DVD and send it to you and you could make copies for others (who don't mind listening to wee!Lij talking in german or who want to admire his skills as a silent actor)?
I still have to ask my brother-in-law about the VCD's and the format of the DVD recorded with an all-region DVD recording machine (= not on the computer)

Note to those reading this and raising an eyebrow over all this DVD copying thing. you never know
Most of us would be willing to buy an official Day-O DVD or VHS video if it was available.

Edit:
I found a Dutch Disney Archive site. I send them an e-mail to ask them if they could give me any tips on how to get the original version of the movie Day-O. You never know, maybe they can help but I'm not holding my breath.

Also: this is the Day-O review on the New York Times site:
DAY-O
Starring Delta Burke, Elijah Wood. Directed by Michael Schultz. (NR, 96 minutes).

Day-O is a purified TV-movie variation on the odious theatrical feature Drop Dead Fred. Mother-to-be Delta Burke begins to get those old familiar prebirth blues. Feeling that she's let life pass her by, Delta is enervated by the return of her imaginary childhood playmate, Day-O (Elijah Wood). Nothing much happens, except for the formidable Ms. Burke raising her voice to an air-raid-siren decibel every few minutes. As always, however, young Mr. Wood is consistently fine. Day-O was originally telecast May 3, 1992, in the timeslot that used to be occupied by the Disney Sunday Movie. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Air-raid-siren?
:lol:

"As always, however, young Mr. Wood is consistently fine"
:)

I haven't seen this film but I'm going to make a guess here and say that the reviewer misused the word "enervated." The last 52 times I ran across it, it was misused, anyway. It means to lessen or reduce the strength or vigor of--I can't imagine the young Mr. Wood (or Mr. Wood at any age) having that effect on anyone. :rolleyes:

Hi everyone -- just checking in -- we're having a grand old time at Achila's -- just learning to post pictures and thought I'd delight you with one of my favorites from NOT Try 17.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v480/ylla/_thb_alliwant-083.jpg

I agree with Grumpy on this.
Sean's flawed but he's fully aware of it and he seems to be willing to face his demons.
With all due respect, I don't think it's fair to compare him with Elijah. We're all very glad to see how balanced he seems and how well he survived being a child actor (and not a child star). Elijah says often enough how grateful he is that he has such a good mother.
Having a bipolar mother can't have been easy for Sean, certainly not when I hear about what he had to go through from time to time (but Patty Duke is not a big name over here and so, I don't know her story and background very well).
Sean is always trying to get approval, so it seems. It hurts him if he meets somebody he admires a lot but that person does not seem to be as interested in him. I'm certainly no expert on psychology (so, I'm aware that I could be talking nonsense here ;) ), but that sort of behaviour seems rather understandable if you see how difficult it was growing up in his family sometimes. And still, he's not bitter towards his mother. It's obvious that he loves his parents.

I'm enjoying Sean's book very much. I like the guy, I can't help it. His book is certainly not an egotrip. He wouldn't have been so hard on himself and telling us about his insecurities, his flaws, his doubts if it was just an egobooster.
But...that's just my own opinion (meaning that I'm not dismissing other viewpoints on this...not at all...I'm just offering my own and I like the book).

I hear people say that it's clever marketing - selling the book on the back of the success of LOTR. I think it's partly right but not entirely so. I guess that he wanted to do something different than just the anecdotes, funny stories. I think that he writes enough about working on the set of LOTR to justify the marketing. Sure, it's all written from his viewpoint and it would be fun to read more about Elijah, Dominic, Viggo, Billy and the others but he writes about what he knows best: how the experience was for him.



Other topic: I'd be surprised to see an autobiography of Elijah soon (= in 30 years or so). I think that a serious (=not fluffy) unofficial biography is more likely (but, his family and friends seem to be very protective of Elijah so how reliable would that be.)

... Samwise Gamgee has his own "issues" if you will. He has the class system he's born into, the reinforcement from his father that Gamgee's are meant for raising potatoes and cabbages, plus his own nagging doubts -calling himself 'dunderhead,' etc. repeatedly. I believe it was "naught but a ninnyhammer" in the book. ;)

Samwise was capable of more than he was aware of, and became Mayor of the Shire when all was said and done. I think it's possible that Sam's brilliance could only shine out once his acknowledged master, Frodo, was gone. Frodo's words about "You cannot be always torn in two" seem to hint at that. Frodo's illness and depression were keeping Sam back. I suspect that Frodo missed Sam's unswerving devotion after he married - I mean, he must have paid *some* attention to Rosie! ;) - and Frodo also realized that Sam would be torn apart by the two most important people in his life just as certainly as the Ring would have destroyed him. :::: sniffle ::::

Sean seems to think he's capable of Great Things, and just hasn't been given a proper chance yet. Only time will tell which is greater; his capability or ego. I'm banking on his ability. Before LotR, he'd already been acknowledged as a major talent on his own - even getting an Oscar nom. for his short film. His success just won't be as *apparently* effortless as Elijah's, though I don't believe that there's anything effortless about Elijah's work - it just looks that way.

A phrase from Mary Stewart's "The Hollow Hills" stands out in my mind - something about "...he must stand out like a young dragon among pond newts...". I'm not sure I even want to try to imagine what the effect would be on poor overweight Sean, who is forever plagued by self-doubt and self-criticism, to work for the better part of five years next to that young, beautiful, slender, effortlessly talented, golden-winged creature that is The One Lad. (*)

PS Faculty Ladies, I'm still coming to New York the end of the month. I'd be happy to meet up with any of you. Flourish and I have a fun day of museum hopping, and lunching planned. Just PM me!

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!! If I had any sense I'd drive up there and see y'awl.

~grumpy (*) Not swooning. Honest. :p

Well grumpy,even if you wore swooning :p

you woulden`t be alone; i am more then willing to keep you
compony with that!!! :p :D :lol:

love/wood

Oh there is some more things that can be sade in the matter about
Elijahs look but this is not the place to talk about that!!! :p :D :cool:
but i can at least post this one or can`t i??
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v399/erendil/3236g.jpg

love/wood

honeyelf wrote:
It’s like the joke about why there’s no such organization as Chocoholics Anonymous: nobody wants to quit!
We used to say the same thing about "screencappers anonymous"--so you can imagine what it's been like the last few months living with a DVD drive that goes in/out works/doesn't work at a whim. I try to "make screencaps while the drive works" so I have something to work on when it doesn't (especially since I can't even watch The Movies then).

Ditto for Elijoholics Anonymous (though I like your suggestion of “Elijophilia” better -- sounds more intellectual). Anyway, there are many worse vices than this one.
I like the Elijophilia suggestion because the root of the word means love ("brotherly love"), instead of addiction or mania! There's also "Elwoodology" for the study of... Of course, one can be engaged in both pursuits at the same time.

...but I was shaking my head at myself this morning, when I spent about a half hour on Google (through KD's Google bar, of course ;) ), trying to find some silly nonsense words I half remembered from a childhood cartoon so I could use them in an even sillier story I'm putting together for the website. (If anyone remembers "The Saga of Brego, the Wonder Horse," believe me, this one's worse :eek: !) I think that sometimes when I say I don't have enough "time" to do something I really mean that I don't have enough "mental output" to do it. :p

----Don't worry--Before the EE of RotK comes out, the "secret way" to the Easter Egg will be circulating on the web (and in emails and...). The idea is to give the fans a little something that people who just go out and buy the DVD won't find.

His redeeming quality seems to be that he tries desperately to learn from others - not necessarily what they say, but watching to see how *normal* people act, and how *normal* families function.
The joys of growing up in a dysfunctional setting. First, when you're quite young, all you know is your own family so figure yours is "normal." Everything you know about relating, achieving, communicating, and every other human skill was learned in and based on that dysfunctional setting--survival skills, absolutely! When most people leave that situation, not only are the dysfunctional habits completely ingrained, but you start realizing that other people are different from you (and their families are different from yours). You realize that what you always thought was normal isn't, and you're mostly at a loss for any conception of what "normal" really is. So you try to learn from the more normal and--seemingly, anyway--happier people around you, leading to a fear that anything you do that sets you apart from others must be abnormal and you need to change it. So agonizing over every little thing isn't uncommon--you don't know what's important, so you treat everything as if it's important so you don't let anything slip by.

I haven't read Sean's book yet, wasn't sure if I wanted to, but now I think I do. I was expecting "An Actor's Journey" (the subtitle, at least, isn't misleading) to end with someone who's looking back at times like the ones I described above--well, more or less, as they're never completely behind you. But from what people have said, it's beginning to sound more as if it's coming from someone who's still in the middle of the struggle, which, given Sean's age, wouldn't be surprising--I'm still in the midst of it at 50. Sean has a much more "normal" life than I do at this point! Even at my age, I can see how having someone like Elijah around to "study" could be useful, and how Sean might have felt as if he was being taken under his wing (although Sean's had some very "big brotherly" moments where Elijah's concerned, too).

One of the best outcomes of LotR for Sean might be that the other "hobbits" seem to understand him and accept him as he is. That's more valuable than anything else I can think of.

There's one line from a recently-posted Elijah interview from around the time of The Ice Storm that I've been reflecting on lately--I think I'm taking it beyond what Elijah meant by it, but that's okay. He was talking about not having had a "normal" childhood, and said, "We make our own normality." So I've been thinking about what really is normal for me--instead of assuming everything that makes me different is abnormal/wrong and has to be "worked through." Of course, that also means that what really is abnormal comes into sharper focus, but that might not be a bad thing. None of it's easy when you've never really defined what normal is.

Moondancer--and anyone else :) --Patty Duke has written an autobiography: Call Me Anna, as well as co-authored another book I'm not familiar with, Brilliant Madness--which seems to be more about bipolar disorder itself than about her own life. Besides my one bipolar roommate, my main experience with the illness has been getting frustrated in "self-help groups" for people with depression because the manic depressives tend to take them over--since us unipolar types never have the energy :p .

And even a bit back on topic here--When I just looked up those books at Amazon, it said Call Me Anna was on their list of recommendations for me--because I'd bought Ash Wednesday :confused: :confused: . Not quite sure I see the connection there.

P.S. after a few simulposts: IMHO, if Elijah ever does get involved in writing, it will more likely be fiction (screenplay or otherwise) than an autobiography.

from zkgrumpy
I'm not sure I even want to try to imagine what the effect would be on poor overweight Sean, who is forever plagued by self-doubt and self-criticism, to work for the better part of five years next to that young, beautiful, slender, effortlessly talented, golden-winged creature that is The One Lad. (*)
Nope, I didn't see a swoon in there. This is hard fact! We are the FACTulty. (Well, okay, maybe the golden wings are a bit of a stretch...) :p

How lovely to see another Mary Stewart fan! I love her Merlin series, the first two books particularly. I'm looking forward to reading Sean's book ... for the Elijah parts. Unless it really engages me, I plan to skip a lot. What can I say? I know what I like. :p

Tg, I think you should throw the manic-depressives out of the support group. :eek: What, would that be bad form? Sorry! *begs forgiveness from bipolar people everywhere* Cheers!

Did anyone realise that yesterday, 11 Oct, was exactly five years to the day that principal photography started on LOTR? For some reason, that date has always stuck in my mind. I posted a picspam of first day pics on my LJ to honour the event, but as we can't link to LJ's I'll post a few of them here:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v327/ShirelingUK/cap744.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v327/ShirelingUK/cap984.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v327/ShirelingUK/falling2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v327/ShirelingUK/cap987.jpg

I wonder if they had any inkling on that day exactly what lay ahead of them. Next March, when we go to Middle Earth (aka NZ), I hope to visit that exact spot :)

Lovely collage of Elijah faces, WOOD :)

Re Sean's book - I must admit I've had an urge to rant about certain things he says but then I feel guilty - it would feel almost like ranting about a member of my own family and I'm sure we all feel capable of doing that sometimes, but it doesn't mean you don't love them, you just accept them, warts and all. And thats just how I feel about Sean, I do love him but I also feel like giving him a good shaking. I do think he was very lucky to have such an easy going guy as Elijah for his Frodo, and if anyone else had been cast as Frodo (horrendous thought) it could have been a very different story. I just feel very sorry, for him, and for Elijah and Christine, that he couldn't have persuaded himself to enjoy and appreciate the experience more. I can't help remembering, in one of the very first FOTR documentaries before it was released, Elijah saying "I am just so blessed and lucky to be a part of this", and it sounded so sincere and heartfelt.

Wood is right about the easter egg.

It's a hidden surprise and you can only find them on the extended editions. For example, for the Two Towers EE DVD, it was a little thing they put together for the MTV awards when Gollum won an award. Andy Serkis starts to do a normal acceptance speech but he is interrupted by Gollum who has a bit of a tantrum. It's fun!
For The Fellowship of The Ring, the easter egg was an alternative version of The Council of Elrond, also for MTV.

You can watch it on a computer or on a regular DVD player.
The easter egg can be found on the first DVD (the first disc of the 4 DVD's) in the "select a scene" section of the menu. You need to go to the last scenes in that little menu before you can reach the 'new scene' bit and when you click on that (or go to it with the arrows on your remote control): like wood says,a golden ring appears, you click on it and violà.
:D

Does anyone know if there is a difference depending on DVD region. I have the UK editions here, and all I can get up as a 'surprise' is on FOTR at the end of disc 2 - a trailer for TT. We have played about with them on the DVD player and the PC, but I can't click or move onto the 'new scenes'.

I have just watched ESOTSM again, and I'm afraid I couldn't feel anything but sympathy for, and attraction to Patrick. I think this had a lot to do with Elijah's voice, which unfortunately just makes me melt. So much of his genuine 'niceness' is in that voice, and that made it hard for me to see Patrick as the sad creep who pinches girls' knickers. I think he pulled off the wierdo/outsider character more in Ice Storm, where from what I remember he didn't say so much. Patrick brought out me the same 'Aah, he just needs a big hug' feeling as his charachter in Chain of Fools.

So, Skater Girl, you really are a professional skater?:D
Most certainly not a professional. Hubby and I ice dance together and did it quite seriously for a while, but we are just reasonably good amateurs for our age (40+). The competition was recreational in nature, and great fun.

Does anyone know if there is a difference depending on DVD region. I have the UK editions here, and all I can get up as a 'surprise' is on FOTR at the end of disc 2 - a trailer for TT. We have played about with them on the DVD player and the PC, but I can't click or move onto the 'new scenes'.
Didn't someone say that the MTV Easter eggs on the FotR and TTT DVDs didn't "pass inspection" for the UK editions because of content?

I think he pulled off the wierdo/outsider character more in Ice Storm, where from what I remember he didn't say so much.
Part of my problem when I saw ESOTSM was probably that I was too used to 3-hour movies... :p I wanted it to be longer, so we could get more involved with the supporting characters, and so that there would have been time for us to see Patrick more as he did things, instead of listening while he told his co-worker about them later--fewer words, in other words. :)

I know for a fact that the MTV version of the Council of Elrond was removed from the region 2 DVDs because of the nudity (bare behind of Jack Black) and possibly the content (Black, the Ringbearer in this version, had had a certain sensitive part of his male anatomy pierced and had the Ring attached)--the content would have changed the rating on the DVD from the film's rating to the next level up. They're apparently more strict about DVD ratings in the UK than in the States (I've never heard of a DVD getting its rating changed over here).

I'm not sure, but I think that the Gollum acceptance speech on TTTEE was also cut for the language, even though it was bleeped.

wood and Moondancer, thanks for the information about Easter eggs. I looked for them as soon as I got home from work. I had heard about Gollum’s acceptance speech (with nice shot of EJW in the audience at the end), but was totally unprepared for the “alternative Council of Elrond.” Raunchy but hilarious! I love the way they edited together the added bits with the original (e.g., using Frodo’s winces as reaction shots during the description of the piercing).

tgshaw wrote:

I like the Elijophilia suggestion because the root of the word means love ("brotherly love"), instead of addiction or mania!

Good point. And we can call ourselves Elijophiles, just like bibliophiles, or Anglophiles, or whatever those philes are who are wine aficionados (oenophiles??).

Also from tg:

So I've been thinking about what really is normal for me--instead of assuming everything that makes me different is abnormal/wrong and has to be "worked through."

As far as I’m concerned, a lot of what passes for “normal” in contemporary society is anything but! And I feel the same way that you do: The discussion of Sean’s book has made me MORE interested in reading it than before.

shireling, nice “anniversary” pictures. I especially like the last one.

BTW, one of the local UHF stations showed Avalon on Sunday night. It ran on too late for me to watch all of it (and anyway, I have the DVD now). But I did watch enough to be reminded of another scene that I love in that movie: the one where Michael runs down the sidewalk as the circus parade moves down the street. The look on his face! Pure wonder and joy. What an incredible child.

Off topic to Mechtild: And I got to see Len Cariou himself sing “Pretty Women” in the original Broadway cast, years ago. I was madly in love with him for a while, just on the basis of his singing.

Just wanted to share a smile :)

My husband has recently discovered this little hobby of mine is not going away anytime soon....so I guess he figures....if you can't beat 'em...join 'em
So this one is from hubby :cool:

Thought it was particularly apropros given our recent talk of Sean's book :eek:


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v480/ylla/frodocartoon.jpg

From way way back...
Moondancer, thanks for the translation and quote:
The books are amazing, I finally did finish reading them, but I have to admit, there are parts which I had to fight to get through...such a flood of names, Information, Places and people...Relieved that EW finally read the book responsible for his character's creation, but must say I'm disappointed that he seemed more impressed by its weight than its depth and beauty. His particular pov/experience makes his reaction quite understandable but hope his saying this doesn't discourage prospective readers. Point is, Tolkien's work is as challenging and complex as the great classics - Homer, Chaucer, Tolstoy, Dickens... with which perhaps Elijah is not familiar, as he probably didn't have time to spend with them amidst his carreer and such. So, like others, he probably picked up LOTR, expecting it to be of Harry Potter ilk. But he seems to have ploughed through it, finally, and I admire him for that - and for his frankness.

Loved the comments on Mikey's kissing - both hers and his. :D

Ylla - Cute cartoon! Only wish Frodo's lines in any of the films filled more of that hefty script. (Re: Sean's book, am neither impressed nor surprised)

ZKWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!! If I had any sense I'd drive up there and see y'awl.

If I had any sense, let alone some to spare, I'd send it to you! :k No, but really, what will it take? Eskimo Pies? Hobbits? :D

Shireling, thanks for the lovely pic-spam. :)

TG, interesting (going back to yesterday now) about the depressive community saying they'd have bits of their memories erased. I can imagine wanting certain small moments erased, but not whole tracts of my interior landscape. I think memories are what make us who we are, and if that means "sadder but wiser," or more humble for knowing our own flaws too well, I just can't think that's an entirely bad thing. Also sort of puts things in perspective for me. I've been thinking I felt fairly depressed lately, but there's no part of my past I'd rather be without, so maybe I'm not so bad off after all.

Wood, thanks for the pretty picture!

Shelbyshire, I sent you a PM.

I'll be MIA for a few days. I've got tons of RL to deal with, and then I'm going to the coast with my posse of quilting buddies!

Dream will, my sister Elijophiles!

Golberry, did you and Peaceweaver get to go to the Chicago H. Shore concert?

honey!

And we can call ourselves Elijophiles, just like bibliophiles, or Anglophiles, or whatever those philes are who are wine aficionados (oenophiles??).
Sounds good! The first one, that is--couldn't tell you about the last one :p .

But I did watch enough to be reminded of another scene that I love in that movie: the one where Michael runs down the sidewalk as the circus parade moves down the street.
Oohh, me too :) . Here's a page of pics (http://www.frodolivesin.us/id33.htm).

I know for a fact that the MTV version of the Council of Elrond was removed from the region 2 DVDs because of the nudity (bare behind of Jack Black) and possibly the content (Black, the Ringbearer in this version, had had a certain sensitive part of his male anatomy pierced and had the Ring attached).


It seems then that the MTV version of CoE was only removed in the UK, because I have the region 2 DVD too and I do have the pleasure of marvelling at Jack Black's bare behind :D :rolleyes:.

Dear fellow Elijophiles (absolutely love this term! Couldn't we rename this thread into "The E-Philes"?!), sorry for being so non-verbal lately (RL is too real to my taste)... but allow me to step back a while - I'd like to thank you, Pelagia. Your alphabet was so delighting :) !
Also many thanks to all who commented on Sean Astin's book. I'm not sure yet whether I want to read it, but it sounds like a very interesting insight into a conflicted character.
Honey, have a great time!
Shireling, wonderful pics, thanks!
Ylla, that cartoon is so sweet.
Oh, and not that I'm curious, but Serena, didn't you say recently, you had something for me? Let me guess - it begins with "D" and ends with "ay-O"...:D ? No?? What could it be then?

Greetings to all the Faculty :k !

Ylla,

'if you can't beat them, join them'...sounds like a very good motto for husbands of Elijah fans.
Cute cartoon!

Whiteling
Greetings back.
http://smile.smilies.nl/383.gif



Tg,
Manic depression is one of the taboos in this society, is it not?
I had heard about it of course but I never really understood it (not that I fully comprehend it now) until I met the family of the father of my goddaughter. His mother and aunts are bipolar. His mother had one of her 'low' periods for years and she just refused to get treatment. She slipped deeper and deeper. Nothing could touch her...complete apathy until recently. She's now in one of her 'high' periods...very odd!

Reading Sean Astin's book, it's easy to see that it's not easy to put things in perspective but he's trying! The LOTR project was so massive, it couldn't have been easy for anybody out there to keep a full grasp on the project and not loose yourself in the details. Sean himself says that his wife (he clearly loves her very much) did have to remind him how lucky he was. He also said that Elijah had to take in a lot of that 'darker' side of him and he was very patient with him but once in a while he had to tell him "you're being an idiot. Don't do that". Dominic also was good to help him keep his feet on the ground "You need to get some perspective. Are you out of your f*****g mind?"
A lot of people would have major problems with people telling them off like that but Sean seems to be grateful to others for helping him see the forest through the trees.


Anyway, change of topic now.
The Bumblebee Flies Anyway.
I stumbled on a site, with information on the director of the movie. I have been wondering if it was posted in here before but I can't remember reading this (so,forgive me if it has been posted before)

In 1998 he directed THE BUMBLEBEE FLIES ANYWAY in New York. The film was produced by Steven Haft and The Shooting Gallery. Martin co-wrote the script from the novel by Robert Cormier.
The film stars Elijah Wood, Janeane Garofalo, Joe Perrino and Rachael Leigh Cook. It was selected for official competition at the Deauville Festival of American Cinema, 1999. The film has been released on cable in the US and has received extensive video release there. Following the success of LORD OF THE RINGS, it has sold throughout the world including in Japan and Germany.

Bronze Griffon Award, Giffoni Film Festival, Italy 1999.
Selection for Deauville Festival of American Cinema, France 1999
I found a report, written by the director Martin Duffy in 1998 about his experience working on this project.

Underneath is the link but I'll post a couple of snippits from it first.
From November we began in a room at the Shooting Gallery offices with Jonathan, myself, and locations manager/scout Jason Conti. Shortly after my arrival I went to Los Angeles for a few days of auditions and to meet Elijah. Fortunately, he and I got along really well from the start (we met for lunch and wound up chatting for five hours) and there was the added bonus that Elijah, having recently made the TV film "Oliver Twist' in Dublin, was a major fan of Ireland and all things Irish.

My area of least experience is working with actors, and this film requires some very heavy performances. I was blessed to be working with Elijah because he has the ability to deliver all one could want and more without having to agonise over the work. Joe Perrino (one of the young cast of 'Sleepers') had the heaviest drama to carry and did so with astonishing power. Jeaneane, who normally works as a comic actor, brought much needed lightness and humanity to a role originally written a bit on the dour side.
My favourite part of the otherwise terrifying task of directing is the camaraderie on set and it was a happy shoot. I also got to play with a whole new set of toys; steadicam, crane, special effects, and a car crash stunt. My favourite moment of the film was hanging out of the passenger side of a red convertible (to stay out of shot) as Elijah sped down a hill with the cameraman in the back seat.
:)
The most bizarre thing for me about the shoot is that I wasn't allowed to talk to extras, only the first assistant director can do that; if a director says anything other than 'hello' to an extra they can say they received special direction and get paid a higher rate.
I had no idea of that! :eek:
How odd!

http://www.duffyberlin.com/bumblebee.html


Oh, and if you go to the A&F site, you can read a short fan report. I'll post it here but you'll have to visit the site to see the picture of her and Elijah (it's a great picture, in my opinion).
Its hard to believe that it has been almost a year since this [the picture. see below] was taken boarding the plane to NZ for the ROTK World Premier, and over a year since I met him at Comic con that same year. Ignore the fact that I am far too married and a bit to old to be considered eligible as anything but a dear friend...because Elijah is timeless, ageless and he makes you feel that way too, so right then I was his age. My friends and I had the pleasure of being "stuck" boarding the crowded flight with him. He was nothing but wonderful chatting casually with us, telling us he'd just seen the film the day before and how he couldn't wait for everyone to see it. He even laughed at my stupid comments, a true gem amongst men. I was fortunate enough to see him and speak with him again in NZ and he was kind enough to at least pretend to remember me. The fact is I would love to meet him again..He is, as you all know, addicting...I've never been able to forget, nor do I want to, the feeling of being tucked neatly to his side for that picture, it sometimes pays to be 5'2",the sound of his laugh in person echoes with the other memories of that day...Lord help us his career has only just begun, how will we survive it?


ETA before I need to go out and have a taste of RL :) :
Anna's made only one movie besides the two "My Girl" projects, a feature with Sissy Spacek called "Trading Mom". But she has some very definite ideas of whom she'd like to work with next: "Robert Sean Leonard," she says blushing. "Elijah Wood. He's good in everything."
From an interview Anna Chlumsky did for Premiere magazine in march 1994.

Ylla, thank you for starting my day with a second smile and laugh...the cartoon is great!! :D

My daughter gets credit for my first laugh this morning. She comes into the kitchen with ESOTSM in her hand and asks, "Mom, does this go in the Elijah section?" "Yes dear, it does." ;)

Enjoy your day.

tgshaw: WONDERFUL screen caps from Avalon. (I’ve looked at your film comments on your site, but haven’t downloaded many caps because I have such a slow Internet connection.) Looking at those pictures, I just sat and smiled. His expressions are so completely natural, aren’t they? The other thing I really like about that scene is the music.

whiteling: Don’t know about renaming the thread, but “The E-Philes” is a clever title. It could be a TV series about a multinational group that sees EJW references and connections everywhere, instead of aliens. Each week’s episode would feature a different Faculty member as the lead. The Scully equivalent would be an ignorant person who doesn’t recognize Elijah’s talent and appeal. Catch phrase could be something like: “The Lad is out there.”

ylla: Very cute cartoon. I don’t know how you people do these things!

Since there’s not much new news, I’ll take this opportunity to comment (at greater length than I realized -- sorry) on All I Want, which I watched a few weeks ago. I personally don’t know anyone outside this forum who has heard of – let alone seen – this movie; and I think that’s a shame, because while it’s not a great film, or “deep and meaningful,” it’s very charming, and decently written and acted. And it lets Elijah do a variety of things: romance (which I’ve never seen him do), and comedy – heck, he even looks convincing toting that assault weapon in the “shootout” with the furniture brothers.

Some favorite tidbits:

In his “romantic” (if you can call it that) scene with Lisa, his “Um” when she asks him what he’s waiting for, and his little abashed nod when she asks if it’s his first time. I also loved the fact that he still had his socks on!

At the racetrack, the shocked look on his face after Jane slaps him (poor baby).

In the scene where he was hammering out the car hood (and relieving his anger and frustration in the process), did anybody else have a flashback to Stu?

The changing expressions on his face as he reads the letter that reveals the truth about his father (and also later, in the car, as we hear that letter read aloud). I also liked the song on the soundtrack during the former sequence, with the chorus “It’s not what I wanted, not what I needed” (actually, I thought the whole soundtrack was quite effective).

The whole “This is not happening scene,” which tgshaw calls “Elijah’s first bona fide love scene.” I agree with tg that it was beautifully done. Things like this can often be really embarrassing, but this one wasn’t, perhaps because the characters’ feelings came through so clearly. Elijah conveys Jones’s eagerness and inexperience and affection so perfectly. And the look on his face right before the scene fades out is just about rapturous.

His face during the scene in the car the next day (after the fight), and how he puts just the right emphasis on “car” when he says, “I don’t want the car.”

There was also some nice use of The Hands (the scene where he takes the typewriter out of the trunk and sets it up) and, as tg has noted, quite a bit of “eyebrow acting.”

I like that fact that even though Elijah was cast opposite two visibly taller actresses (was this done deliberately, to emphasize Jones’s youth and innocence?), nobody actually made any comments about it. The women remarked that he was young, but not that he was short. And Elijah carried it off with aplomb – which is good, since he may often find himself in this situation. (I know that he had already been up against the very tall Leelee Sobieski in Deep Impact, but that wasn’t really a romantic role.)

Someone here had commented a while ago that there wasn’t much chemistry between Elijah and Mandy Moore. But I don’t think there was meant to be much. Lisa seemed to be after Jones just because he was there (and cute, of course), and he was just going along. We never see him knock on her door, or initiate a kiss, as he does with Jane (who clearly fascinates him from the beginning – a clear indication of Jones’s innate good taste).

My only complaint about the film was the ending, which I thought was weak. The scenes leading up to the finale – his return to the dorm, his encounter with the couple in the car – struck me as a little hokey. (And I assume that they were not meant to be fantasies, since he had packed all those away with his trunk.) I was actually relieved when his motorcycle petered out by the side of the road.

Also, they could have come up with a better title. All I Want is completely meaningless (and Try Seventeen isn’t much better).

Found this comment in an online review of this movie:

He doesn't even have to speak, most of the time. All you have to do is look at his face, and you can tell what he's thinking.
One last thing: I knew he was thin, but oh lord – those spindly legs!!

EDIT after reading Moondancer's post, which came in while I was typing: Thanks for the background on Bumblebee. And that fan quote was great, especially:

Elijah is timeless, ageless and he makes you feel that way too.

Quick hello to all and thanks, as always, for keeping so many good conversations going! It's a pleasure to lurk here. And tg, continued good wishes to you--hope things are improving.

I'm swamped at the moment--just back from a terrific family reunion/vacation in California and way behind with everything, including sleep (ack!), but I just wanted to echo Honeyelf and say to ZK, COME TO NY! What are you waiting for? :)

Whatever it is, we've got it here! Please give it a tnought--we'd love to spend the day with you. And that goes for anyone else in the area, of course.

Just to try to keep on topic, I've been skimming through Sean's book and I'm not surprised at all to hear that people (even if they aren't Elijah fans ) are disappointed with it. I haven't looked at the reader comments at Amazon, but they probably echo some of my own reactions. I didn't take it with me to finish on the plane, but as I was putting it back in my room while packing last week I suddenly wondered why the cover is a picture of Sean [i]as Sam. It's a pretty obvious bid to popularize a book that doesn't have as much to do with LOTR as the author and publisher would like readers to think, and that saddens me because the franchise has been pretty free of cynicism to date.

Anyway, ZK, come on up! You know you want to...... ;)

Hallo ladies!!!

Pelagia , i have too agree with you about All i want!!
I think it is a good movie!! And i always think about two of my new best friend
when i look at this one and it is a story i will not go into here!! :lol:
Anyway, i like it vey much!!! :k

Ylla, very cute carton maybe i shoulde show it to hubby?? :lol:

Moondancer; thanks for the interwiew!!!

love/wood

*waves to Wood*

Adding a positive note here--one thing I'm NOT disappointed in are the two new LOTR 2005 desk calendars I just received (link at TORn to buy from the publisher; also available at Amazon). The ROTK version has lots of Frodo pix, and the Trilogy edition calendar includes pix from the extended editions of FOTR and TTT. I'm going to enjoy both of these!

Of course, I only have one desk..... :rolleyes:

"waves back to Flourish"

I have two desks :lol: :lol:
Well i guess i don`t have to tease my hubby!! :(
Like my mother sade the other day.He has the look that can make many husbands jelous!!!! I bet she`s right in many cases!!!

love/wood

Wood! :lol:

Pelagia, I agree with every word you wrote about All I Want!

As I add bits and pieces to the website, here are two that went up this morning. The first is a
page of screencaps (http://www.frodolivesin.us/id274.htm) from the early part of FotR, that didn't start out as something I planned to post.


The second is one of those things that evidently happen when my brain goes sideways ;) . Maybe not as bad as "Brego the Wonder Horse," but a lot sillier. I decided I'd better go ahead and publish it, because otherwise I could end up playing around with it for a couple more weeks... :rolleyes:
"The Wizards Are Odd" (http://www.frodolivesin.us/id275.htm).

I put a link to the "Brego" story on the new page, and in checking back into that site thought some people who weren't hanging out here in ye olde crebain days might be interested in some of the pages, especially from TTT--the Taming of Smeagol, the Black Gate, etc. This link will take you to the Two Towers Archives (http://home.earthlink.net/~screencaps/id25.html). I may never need to put anything on that old site again, now that we have *cough* legal *cough* DVDs of TTT and RotK, but I've never gotten around to redoing the pages that are posted there with better caps now that they're available.

Thank you so much TG for the link!!!

I haven`t seen the screencaps from TT before or Lotr!!!
So many expression in that beautiful face!!!
Thanks again!! :k

Love/wood

Flourish: I didn’t know there were desk calendars; and fortunately, like wood, I have two desks. Have to go browsing at Amazon. (I already have the big LotR poster calendar. One can never have too many of these things.)

tg: I read Part 1 of “The Wizards Are Odd.” (Will go back to the other parts when I have more time; as I've mentioned before, slow connection.) :lol: “Frodorothy”! And of course, it’s inevitable that Pippin is the scarecrow. Don’t the crows move?? The stills that you used from the “Mirror of Galadriel” scene remind me: whenever I watch that, and Frodo offers her the Ring, and then they show the expression on his face after she does her Dark Diva routine, I always feel as if he’s thinking, “Well, so much for THAT idea.”

Also liked the new FotR screencaps, esp. the eyebrow parts.

Dear fellow Elijophiles (absolutely love this term! Couldn't we rename this thread into "The E-Philes"?!),


:lol: E-Philes....lol... sounds great! ;)

from Whiteling
“The E-Philes” is a clever title. It could be a TV series about a multinational group that sees EJW references and connections everywhere, instead of aliens. Each week’s episode would feature a different Faculty member as the lead. The Scully equivalent would be an ignorant person who doesn’t recognize Elijah’s talent and appeal. Catch phrase could be something like: “The Lad is out there.”
This is so great. This thought cannot be forgotten. *mind whirls*

from Tgshaw
"I'm supposed to be King of Gondor and Arnor," he sobbed. "But I don't have the courage it takes to be a king."
I adored this -- all of it! I loved Pippin as Scarecrow, Gollum, all the lovely scenes, and Sam as Toto, too. *snerk* A strange trip, Tg. I'm very glad I went! :p

TG, I love love love your silliness! "Is this Heaven?" "No, it's Iowa!" :lol:

Pelagia, you liked "All I Want!" Yay! Me too!

::confidential to ZK: Flourish doesn't like AIW. You must come to NY so we can persuade her of the error of her ways! :D :k ::

I'm not 'sposed to be here :rolleyes: but I come bearing :rolleyes: important :rolleyes: news:

The Crappy Tan Jacket LIVES! :D :D :D

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v377/honeyelf/thectjlives.bmp
ETA: this picture was apparently taken at Sala Baker's birthday party on 9/13 of this year.

honey!

Thanks, Mariole, but the credit for the cunning E-Philes script draft goes to Pelagia! :lol: I love the catch phrase so much, it's going in my sig. ("New Line Cinema denies knowledge" is showing up in the opening credits and one character of the series has to be "The Screencap Taking Woman"... ;) )


from Frodorothy
"I cannot do this... trapped inside a Hildebrandt painting!"
BRAVO, Tg! :lol: Frodorothy! :D


The CTJ! Wow! Thanks, Honey, what a nice picture to start the day with :) !

whiteling wrote, about the projected and much-awaited TV series “The E-Philes”:

"New Line Cinema denies knowledge" is showing up in the opening credits and one character of the series has to be "The Screencap Taking Woman.”

Oh, definitely. And didn’t Mulder have an informant called Deep Throat? We can have one called “Deep Impact’ instead.

honeyelf, re "The Crappy Tan Jacket Lives!" -- :lol: And so does Geekboy, obviously!

tg, thanks so much for linking those screencaps above. I never had seen any of them. The Wizard of Oz paraody was hilarious; the Brego one extremely funny, too.

I loved The Two Towers sets! I especially appreciated the sequence from the Taming of Smeagol. There was one strip in which you pointed out the difference in the actors' levels -- Smeagol on the ground and Frodo standing, his head out of the picture -- with a nimbus of light behind them.

I very much missed the creepy, unsettling "transfiguration of Frodo" visions Sam saw in the books (in the Emyn Muil and on the slopes of Mt. Doom). I feel a little bit mollified, now, seeing a "flavour" of that provided in the visuals, even if only as a hint.

*delurk*

I just had to agree with Pelagia's comments on "All I Want" (or as I saw it, titled "Try Seventeen") - Hello Ainon! ;).

The whole “This is not happening scene,” which tgshaw calls “Elijah’s first bona fide love scene.” I agree with tg that it was beautifully done. Things like this can often be really embarrassing, but this one wasn’t, perhaps because the characters’ feelings came through so clearly. Elijah conveys Jones’s eagerness and inexperience and affection so perfectly. And the look on his face right before the scene fades out is just about rapturous.

I especially like the range of expressions that cross his face as she moves over to his bed and comes up behind him to tell him "this is not happening".

Someone here had commented a while ago that there wasn’t much chemistry between Elijah and Mandy Moore. But I don’t think there was meant to be much. Lisa seemed to be after Jones just because he was there (and cute, of course), and he was just going along. We never see him knock on her door, or initiate a kiss, as he does with Jane (who clearly fascinates him from the beginning – a clear indication of Jones’s innate good taste).

My thoughts exactly.

Kumari

*re-lurks*

Hi!!

I have posted a picture in the harem but i thought i coulde
post it in here too,maybe this is something for the one expression
discution or for your page TG!!!! I can`t take credit for doing it by
my self i have found it!!!!!! :(
Enyoj folks!!!!! :k

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v399/erendil/3236Frodo_Creativity.jpg

Love/Wood

Oh,nice too "see" you again Kumari!! It`s been awhile!! Try seventeen is the
titel of All i want here in sweden too!!!

Wood

Wonderful picture, Wood, thanks. Collages are way beyond me!

And thanks to Honey--I'm happy to know that the CTJ is still making appearances. :)

I'm glad that some are enjoying the "story"--especially nice that different people appreciate different lines :) -- Even though I haven't heard from any Tennessee Tuxedo/Tooter Turtle fans yet... ;) (Must begin brushing up on our penguins, you know :p !)

A couple of belated replies to Pelagia--

I watched the scarecrow scene again last night just to be sure, and in the main shot, no, the crows don't move at all. (Not something I noticed independently--there were a lot of jokes on the web about it after FotR came out.) Then there's a cut away from the scarecrow, then a very brief shot of it again, when the middle crow does bob his head, and the one on the right might move a wing. Don't know if they snuck in some real, live birds for just that brief shot, or if it was done some other way. Bad scene for "bloopers," I guess--that's the same one that had to have the car (that is, the sun glinting off a car in the distance) erased from the DVD.

And even farther back in the thread, I wanted to add to Pelagia's comment about the whites of Frodo's eyes showing beneath his irises at the CofD. One of the things I was looking for in that scene was whether there were any "signs" that showed the struggle going back and forth between Frodo and the Ring, as there are when the sword's at Sam's throat in Osgiliath, and those whites-of-the-eyes are what I picked up on the most. I'm not at home, so I can't resize or crop these--

The Ring gradually taking over:

http://www.frodolivesin.us/RotK/490204f0.jpg

http://www.frodolivesin.us/RotK/492204f0.jpg

http://www.frodolivesin.us/RotK/494204e0.jpg

The eyes are one thing that makes me think we get a brief glimpse of Frodo--still there, but not strong enough to stop what the Ring's doing--even as he turns toward Sam:

http://www.frodolivesin.us/RotK/49520540.jpg

http://www.frodolivesin.us/RotK/49620510.jpg

But then there's no doubt:

http://www.frodolivesin.us/RotK/4971e4d0.jpg

Interesting that we also see those whites in some of the shots where Frodo looks the most innocent:

http://www.frodolivesin.us/122a20510.jpg

After looking at those last two frames again, I'm guessing much of the difference comes from the fact that in the last one Frodo's looking up at Gandalf, while at the CofD his head is down which gives raising the eyes a whole different effect. -- There are also things that reinforce the difference, of course, such as the eyebrows, eyelashes, lighting, etc., as well as his entire facial expression.

Thanks tg!!!!
I have some more collages in my album if you want to have a look!!
I can`t remember if i wrote it before but incase i don`t

www.photobucket.com/albums/v399/erendil/

Idon`t know how you do this!!!
Wonderful caps!!!

LOVE/WOOD

We just had the security updated on our office computers this morning, and now they evidently consider Photo Bucket a dangerous place... :rolleyes: So, I'll have to look at them at home, later. -- Which I will :) . Thanks.

And even farther back in the thread, I wanted to add to Pelagia's comment about the whites of Frodo's eyes showing beneath his irises at the CofD.

My old tabby cat who died last year used to look at me out of the tops of her eyes like that, when she strongly disapproved of something that I'd done, or was feeling insecure (like she did every day of her life). "Frisky! Don't look at me like that! What did I DO?" ;)

One of the things I was looking for in that scene was whether there were any "signs" that showed the struggle going back and forth between Frodo and the Ring, as there are when the sword's at Sam's throat in Osgiliath, and those whites-of-the-eyes are what I picked up on the most. I thought that it started when Frodo turned around from "I'm here, Sam", and held the Ring over the chasm. He had a resigned but determined expression, which changed to bewilderment as he found that he couldn't drop it. His struggle showed in some marvelous eyebrow/forehead/nostril acting as he tried to get his hand to open. Then, there was that chilling moment when his face became calm, when he was transfixed by the Ring (that's the first cap). It's one of those times when you think a person's eyes can't get any bigger, and then they do. Once the Ring had his undivided attention, it was a simple matter to pull Frodo's soul into the Ring. By the second cap, I think we're seeing "FrodRing" - Frodo and the Ring becoming one. I think the struggle was over at that point. When he turns around and looked at Sam with that quizzical little tilt to his head, I think we're seeing the Ring's consciousness looking out of Frodo's eyes. I did not recognize what was behind those eyes. I felt like it was a new kind of experience for the Ring, to finally have total control of Frodo, body and soul, and the head tilt was the Ring being not quite adjusted to having a body - kind of like driving a '54 Cadillac when you're used to driving a Honda Civic. It knew who Sam was, but it wasn't used to seeing Sam like that. The voice wasn't Frodo's; neither was that diabolical expression and taunting smile when he put on the Ring.

I remember a discussion some time back when we talked about what the Ring, using Frodo's body and voice, could have forced Sam to do. Gives me the creeps, it does. Yeeeesh. :::: shudder ::::

BTW, there's a book that I first read in the early 70's, called "Ammie Come Home", by Barbara Michaels. It has a scene where a man is "taken over" in a similar manner, and describes the indescribable looking out of his eyes. Double Yeesh.

Hmmmm... Looking at the first cap - if you cover the left (*his* left) side of his face, it looks like his right eye is still Frodo; his left eye is showing the madness of the Ring. From the second cap on, both eyes have that same Ring-crazed expression. The cap where he's looking down - almost looking sad or introverted - I get the feeling that the Ring was getting used to driving the Cadillac.

Yeesh Yeesh Yeesh!!! Amazing what a little dirt and some intense eyeball acting can do.

~grumpy (what the heck - gave me a good excuse to study those caps in great detail) ;) ;)

When he turns around and looked at Sam with that quizzical little tilt to his head, I think we're seeing the Ring's consciousness looking out of Frodo's eyes. I did not recognize what was behind those eyes. I felt like it was a new kind of experience for the Ring, to finally have total control of Frodo, body and soul, and the head tilt was the Ring being not quite adjusted to having a body - kind of like driving a '54 Cadillac when you're used to driving a Honda Civic. It knew who Sam was, but it wasn't used to seeing Sam like that. The voice wasn't Frodo's; neither was that diabolical expression and taunting smile when he put on the Ring.
Yes to all of that!! Everything during those few moments sends shivers down my spine--no matter how often I watch it (even looking at the stills).
Y-e-e-e-a-s-h

Besides the idea of what the Ring could make Sam do, with the movie-Ring being sentient I also think of it remembering the episode in Osgiliath, when Frodo won the battle to keep the Ring from killing Sam. That taunting smile... :( :eek: :( shiver... shiver...

Good heavens, ZK, I read that book, "Ammie Come Home." How can you NOT come to NY now?! :lol: It's meant to be, really. (Even though the detail that I remember from it is a completely different one from what you cited.)

When he turns around and looked at Sam with that quizzical little tilt to his head, I think we're seeing the Ring's consciousness looking out of Frodo's eyes. I did not recognize what was behind those eyes. I felt like it was a new kind of experience for the Ring, to finally have total control of Frodo, body and soul, and the head tilt was the Ring being not quite adjusted to having a body - kind of like driving a '54 Cadillac when you're used to driving a Honda Civic. It knew who Sam was, but it wasn't used to seeing Sam like that.

Chilling---and I quite agree.

Kumari wrote, about All I Want:

I especially like the range of expressions that cross his face as she moves over to his bed and comes up behind him to tell him "this is not happening".

Oh, yes! That bit is worth watching in slow motion. Has anyone ever screencapped it?

tgshaw: Interesting discussion of Frodo’s eyes and his struggle at the Cracks of Doom. And a great contrast between your last CoD screencap (creepy Frodo) and the Bag End one immediately following. Really shows very starkly how far the poor guy has deteriorated.

zkgrumpy wrote:

I thought that it started when Frodo turned around from "I'm here, Sam", and held the Ring over the chasm. He had a resigned but determined expression, which changed to bewilderment as he found that he couldn't drop it. . . . When he turns around and looked at Sam with that quizzical little tilt to his head, I think we're seeing the Ring's consciousness looking out of Frodo's eyes.

It seems to me that it’s when he looks down at the lava flow that he realizes what destroying the Ring is really going to mean to him -- as if the physical reality of it finally hits home. His face changes from the “resigned and determined expression” to an almost anguished look. And when Frodo turns around, Sam reacts as if he almost doesn’t recognize this person anymore – as if he, too, is seeing “the Ring’s consciousness” in those eyes. (And BTW, zk, that sounds like one scary tabby!)

wood: Lovely collage!

whiteling: It wasn’t until several hours later that the significance of your “New Line Cinema denies knowledge” finally hit. Good one! (Sometimes my brain works even more slowly than usual.) Then I was thinking about theme music for “The E-Philes.” Remember how “The X-Files”’ theme started?? Sort of:

deedle-y-DEEE-dee-DEEE-dee

before the main theme kicked in? Well, we could use the same intro, but then segue into the “Shire Theme” transposed into a minor key. . . .

And I too read and enjoyed "Ammie Come Home" :) It has special meaning for me because it was the last book my Mom read before she passed away in 1999...she wanted to read it because I had enjoyed it so much :k

I'm always amazed at how much many of us have in common
I'm so sorry my work schedule is such that I won't get an opportunity to meet with Honey and Flourish in New York

But I'll be there in spirit :k

Boston is really a wonderful city.....anybody interested in a possible trip here?
The leaves are in all their splendor ;)

Wood - I just had a chance to look at yout other collages. They are so beautiful - both words and pictures. Some of the words were familiar to me from the films, but I presume the others were poems from the books. I have to admit to having skipped over these as I read the books.

TG - The Wizards are Odd & Brego the Wonderhorse - ACE!!! You must know these films frame by frame so well. Are you still able to sit back and simply enjoy them as a whole, or does such in depth analysis permanently interfere with the overall emotional effect?

I promise that this is the last time I'm going to talk about Sean's book and I'll try to keep it short.
*Sean Astin fans: it's not all positive so I'll put it in white so it's easier to skip. Highlight it if you do want to read it*


Start highlighting here
So, I finished the book. As I said, I started reading it with the negative opinions in mind but I wanted to make up my own mind about it.
In general, I liked it and I enjoyed some parts very much but the last chapters about the reviews and the award season annoyed me a lot.
I really wonder how the others react to the last chapters with the endless glowing reviews about his performance and quoting his mother, saying that he was the heart and soul of the movie, his disappointment of the injustice of not being nominated, having to accept ensemble nominations,...
I can understand that an actor wants to be respected, likes good reviews,...
I can even understand that he's a bit jealous of Orlando who has reached an incredible level of fame in a short period of time - something Sean Astin can probably only dream about but you never know.
Still, it would have been nice to see the bigger picture once in a while and stop the navel-gazing sometimes. He is aware of the fact that he has the tendency to do just that, but that doesn't seem to stop him from going on and on in the same fashion.
[/book rant]



Tg,
I can only join the list of fans: your Wizard section is very amusing!

I also saw an other section (the quiz amongst other things) about famous books and how the movie version is sometimes better known as the book version....I haven't read the Wizard of Oz, I only saw two movie versions (Judy Garland of course and Diana Ross, remember?). I assume that the Wizard of Oz is required reading at school in the US or not?
At school here, we had to read so many boring books and many experimental, weird books. I was lucky to have a sister who could show me the fun books in the library but many kids swore never to read outside the school because they thought it was boring.
That's perhaps one good side-effect of movies like LOTR and the Harry Potter movies. Many kids discovered the HP books and learned how much fun reading can be.

Pelagia,
Thank you very much for your observations of Try Seventeen. Some of you have such a good eye for detail.
It's certainly not one of my favorite EJW movies but it sure does have its moments! Some elements of the movie (like the surreal ones) are excellent but the movie does sometimes gives me a 'rushed job' impression.

Note: Moondancer, we simul-posted. I wanted to say I very much have enjoyed your comments on Sean's book (poor lad!). And I echo your comments on AIW.

As to the Sammath Naur caps, this has been a very interesting discussion, but I must profit from the porings of the rest of you -- over E.W.'s screencaps -- not my own.

Now I will say some things that diverge from the majority opinion here, of which I harbour many. :D Please do not smite me! For me, while it is profitable to analyze and evaluate the fashioning of a written text in this kind of minute detail -- which is often wrangled over word by word -- I don't think it works as well for evaluating the craft of an acting performance.

If asked, J.R.R.T. probably could say why he chose one word over another. Writing seems able to bear up under this kind of scrutiny better than does acting -- when it comes to evaluating the work of the respective artist. I don't think E.W. if asked could say what he meant when his eyebrow was one inch higher in a certain frame than in another, acting being such an intuitive, "in the moment" thing -- perhaps his sort of acting in particular. Frame-by-frame makes more sense for considering the meaning an actor's performance gives to a scenes, not for analyzing his craftsmanship as such. Personally, I prefer to just "see" or "experience" or "behold" the caps -- to "appreciate" them -- as the product of craft, rather than analyzing them for the craft itself. I do pore over them, but to evaluate the Frodo I see there, not the actor's work in producing what I see, which is often unconscious.

Similarly, though I know the filmmakers made many creative judgments consciously and after much deliberation; many they made intuitively and unconsciously. So, evaluating their craftsmanship, I bear that in mind (as oppposed to evaluating the film itself). There is so much in the film that just "happened." While it is reasonable to me to pore over the films to evaluate the films themselves, such scrutiny doesn't always demonstrate what the filmmaker's meant to do, which is how I judge their craftsmanship. I judge their craft based on their intent -- how well was their intent accomplished -- or not? I judge the product of their craft separately, because what ends up on film displays far more (or less) than their conscious intent, their deliberate craftsmanship.

As to evaluating the scenes themselves and how the performances in them inform those scenes, I did want to venture, since I know it is not a widely shared view, that I have never appreciated the "little smile" that is displayed after Frodo puts on the Ring. I think that whole sequence is breathtakingly good, but that one moment I do not like. For me, it is one of those "wrong" moments in the film (though not as jarring as when Gandalf the White whacks the Steward of Gondor not once but thrice as he takes over command of the city; I have to close my eyes for that). I can watch "the smile," but it takes me out of the scene briefly. I have never saved a cap of it, for contemplating. It has nothing to do with the acting, which is perfect there, but with what I suspect was a directorial choice.

From the text and from Tolkien's related discussion in letter #246 about what might be going through Frodo's mind at the edge of the chasm in the Sammath Naur, and what might have happened for and in Frodo had Gollum not taken the Ring into the fire, it does not seem to be anything that could have produced that little "Nyah - ha - ha" smile. It worked as drama for me, but not as a moment revealing a faithfully portrayed Frodo. I guessed it to be the result of P.J.'s desire to create a bookend with the shot of Isildur in the same situation, 3,000 years earlier in which he says "no," to Elrond, accompanied by a "little smile" (though a different smile).

Jackson loves using "pairs" like this and in every other instance in the films they are well-chosen, but this one, for me, did not cohere with any Frodo I have imagined from the text and supporting materials. In my opinion. :rolleyes: :)

Mechtild,
Maybe I need some sleep ;) but just to be clear, are you talking about this little smile?
http://www.frodolivesin.us/RotK/49d204d0.jpg

Peter sometimes does indeed like to work in pairs and this corresponds with Isildur putting on the Ring in Mt. Doom, right?


Like I said, maybe I need some sleep so correct me if I'm confusing things but you write:
It worked as drama for me, but not as a moment revealing a faithfully portrayed Frodo
That smile is not a portrayal of Frodo but of the Ring, shining through and triumphing, no?
So, it makes sense to me to double that scene with the Isildur one.

I wrote this post before I read the previous three posts--I'm not giong to change anything, but want to add a bit--

I definitely believe the smile is coming from the Ring, not from Frodo--the same way the attack on Sam in Osgiliath did. The Ring is one "character" that's very different in the movie than in the book--I don't think the book-Ring would or could do that, because it doesn't have the sentience or will of its own necessary for it. But the movie-Ring is very different, and IMHO can actually have the thoughts that have been ascribed to it--towards Sam, for example. (BTW, I believe the smile in the prologue was from the Ring, too--watch the change over Isildur's face leading into it.)

Also, something I mentioned below without seeing the above posts--Tolkien himself says repeatedly that there are meanings/interpretations/applications/whatevers in LotR that he didn't consciously put there, but that doesn't mean they're not true or valid. I think a lot of those come up in our "dissections" of the book. So I feel rather the same way about the movie, whether it's the script or Elijah's acting--just because it might not be conscious, IMVVHO that doesn't mean it might not be there. This is especially true for me regarding Elijah's acting, because he does work so much through the character rather than through his own consciousness. How many of us know consciously what emotions we're projecting at any one moment? If someone asked us six months from now, "Why did you give that little nod to me when you got into your car?" would we even remember doing it? But that doesn't mean that at the time it wasn't exactly the right expression of what we were feeling at that moment. I don't know if any of this makes sense, because I'm not sure how rational it is, but it's certainly the way I approach Elijah's acting--not just in LotR, but probably primarily there because of the depth of the character. [End of addition.]


It seems to me that it’s when he looks down at the lava flow that he realizes what destroying the Ring is really going to mean to him -- as if the physical reality of it finally hits home. His face changes from the “resigned and determined expression” to an almost anguished look...
That's an interesting thought. I'd always figured his anguished look there was because he realized the Ring was taking over and he knew he wasn't going to be able to destroy it. But I hadn't connected his looking down into the lava--at where the Ring would be going--with it. Because he was writing as Middle-earth's historian, not its (or its characters') creator, Tolkien never says what would have happened if Gollum hadn't been there to take the Ring from Frodo, but one of his "speculations" in a letter is that the Ring's complete takeover of Frodo wouldn't have been permanent, and that he might have recovered enough of his free will for a moment to destroy it--but that, possibly, that would have meant throwing himself in with it as he couldn't have let it go. Whatever the outcome would have been, the mercy of Bilbo, Frodo and, finally, Sam, toward Gollum (in the book) certainly saved Frodo from some terrible fate.

from Skater Girl
You must know these films frame by frame so well. Are you still able to sit back and simply enjoy them as a whole, or does such in depth analysis permanently interfere with the overall emotional effect?
Hey, I'm a Tolkien reader! It's what we do :p !

Thankfully, PJ is a Tolkienite, too, so he knew to put enough details, implications, possibilities, layers, and multiple meanings into the movies that we could treat them in pretty much the same way we do the book (not to the extent that's possible with the book, of course).

I've been dissecting LotR for 35 years now, and it's only increased my love for it, and even the emotional impact. The more I discover behind a particular quote or passage, the more it affects me, whether it's Bilbo's "I have said good-bye, and couldn't bear to do it all over again," or Frodo's "I do not choose now to do what I came to do," or his description of how he felt the life of the tree beneath his hand in Lorien, or hundreds of others.

The movies do a lot of the same thing nonverbally, of course, and IMHO it's mostly that part of them that hides buried treasure in the way that the book's words do. Especially in regard to Frodo--thanks to Elijah. That's why I love the screencapping. In the same way that I can read the book for the ???th time and think, "Oh, I never thought of it that way before," I can look at a scene--or even one shot--frame by frame and see things I never dreamed were there. I'm getting a lot of that now as I go through the screencaps from Shelob's lair. Another one that made me go, "Whoa!!!" is the one in Bilbo's room at Rivendell--we tend to watch Bilbo's transformation, but Frodo goes through one, too. And the fact that different ones of us "read" Frodo in different ways at the Crack of Doom is exactly as it should be (IMHO).

One thing the movies have in common with the book is that you can watch them once and follow the adventure story (and get some hints of things beyond that), but you can watch them over and over and pick up new insights each time. I literally couldn't tell you how many times I've watched the scene between Gandalf and Saruman in Isengard (22 times in the theater, ?? times on the DVD), and it wasn't until I was re-watching that part of FotR a couple of nights ago (to check out the crows :p ) that I felt the deeper significance of Saruman's "You did not seriously think that a hobbit could contend with the will of Sauron"--that, yes, that's exactly who can contend with the will of Sauron, as no one else would be able to. I don't know if that's anything the scriptwriters were thinking when they wrote that line--but there are also a places in the book where I discover things I don't know if Tolkien put there consciously (he admits that a number of times, himself).

I'm getting dangerously close to swooning here :p for LotR in general... just let me say that I think the number of parodies spawned by a work (whether book, movie, or something else) is directly proportional to how much it's loved--you have to know something pretty well to parody it (as I said awhile back in the applicable thread, can you imagine a "pants" game being played with Mystic River ;) -- before the DVD is released, so people have to know the dialogue by heart?)

In fact, that's one thing I'm wondering about now concerning my own parody future :rolleyes: -- I've done Winnie the Pooh, and now The Wizard of Oz, and the Tolkien Sarcasm Page has already taken care of Sherlock Holmes, which leaves me without any more material I know well enough to match up with LotR :) . Oh, well, you never know when inspiration will hit (it was actually the green Minas Morgul that initially started me thinking about The Wizard of Oz).

--Which leads to one last response, to Moondancer. Others may have had other experiences, but I've never heard of The Wizard of Oz being read in school. It's considered a book for young children, like the Winnie the Pooh stories or traditional fairy tales, so is one that more children probably have read to them than read it themselves (it's not my fault that I started reading when I was three :rolleyes: ). I'd guess that most of the children growing up now have never read or heard the real Wizard of Oz story, because their parents are more familiar with the movie than with the book, so probably don't even think about reading it to them. :(

I have to agree with Mech that scrupulous analysis of the micro-level things actors do without conscious intent doesn't often illuminate the performance as a whole, at least it doesn't for me. I want to be swept up in the gestalt to which all the details contribute, and I believe that's what actors (and most directors) intend.

On the subject of the smile, another reason it's slightly jarring (even in the context of Frodo being at last possessed by the full power of the Ring) might be that we know (from the Letters) that he would have needed time to learn how to use the Ring. Even here, he is still Frodo--some part of him is very much aware of what is happening to his mind and soul :( --and it's slightly out of character for him to gloat the way he appears to at this moment.

Of course, that's not to say that the director didn't have something completely different in mind (as he clearly did at many points in the films). For some, as elsewhere, it didn't quite work.

My last edit-because-of-simulposts has become another simulpost... :rolleyes: But, yes, that last statement is very true, I think. Throughout the movies, IMHO it's necessary to remember that movie-Ring is at least as different from book-Ring as movie-Frodo is from book-Frodo. In the movies, the Ring has enough sentience to not need to be "used" in the way the book-Ring does. That is, it wouldn't be Frodo learning to use the Ring to further his own will (or even what he thinks is his own will, which is how I read it in the book), but the Ring working on its own behalf, just needing a body through which to do it. It doesn't work for me if I try to impose it on the book-Ring, in the same way that a lot of what movie-Frodo does doesn't work for me if I try to impose it on book-Frodo--but IMVHO strictly within the context of the movies, it works.

------------

ETA--After having a chance to read back over this morning's posts, let me say I agree with what's been said about not measuring an actor's or filmmaker's (or author's) "craft" by looking at what they did subconsciously... IMVHO, that's where the "gift" comes in. Or even inspiration if you want to use that word--which Tolkien did. That's exactly why Elijah's so intriguing to me--his "How does he do that?" moments are, by definition, ones that can't be done consciously, or by craft. That doesn't mean he doesn't learn and grow in his acting, but that underlying gift has to be there or he couldn't do what he does.

I tend to compare it to Mozart, who was writing symphonies at the same age Elijah was beginning to act. I don't think there's much doubt that Mozart had some kind of special gift (different people would give it different names). It's said there was never a correction on any of Mozart's original scores--he heard the music in his head as it would sound when played by an entire orchestra, and simply transferred it to paper. But... if I'm hearing a piece by Mozart on the radio, I can usually tell if it's an early composition or a later one, because he developed the gift as he went along. IMVHO, much of Mozart's childhood composing is better than what the vast majority of composers are able to do in adulthood--because of his gift--but it's not a match for adult Mozart. I see the same thing when I compare Mark turning toward the camera after his mother's funeral to Frodo doing the same thing after Gandalf's fall. Some of the improvement comes from a better learning of the craft--but I believe that some of it also comes from learning to be more open to the gift.

Once again, apologies for absence. This post was actually started on about a week ago, which is why some of it is so out of date (this thread doesn’t half move fast some days ….). (Have taken to writing them offline, just in case they disappear down the KD rabbit hole into a parallel world known as Middle Earth, alias Wonderland, as soon as you press “submit” ….)

Whiteling :k … good to see you back! Hope RL is tolerable despite all. Thinking of you.
And no, sadly (perhaps?) what I have for you doesn’t begin with a D or end with -ayo (but a certain wonderful person known here as Moondancer is about to send me the German version, for which we both have you to thank, I believe!) It's a book - but not, I hasten to add, Sean's – have posted that to Mariole. Sorry it took me so long, M – I found passages I hadn’t yet read and felt I needed to do The Other Lad justice before relinquishing the evidence. Which leads into this:

Quote from Mariole about a quote from zkgrumpy:
I'm not sure I even want to try to imagine what the effect would be on poor overweight Sean, who is forever plagued by self-doubt and self-criticism, to work for the better part of five years next to that young, beautiful, slender, effortlessly talented, golden-winged creature that is The One Lad.
Mariole:Nope, I didn't see a swoon in there. This is hard fact! We are the FACTulty. (Well, okay, maybe the golden wings are a bit of a stretch...)

:D :D :D

But seriously, Grumps, I take the point. That thought had crossed my mind before, more than once. It must be very very hard being constantly compared (as Sean must have felt he was throughout and after the filming) with someone as extraordinary as Elijah. But, as Shireling says (not in so many words!), having that very golden-winged creature as your best friend, and finding he is as tolerant and friendly and affectionate and supportive as anyone could wish, must have been a delight. It cuts both ways.
It must also have been hard for Sean to arrive in NZ thinking he (with a Hollywood directing background) could tell those Kiwis a thing or two about filming (as I strongly suspect he did) and then to find himself definitely the underdog in his own personal speciality – and his film character likewise. If you’re the least bit insecure, that can be very unpleasant. But it’s something most self-appointed specialists have to go through (don’t I know it!).

Oh dear – wasn’t the last-but-one post supposed to be my last word on the subject? And here I am about to start another essay. Actually several of us could probably write several books about Sean’s book, there’s so much that could be said about it. For Sean to write something so controversial is an achievement in itself, I guess. And I do find myself agreeing with more or less everything that’s been said here, however contradictory, even by those who haven’t read the book (;)) because there are at least two sides to every argument.

Sean book alert:

Anyway, I’ll just say that on first starting to read the book (with no preconceptions – had been looking forward to it) I was horrified by its tone and by the fact that the word “I” seemed to occur five times in every sentence. The book actually begins with the word “I” and a piece of self-congratulation – arguably not a good move even for an autobiography! In parts it sounded quite breathtakingly arrogant, and those parts still come across like that. It was not very well written, to put it mildly. And I was amazed by the name-dropping – plus Sean's rather gratuitous criticisms of numerous people (Meg Ryan and Tom Robbins are two examples) for reactions to him that I for one could well understand. Even the self-criticism seemed like an oblique form of self-congratulation on that first reading!

But then again Sean did have a very traumatic childhood, and he does have some endearing qualities, and Elijah loves him, and he loves Elijah, so what more can one say? Sean has said some very sweet and insightful things about Elijah in particular for which I’ll be eternally grateful. He does have amazing insight when he decides to use it – what a pity he so often decided not to in this book!

But I still think Sean was misguided to publish the book in that form. It makes me too wonder what, if anything, his co-author/editor was allowed to do: the book desperately needs a good edit. With certain pointless (or worse) passages deleted, lots more interesting observations added (did Sean have any more, or was he too wrapped up in his own misery to notice what was going on?) and some stylistic changes, it could have been made into a much better and less irritating book that doesn’t threaten to put quite so many people off the whole LOTR experience. For what it’s worth I suspect Sean and his co-author found themselves under heavy time pressure to get the thing out when they did, so it too often reads like the unexpurgated diary of a 13-year-old (as several amazon customers have hinted). Dom’s remark "You need to get some perspective, man. Are you out of your f***ing mind?” is only too appropriate to large parts of this book. As is his wife Christine’s unheeded advice to stop dropping the names of people he hardly knows. (“But I reckon I’m in the big game now!” is Sean’s reply to that.)
End of rant ….. phew.

Ylla – love that cartoon! Thanks!

Shireling, 5 years to the day, was it? Can hardly believe it. Thank you for those commemorative caps!
One thing I wonder about is those heavy, belted coats the hobbits are wearing in those shots. Were they ever seen in the movies, or did they get dropped (literally?!) at an early stage? Elijah seems to be wearing his in the helicopter shot we saw recently, too. But nowhere else I've noticed.

Lovely collage, wood – thank you :k

Tg, once again I stand in awe of your wondercaps and most of all the incredible stories you weave around them! The Frodorothy saga is hilarious! Ahem - must see that film again so that I can understand all the references ….

Serena--Those robes were strictly for staying warm between takes. If one of them is ever glimpsed in Middle-earth, it shouldn't have been :p . I'd imagine that how much they were worn would have depended a lot on the weather.

http://smile.smilies.nl/944.gif

Robin Williams on Voicing Happy Feet
Source: Moviehole October 15, 2004

Moviehole talked to Robin Williams about voicing the CGI-animated Village Roadshow project Happy Feet for George Miller (Babe).

The film, in which a young, musically talented penguin in Antartica has many adventures he tells of through song and dance, also features the voices of Elijah Wood and Brittany Murphy.

"Oh man, it is a blast and he is so much fun because he just lets you rip," Williams said about Miller. "He put me in a room with all these Latino comics and it has been so much fun."

So who does Williams play in the movie? "I play about four different characters: An Argentinean penguin, a big Emperor penguin, and a sea lion, amongst others."
I found this here (http://comingsoon.net/news/topnews.php?id=6793)
If you're interested in reading the entire Robin Williams interview, just follow the link to the moviehole site.

Moondancer, you wrote,

Mechtild,
Maybe I need some sleep but just to be clear, are you talking about this little smile?

Yes, that was the smile I was speaking of, the one that made the "bookend" to Isildur's smile. If it had been Aragorn who was taking possession of the Ring in the Sammath Naur, I would have thought it an extremely appropriate use of such a smile as a "bookend" to Isildur's. It would concretize exactly what Aragorn feared might happen to him, as Isildur's heir. But Frodo is not Isildur's heir, he is someone else entirely. I think it is a misleading use of the "pairs" motif to put that smile in there like that, on Frodo's face.

It simply is out of character for him, even under the influence of the Ring. For it is a wicked little smile.

In Letter #246, Tolkien answers a reader about what he thinks would have happened if Gollum had not destroyed the Ring and Frodo had been unable to kill himself to destroy the it, throwing himself into the fire with it. In Tolkien's explanation, he gives the clearest hint I have read for what might be happening internally for Frodo. He says this:

(…) Frodo had become a considerable person, but of a special kind: in spiritual enlargement rather than in increase of physical or mental power; his will was much stronger than it had been, but so far it had been exercised in resisting not using the Ring and with the object of destroying it. He needed time, much time, before he could control the Ring or (which in such a case is the same) before it could control him; before his will and arrogance could grow to a stature in which he could dominate other major hostile wills. Even so for a long time his acts and commands would still have to seem ‘good’ to him, to be for the benefit of others beside himself.

The situation as between Frodo with the Eight [the Witch-king had been reduced to impotence] might be compared to that of a small brave man armed with a devastating weapon ( …) I think they would have shown ‘servility’. They would have greeted Frodo as ‘Lord’. With fair speeches they would have induced him to leave the Sammath Naur – for instance ‘to look upon his new kingdom, and behold afar with his new sight the abode of power that he must now claim and turn to his own purposes’. Once outside the chamber while he was gazing some of them would have destroyed the entrance. Frodo would by then probably have been already too enmeshed in great plans of reformed rule – like but far greater and wiser than the vision that tempted Sam – to heed this.

Clearly, under the influence of the Ring, Frodo did not alter his personality utterly. The Ring tempted him to do good (as Gandalf knew it would tempt him -- and how Galadriel would have been tempted, too). Frodo would suffer from acute delusions of grandeur, but not radically different desires or goals. Sam was tempted to make Mordor into a garden; Frodo would wish to initiate a "reformed rule." Neither of these goals could have produced that little smile, in my opinion.

One can say, "that was the Ring's smile," not Frodo's. I still think it a less than optimal directorial choice, which misleads viewers into seeing it as Frodo's smile (however much he is obviously under the Ring's influence) not the Ring's smile. And all just for the sake of making a nifty little bookend. It's a great-looking bookend, but not justified, in my opinion.

First of all,

Run, don't walk to the official LOTR site.
There's a new short video about the release of the extended edition.
http://www.lordoftherings.net

Mechtild,

a-ha, I see what you mean. Thanks for explaining your point of view.
You may have a point but it's not just the way I viewed it (but I'm certainly not a Tolkien expert...not at all).
In my view, Frodo did succumb to the Ring and the ring, through the body of Frodo, did show a moment of triumph.
I agree with you that Frodo would probably not do the most evil things with it but it would be more a question of grandeur.
Like I said before, I'm not a book purist and I'm making a distinction between the book and the movie here.
With some books, I'm a purist and with others I'm not. I have no idea what awakens the purist in me. ;)
In the movie, Frodo gradually does change under the influence of the Ring and when we reach Mt. Doom, the influence is almost complete. We see a brave Frodo still struggle against it perhaps but he does succumb.
But it's great to see other opinions on this.
It seems to me that it’s when he looks down at the lava flow that he realizes what destroying the Ring is really going to mean to him -- as if the physical reality of it finally hits home.
I never even considered this!
I'm going to have to rewatch it through the eyes of Pelagia.

I'm assuming that the moment that Frodo sends Sam away is another moment that's just not right for you?
It's one moment where I really prefer the book version but I can understand why they did it that way so I'm fine with that change.

Ooooooh, Moondancer! That was so exciting!!!!! Thanks for the link to the EE ad.!!!!

I can't WAIT!!!!!!

I have a much harder time with Frodo sending Sam away than I do with the smile at the Sammath Naur, because IMVHO the former doesn't fit as well with the characters as we know them in the movies. It's almost more out of character for Sam than for Frodo, as I can see some fairly logical reasons for what Frodo did (IMHO, looked at objectively--not even counting the influence of the Ring on Frodo--there are some signs that Sam is being taken over by the Ring, which would be the last thing Frodo would want). The only way I can believe Sam would have actually left Frodo so easily--after seeing him choose to drown rather than do so in FotR!--is to think that it was just from the shock of the moment and that it wouldn't have been long--even without finding the lembas--before he would have climbed back up those stairs.

The Ring, OTOH, has been "different" from the beginning of the movies, starting with Galadriel's voiceover during the prologue. (In the Trilogy forum, it's sometimes referred to as the new!improved!stronger!smarter!movie!Ring, or names to that effect--not as a compliment, I assure you :rolleyes: .) IMHO, it's one of several changes that has a significant effect on the entire story as told in the movies. That sentience, intelligence, and will of its own that it doesn't have in the book--as well its power that's stronger than it is in the book--profoundly alters Frodo's reactions to the Ring (as well as Gandalf's, Faramir's, and probably a few other people's).

As far as being a book purist, yes, I'd love to have the movies agree with the book in every way possible--but the fact is, they don't. And I've basically gotten to the point of being able to treat them as two separate entities. As a lot of people know, I think I should have letter #246 engraved on my tombstone because I refer to it so often. But it applies to the story, the Ring, and Frodo as they exist in the reality of the book, not in the "historical drama" of the movies. I think it speaks well for the movies that some of what that letter says can shed some light on some of what happens in the movies--especially Frodo's state of mind post-quest, IMHO. But it's not going to be consistent with everything there.

It's been discussed quite a bit that there are things in the movie that are easier for "Tolkien virgins" to make sense of than people who've read the book, because they don't have to forcibly separate the two in their mind but can just take things the way they are in the movies. I think the smile at the Sammath Naur might be one of those. I haven't heard anyone who hadn't read the book think that it's Frodo who's smiling there (although I'm sure there are some viewers who don't understand that scene--as there are readers who don't understand it in the book). Because the only version of the Ring they've "known" is the one in the movie, they quite easily accept that it can take over Frodo's body and mind in a way similar to a demonic possession. After all, they've seen it do so before, at Osgiliath. This isn't Frodo any more than the smile is:

http://www.frodolivesin.us/b1ece2f0.jpg

This is, of course, a very visual way of showing the Ring's effect, and also puts Frodo in more immediate jeopardy at times, both of which might be reasons it was done that way. It makes the scene at the Crack of Doom much different in the movie than it is in the book. If I had my way, it would be much more like the scene in the book. But if I can let myself experience it from "within" the movie, I see it as a powerful, emotionally dense and complex scene--and that smile definitely belongs to the (new!improved!stronger!smarter!) movie-Ring, not to movie-Frodo.

ETA--There's a comment/question in the guest book on my website that IMHO also has to do with the differences between book-Ring and movie-Ring. I have to go home and re-watch the scenes in TTT that the post is talking about, but I think they're very much affected by that "will of its own" that movie-Ring has but which book-Ring lacks. If anyone else wants to add comments (http://www.frodolivesin.us/Pics/), please go ahead.

You wrote above,

But if I can let myself experience it [such departures from book Frodo] from "within" the movie, I see it as a powerful, emotionally dense and complex scene--and that smile definitely belongs to the (new!improved!stronger!smarter!) movie-Ring, not to movie-Frodo.
Good attitude, tg. :) It helped me accept the "Go home, Sam," scene and Osgiliath, as well as the much weaker Frodo in scenes in which he can't restrain his hand, hang onto his sword properly and etc.

I guess I just hate that little smile. A lot. In fact, between me and you Faculty folks, I feel about that smile on Frodo's face the way most of you feel about the sight of EW's nipples. You know, in those photos in which he either functions as a photographer's model (the "arty" shots), or as a rather self-conscious subject in purposely "come hither" shots. "Eeeewww!!!! Take them away!!! They are not him!!" is the common protest here and on other EW fan threads.

His nipples don't bother me that much--they are just neutral body parts; but that smile -- for Frodo's character -- at that moment is something else.

"Eeeewww!!!" I protest, "take it away! It is not him!"

I know, I know, "it's the Ring, not him." :rolleyes: ;)

Good attitude, tg. :)
Well, I don't know how good it is :rolleyes: , but it lets me enjoy the movies more :) .

And I really do think, as I said earlier, that the fact that different people have different views of events in the movies is a positive thing--since it's so much how the book operates. (Coming from someone who can take either side in the 50-year debate on the shape of Elves' ears ;) , although I come down firmly on the side of dark hair for Legolas :p .)

BTW--There's a comment/question in the guest book on my website that IMHO also has to do with the differences between book-Ring and movie-Ring. I have to go home and re-watch the scenes in TTT that the post is talking about, but I think they're very much affected by that "will of its own" that movie-Ring has but which book-Ring lacks. If anyone else wants to add comments (http://www.frodolivesin.us/Pics/), please go ahead.

As a lot of people know, I think I should have letter #246 engraved on my tombstone because I refer to it so often.

I suddenly see two people who've gone to a graveyard to do rubbings standing still beside a grave, their paper and crayons momentarily forgotten as they stare down at a tombstone that has the phrase "Letter #246" inscribed below the name and date.

"Must mean something," one of them finally offers.

:D

(Actually I love it when tombstones have cryptic or interesting inscriptions - those are the ones I think about while doing rubbings of the purty ones.)

Sheryl

I suddenly see two people who've gone to a graveyard to do rubbings standing still beside a grave, their paper and crayons momentarily forgotten as they stare down at a tombstone that has the phrase "Letter #246" inscribed below the name and date.

"Must mean something," one of them finally offers.

Hmmm... Sounds like an investigation for the E-philes, wouldn't you say? :D :haha:

Fascinating discussion about movie Frodo's smile at the CoD and other conflicting behaviors with his book counterpart. Not time enough to contribute, but -
Thanks ever so much for the gorgeous collage, Wood - one of the best I've seen. Also liked another from your site - the one with the Lothlorien background. Would have tucked it in here but don't want to go back and get it since Tgshaw alerted us about photobucket and I remembered the warning pop-ups I got.

And thank you, Tg, for Ozzing Middle Earth, and for Brega too! I read them in entirety in one sitting, chortling the entire time. :D

Tell me if Ya'all think this is funny:

A girl I knew said "Seabuiscuit" after I said, "Elijah Wood." Now remember it was TOBY MAGUIRE not ELIJAH WOOD.

Suddenly it dawned on me why they were such convincing brothers in "The Ice Storm." because they have the same coloring, and now it looks as though they both have the same body type. :p

It made me think of two things: 1. Elijah Wood as SPIDERMAN and 2 Toby Maguire as FRODO. Would Anybody pay to see these two developments if they happened like this? :D ( :eek: )

Just a thought to make Ya'all laugh today.

Suddenly it dawned on me why they were such convincing brothers in "The Ice Storm." because they have the same coloring, and now it looks as though they both have the same body type. :p

Okay--I don't actually believe the following is true, but it may be an interesting/amusing thought ;) :

Let me tell you what I think is funny about this... It's not the first time I've heard this same statement... But they don't play brothers in The Ice Storm. Tobey plays Wendy's brother, not Mikey's. But given the sexual climate in the movie, this raises the question--Is the casting a hidden hint that the two might be half-brothers? Is Mikey really the son of Kevin Kline's character? Does that increase the emotional effect for Kevin Kline's character at the end of the movie?

Sandy looks a bit like Tobey's character, too. Maybe Mr. Carver doesn't really have any kids. He's away from home enough--and is clueless enough--that IMHO it wouldn't be impossible.

-----------

Maybe I should clarify--The only problem I've had with photobucket has been from my computer at the office, which is on a higher security level than most computers because it has access to a lot of confidential information. I don't want to spread undue alarm. Naiad, were your warnings on a "regular" computer? -- It seems to be the pop-ups on the site that set off the "alarm".

Is the casting a hidden hint that the two might be half-brothers? Is Mikey really the son of Kevin Kline's character? Does that increase the emotional effect for Kevin Kline's character at the end of the movie?
You know, the same thing crossed my mind when I saw the movie back a couple of months ago.

from tgshaw:
they don't play brothers in The Ice Storm. Tobey plays Wendy's brother, not Mikey's. But given the sexual climate in the movie, this raises the question--Is the casting a hidden hint that the two might be half-brothers? Is Mikey really the son of Kevin Kline's character? Does that increase the emotional effect for Kevin Kline's character at the end of the movie?

What a fascinating thought, Tg! The Kevin Kline character (Ben Hood) certainly seems emotionally devastated on finding Mikey's body, and afterwards, and I'd found myself wondering whether he had some special affection for the lad (beyond mere family friendship, that is). But that possibility had never occurred to me. It might also explain why Ben was so much against his daughter Wendy's dalliance with Mikey!
But then ... isn't Ben somewhat rude about Mikey, calling him something along the lines of "that weirdo"? - can't remember the exact phrase (good excuse to watch the movie again!). Could be he's disappointed that his unacknowledged son has turned out to be a social misfit. Dunno .... but it's an interesting possibility. Wonder if the book throws any light on that? Anyone read it?

1. Elijah Wood as SPIDERMAN and 2 Toby Maguire as FRODO. Would Anybody pay to see these two developments if they happened like this? :D ( :eek: )

Elijah Wood as Spiderman - yes I can imagine that, but Toby Maguire as Frodo. No definately not, as he doesn't have that basic ethereality in his looks, and when I have seen him interviewed, his emotions don't seem to be displayed through his expressions as easily as Elijah's.


they don't play brothers in The Ice Storm. Tobey plays Wendy's brother, not Mikey's. But given the sexual climate in the movie, this raises the question--Is the casting a hidden hint that the two might be half-brothers? Is Mikey really the son of Kevin Kline's character? Does that increase the emotional effect for Kevin Kline's character at the end of the movie?

Is there any more given away on this point in the book of Ice Storm. I haven't read it yet, so I don't know. You have to concede, though, that the way Janey breaks off the relationship with Ben so easily to move on to another guy doesn't suggest that their affair was going to have been a long running one. You also have to take into account that Ben's emotions were already running high at the party, so by the time he found Mikey's body it wouldn't take much to tip him over the edge.

Oh, the idea is totally impossible based on the book. We're in Ben Hood's POV when he finds Mikey's body, so we'd certainly know. There's a very interesting transformation of Ben's opinion of Mikey in the book that we don't get in the movie, from something like "that weirdo" to "the boy my daughter was going steady with" (patently not true, but it's what he tells people).

As I said, I don't truthfully [i]believe this to be the intent in the movie, either, but it's gotten kind of humorous (to me, anyway :rolleyes: ), how often a discussion of Tobey and Elijah being mistaken for each other will lead to the remark that "they played brothers" in The Ice Storm, so... :o well... anyone who's read the saga of Brego, or The Red Book as translated by A.A. Milne, or the recent Wizard of Oz parody knows the weird angles my thoughts can take once they get rolling. :rolleyes:

Regarding whether Mikey is meant to be seen as the son of Wendy's dad in The Ice Storm...

I would say that Mikey is meant to be seen as the true son of his film father, who is also brilliant in a scientific-abstractions sort of way, but very poorly tuned in to what's going on around him, interpersonally.

But he has strong feelings, however inept he is at picking up other people's cues and clues. When his son is brought home dead, while his wife remains asleep, he seems to be profoundly grieved.

~ Mechtild

Very intresting discution!!!!
Never thought about this!!!!

Maybe i shoulde see the movie again,its been a while!!!

Anyway i can`t see how people can mix this two up!!
Unestly i can`t

LOVE/WOOD

I love how these click-on ads change with the discussion. Right now we're getting ads for grave markers--and a pet cemetary. :rolleyes: Alas, poor Mikey, we knew him... Sheryl's "rubbings" probably helped, too.

Good evening Faculty!

I don't mean to switch movies on you but last night the kids and I watched Deep Impact since my DVD of it arrived in the mail. Since I've wanted to replace my VHSs with DVDs, I waited until the collector's edition came out. Movies always take on a different look in widescreen DVD format for me. Elijah's parts are always a joy to watch. My favorite scene is his "looking for the keys". Of course, I listened to the director commentary just on his scenes. Nothing really new there that most don't already know. He is in the documentaries briefly. The most interesting thing I heard and would love to have seen is a deleted sequence where his character was actually in the caves (ark) and then left from there. Time was a factor and they shortened it to him leaving from the entrance. One writer described his character as having more depth in the original screenplay. After hearing these comments, I now understand how Elijah accepted the role and then was dissapointed when filming actually began because his character was not what he had initially agreed to.

I have four of Elijah's earlier movies on VHS that I have now replaced. They are either garage sale bound or if anyone would like them I would be happy to give them away. PM me if your interested. If this is not allowed, sorry!, just let me know.

Is there a list of etiquette and/or Faculty rules **guidelines as pirates say** around?

OK...I've been hunting all over the ding-blasted first disk of FotR for the dad-burned easter egg. If I'm understanding it correctly, you go to the menu of the scenes. It sounds like you should be able to click on the "New Scene/Extended Scene" things, but there's nothing there to click on.

What am I missing?!? There's a golden ring that is spinning in the place where the pictures show, at the top of the select scene page 1-4, but nothing happens when I click on it and then it changes to Sauron's hand with the ring on it.

:::: madly searching for the Lost Ring ::::

~grumpyh

How to find Easter Eggs on DVD's (http://www.theonering.net/rumour_mill/rpg/viewer/moviediscussion/416F4B770005A7AA.html)

THANK YOU, MOONDANCER!

I needed those instructions, too. I printed them out this time.

~ Mechtild

tgshaw: I finished reading “The Wizards Are Odd” (at work, where everything downloads faster). Hysterical! My favorite part:

Product placement for Morgul Vale Instant Web-Remover & Hair-Dryer, as seen in a major motion picture
I've always had to chuckle over how Frodo managed to tidy himself up so quickly -- and with his hands tied, no less!

Also, tg, you wrote:

As far as being a book purist, yes, I'd love to have the movies agree with the book in every way possible--but the fact is, they don't. And I've basically gotten to the point of being able to treat them as two separate entities.
That’s exactly the way I feel. But as you also implied, that’s probably a lot easier for “Tolkien virgins” (like me) than for people who have known and loved the book for years. As for significant differences between the films and the book, the hardest one for me to take is probably what Tom Shippey calls the “Aragorn Intermezzo,” in TTT. It was apparently just thrown in there because PJ and Co. were so worried about the pacing in that movie. Frodo sending Sam away also gives me serious qualms; but on the other hand, it leaves Frodo to face Shelob alone, which makes THAT sequence much scarier. BTW, I’d be interested in your comments on Frodo’s “transformation” in Bilbo’s room at Rivendell. What always struck me, apart from Frodo’s obvious shock when Bilbo freaks out, is the compassion in Frodo’s face when when you zoom in on him in the background during Bilbo’s “I’m sorry” speech.

Mechtild wrote:

You know, in those photos in which he either functions as a photographer's model (the "arty" shots), or as a rather self-conscious subject in purposely "come hither" shots. "Eeeewww!!!! Take them away!!! They are not him!!"
I know just what you mean. When I see one of those photos, I always wish I could give him a poke in the ribs and say, “Come off it, Elijah!”

Shadowcat wrote:

A girl I knew said "Seabuiscuit" after I said, "Elijah Wood." Now remember it was TOBY MAGUIRE not ELIJAH WOOD.
I remember reading somewhere that some guy that Elijah ran into somewhere actually congratulated him for his performance in Seabiscuit. And that somebody else thought he had played Harry Potter!

BTW, the latest addition to the “State Quarters” series is Iowa. I regret to say that the US government (showing a lamentable sense of priorities) has put a picture of a schoolhouse on this coin. Surely, a picture of Elijah would have been a better choice??

EDIT: It occurs to me that there is some sort of rule that living people cannot appear on US currency. THAT's probably why they didn't put Elijah on the Iowa quarter. :haha:

Mechtild wrote:

For the voice is costumed, too, in its own way. The voice and speech of Frodo is exceptionally lovely.
Actually, I've noticed that Frodo has several different voices. The last time that I went back and looked again at the beginning of FotR, I was struck by how different his voice is from the way he speaks at the end of RotK. In FotR, I think his voice is pretty much his normal voice (in pitch and tone), except for the accent. But in the closing scenes of RotK, his voice is much more hushed, and almost as if it has been drained of all energy. That was the Frodo voice that I had grown accustomed to; which was why the pre-quest Frodo voice was such a surprise when I heard it again.

And then there’s exhausted-Frodo voice (the “Ring of fire” speech, which he sort of gasps out), and terrified-Frodo voice (the increasingly high-pitched cries of “Smeagol!” in Shelob’s lair), and even vicious-Frodo voice (when he turns on Sam – “What do you know about it?” -- in the TTT scene where Gollum is splashing around in the stream). We seem to concentrate here on Elijah’s incredible facial and physical expressiveness, but vocal expressiveness is interesting, too. Although you can’t post sounds. (Can you??)

Moondancer wrote:

Didn't Elijah mention in the commentary for one of the EE DVD's that he had to repeat all his lines in some studio because he had to speak slower and lower his voice a bit (compared to how he normally speaks?) for Frodo?
I haven’t watched all of the commentary, so I DK about that. But I do remember him saying that for FotR, he had to redo his cry of “What are you doing?” (when he wakes up at Weathertop and finds the other hobbits cooking over an open fire) because it came out way too American.

Thank you, dear Faculty, for providing such wonderful reading lately.

To answer Moondancer's question, the way I recall it is that Elijah deliberately lowered and softened his voice for Frodo, similar to the way Liv did for Arwen. This helped the character "work," as he said, to appear older and wiser. I don't know how far along they were in filming before this discovery. Certainly the cast rerecorded most of their dialog during looping afterwards, but somehow I think the Frodo voice was part of his performance, and not merely added afterwards. Just my impression, but it seems logical to me!

Whoops, just lost my post. Here goes again.

Moondancer, yes Scarlet is from TORC. She posts her art at WotM as Scatha. I had not thought of the lace as black; merely as a non-descript dark colour. I asked her how she did it and it actually took many steps. She chose lace out of a gazillion samples (it may have been white), "dyed" it, streaked it, made wavy places in it to suggest movement, etc.

Edited to add: Moondancer, after what someone just said to me about "Lace," your comment brings up another possible reason not to like it. You compared the lace to mourning, because it looks black. That sense implies he is "wearing" the lace, like a veil. I had thought of him as looking through it, like a lace curtain. But the person I just corresponded with remarked that it was just too feminine; he shouldn't be made to appear to be wearing a veil. Having read that, I can see that, now. But I prefer to stick to my original way of viewing it -- that is of E.W./Frodo looking through a lace curtain -- so I still can appreciate it. For I confess that the idea of E.W. sporting a veil (or a pillbox hat :D ) is not an appealing one to me.

Here is another very simple one of hers that I love. I think of it as Frodo dreaming of the time before the sun and moon were fashioned, when the Eldar first awoke, although it is clearly made from a well-known shot of E.W.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v382/mechtild/Elijah-Dreams-Scarlet.jpg

Pelagia, you wrote,

In FotR, I think his voice is pretty much his normal voice (in pitch and tone), except for the accent. But in the closing scenes of RotK, his voice is much more hushed, and almost as if it has been drained of all energy. That was the Frodo voice that I had grown accustomed to; which was why the pre-quest Frodo voice was such a surprise when I heard it again.
That interested me very much. For the purposes of writing a Frodo story, I studied his speech in the books this spring. One of my British readers suggested I was using too many contractions for him in this pre-Quest story. I hadn't thought of taking a serious look at his usage but then did so. In fact, he, Bilbo and the other two young gentlehobbits use very many contractions in the first chapters of FotR. But, as the story progresses, Frodo uses fewer and fewer of them. By the time he appears in the end of TTT, talking with Faramir Captain of Gondor and son of the Steward in the cave of Henneth Annun, he not only is shown as Faramir's peer and equal as a person, in his obvious nobility of character, his style of speech is virtually interchangeable with Faramir's. By the end of LotR, Frodo's speech has become as ennobled as he himself has become. What a good writer Tolkien was -- it was shown so subtly, this transformation, by a progressively more elevated style of speech.

I think it most appropriate, then, that film Frodo's voice as a blithe, cheerful young gentlehobbit of comfortable means, should develop into something different by the time he has become a Halfling prince, if a subdued, wounded one.

~ Mechtild

Remember that Elijah went to the BBC for an interview during his stay in the UK for 'The Yank'/'Hooligans'?

The guys from the BBC radio found out that he's a huge John Peel fan and suggested to him that he could replace him when Peel's on holiday.

I guess that this won't happen.

:(
John Peel died
:(
Veteran DJ John Peel dies (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/3955289.stm)

Why did Elijah buy his first house in Venice? Do actors get tax breaks in Italy like they do in France?

It sounds like another example of American Royalty. :D

America has no Royalty except Celebrities. How funny is this?

Thanks, Moondancer. Apart from being so shocked to hear that John Peel had died so suddenly, and seemingly at the height of his career (he'd recently become even better known in the UK through the Radio 4 show Home Truths, which the whole population seemed to listen to on a Saturday morning or Monday evening), I immediately thought of Elijah - who was to have replaced John on his Radio 1 music show while John was on holiday. Originally this holiday was scheduled for the summer, I think, but it had obviously been delayed, because John was taken ill and died yesterday while on holiday in Peru. I haven't heard anything about Elijah replacing him this time, but will do some more research and report back if I can find out.

EDIT: here's the original BBC report:
EW and JP (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/3705115.stm)

Apart from anything else, this has really brought it home to me what an honour it was, and how appropriate, for Elijah to be asked to replace John even temporarily - John was the man without whom so much great music might have remained unknown. He pioneered so many new styles and nurtured bands that no-one else seemed to understand at the time - some of which went on to become household names. This is of course something very close to Elijah's heart too - so it was doubly appropriate for him to deputise for John Peel.

How sad. John is going to be very, very sorely missed.

Shadowcat, Elijah's house is apparently in Venice (Beach), California - not Venice, Italy.

:haha: Conas ata tu!

Pearl i must say your pic of Eli is fantastic!!!

so wats up wit everyone i just joined and want to know thw craic!

Hi fellow Elijah fans :) Narya is gone for a few days. If you need anything just pm me :)
I saw an amazing picture someplace. It starts with Elijah in profile and slowing shows him changing to Frodo and then back again to himself. Really beautiful. I will search about for it. :)

Welcome Eli monkey :) :)
All I have to say is:
--Pearl posted a pic? Did I miss something? :confused:
--What the #@$@# does "craic" mean? :confused:
Nice to meet you, anyway :p .

---------

Even though we didn't know much about him in the U.S., I'm sorry to hear about John Peel.

On one of my occasional amazon.com snoops, I saw that there's going to be another version of the ESOTSM DVD released on January 4. It's labeled as "Bond Ws" -- I'm assuming the Ws refers to widescreen (?maybe?), but does anyone know what else this means? The page calls it a collector's edition, but there's nothing listed so far about special features so I don't know if it has anything the current version doesn't. I haven't bought the DVD yet, so will probably hold off until this one comes out, if it seems worthwhile.

---------

Once in awhile when working on scenes, I find a screencap--or a few--that are just too good to wait... (Gee, wonder what scene I'm working on now when I need a break from Shelob's Lair :p . SL's a tough one when I'm trying to use this as a destressing tool for myself. :rolleyes: )

These are among the pics that, IMHO, show how right things were done in these movies. The lighting/cinematography is set perfectly to specifically highlight Elijah--nothing generic about it. And I'm struck by how much the first two, especially, are shot in the same way a good black-and-white movie would be. The use of shadows is fantastic (the first one is amazing in context). Could give Casablanca a run for its money.

And the third and fourth ones, with just a hint of color--is anyone else old enough :o to have seen hand-tinted photographs of, say, older relatives?

May have to give Mr. Lesnie a "How does he do it?" for this scene...

Oh, supposed to be talking about Elijah here :p ? This scene is just one more example where he's completely "on" every moment--every frame could be... well, framed. When looking at this scene, I thought about the fact that Elijah not only started as a model, but that he still seems to do more photo shoots than most actors. IMVHO, there's something of a model's awareness here (of the camera, of how he appears--both facial expression and entire body stance, of his movement, of his relation to the camera and the lighting).

BTW, proponents of "The One Expression" would probably point to some of these. But I don't mind looking at that "startled and a little fearful" expression on occasion. :)

And now you've probably read most of my commentary on this scene. Oh, well :) . These caps are here just for their sheer beauty:

http://www.frodolivesin.us/Pics/09624540.jpg

http://www.frodolivesin.us/Pics/0976c520.jpg

http://www.frodolivesin.us/Pics/0945a510.jpg

http://www.frodolivesin.us/Pics/095c44f0.jpg

Elijah writing a rebuttal book? Nah. I'd be willing to bet that the first time Elijah and Sean met after the book came out, Elijah put his arms around Sean and wordlessly hugged and comforted him to try to make all that pain inside Sean better. As if he didn't know about it all during filming, which I can't imagine he wouldn't have known.

...unless, of course, we've been sold the proverbial bill of goods where His Elijahnessnessness is concerned...

~grumpy (wish ::: hobble hobble ::: I ::: hobble hobble ::: could ::: hobble hobble ::: go ::: hobble hobble ::: to ::: hobble hobble ::: NYC) :( :(

Welcome to The Faculty Eli Monkey :)

BTW Achila...Honey and Flourish.....sorry I can't make it to NYC this weekend but keep you eyes peeled for this guy:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v480/ylla/elijah_i_bod_med_cder.jpg



Even though I'm not sure which city this shot happens to be in...but doesn't matter...
Never know....could happen....he's been known to show up in one of his favorite cities from time to time...make sure you look very carefully in record shops and book stores!!!and should that occur this weekend....give him my best...and your best.....and.....okay I'll stop at that :o
Anyway...have a great time...so near but soooo far away...sometimes it's just inconvenient to be a nurse who has to work every other weekend and holiday :mad:

*tucks Ylla's post into her pocket--you know, just for.... reference!*

Thanks Ylla! I'm looking forward to Friday and wish all of you could come!

*imitates Flourish, as I'm tempted to rifle her pocket* :p

Just stopping in to drop by a Radio Flyer pic I hadn't seen before, courtesy of dear BunnieBugs! Cheers!

:haha:
:cool:
:haha:

Have fun, Flourish, Achila and Honey!!! Say Hi to all my old haunts while you're in NYC *sniff*.

Mariole, I opened your Radio Flyer link. I wish I were a German Shepherd.


:p

TG, those screen caps are extraordinary. You're right about the lighting being like old black and white films.

ZK and Ylla, we'll be thinking of you! :k Maybe next time?

Packing is almost done. Tomorrow will see me on my way to New York! Flourish and Achila, wear you're walking shoes! :D

honey!

Hi all! Welcome Eli monkey from another recent newcomer!!

Thank you so much HoneyElf for letting me borrow Sean's book. My last word on the subject is a quote from Sean himself which sums up the book, for me at least,

I like to talk, and sometimes words pass my lips without first being edited by my brain, which can lead to trouble and hurt feelings. And you never know when it will happen. pg. 293 U.S. version

Well, we know it happened when this book was published with very little editing...

The typo that most caught my eye was,

Bernard Hill (who played Theodin) and I ...

Tolkien, as far as I know, spells it "Theoden" in his book.

Where to next, HoneyElf?

Hey! Got an avatar...still doesn't look like the right size. Sting is my fav sword...for Halloween I'm going to carry my "glowing blue" one. :D

Have a very nice weekend ladies!!!! :) ;) :lol:
wich i could be there too!!!! :(


Thank you Honeyelf for helping me out with the
mail problem!!!!!!


Gourges pic Ylla!! :p :D

Love/Wood

Cheers to Red Sox Nation :)


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v480/ylla/690361_03.jpg







:k Thank You Red Sox....We're Mighty Proud of You :k

Anybody wanna read Sean's book (without paying for it? ;) ) Just PM Shelbyshire. We'll pass it around. Shelby, I've also let the MAC bunch at TORC know it's up for grabs.

Welcome Eli Monkey! :)

New York or Bust!

honey!

*waves to Honey's plane passing overhead*

A favor, please! Does anyone have a saved copy of those hilarious LOTR spoofs that were posted in somebody's LJ a while back, taking the form of thesis notes for Frodo's post-graduate geological studies?

I need more than a link, because the originals are apparently gone. What I'm really looking for is a copy of the text itself.

If you saved it, would you please PM me?! Several of my friends and I would be MOST grateful! :z:

Thank you.

Does anyone have a saved copy of those hilarious LOTR spoofs that were posted in somebody's LJ a while back, taking the form of thesis notes for Frodo's post-graduate geological studies?
I have something, but I'm not sure it's what you're looking for. It's not thesis notes, and it's only one item, not a series. It was posted as a sample abstract for a real scientific conference being held in New Zealand (almost every conference anywhere posts a sample abstract, but usually not creative :rolleyes: ). IIRC ainon posted the link here originally.

Because I was passing it around at work, I have a copy of it on my hard drive. It involves "...Methane Emanations from the Dead Marshes..." I thought it was a PDF, but I just checked and it's a Word document so I can post the text of it here (which I will, just because it's short and well worth it--and since it's based on the movies, it's almost on-topic :p ). But you really need the page set-up and the proper formatting of some of the characters to get the full effect of a scientific abstract :) . I could send it as a Word attachment if you want the original formatting.

Example ABSTRACT

ON CARBON ISOTOPE FRACTIONATION IN METHANE EMANATIONS FROM THE DEAD MARSHES EAST OF THE EMYN MUIL

Baggins, F.(1); Gamgee, S.(1); Sméagol, G.(2)(*)

(1)Department of Atmospheric Alchemy, Hobbiton Institute of Technology, Hobbiton, The Shire, Middle Earth
(2)Subterranean Experimental Station, Roots of the Misty Mountains, Middle Earth
(*)Deceased
(f.baggins@hit.edu.me)

A recent expedition to carry out a major metallurgical experiment at the Cracks of Doom in the Land of Mordor has been documented elsewhere. This expedition included a transit across the Dead Marshes east of the Emyn Muil, and the opportunity was taken to sample methane emanations from the Marshes at several positions en route. Sampling was not without problems, chief of which was sporadic contamination caused by downdrafts from the wings of the Nazgûl’s vile beasts as they passed along the flight corridor over the Marshes. A minor complication was the near drowning of the first author in a particularly noxious pool, but disaster was averted by the timely intervention of the third author. Despite these setbacks, several good samples were obtained. Subsequent stable isotope mass spectrometer analysis showed that the delta13C of the methane was generally consistent with ancient anaerobically rotting vegetation. However, a distinct signature of animal origin was detected. This is believed to originate from the remains of numerous cadavers dating back to the Battle of Dagorlad in the year 3434 of the Second Age. The first author’s inadvertent encounter with the spectre of one of these unfortunates during his immersion adds qualitative support to this proposition. We consider that our approach may prove of great utility in future archaeological research, particularly in the field of Second Age studies.

Session Number: S-14

--However, in a "scientific" note of my own ;) , I think the entire report may be a forgery. The note on the website said that this abstract was found amid previously undiscovered papers left by Professor Tolkien. Of course, since it follows the storyline of the movies, this doesn't ring true, and I have suspicions that it's a later forgery. As far as I know, carbon 14 dating of the parchment has not been done. ;)

Tg, I remember that! Too cute!

Flourish, the author is moving the series to a new LJ user account: frodo_abd - but the text isn't up yet. She's on my friend's list. I'll try to remember to let you know when the journals reappear, but give me a kick if too much time goes by. Unfortunately, I have not saved the text.

Cheers!

Thank you both, so much! Tg, that's not the one, but I remember it and it's well worth the re-read. :D I appreciate the post!

Mariole, whew, that's wonderful news--so it's not going to be lost forever. Yes, I will remind you, and many thanks again! :k

In the hope that you're lurking...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EZZIE!

Here's your birthday gift (http://www.imagemagician.com/images/blossom/Ezzie.gif)

Have a lovely day! :)

Glad those meeting in NYC had a great time, and thanks to Achila for that Q&A report. If Elwood wants to continue his practice of keeping future projects under wraps until he's ready to talk about them, he's going to have to learn to say "no comment" to everything ;) , whether something's in the works or not. He has very intelligent fans, eh? :p Seems people put the pieces together on the Ian Curtis movie even without any actual rumors (not that I would have had the slightest idea--never having heard of the musician). He seemed to be caught off-guard by the question; maybe he hasn't been surfing the net enough lately ;) .


Funny, eh? My bet is that all the while that was going on, he was thinking to himself (in slightly more colorful, Elwood-ian language, of course) "Now how the heck did they find out about that?" He has no idea yet how resourceful we all are. But to tell the truth, this one was easy. The combination of that BBC article and the ensuing rumors that it was Lij, with the recent photos of him with the same exact haircut as Ian Curtis -- well, you don't HAVE to be a Faculty scholar to think something is going on, right?

And speaking of The Faculty, how many watched it yesterday, in honor of Halloween? I did!

Now that TG has opened the new Faculty lounge thread, I will be locking this one from further posts. You will still be able to read it, but will no longer be able to edit or add posts to this thread.

The new thread is here (http://www.khazaddum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3143)

Have fun!