Mechtild,
On a previous page, you talked about whom Elijah inherited his looks from. I have never seen pictures showing any of his family except Hannah, only because she is in The TT. Can any of you point me to a link? I am quite curious. Thank you!


Well, of course, I couldn't resist a challenge like this could I ? !! :rolleyes: :D

Firstly, the very clear one of Hannah in Hew York, with Lij, that I posted atTORC...for everyone else's benefit !!
http://users.pandora.be/patsie/picspam/lalala/K103672_06.jpg

Here's an old one of brother Zach...
http://gallery.ejwfiles.net/images/Donated/Lj_1055696370.jpg

and before you get too excited about Zach's good looks, remember it is a very old pic...I saw some very recent ones on another website a few days ago, ( let's just say he has suffered in the hair dept !!)...let's see if I can drag them up from somewhere...

Meanwhile, an equally old pic of Elijah with Mum...
http://gallery.ejwfiles.net/images/UpClose/Private/ElijahAndHisMother1991.jpg

Sadly, I can't remember where the Hell I saw the recent pics of Zach at a conference of some kind..can anyone else enlighten me ?
And can anyone provide a pic of Elijah's somewhat notorious Dad ? Shadowcat ?... :z:

Oooh, Thanks Wendy! You are such a trove of info. and photos. It's a good thing you don't have to keep this anywhere but on a computer or your whole place would be stacked to the ceiling with resources and files. The bottom two links I was not able to open, though. Boo hoo!

The one with his mother was very good, too, Whiteling. They all must be quite petite. As for the father's appearance, I had asked merely because a few pages back someone was speaking of E.W. as having gotten his looks from his father. This implied, to me, that there was some sort of photo or photos extant.

The news on Hooligans/Yank sounds truly encouraging! If it is even half-way accurate I will be very pleased indeed. The word about it, otherwise, has made me fear the worst (i.e. that it's going to be a big fat bomb).

Thanks for all the greetings, Loungers,

Mechtild

Hello Everyone! Wow! Long time no post for me! As someone else mentioned, "The Faculty is a great place, and I am usually in too much awe of the brainpower here to contribute anything useful." - I second that! :) I do lurk a bit, though. Great discussions going on here as usual!

I hate to keep the family speculations going, but just wanted to comment on one thing about the whole affair. Back over on another page there was a discussion about Elijah being/feeling partially responsible for his parents' divorce (this is not directly quoting anyone in particular, just the very general jist of the entire discussion). I whole-heartedly agree that he is in no way, shape, form or fashion even marginally responsible for what happened between his parents. However, I can tell you, as a child of divorce, that it would be very normal, and even common for him to feel as though he were.

My parents were divorced when I was less than a year old. My family was living in Texas when I was born and when the divorce occurred, my mother moved us back to Georgia, and since my father made no real effort to really keep in contact with us, I grew up essentially without knowing my father. Now, you would think the fact that the divorce occurred when I was only an infant would relieve me of any possible guilt/responsibility/fault in the break up. Wrong. At least, to my own mind.

I remember, even as a VERY small child feeling deeply responsible. No one ever 'made' me feel that way (no one ever said, "it's your fault"), but I really and truly, somewhere deep inside of me felt that it was. False guilt is very common for children in divorce situations. I saw my father's perceived abandonment of us as a direct reflection upon my worth as an individual...if I were only prettier, smarter, sweeter, more loveable, etc., etc., etc., - then my father wouldn't have left us. I just wasn't worth staying for. I felt that I must have done something to drive him away (we are very self centered as children, so in my mind, it HAD to have something to do with me!).

As I got a little older, I began to understand, in my rational mind, that this just wasn't true...that my parents' divorce really had nothing to do with me...that I was not the cause. But ya'll, it took SO much longer to teach that to my heart. I think, especially when these things happen to us when we are so young, that we tend to internalize it and make it a part of who we are. It's nearly impossible to separate fact from perception once it's that ingrained. There are still days when I have trouble with it...when I find myself going back into those old patterns of behavior designed to win my father's love/affection/approval/affirmation/presence. It's an almost daily battle, but most days, I win! :)

Now, add into the mix of things, Elijah's particular and unique situation. His family moved across the country for his career. He was/is very successful and accomplished (and, I don't know Warren, or even very much ABOUT Warren, but possibly his son's success and accomplishment out-shone, even at age 8, anything that Warren had been able, or would be able to claim - I can see where some men would find that hard to handle - but, they should find a way to handle it.). Just as my father's almost immediately going out, getting re-married and having another family (complete with a NEW daughter) seemed to confirm my instinct/feeling that it was my fault, so would (I imagine), the circumstances surrounding Elijah's parent's divorce seem to confirm what was probably already in his heart. "My family was uprooted because of me. I'm too successful. This is all my fault." (of course, I have NO IDEA if he thought those things or not, but it wouldn't seem unlikely.) All these things are completely false, but that fact, unfortunately doesn't seem to matter to your heart.

I also agree with the poster who said something to the effect of (regarding Warren's comments of "WE" still have some stuff to work on in our relationship) being a bit off. I think Warren needs to take the full responsibility on himself and be the ADULT in this situation. I can totally understand where Elijah is coming from when he makes statements such to the effect of, "It's hard to have a relationship with someone you didn't before" (again, not direct quoting...just jisting!:) ). I have certainly seen that in trying (as an adult) to build a relationship with my father (who I don't even really know). I have come to realize that if I want to have any relationship at all with my dad, it's going to me doing the lion's share of the work. Sad, but true. While discussing things with my dad one night, he recalled a conversation (by phone) that we had when I was about 8. He said that we were saying good-bye and he said (as he always did), "Daddy loves you." and I didn't say anything back. He asked if I didn't love him too. I told him very honestly, "I don't know you. I don't know if I do or not." Now, I don't particularly remember making that statement (not saying I didn't, I just don't specifically remember it), but I do remember that his phone calls tapered off, and eventually petered out at about that time. He told me the night we were talking about it that I had crushed him so badly that he was afraid of me after that. I told him I was sorry that I hurt him but was just (apparently!) being honest. I also told him that I didn't feel that excused him for the next 20+ years of absence in m life. I said to him, "But YOU were the adult. I was only a child. You should have made some way to KNOW me...so I COULD love you."

I just hope that one day, if he doesn't already, that Warren Wood will come to understand that, no matter how old his son gets, HE was still the adult and should have figured out a way to get over his issues (whatever they were) and had a relationship with his son (as well as the rest of his beautiful babies!!!).

I hope I don't sound like I'm demonizing Warren - because I don't mean to at all. I'm sure that he must have a lot of good in him (he would almost have to to have produced Elijah), and that he really does love his son (for, how could he NOT?!?)...he just seems to have a bit of a problem in being demonstrative of that.

I hope that one day they can have a healthy relationship...I think it would be great...for both of them.

Anyway, I have stopped being coherent now, so I'll close.

Thanks everyone for all the news you bring here as well as the wonderful discussion.

Blessings!
cp

Great news about the yank!!!! :cool:

i realy hope they will show it here in sweden too!!!!!

a bout elijah being a great actor.not a big surprise for me!! ;)
i think with the right director he can turn everything to a great
performance.i think we have hade this discusion before so i will
not go in on deep water (i am not a good swimmer,if you know what i mean :lol: )
i leve that to others but i hope you know whay i am trying to say!! :z:

for the pic with elijah and hanna you can see they are family they have
the same eyes,(almost,but i prefer elijahs :p :D )

and i agree we should thanks debbie wood for her lovely son :k

happy mothers day debbie :k

((((Candygirl)))), what a wonderful post. Thank you so much for telling us your story! I hardly know what to say ..... it's so moving in its own right, as your story, and it also gives us so much insight into how Elijah must have felt and possibly still feels. Did you and your father become closer again? Did he come to recognise what he had lost in you?
I'll just have to read that again ..... it's so full of wisdom.

And thanks, everyone, for the family pics. (Wendy, I can't open the bottom two either :( ).
Have just found a site with a video interview with one Zach Wood, computer game producer extraordinaire, aka "Frodo's brother". Have had to pay for a subscription to get this - but am still waiting in line for the download! If it arrives I'll let you know. OK, I must be crazy (but aren't we all? :)).

Gosh, Whiteling, I'd better get the TTT DVD out again! Any old excuse .... ;)

from Goldenberry:I am usually in too much awe of the brainpower here to contribute anything useful
I was scared stiff when I sent in my first post and on a high for a couple of weeks afterwards! It wears off, though, when you realise people are actually human after all. Well, some of us .... I think .... :D

OK...I found the very recent pics of Zach at the Video-games conference...

http://www.xs4all.nl/~dutche/zach%202.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~dutche/zach%201.jpg

I'm sorry you couldn't see the last two pics in my last post...are you getting the dreaded red cross box, or are you getting a hot-link warning...( this is a site that I haven't linked to before, and I don't necessarily see what everyone else sees...)

He's got Elijah's eyebrows. That's so cute....but I don't see that much of a resemblance, really. Maybe if they were standing next to each other. Lij looks more like Hannah than he does Zach, I think.

Funny - I've just managed to download that whole video interview! No, Zach doesn't look all that much like Elijah, and his voice is quite different, and he's not as articulate or expressive (surprise) - but now and then there's a familiar mannerism or a familiar expression that makes you do a double take. I've always found family resemblances fascinating, and that definitely is. Not sure if I can attach the clip, but will try.
Nope, it doesn't work. Probably too big.

Wendy, yes, it's the dreaded red cross box.

Did I miss Debbie Wood Day? Here's a hug for her anyway. :) Kahil Gibran made me cry -- again. *walks over to that bookshelf*

Well, after one day, I'm falling behind already, but what else is new? :p Thank you for being intelligent and wonderful in my absence.

First off, greetings to Ereshkigal and Mechtild. I hope you'll see me sometime -- I'm a bit overloaded at the moment. But please keep on posting!

The clueless reporter who twitted EW's sex appeal sounds like she's getting a clue -- from numerous fans, and regular folks who realize that stalking isn't really slapstick material. Sigh. What can you do with some people? Let them make fools of themselves until they learn, I suppose.

from Serena
So have to conclude it's the Hotness Factor that makes the difference.
Plus, of course, the good taste, intelligence, sophistication and sheer insight of Elijah's fans.
Truer words were never spoken. As a special reward, here's a piccie of Hannah in TTT:

http://home.ricochet.com/mdes/limages/TTThanna.jpg

Moondancer, thanks for the Radio Flyer spoilers! I always like to hear about the possible endings. As a special reward for you (I'm big into rewards tonight), I'm attaching a scan of the Angeleno article using my new scanner! Dear Deluby secured a copy of the mag for me. I had to shrink it to make it small enough to add -- I hope you can read it. Enjoy! :k

Achilla, I'm delighted to hear your good "Hooligans" report. Hurray! I'll hope for the best.

Lady Wendy, thank you for the Zach pics. I think I'm in the Twilight Zone! He's similar, but very different.

CandyGirl, what a sad story. I'm afraid sometimes absent fathers never do come around. John Lennon's absent father was only too obviously (to John, anyway) trying to ride off his son's fame. He was playing the sob story to the press about being a dish washer. Lennon asked, "Why was he never interested in me before I was famous? Why is he suddenly coming forward (and to the press) now?" It was quite suspicious to John -- and doubtless seemed so to Elijah as well. Sigh. Some people really don't get it, and perhaps never will.

Ah, well. I must run. Hugs to all my Faculty friends!

CandyGirl, I'll second what has been said on your touching post! Stories like this are really precious gifts - thank you for sharing it :k .



Hannah is visible in the caves at Helm's Klamm (and I spotted her clearly next to Eowyn, when she turnes back to her uncle Theoden, shocked over the message of Aragorn's death. Must try to get a screencap of it.).

I have to correct myself. I recalled the scene right, but the woman I THOUGHT it could be Hannah, is standing behind Theoden. And compared to the screenshot Mariole posted (Thank you!) I'm no longer sure that it is Miss Wood. Isn't her nose more roundly shaped? It looks rather like Elijah with a *different* wig on, if you ask me :D :eek: .

Our Faculty should budget for a purchase of a blond "try-out" wig. Zach, Hannah and Elijah could wear it and we decide who looks best. :p
Anyway, here's the cap -


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/0903/whiteling/PDVD_HannahTTT.jpg



P.S. Mariole, thanks for the Angeleno scan :k !

Mariole... :k ...thanks so much for that scan. :)

Whiteling, that's not Hannah with king Theoden in that screencap, is it? :confused: That woman looks different than the one in Mariole's screencap.

Lady Wendy, thanks for those screencaps of Zach. I found that interview but didn't bother to register to the site to download the interview.


The Chicago Sun-Times has an article on the vertically challenged leading men of Hollywood.
A couple of quotes from that article:
Over the decades, scores of actors -- frequently shorter than their leading ladies -- have been born with the bone structure that "the camera loves." Apparently this genetic gift doesn't necessarily include coding for taller bodies.
And
Among our current "Hollywood hunks," more than a few will never grow taller than 5 feet 9 inches. "Lord of the Rings" star Elijah Wood certainly has done just fine at only 5 feet 6 inches.
The rest of it is here: Hollywood's real short subjects (http://www.suntimes.com/output/entertainment/cst-ftr-tom06.html)

Hello! Hmm, don't know how to start.. Well anyway, I've been lurking around here for some weeks now and so I decided to join. I'm not very good at thinking of good replies so I don't see me posting much. I do enjoy your conversation though. Sorry if I make any spelling or whatever literal errors, I'm not from an english speaking country and it can be difficult for me at times. Anyway, back to the lurking mode now

hallo girls!! taking a brake from the sun it is to hot!!!

welcom bohemian!!i hope you will join us here often
i am to from a non english country. but i think you will find it fun in
here anyway like i did!!! ;)

i think pj sade on the comentery on the tt,that it was elijahs
sister in the caves at helms deep:
akut problems have to go i will be back soon
love wood

that's not Hannah with king Theoden in that screencap, is it

No, definitely a different girl :)

I found that interview but didn't bother to register to the site to download the interview.

SERENA - I didn't have to pay to download that Zach video either. Not that I'm trying to rub it in or anything!! :p

but I don't see that much of a resemblance, really. Maybe if they were standing next to each other. Lij looks more like Hannah than he does Zach, I think

I'd agree with that AQUILA. And I think its quite surprising that their voices are nothing alike. I've always found that family members tend to have very similar voices. Very often, if my husband or son shout something to me when they're out of sight, I'm not sure which one of them it is. And my daughter's voice is very similar to mine, and mine is similar to my mother's, etc, etc. :) I can hardly see any facial resemblance between Zach and Elijah at all. I was very surprised when I watched that video - I think I was expecting him to have that special something, whatever it is, that Elijah has got. And of course, he hasn't. Nothing wrong with him, of course - he's just an ordinary-looking young man. And although Hannah is actually quite attractive - she doesn't have that elusive 'thing' either. I do have a pic of Elijah's dad and if I ever manage to find it I'll post it here. I could see a very slight resemblance, but not much.


The Faculty is a great place, and I am usually in too much awe of the brainpower here to contribute anything useful.

Now thats something I can certainly relate to - exactly the same applies to me. :o

Hi Bohemian, and welcome! Jseš češka? :) Srdečně tě vítáme!
It's great to have people here who are not from English-speaking countries - you may have noticed you are not the only one by a long way. I for one am in awe of people like Maeglian and Whiteling and Moondancer and wood (have I missed anyone?) who write so eloquently in this foreign language. And as for errors, native speakers of English are well capable of making those :eek: , so don't worry (we wouldn't dream of correcting anything we thought might be a linguistic error here anyway - people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones!).

Confession time: in the end I did send Lili (Mariole's clueless reporter, who made fun of Elijah and the stalker incident) the Viggo/Elijah Google hit statistics, and pointed out a spelling error while at it - but she really had asked for it (she was posing as a journalist and presumably getting paid for it, so she's fair game!)

Mariole, thank you for the pic :k Looks as if Hannah had been studying her big brother's acting technique there! Now, where did I put that DVD .....?
Wig is, well, not very realistic. Not sure it would really suit Elijah :D
Whiteling, I think you're right - that doesn't look like Hannah (or even Elijah! Still less Zach :D).

So EW is 5'6"? If only. Eye-witnesses seem to agree he's nearer 5'4". But maybe if we keep quiet no-one will notice .... ;) He's still a "Hollywood hunk", note :)

from Shireling:
I didn't have to pay to download that Zach video either. Not that I'm trying to rub it in or anything!!
Oh rats. Now I have to cancel that damn subscription as well. Still, it was fun while it lasted. Maybe I should download a few video games before cancelling? :eek: :rolleyes:

Serena said:

So EW is 5'6"? If only. Eye-witnesses seem to agree he's nearer 5'4". But maybe if we keep quiet no-one will notice .... He's still a "Hollywood hunk", note.

That corresponds better with what I seem to see. In their "stats" the other three hobbit actors listed themselves at 5'7" yet they didn't seem to be the same height -- Elijah was clearly the shortest of the four, distinctly shorter than Sean Astin. The only actor who seemed shorter than he in the film was Ian Holm, another fantastic but diminutive actor. Normally, actors tend to round their heights up to something taller, if not for male ego then for broadening their casting possibilities. But for this film, the other three hobbit actors may have rounded down, if it was part of the casting call that short actors were being sought. Was this a requirement? Since they were using scale to establish the height of the hobbits vis a vis the other races, the only thing that would matter would be for the hobbits to be roughly the same height as each other. They could all have been 6 feet tall and it wouldn't have made any difference. But was Elijah a solid choice for Frodo the first? If so, they would have been forced to choose only other short candidates for the rest of the hobbit roles. But I don't remember how the chronology went for the casting process.

Moondancer, thanks for the link to the "short" article. My husband was discussing the "famous short actors" issue with me just last night. I myself am tall for a woman; what is it about these shorties? I have had a soft spot for young Dustin Hoffman and Al Pacino each in turn, as well.

Hello Bohemian and Candy Girl; I am new to posting here, too.

As for which person in the film is Hannah Wood, I am certain that in the actor's commentary track for TTT, Billy or someone else clearly says, "That's Elijah's sister, Hannah" at the proper place. I was sort of thinking he meant that young woman behind King Theoden, but I am probably mistaken. She does not seem to be the same person as the one in the Aglarond, you're right.

-- Mechtild

Hi Bohemian,
:)
Where are you from?
Don't worry about not writing in your own language. Like Serena says, you're not alone and the natives don't tend to spank you for the spelling and grammar mistakes. ;) So, join in!

Mechtild, I don't know if you've noticed it but I send you a private message yesterday with family related (wood family of course, not mine) links. Since then, all of it has been shown by others in here, though. :)
But for this film, the other three hobbit actors may have rounded down, if it was part of the casting call that short actors were being sought. Was this a requirement?
From what I've read, Elijah was the first hobbit to be cast. The other main hobbits (Sam, Merry and Pipping) were chosen in function of Elijah's height.

And also with respect to Elijah's height, Frodo seems to be about an inch taller than Sam in the Gray Havens scene, and I thought he was a squeak taller than Sean Astin -- it looks that way in a lot of the pictures. Sean is 5'5". Dom is the tallest, but Lij is only a couple of inches shorter (when they're all standing side by side and wearing sneakers, etc.). So I'm inclined to agree that he most likely is 5'6".

Hello. It seems people are popping out of lurkdom all over the place, so this is a good a time as any for me to do the same! :)

I joined a month or two ago, but like others didn't feel quite ready to join in. However, since a couple of friends from another board have materialised (hello Mechtild & Ereshkigal), I thought it was time I did too (I'm Maewyn!). Also hello to LadyWendy who steered me in this direction! She's always been a wealth of information.

There are always interesting conversations going on here. I'm usually happy just to "listen", because I may not be able to contribute much.

However, perhaps I can help here regarding Hannah Wood in TTT. I remember watching a scene from a borrowed copy of the TTT EE (back in January I think) and listening to the actors' commentary. I'm not sure if it was Elijah or someone else that commented on Hannah's scene. The scene was where the people of Rohan had just arrived at Helms Deep (scene selection 36 - I just checked!). You see old men in the foreground, then people streaming into the caves. The camera then follows a young woman with long blonde hair as she walks forward and around a couple of people holding a child. She is clutching at her cloak near her throat as she walks. I paused it where she is looking up toward the roof of the cave. I can see the resemblence to Elijah there.

So EW is 5'6"? If only. Eye-witnesses seem to agree he's nearer 5'4". But maybe if we keep quiet no-one will notice .... He's still a "Hollywood hunk"
He's a perfect height for a person like me (just under 5'0")!

Kumari

Was this a requirement? Since they were using scale to establish the height of the hobbits vis a vis the other races, the only thing that would matter would be for the hobbits to be roughly the same height as each other. They could all have been 6 feet tall and it wouldn't have made any difference. But was Elijah a solid choice for Frodo the first? If so, they would have been forced to choose only other short candidates for the rest of the hobbit roles. But I don't remember how the chronology went for the casting process.

MARIOLE - the required height in the casting description was 5'4" - 5'9". But as you say, as long as they were roughly the same it shouldn't have mattered so I don't know why they felt it necessary to stipulate that. I'm not sure, but I have an idea Billy Boyd was the first hobbit cast, and of course he's exactly the same height as Elijah. Elijah was the next to be cast, followed by Sean and finally Dom.

When I saw Elijah at Collectormania last year - yep, there I go again :o - I judged his height to be approx. 5'4" - 5'5". But you know, I really wouldn't want him to be any taller, his height and slight build just seem to suit him somehow, he's so compact and petite, its just one more of his many charms :) Waits to be booted to Hugs Haven ;)

Hello again, Faculty!

Thanks to everyone who posted pics of Lij's family. Wendy, I'm with everyone else who couldn't see the last two. Wow! Zach looks vastly different from the one picture I remember seeing of him. That's all I'll say about that! :p What happened to that hot guy from before?!? Maybe it's just a bad picture?

I do remember once seeing a picture of Lij's dad - and I think it might have even been with the "Mirror" article that was linked to...like a scan of the original article. Seems like it was on "The Site Which Cannot Be Named"...but when I went back to look for it, I couldn't find it. Funnily enough, seems like the caption under his (Warren's) pic said something about "Elijah's look-alike father, Warren Wood". To me, he wasn't really a "Look-Alike"...but there was a definate resemblance there. Like, if you didn't know Warren was Elijah's dad, you probably wouldn't look at him and go, "Wow! He looks like Elijah Wood!". But, knowing who he is and looking at him with Elijah in mind (and who among us doesn't have Elijah in mind! :D Hehe!), you can definately see it. I remember he was a nice looking older man...despite being bald (iirc!). Something about the shape of his face or maybe his general bone structure was the same. And I think Elijah has his dad's smile along with the dimples which always accompany his grin. A very pleasant looking man - but, again - very just ordinary looking. Like someone who could be your neighbor or a co-worker - or even your dad. :)

((((Candygirl)))), what a wonderful post. Thank you so much for telling us your story! I hardly know what to say ..... it's so moving in its own right, as your story, and it also gives us so much insight into how Elijah must have felt and possibly still feels. Did you and your father become closer again? Did he come to recognise what he had lost in you?

Serena, thanks for the wonderful hug and the sweet words you had to say. Uhm...as far as if my father and I are closer now...yes, we are closER...but probably not what you would call close. For instance, it has been over a year since I spoke with him, but feel like I could pick up the phone and call him at any time. Before we were 'reunited' it had been over 15 years since we had spoken. Talk about a hard phone call to make! We still have a VERY long way to go, but at least there is some progress. Like I said, I haven't talked to him since May of 03. I purposely DIDN'T call him at Christmas - just to see if HE would take the initiative and call ME. He didn't. But, I'm ok with it. I figured out a long time ago that my daddy was never going to be like the one in my growing up fantasies and I have made my peace with that. Maybe we can't have a perfect (or even good) relationship, but we can try at least to know each other. Like Elijah said, "it just is what it is..." and I can't MAKE it be anything else - I just have to try to make it the best it can be. He's the only daddy I have and I DO love him...as best as I can. I actually almost called him last night, but decided not to. Maybe tonight. {{{{Serena}}}} Thanks again for the hugs!

CandyGirl, what a sad story. I'm afraid sometimes absent fathers never do come around.

No, sadly Mariole, sometimes they don't. But sometimes they do. I hope that one day, Elijah's father will 'come around'.

So EW is 5'6"? If only. Eye-witnesses seem to agree he's nearer 5'4".

Hehe! Maybe he's like me! I used to measure 5'6", but the last time I was measured, they measured me at 5'4 3/4" - I'm shrinking!!! I knew women tended to shrink, but I didn't think that happened until you are MUCH older (not at just 30!!) :eek:

Wow, what a great day of first-posters (Bohemian, do not fear the hurdle of language. Posting here can be a way of truly creative writing ;) . (Anyway, I have the sneaking suspicion that our Serena has knowledge of languages I've never heard of... ;) )
So, WELCOME, WELCOME to Bohemian and Kumari :) :) ! Make yourself comfortable and tell us what you think of the incredible acting talent of Elijah Jordan Wood.



I figured out a long time ago that my daddy was never going to be like the one in my growing up fantasies and I have made my peace with that. Maybe we can't have a perfect (or even good) relationship, but we can try at least to know each other. Like Elijah said, "it just is what it is..." and I can't MAKE it be anything else - I just have to try to make it the best it can be. He's the only daddy I have and I DO love him...as best as I can.

This "acknowledging what is" is probably the most healing and peaceful way to come to terms with familiy issues. I'm really glad you can see it this way! And this I'm hoping for Elijah, too.

Welcome, Kumari! :)
And thanks for the Hannah info - will look out for her specially.
My, all these interesting new people! Wendy, we should appoint you Faculty Lounge Personnel Officer :)

Candygirl, thank you too :k
I'm joining Whiteling in hoping for some family healing for you and for Elijah.

The hobbit size issue: dunno, but I'd always assumed smallish actors were deliberately cast as the hobbits because it would make forced perspective that much easier. If Ian McKellen and Elijah had been the same size - or, worse still, if the Frodo actor had been taller than the Gandalf actor :eek: - it would have been much harder to make them look the relative sizes of Gandalf and Frodo when sitting in the cart, for example, or in the Bag End kitchen (as most people know - particularly anyone who's seen the hilarious French & Saunders send-up :D - Elijah was several feet/metres further from the camera than Ian in those shots, but his relative smallness helps a lot too). It would also have been much harder to do the scenes in Bree, where apparently they had people on stilts acting some of the humans! And other Fellowship scenes e.g. on the mountainside and in Moria, where Frodo has to be acted by Elijah but look a lot smaller than the humans, elves and wizards. And so on.

Still on the size issue, amazing characters though Kirin and co were, I've always rather regretted the decision to use scale doubles for the hobbits instead of more bluescreen. OK, it relieved the hobbit actors of some of the distance work, but it is SO noticeable when it's the doubles and not the actors - they simply don't have the same physique or move the same way. I remember having to explain the scale doubles to a friend who (after seeing FOTR) thought Elijah was round and podgy because of that shot of Kirin on the bank intercepting Gandalf! (One critic even referred to Elijah - Elijah of all people !! - as "podgy", and I'm sure that's why - Kirin is nowhere near as slim and lithe as Lij, and it shows.) And all the doubles run totally differently from the actors.

Bluescreen is hard, of course, but it worked wonderfully well in the sequences with Bilbo/Frodo/Gandalf and the the Ring in Bag End, for instance, and in lots of other places. But then I'm no filmmaking expert, and I don't know whether bluescreen is possible for running shots, as when the Fellowship run from the Balrog in the Mines of Moria. Maybe it wasn't clear at first how obvious the doubles would look - wonder if PJ would take the same decision now? I'd guess not.

Oh, and I've always seen Sean A as being a couple of inches bigger than Elijah, not smaller. In shots where you see all four hobbits, to me Elijah and Billy look about the same height, Sean taller and Dom a tiny bit taller still. Elijah once said that Billy is slightly smaller than him and that Sean and Dom are slightly taller. I think.
What does anyone else think?

I thought Hannah was the girl who bumps that stalagtite in the cave? But I think she also appears outside Helms Deep as you said Kumari.

Welcome Kumari and Bohemian!

Candy Girl, I'm glad to see you back! I can so identify with your issues with your dad, even though mine was always in the same house with us as we were growing up.

As an experiment I read the following to my husband :

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.

I asked him whom (who?) it described. He said it sounded a lot like my dad. I told him it was Elijah talking about his dad. To which my husband responded "Wow! But I think he actually had it easier than you; your dad is very critical. He only interacted with you in a critical way."

Of course we are only seeing Elijah talking about a part of his relationship with his dad. Who knows what comprised the rest of it.

But my dad was never interested in us as we were growing up. He was never visited our schools; all that was left to mom. He admitted to Mom that he had never wanted kids; apparently she thought he was kidding. He was also admittedly jealous of the close relationship we had with our mom. He could ride for hours in the car with us, and never have a thing to say. And I just sat there feeling horrible, like I was the one lacking.

This put my mother in the position of doing nearly everything for us except providing financial support. She also spent a good portion of time playing the role of "styrofoam" between my dad, and my sis and I. She was caught always defending us to him, or making sure that we didn't do any of the zillion things that irritated him. Like coming to the table with our long hair down, playing music in the house when he was around, or even taking music lessons at school.

But the really sad part is that now he's been a widower for 11 years, and he's in the early stages of alzheimers. Suddenly he needs my sister and I, but there is no emotional kinship there. We really have only the shared history of living in the same house, but he doesn't know of our lives because, though he comes to our houses, he's still never been interested in our jobs, hobbies, ideas, politics...

My family is christian of a rather conservative stripe, and my mother told my husband once that, had she not been a christian she would have divorced my dad long since.

I don't feel quite whole in some ways, given this lack of a relationship with my dad. Especially when I watch my very sweet husband and our daughter. And I suspect that Elijah may feel a similar un-wholeness. My heart really goes out to him.

But having lived with an emotionally detached father who was very critical and jealous, I'm not sure Elijah is really worse off for not having had his father physically in the house. Given that it seems his father may be jealous of his success, I think he may very well be better off.

It makes me wonder though if that isn't part of why he seems to become so close to his cast-mates so often. I read comments he made about working on Faculty, LoTR of course, and others. And he always seems to form tight working relationships which may be part of the charisma that everyone speaks of.

Honey!

Hi, Kumari! Hi, Bohemian! Please don't worry about making English mistakes. I can see at a glance that your English far surpasses any second-language skills I might torture the world with.

Serena, I adore your little joke on Lili. Making supposed journalists get their facts straight is a true public service. Thank you!

Looks as if Hannah had been studying her big brother's acting technique there!
You know what I noticed? The partly parted lips. Elijah in real life hardly ever does "the pouty look," but Frodo does almost nothing but. It's cute! (But now I really want to see Elijah in a blond wig.) :p

Thanks for the height info, Shireling. From what I understand, Peter Jackson's people found that tall people "shrunk down" to hobbit height looked funny. Their preferred size was about 5'7", for technical reasons. (Serena's forced perspective comment is certainly part of this also.) I think that's another, perhaps even primary, reason why all the hobbits are close in height. (But Galadriel does say to Frodo, "Even the smallest person can make a difference." Sort of noting that Frodo is the smallest of the band, vs. the tallest in Tolkien's book -- at least until the Ent draught!).

Serena, your height impressions match mine. Clearly Dom's the tallest. And I also regret the frequent use of scale doubles. I tend not to notice bluescreen, but many people do, so I guess this was the best trade-off PJ could make. He also mixed up the techniques, which was a plus. So no one group could get too irritated at his sizing tricks!

Thanks for the new article, Moondancer! I love discussing heights. Here's another article about actor height vs box office. The short guys do pretty well here, too:

http://www.defamer.com/topic/krucoffs-data-dump-hollywood-dollars-by-the-inch-018147.php

Honey, I'm sorry to learn a similar "distant Dad" story in your family. Hugs to you, CandyGirl, Lij, and others who've had to deal with this. :(

I always thought Elijah was... 168-170 cm tall..that should be..5'6 I think.. As for his father, I think that he still wants to spend time with him deep inside. He's still his father.. Okay, that made no sence.

And I'm from Estonia Moondancer. And serena, if that was what you were asking then no, I don't speak czech

Welcome to the new soon-to-be-former lurkers! This forum seems to originate in England, which makes the former colonists across the Atlantic definitely foreign.

I woudn't worry about imperfect English. The best way to improve writing skills is to *write*. Ask some of the people who have been here for a while - chances are that without realizing it, their English has improved (although my Swedish and Russian haven't at all :( ). I sometimes post in American slang, which is a strange and bizzare language in itself, and nobody's fallen over in shock yet (that I know of ;) ). It is a treat for me to converse with people from so many places; differences and similarities in culture, expression, and ideas are fascinating. Sadly, the US, though made up of people from all nations, tends to live and socialize in ethnic groups, so everyday contact (except for work) with people who don't speak English as first language is rare. Also, when families get to about the second generation born in the US, they seem to drop the old languages, which is sad, and most people seem to not study other languages seriously in the US. My own family held out for nearly 200 years; my mother's generation is the first that was not bi-lingual.

I also would not worry about expressing ideas and opinions. As far as I'm concerned, everyone's opinion in a discussion is valid, and as I said above, it's a privilege to exchange ideas with people in many places. Very often someone will make an observation that will make me see things in a whole new context. I've seen people on other forums become very upset when their opinions are challenged, but I always think that if someone disagrees with me, at least they thought what I wrote was interesting enough to disagree with! (I *DARE* someone to diagram that sentence! ;) )

Re: Hannah Wood - my word, she's tiny! It's interesting how the same features in two different genders can make them so alike and so different! It also shows how male EW really looks, and how adult-looking he's becoming.

I'm dying to discuss the parent issues in All I Want (Try Seventeen), but no time right now! :(

Re: short actors. Well, *DUH*! In what way would an actor's height determine his hotness factor? And wasn't Katherine Hepburn taller than Spencer Tracy? Bacall was surely taller than Bogart.

~grumpy
"You ended that sentence with a preposition! B**t*rd!" -- Col. Jack O'Niell, Stargate SG-1

from Bohemian:
And serena, if that was what you were asking then no, I don't speak czech
Silly me. If I'd looked in the top right-hand corner of your post I'd have seen you were Estonian, not literally Bohemian! So - tere tulemast!
(No, I don't really know ANY Estonian, sad to say - but I have colleagues who do. Not to mention some real Estonian colleagues.)

from Whiteling:
I have the sneaking suspicion that our Serena has knowledge of languages I've never heard of...
There may be advantages to that - if no-one's heard of them they don't notice when you get it wrong, do they? :D But seriously - a lot of people here know languages I've never heard of - such as, erm, Quenya and Sindarin? I've sort of heard of them, but ....

(((Honeyelf))), your story is so moving too. How sad for your whole family not to have had that genuine emotional bond. (My own dad said very little - he had been brought up to be very inhibited emotionally - but it was clear to us that he cared even if he couldn't express it. When he started to lose his faculties he and I became much closer, maybe closer than we'd ever been, because suddenly he needed help. So that was in some ways a blessing in disguise.)

from Honeyelf:
I don't feel quite whole in some ways, given this lack of a relationship with my dad.
You know, I can well believe that Elijah shares that with you. What Sean A said about the searching quality in him really resonates. I keep thinking of him in KV, hugging Bernard Hill the way he did - well, they hugged each other, but there was something of a father-son thing happening there. I thought. And you're right, Honey - Elijah talks a lot about his fellow cast/crew members becoming families. He must miss having a father so much.

Oh dear - it's getting harder and harder to stay away from this board!

I found this in The Yank Yahoo group copied from someone who seems in the know at IMDB....

" I have been reading several messages suggesting a boycott of the yank
because the lead role is played by Elijah the Hobbit and not Danny
Dyer (football factory)
Having seen football factory I must say what an excellant film superb
charactors and actors that really summed up the Saturday ritual and
the need in some to spill blood.

As for the Yank first and formost Elijah Wood does not play a
football Hooligan as most contributers seem to think !

He is the brother of a girl who is married to a retired thug "Steve
Dunham"
Matt (Elijah) gets chummy with Steve`s younger brother Pete played by
Charlie Hunnam
and gets dragged along to Upton park.
Matt spends 90% of the film avoiding violence as he is not trusted By
the firm of hooligans "Green street elite"

Elijah turns in a fantastic performance so do the rest of the cast.
Unlike the football factory all fight scenes were choriographed by
screen legend Pat Johnson (Enter the Dragon 1974)

All hooligans attended fight training schoolwhich were run by Pat
himself. The end result is an outstanding sequenses of fights etc.
Make no mistake "football factory" would have been forgotten by next
year where as "the yank" will be talked about for many a year.
Quote "Guys this fight scene will go down in Cinema history and will
be talked about by your grandchildren,its awesome" Pat Johnson after
watching the closing fight sequence on the monitor.
So lets not judge anything until we have seen this film amd then by
all means draw comparisons and voice your opinions.

This is Elijah coming of age so to speak and the elven cloak will
finally be discarded. A great actor!! "

That's a lot of new info there.

Elijah's character's name is Matt.

He tries to AVOID the fights he so obviously, from all the photo's we've seen, gets into.

Highly choreographed fight sequences by a true master.

And the writer here says Elijah is fantastic! Now that's what we want to hear!

Ok...ya'll are turning me into a frequent poster in one day's time! :D Ya'll are so interesting I just HAVE to make a few comments!

Whiteling:
This "acknowledging what is" is probably the most healing and peaceful way to come to terms with familiy issues. I'm really glad you can see it this way! And this I'm hoping for Elijah, too.

Whiteling, YES! It was. Putting away the fantasy and embracing the reality was definately the most healing part. Although, it WAS nice to finally hear my dad say he was sorry for all those years of absence and to learn that he DID think of me and wish we could be together (though, I still wish he'd made more of an effort to make that happen...anyway!).

Serena:
Candygirl, thank you too
I'm joining Whiteling in hoping for some family healing for you and for Elijah.

***Hugs you really tight!!*** :k Hehe! We are getting down right snuggly! Thank you for the healing hope! I'm sure Lijah would appreciate it too.

Honeyelf:Candy Girl, I'm glad to see you back! I can so identify with your issues with your dad, even though mine was always in the same house with us as we were growing up.

**Hugs** Honey, it seems that there are far too many of us who can identify in this area, doesn't it? In some ways, I think it might even be just a tad bit worse to be in the situation of having the father physically present, but not emotionally, rather than just absent completely. I would imagine it's a more "right there in your face" kind of rejection. I'm sorry you had to go through this. You don't deserve it. You deserved to be loved well and much.

Honeyelf:
I don't feel quite whole in some ways, given this lack of a relationship with my dad. Especially when I watch my very sweet husband and our daughter. And I suspect that Elijah may feel a similar un-wholeness. My heart really goes out to him.

Oh, Honey! I SO know what you mean. I remember as a little girl watching my cousins with my uncle (their father, of course ;) ), seeing the love and affection and caring between them, and just having this sort of hole inside of me, that I didn't really understand at the time. I felt so much the starving beggar, looking longingly at a delicious feast which he knows will never be his. And, though I am much healed from that little girl, I STILL have that since of incompleteness. I suspect that I always will. It's a bit like Frodo's wound which, though it would get better (and not pain him every minute of every day), it would never truly heal and the scar would always be there. Every time I read quotes of Elijah speaking of his relationship with is father, I can sense it in him as well...that longing, that hunger. Though he is very careful with his words, and, in my opinion, very honoring of his father in what he does not say, to those with an eye for it (i.e., those who have 'been there' so to speak), it is still discernable. I always mentally shake my head and think, "I know, sweetie. I know."

Serena (again! she's so quotable! :))
You know, I can well believe that Elijah shares that with you. What Sean A said about the searching quality in him really resonates. I keep thinking of him in KV, hugging Bernard Hill the way he did - well, they hugged each other, but there was something of a father-son thing happening there. I thought. And you're right, Honey - Elijah talks a lot about his fellow cast/crew members becoming families. He must miss having a father so much.

And isn't it wonderful that he is able to find, in various places in his life, those who would sort of 'stand in' for his father. I have certainly found this in my life, and while no one can really take their place, it really helps to have those folks around. One of our church's deacon's recently passed away, and when I was hugging his wife at the funeral, I told her this: "Ms. Joy, I know you and Billy had a lot of children of your own together, but I want you to know that having his own did not stop him from being a father to the fatherless. Billy always made it a point during fellowship time on Sunday mornings to find me and give me the biggest hug and say, "You are so Beautiful! I love you!". Then, he would always give me a kiss right on my hairline at my temple." I so needed him to do that! Everytime I see our boy with someone like BH or even Ian M., I am always glad for him because it seems he is getting a little taste of what he has to be hungry for.

I'll hush now.

Blessings, all! :k
cp

Wasn't book Frodo "fairer than most" and "taller than some?" That implied to me that while he was an unusually good-looking hobbit, he was average in height. (If you're taller than some, you're shorter than some, too, no?) Well, anyway, my perception of the actors' on-screen heights did fit with Serena's description above. Thanks for the reminder, Serena, of how having actually short actors was a big factor in creating scale using forced perspective.

And I, too, thought the scale doubles were used in places where they became very noticeable. I always smile in the scene as the Ithilien rangers hand Sam and Frodo from one to another, entering Henneth Annun. Kirin is so positively round in that pass shot, it really "sticks out" a mile that he's not the Frodo we just saw or will see in a minute.

Oh, hi, Kumari/Maewyn! You listened to the part of the commentary I remembered.

As to the father issue (repeating others, I am sorry your own fathers were not there for you, Candy Girl and Honey; mine was a tyrant, but I could tell he really did love us deep down somewhere or other), I had wondered often if Elijah had a somewhat filial relationship with Peter (and Fran?). It struck me the most during that string of awards ceremonies this Jan. and Feb. -- he and the Jacksons seemed really, really familiar and close, more so than was the case between the Jacksons and any other cast member.

-- Mechtild

Another edit!
And I, too, thought the scale doubles were used in places where they became very noticeable. I always smile in the scene as the Ithilien rangers hand Sam and Frodo from one to another, entering Henneth Annun. Kirin is so positively round in that pass shot, it really "sticks out" a mile that he's not the Frodo we just saw or will see in a minute.

I interpreted (ok, ok, I rationalized!) that scene as a change in perspective - that we were seeing the hobbits as the Big People see them. It's usually possible to tell when it's a scale double, and sometimes the proportions change slightly. For example, when everyone runs across the grass to the woods of Lothlorien, it's obvious that the hobbits are scale doubles. Oddly enough, at the end of RotK, when Frodo steps onto the gangplank, the scale double's movements were more like EW's than almost anywhere else.

My original post:

Thanks to everyone who's been sharing on such a deep level!

I think that the instinct in a child is, when he/she doesn't get parenting/family as needed, to find a surrogate. It's reasonable to speculate that an (even emotional) absence of dad would give him the inclination to find a surrogate. Spending so much time away from home (even if Mom was there, and alone when he got older), and being mostly around adults, a kid would probably look for surrogate siblings as well as surrogate parent(s). Actual siblings can also fill in as parent figures; my oldest bro. is 8 years older than I am, and he and I had a special bond when I was little. I remember getting lost when I was about 2, and when someone 12 blocks away (in a candy store - I knew what was what even at that age! ;) ) finally figured out who I was, my brother came and got me and took me home in his bicycle basket. :::: sniffle ::::.

Then there's my family, who puts the "FUN" in dysFUNctional! :::: running away giggling madly ::::

~grumpy
Edited to say: I wonder if I can arrange to be in close proximity when EW is handing out hugs? ::: heeheehee ::: :p

Actually, sometimes I like the sudden intrusion of the scale doubles. They rarely look like the actors they are doubling, this is true, but they remind us what true hobbit size is compared to the humans. The scene Mech mentioned with Faramir's men is a good case in point. True, that's certainly not slim little Elijah Wood, but seeing these hobbits handed into the cave remind us how small they are, and in what desperate straits they are in.

My favorite double scene is when Gandalf puts Pippin on Shadowfax just before they gallop off to Minas Tirith. It breaks my heart to "remember" how small Pippin is, and how ill-equipped he is to be heading into war.

godmorning ladies!!!! :)

about the scale questien,i think there is two times when
i coulde see it clearly.the first time was in fotr when they standing
out side the place were galadrel and celeborn lives(i can`t remember
it`s name)and the second time is at the grey havens when frodo walks
on the ship.it realy diden`t botherd me but you coulde see it realy clear.

but like ereshkigal sade it`s realy remaid you of how small the
hobbits realy are!!! :)

my parents devorst when i was a kid,but i alwayes hade a close
relationship with my father so i lived with him and my big sister and
little brother lived with my mother.i diden`t come close to my mother
untill my father suddenly died 7years ago by a heartattack. :(

i agree that it coulde be the lack of his father elijah comes close to
his castmembers and he was only 18 when he left for new zeeland
so i guess thats why the hole crew and cast become like his family.
and specily sean who parently become like a big brother for him!! :)

this was my first post for the day!!
lets see how many it will be to day :lol:
yesterday you all were very activ posting it is so fun to see
and read all new post ;)

and a warm welcome to all new ones i hope you will
enjoy it here as much as i do!! :k :k

De-lurking...

So many wonderful posts here over the past few days, and quite a few new posters to welcome to The Faculty Lounge.

So, welcome Mechtild - I've read and enjoyed many of your posts over at Torc - Frodo's Kitchen etc. and I know you'll be a worthy contributor to the discussions here. (I believe we have a mutual friend in Zazinka/Flourish). :)

The same goes for Eresh and Kumari (Maewyn) - I also feel I know you both a little from seeing your posts over at Torc - (I'm registered there, though I hardly ever post, for the same reason I don't contribute much here):

The Faculty is a great place, and I am usually in too much awe of the brainpower here to contribute anything useful.

I think this was CandyGirl's quote. I feel much the same as you in that respect, CandyGirl and Shireling (Shireling - did you by any chance meet Elijah at Collectormania last year? ;) :D ) - I am not worthy!

Hello and welcome too, to Bohemian. Language never seems to be a problem here. We all share a very common interest - Elijah! -that binds us together no matter where in the world we live! :)

And welcome back, CandyGirl - it's lovely to see you again. Thanks for sharing your very moving story. The same goes for Honey. As someone who had very loving parents, reading your posts made me realize just how fortunate I was.

As for Elijah - It seems he grew up very quickly, with no father-figure around. I also remember reading that article about his mother deferring to him, and his very mature response to that situation. Debbie Wood must be very proud of him - and rightly so! We have so much to be grateful to her for.

Thanks to all who have posted new articles and older interviews over the past few days - it was good to read the Angelino article again, and the new information on 'The Yank' gave me renewed hope for that film. We've always known our boy is a sweetie, but I love it when people say nice things about him! :)

Originally quoted by serena:
I've always rather regretted the decision to use scale doubles for the hobbits instead of more bluescreen. OK, it relieved the hobbit actors of some of the distance work, but it is SO noticeable when it's the doubles and not the actors - they simply don't have the same physique or move the same way.

While I take Eresh's point about the use of scale doubles reminding us how small the hobbits are, I share your sentiments too, Serena. Kirin walks with a totally different gait than Elijah, and I notice it every time. Does anyone know if there were any more doubles used for the films, other than the small scale doubles? I ask because I've been screencapping the Shelob's Lair sequence for gifs, and noticed what I think is NOT Elijah caught in the web! I made a quick collage:

http://www.imagemagician.com/images/blossom/EW-doubles.jpg

Of the three central images - obviously the middle one IS Elijah - it's the other two I'm not sure about. I'm certain that the one in the wide shot at the top and the closer shot to the left in the centre row - is NOT Elijah. The one on the right in the centre row I'm not so sure about. The nose seems wrong, somehow. I don't know - but it looks the same as another double I think is standing in for Elijah in 'Fellowship,' (bottom pic) just before the four hobbits fall headlong down the bank in 'A shortcut to mushrooms.' I know it's an odd angle, but that just doesn't look like Elijah to me. I've also inserted a small pic of Sam from the same shot - I'm not sure that's Sean Astin, either.

These shots pass very quickly when you're watching the film, and are only noticeable, I think, on close study. It's strange, because there are plenty of similar shots of Frodo in Shelob's Lair - looking at him from behind with his face in profile or slighly turned towards us - that are clearly Elijah, so why use a shot of a double? They apparently spent three or four days filming Elijah running around those tunnels - they must have had more than enough footage of Elijah himself struggling in that web! :confused:

Or perhaps all the Frodos in the collage ARE Elijah, and it's just me going quietly mad! Any thoughts?

The scale double v bluescreen issue is interesting. Some of the bluescreen footage worked perfectly - I'm sure there's a shot of Elijah somewhere in the extras of 'Fellowship,' where he's against a bluescreen, wearing a blue tee-shirt, filming the shot of Frodo looking back and screaming for Gandalf as he's in Boromir's arms running out of Moria. That was brilliantly done. I must look that up, and perhaps make a gif...

...sorry for interrupting the conversation.

Carry on.

... and still this amazing discussion goes on! Thanks, everyone.

from Candygirl:
Every time I read quotes of Elijah speaking of his relationship with his father, I can sense it in him as well...that longing, that hunger. Though he is very careful with his words, and, in my opinion, very honoring of his father in what he does not say, to those with an eye for it (i.e., those who have 'been there' so to speak), it is still discernable. I always mentally shake my head and think, "I know, sweetie. I know."
oh dear ... pulls self together .... sniff ...


from Mechtild:
I had wondered often if Elijah had a somewhat filial relationship with Peter (and Fran?). It struck me the most during that string of awards ceremonies this Jan. and Feb. -- he and the Jacksons seemed really, really familiar and close, more so than was the case between the Jacksons and any other cast member.

Me too! The way Peter and Fran (and Ian McK!) all looked while Elijah was presenting ROTK at the Golden Globes speaks volumes - there was so much love and affection and pride in their faces that he might as well have been their son! (three parents? ... but then people would queue up to be Elijah's parents, don't you think? :) )

And then there's that other side of fame - the feeling that even your family sometimes see you only as that face on the screen, that household name, as when Elijah's father wanted to talk to him - him only, not his siblings - after FOTR came out, and for the first time in years. Lij has said the same thing about women - that he's always aware of when they are interested in him for his name or his movies rather than for himself. He must see that constantly in people's faces and hear it in their words; it's written across the faces of everyone he was photographed with in KV, for instance. I couldn't help thinking what a strange and oddly lonely position he was in there, despite being the centre of everyone's attention the whole time.
But of course some people then saw who he was, and marvelled.
(And no, on balance I think the dark-haired lady at the KV party was his interpreter, not his girlfriend; the body language was not that of lovers ...)

OK, time for a change of subject. Which reminds me:

from Blossom:
...sorry for interrupting the conversation.

Why?? Which conversation? There are always about 6 going on simultaneously here, and lots of us (including yours truly) jump about like kangaroos from one to another. So no apologies needed (except from everyone, that is .... ;))

So let's jump to the scale doubles! Yes, there was a very tall scale double for Gandalf (over 7 foot, I think) who hugged Frodo when he jumped in to the cart and had his back to the camera when Bilbo answered the door of Bag End (for example). In fact there were apparently four people in that cart at various times: Ian, Elijah and both their scale doubles. When Gandalf hugs Frodo, all four were involved in quick succession to keep the size illusion going. And John Rhys-Davies (over 6 ft!) had a Gimli double who was dwarf-sized, i.e. 4'7?", I think, and a true hero by all accounts, because he kept doing the Gimli stunts despite knee injuries (all this is in the extras - mostly the FOTR DVD?). Yes, those scale doubles worked well - better than the hobbit doubles, I thought (but yes, I take the point about the little people reminding us of how little hobbits are).

But as for OTHER doubles, Blossom (great collage, by the way :)) - that's a bit of a mystery! I'm pretty sure it's Elijah in your centre right shot, and probably in the top and left ones caught in the web as well, though it's hard to tell. But I'm sure I heard or read somewhere about stuntmen having done the tumble down the bank in the "mushrooms" sequence (they wouldn't want to risk injuring a key actor, after all), so you may be right in saying it's not Elijah or Sean there (but is that Billy in the middle?). I'm not at all sure! This calls for more investigation ;)

Serena, I know it's going to turn out to have an obvious answer and then I will smite my brow for a dunderhead, but was is "KV?"

It's written across the faces of everyone he was photographed with in KV, for instance. (...) (And no, on balance I think the dark-haired lady at the KV party was his interpreter, not his girlfriend; the body language was not that of lovers ...)

I enjoyed your comments about the Jacksons and Ian McKellen responding to Elijah up on stage at the Globes, too. But, no, I wouldn't like to be his parent. Send me back to the swoon thread. (I was going to add a "Wicked Smiley" face, but I didn't see one offered.)

Blossom! Thank you for the welcome. You are right, you didn't post much! You were in the Kitchen thread all that time? I should pull it up and go have a look. Did you visit on the other Frodo-related threads in TORC's Movies Forum in its hey-day? Greetings! P. S., I too think it looks like Wood in those web shots; the strings of the web, exerting pressure on his face, may slightly alter his features. I can't imagine, as you say yourself, why they would use a double for such close shots when they had so much footage of him.

-- Mechtild

Something really neat has happened.

I went to IMDB to check on that message that I posted yesterday from the person who worked on the Yank.

I PMed him from the boards there and got some really interesting replies.


I asked him if he had worked on the film..

Reply #1
"Helo and thanks for the message,

Yes I worked on the film as an Hooligan in Elijah`s gang
West ham.

If would like to see some pics have a look at my website
www.itagain.biz

A great guy and very polite.

All the best

Steve....."

And here is his site... There are pics of him and Elijah on the set.

http://www.itagain.biz/steve_benhamx.html

I thanked him for replying and asked him if he knew when the movie will be released since I post on several Elijah boards and sites and we are all anxious for information.

Reply #2
"The film is due for release in the uk Feb 2005 I also think this is the general date for u.s. as well."

Now look at what he added... :D

"Do you want a copy of the script for the yank ? its only one day shoot but has Elijahs lines in it etc. Also have call sheets and bits and pieces,that you may be interested in."

Of course I said YES! :D :cool:

I'll update with anything that he sends me.

Edit: Several posts while I was writing (not unusual). On hobbits-rolling-down-the-bank shot. I think that was one of the first scenes shot, and IIRC, the very first issue of the Fan Club magazine had some info about it (it seems there were a number of "hobbit piles" til PJ had one he thought was okay). So if any Fan Club members have that magazine, it might shed some light.

Hobmom--Great source! We haven't had much on Hooligans for awhile.

My one experience with messages at IMBd was with the one person who'd reviewed Day-O. Figured if he reviewed it, he must have seen it, right?? But he never wrote me back. So, yes, Goldenberry, the Holy Grail is still out there somewhere. There isn't even contact info for Delta Burke at IMDb, so my plan of writing her hasn't worked out (and a search for her name brings up a gazillion people selling her brand of clothes online). Oh, BTW, as far as pics from that movie, there are some at Star Galaxy (http://www.stargalaxy.com/membermain.php?SID=605c475f407b57c56380c2bf271a60ef), which was a place I visited often during my early (pre-FotR ;) ) EJW fan days.


Welcome back to Mechtild and CandyGirl, and welcome for the first time to Kumari and Bohemian--I believe I got Eresh the last time around :) . As to the intimidating "brainpower" here--it's mostly a good act ;) . Besides, almost everyone who posts has said they don't have it, so who's doing the intimidating, anyway :confused: ? I know there are at least a couple of regulars here (not including me) who have, y'know, letters after their names, and one of them said she was intimidated, so I think we're all just "one big happy" :) .

Having said that, here's a Faculty-length treatise on scale doubles and forced perspective ;) [Note #1: long doesn't necessarily mean intelligent :p . Note #2: to any newcomers who haven't run across this in their lurking, one of the ground rules in this thread is that you're forbidden to apologize for making a post "too long".] (And, yes, I'm afraid I always write this way-- :p ...)

On scale doubles, et al. One scene that I thought was quite brilliantly done is the little tussle between Boromir and Merry & Pippin when he's teaching them swordfighting in FotR and they end up on the ground. I don't think the casual viewer would catch on that we never see Boromir's face in the same frame as the face of one of the hobbits. Good editing there, methinks. :)

Some of the problems, it seems, could have been solved in one way or another. Whenever I see that long shot of Gandalf sending Frodo and Sam off on the first leg of the quest, I always think, "Y'know, if they'd cut that grass shorter, the little guys wouldn't have to lift their feet so high and they wouldn't be as obvious." Some of the way they walk might actually be fairly realistic. If you think about it, two short people walking together (say, Frodo and Sam) can walk quite naturally, but if you have someone who's short trying to keep up with someone taller, the short one has to take quicker steps than he normally would (say, the long shot of Frodo and Gandalf leading the Fellowship away from Rivendell).

But IMHO some of the scenes where the doubles are used would be pretty hard to do with either blue screen or forced perspective, because of physical contact between the characters (an example is the handing on of the hobbits from Man to Man that's been mentioned). I'll bet, though, that the Weta folks learned enough from dealing with Gollum that they'd be a lot closer now to being capable of doing something like that without doubles as they were during principle filming--during that very first fight between Sam and Gollum, it's hard to believe it's Sean fighting against... nothing! Especially when the nothing has him wrapped up in its arms and legs :cool: .

IMVVHO, we do have to remember that the people making these movies were basically inventing most of what they did as they went along. To steal an old phrase, they were "doing seven things before breakfast" that filmmakers had declared could never be done. At this point, it's maybe difficult to remember just how groundbreaking FotR was, but as soon as it was released, AFI immediately put it on its top ten list of movies that have changed the way movies are made. People who'd been saying, "Well, it just can't be done," couldn't get away with it anymore--and I think that's already affected a number of films.

My favorite example of their inventiveness is a pretty mundane-looking shot--Frodo and Gandalf together in the cart at the beginning of FotR. It had previously been declared impossible to use forced perspective when the subject was in motion. But the LotR folks invented a new type of platform for the camera, so it could track the way they wanted it to, and the result is a hobbit and an istari chatting and sitting side-by-side in a moving cart, both of them seeming to be their proper heights.

BTW, regarding that first scene, I did some stop motion screencaps a couple of years ago that are a reminder that the doubles went both ways. When Frodo jumps off the bank into Gandalf's arms, that really is Elijah jumping--into the arms of Ian McK's scale double (who we also see dancing among the hobbits at Bilbo's party).

It's been said that 20 years from now, people will look at these movies and laugh about how primitive the special effects are, the way we might laugh at Glinda arriving in Munchkinland in her bubble. And I'm sure that's true. But I'll bet that a lot of the improvements will have had their source in things that were begun in "our" movies (something like the difference between Bakshi's groundbreaking use of rotoscope and PJ's invisible use of it 25 years later).

--------

On Elijah's on-set friendships: According to what he said in an interview (not long after principle filming was finished, IIRC), he never really had close friends until he made LotR, because shooting movies is so transitory. [And he wasn't talking only about close friends on the set--he meant that he never really had close friends of any kind, which makes sense if you think about his childhood.] He said you work with people for a few weeks or a couple of months and then move on to working with a different group of people, and there isn't time to develop close relationships. He mentioned that a lot of people he'd worked with (including Brooke Shields, IIRC) had given him their phone numbers but he'd never called because he just didn't feel like he knew them well enough. (Did someone say "introvert"? :p ) But the long shooting time for LotR gave him enough time to actually bond with people and make what he considered good friends--people he'd always be friends with, instead of just until the shoot was over. As a surrogate aunt, I'm so glad that happened for him. :)

I hope he learned something during that time he can carry into the future, even though he'll probably never work with a group of people for that long again (unless you count Robert Rodriguez's "family" ;) ). I like the little reports from London and Prague that have mentioned him going out to a pub on Friday nights with usually the same person/people. I especially smiled about the fact that a person who was mentioned as a usual companion in Prague was one of the crew members--Elijah obviously hasn't learned to protect his "star status" by not consorting with the "help" -- thank goodness :) .

-----------

On other things: August updates (http://www.frodolivesin.us) are published. Probably the best addition this month is Whiteling's "We are not alone," in full size. Also a couple of essays--one Frodocentric and one not. And lots and lots of Shelob's Lair screencaps. And that's about it, I'm afraid... Next month might be even sparser, as August is going to be a #&*@ (and September could be the same).

I'm kind of frustrated with the Shelob's Lair caps, as I don't know that they're very helpful. Out of 8 new pages, at least 4 are just watching Elijah's subtle expression and position changes as Frodo stands in one spot. After Leo/Sarah and now Shelob's Lair (and Faramir/Osgiliath earlier), I think I'm a bit burned out on doing entire scenes or sets of scenes and may have to just screencap some "moments." I still have a long ways to go yet on Shelob's Lair--unless the available screencaps posted elsewhere are enough, and people would just as soon I go on to something else. Let me know. I'm not feeling very useful at the moment, but that might be related more to my seratonin level (and to RL hurdles) than the website.

<delurk> (as I do once in a ywar or so)

THere is a crucial reason for casting the hobbits under 6 foot, or relevantly smaller of possible which i did not see mentioned here.

The reason is that dwarves have to be relevantly taller than hobbits.

this means you cast hobbits as somewhere around 5'5-7, ancd dwarves, espcially Gimli as 6'2'' or over.

this allows them to do all fellowship scenes with TWO different parts (instead of three).

Crucial decision there.

Elwen

Elwen, good to see you! :) :)


I hadn't thought of the ability to use less shots when showing the entire Fellowship, but I do remember reading that JRD was enough taller than the hobbit actors that when a shot involved only Gimli and one or more hobbits there didn't have to be any special effects used. (Someone else said that it looked like Gimli wanted to jump on the bed with the hobbits in the HoH, and I remember thinking, "Oh, come on! You're just the right size to get into the shot." :D

IMVVHO, we do have to remember that the people making these movies were basically inventing most of what they did as they went along. To steal an old phrase, they were "doing seven things before breakfast" that filmmakers had declared could never be done.

Thanks for reminding us of that, Tg. I for one notice the scale doubles in so many scenes, but I like it because it has a kind of "naive" charm. These doubles remind me of the fact that I am viewing a fantasy world after all. The ME cosmos looks unbelievably realistic and breath-taking carefully designed in every detail and yet, there are these little reminders which add a layer of "hey, you know we are telling a Story" to it. This tiny inperfectness is just perfect IMHO ;) .

Re: your August updates. Besides you give me too much credit ( :o :) ), I think you've done a great job (again)! I like especially your "Why I love this picture" reflexions. You are so right - this expression breathes wisdom, peace and deep understanding. Beautiful.
(((Tg))), I'm sorry you feel frustrated (I do think Shelob's Lair is another great collection of screencaps but I also can imagine that it is very arduous to do complete scenes!). I am enjoying your updates every time, whatever you may present us. Thanks for all your work :) :k



And last but not least a big *HUG* to Honeyelf! What a moving story. *sigh* Thank you for sharing :k

Tg, thanks.
I can understand why the Shelob's lair is not an easy series but it's been really worth the effort IMO. I'm so enjoying this and discovering more things by watching frame by frame...amazed again by the subtle change of expressions within a very short period of time.

The Shelob's lair 9 series especially had me in awe.
Going from screencap n°95 to 107->122->127->131.
Just amazing. :)




I found this snippit in an article about American students living abroad. One student is studying in Prague and guess what? He ended up in a Thermal Pool with Elijah Wood. How about that! Serena, see what sort of opportunities were out there? ;)
Other students are less focused in their studies. Rising sophomore and Williamsburg resident Thomas Ball is still not quite sure why he chose to study abroad this summer. Maybe the brochure caught his eye.

"Somehow I ended up in Prague, and I am really glad that I did," he wrote in an e-mail.

At the Charles University Center for Economic Research and Graduate Education, the 20-year-old studied economics and learned more about privatization, corruption and economies in transition.

Some of the highlights of his stay included climbing down into the dank wine cellar at Chateau Melnik outside Prague and tasting 11 types of wine with friends.

He also went to a spa and swam in the thermal pool with Elijah Wood, the actor from the "Lord of the Rings" movies.

"Simply put," he wrote from Prague, "seeing 'Frodo' was the most unreal experience of my life."
From here (http://www.dailypress.com/news/local/dp-55152sy0aug08,0,3480099.story?coll=dp-news-local-final)

Hullo all! Have been lurking assiduously and am so pleased to see the Faculty so busy! Just popped into say THANKYOU so much for TG for the lovely Shelob's Lair caps, especially the range of expressions I find so amazing on this page:

http://www.frodolivesin.us/RotK/id15.htm

(And I think you are right about a possible ring-face here (yay!) around cap 101 or so onward. It's as the ring is preying on a moment of weakness from Frodo (missing Sam) - or trying to push him onwards - or it's Frodo's anger at the power of the ring making him abandon his friend - heavens, it could be any number of things, including the ring's anger at Gollum, as you say. And Frodo's returning to himself at the end is yet another amazing way of EW showing Frodo's heroism in an immensely subtle way.)


Love it! Can't wait till November!

Just found this in LJ land (on the great LJ of Undone :) ):

Elijah visits pediatric oncology patients in Hostivar (http://www.vecernik-praha.cz/kultura/frodo_deti040806.html)

Tg, I will get to your new pages as soon as I can. Random's entry has whet my appetite. Hi, Random! *waves * fights obstacles*

I just wanted to pop in here and drop off this link of Elijah visiting an oncology hospital. It appears he's wearing his EII clothes. He looks like Clark Kent without his glasses! Can anyone translate this?

http://www.vecernik-praha.cz/kultura/frodo_deti040806.html

Moondancer, thank you for the Thermal Pool entry. Lovely. Cheers, all!

tgshaw, it is coincidental, but in my favorite "serious" thread in Movies at TORC, "m00bies reads the b00ks," they are now up to "Shelob's Lair." As usual, it is full of fascinating insights about both the book and the film. Anyway, your new screencaps have been a fantastic supplement for me. And strips 8 and 9 detail what for me is E.W.'s finest and most complex acting moment in the whole trilogy.

Thank you so MUCH! Please don't feel your excellent work is not appreciated -- it is, very much.

P.S. Moondancer, I too loved the "thermal pool" episode. Thank you so much for sharing it! I pulled your quote (giving credit where it's due) and commented on it, but not here. My comments were not suited to this thread. :D

:D I saw your post in TORC, Mechtild.

I love the signature thing you guys have going there.
This week is 'Come Hither' week, right?
So many great pictures, difficult to pick a favourite but my vote goes to Scarlet's 'Come Hither'. Perfect! :cool:

Yes, Moondancer, our thread tends to indulge itself at any time but now that it's "Come Hither" sig pic week, we might end up in some Sink of Iniquity

I just looked at yours and Mariole's links to the visit to the oncology hospital. I wonder whose idea that was? He is dressed up in his EII costume, as you point out, so perhaps they just ran him over during a break, for a quick photo op. I hope someone can translate the text and help alleviate my jaundiced suspicions. I know he's a lovely fellow and all, but PR men/women are what they are. It looks very photo-op-ish to me.

-- Mechtild

Moondancer and Mariole must have come across the hospital story at the same time--thanks for the links. How lovely (but not surprising--another of zkg's "ho hum, another typical day" stories :p ?). He's so great with kids. :)

I was just nosing around at amazon and wanted to share this bit of nostalgia coupled with a WTF! moment. -- Hearkening back to the days of the officially unofficial Elijah Wood website, there was a book for sale on the site that was basically written for younger teenaged girls, called Elijah Wood: Hollywood's Hottest Rising Star. It was out-of-date even then--the most recent movie mentioned in the blurb IIRC was Deep Impact. Occasionally over the last few years someone--both in the forerunners of this thread and in other places--would notice it for sale online and ask about it. To which the prompt, intelligent reply was always, "Oh, it's been around for years--there's nothing new in it. Not worth buying."

So much for intelligence :D . The book cost $9.99. It's now out-of-print. There's one used copy for sale at amazon and it has an asking price of... get ready for this... :eek: $149.95!! That $9.99 turned into quite an investment! 'Course, we don't know if the person will really get someone to pay that amount for it, but with all the EJW fans out there collecting things, I wouldn't be at all surprised.

During that same trip to amazon I did pay a bit more than the original $9.60 for the one used copy available of Elijah narrating "The Most Beautiful Gift," but it wasn't that much more (by a long shot :eek: !) and at least I'll get something enjoyable out of it. :) [And, BTW, since it's "out of print"--or however you'd say that for a cassette tape--I wouldn't have moral qualms about copies being made from it. I don't have a tape player that can copy, but I'm sure many people do. The seller has the most positive customer ranking I've ever seen at amazon, so I'm expecting the tape to be in good shape.]

- heavens, it could be any number of things...
And the best part is that if you asked Elijah what it "meant" he probably wouldn't be sure, or wouldn't remember what he was thinking at the time. Which is just how it should be, IMHO :) .

Thanks for the comments on the screencaps. Not to whine or anything :rolleyes: but there were well over 1000 screencaps that got narrowed down to those nine pages, and especially with scenes that take place in the dark that gets a bit difficult after awhile. But I think the worst of that scene is about over--now Frodo starts running, falls down and turns into a blubbering mass of goo, takes out the phial, and things get interesting (and lighter!) after that ;) .

I'm not sure I'm going to be able to do much this month, though. I've been trying to figure out how to word this here, but I'll just say the situation involves money and it involves legal issues, and when those two things get together it can become awfully stressful, especially dealing with it alone. I could "roll over and play dead" easily enough, but with the amount of money that's involved I don't plan to do that. I should be doing a bunch of related paperwork right now--which is probably why I'm here :rolleyes: . I'm sure I'll be doing some screencap work, just to stay sane, but I probably won't try to do anything long. And I may even try to find a scene that takes place in the sunlight :) .

But, I just wanted to be clear that if I come across at any time as stressed out, upset, or down, it in no way has anything to do with anyone here.

Here's the translation of that article:

Frodo invited children to the set The famous actor Elijah Wood, known as Frodo from the LotR trilogy loves children. Thatfore he invited 20 child-patients from Brünn oncology (brünn is the city, and they're talkien about the cancer department in the hospital there) to the movie-sets of Hostiwar, where he's currently filming his new movie Everything is Illuminated. "Originally we wanted to go to Brünn, but the filming schedule didn't allow it. I invited them to the studio instead, so they could see how a movie was made" told us model and manager of the foundation Martina Šmuková-Muchová who arranged and organised the meeting between the patients and Elijah. "I met him once and we talked about what we did for a living and as I mentioned that I worked with cancer-patients (child-patients) he showed an honest interest and wanted to know if and how he could help" she adds. Elijah came directly from the scene to the meeting, showed the children on the monitor the scenes they'd just finished and talked to them. Most of the questions were of course about LotR, but also about the the horror movie 'Faculty', in which he played a leading role. A girl promised to make a list with czech singers and bands for him as he talked about his interest in music and confessed his lack of knowledge about czech music. (AWWW!) The young visitors were most fascinated by his thick glasses, which he was wearing because of his role, and of course that they were allowed to pose for pictures with him.

Oh ACHILA, thank you so much for that translation!!!!

You have delivered me from unworthy thoughts. He invited them to the set! How cool and wonderful is that????

Edited to add:
tg, I look back and see I failed to mention your specific last post. Your situation sounds difficult. I am so sorry to hear it. Hang in there! :)

By the way, that translation came courtesy of someone's lj -- glad you all enjoyed. He is a bubby, isn't he?

The young visitors were most fascinated by his thick glasses, which he was wearing because of his role,

Great Googly Moogly! :lol: I had a boyfriend once who wore really thick glasses; they made his very small eyes look absurdly out-sized. Years later I had a dream in which he was a huge bull-frog with huge bulbous eyes! (which sort of puts a whole new spin on "kissing frogs!") This movie may be a bit difficult to watch! :rolleyes: :D

REally good news about Hooligans, though! I'm really looking forward to that one! And EiI too of course!

CandyGirl, thanks for your thoughts on the paternal relationship thing, and everyone else too! ((((CP))))((((Serena))))((((Faculty)))) One of the things which is so lovely about Elijah is that, despite that lack of a good relationship with his father, he's still so exuberant, and loves life so! He hasn't let it squash him down. This is the lad who, as young teen, coined the phrase "happy-burst" after all! :) He's really something of an inspiration to me even at my advanced :p age! ((((You too, Lij!))))

And in a way he suits Frodo all the more for it. I wonder if a love of life, despite his losses, wasn't part of the 'spirit' that attarcted Bilbo's avuncular interest?

TG, I love that new "Why I Love This Picture" addition to your page. I haven't got over to the Shelob's lair stuff yet, but I will.

I watched that Homicide episode again last night. (Thank you again, PeaceWeaver! :k ) Maybe it's because I'd watched the original Manchurian Candidate the previous night, but I saw stuff that I hadn't seen before. At the end Lewis says (IIRC) "I don't get it; did we win, or did that little creep get exactly what he wanted?" It wasn't very clear was is it? McPhee may have done what he did to get attention from his mom, whose answer to every crises was to put on her judge's robe, and be professional. He gave her an oddly complicated but greatful look when he came out of the "box" didn't he? (Another patented Elijah Wood "How Does He Do It?"tm moment!) McPhee may have been happy with either outcome; his mother's death would have put her love permantly out of his reach and therefore he'd have to long for it no more, but if she survived to go into "lawyer-mom" mode for him, he'd at least have her attention. :(

Hullo, Random! out of lurkdom! Yay!

Honey!

Oh Honeyelf--you're whetting my appetite. That's one of the few Wood performances I've never seen. I keep hoping that season (isn't it Season 5?) will come out on DVD so I can order it on Netflix!

Thanks so much for the translation, Achila. Nice to know that he goes against the type (like Mechtild, I am usually suspicious of this sort of do-goodery).

Life is going to be getting quite busy soon. School starts tomorrow, which means all my volunteer work gets cranking as well. If I don't post often, don't worry, I haven't lost interest. I've just lost time. :)

Hi, Tg. I'm terribly sorry about your legal woes. It sounds awful. Do try to take care of yourself. :k

I adore your monthly site updates. Your Frodo sketch essay was wonderful, and the Froshadowing of the month was hilarious. I thoroughly enjoyed your "Awful Arcs" series and look forward to the rest. Thank you for all your hard work. Best of luck to you!

Good Morning :)

I have a friend at work who has recently joined the ranks of the obsessed :D
Not that I had any influence on her :rolleyes:
She wants to know how she can get a good still photo of The Tree of Gondor.
Also wants to know the meaning of the five stars over that tree on the shields and the flag...I told her my very scholarly friends here could probably lead me in the right direction. Could someone pm me with the answer to her questions?
Also I want to welcome all our new friends
And TG...my thoughts are with you in your current situation.
I hope all goes well for you
I have found so much personal support here.

I also have been very touched by the sharing of so many of you re: the absent Father.
My situation although different was also difficult
I grew up with a Dad who was a writer. He wouldn't allow my Mom to read his work...but he did let me. As you can imagine this created tension in our home and by the time he died (when I was 15) my Mom was resentful of me.
I think she felt our bond (in writing) was a secret club that she wasn't allowed into...and it hurt her deeply. It took many years for us to get past her hurt and her feelings of resentment towards me.
So like Elijah...I lost my Dad at fifteen
but I was left with a Mom who didn't really know me...my bond with my Dad left her out completely and we had to learn and we eventually did but it took many...many years.

I guess many of us have sad stories...but I'd like to think it's made us stronger
It certainly made me a more sensitive parent :k

And I'm quite sure someday when Mr. Wood becomes a Dad...he'll be a wonderful one. He certainly can provide the emotional support a child would need. :)

I'm very sorry to hear about your troubles, tg.
As you know, your work for your site is very much appreciated by us.
Take care! :) :k


Sin City news! :) :) I've lifted out the Kevin/Elijah bit but follow the link under the quote for the rest. **** Sin City - Kevin related spoiler coming up + gory details ***






As for male characters, the story is peppered with pimps, hitmen, dirty cops and the like, but none have roles that stick out in any particular way. The only two guys with somewhat major parts include KEVIN (Elijah Wood), a silent but deadly assassin-of-sorts who doesn’t say a word but kicks ass like nobody’s business. He’s also quite insane and likes to cook women after he kills them and than eat them and keep their heads mounted on his walls (you see what kind of movie this might be, eh?) Kevin is an interesting character, but not much is known about his background. He’s quite mysterious
Somewhat major part. :)
Sin City review (http://www.joblo.com/index.php?id=4964)
(note: it's a review of the books mostly)



PS I saw Spider Man 2, yesterday. Those recent pictures of Elijah with those cancer patients and with the :eek: glasses....
It's Peter Parker! :D

TG, so sorry to hear about your problems. I do hope they get solved soon, one way or another. Yes, your posts here AND the beautiful website are much, much appreciated and we'd hate to see them jeopardised in any way. Long may they continue!

Thanks, everyone, for the lovely story about Elijah and the kids from the - well, nowadays it's called Brno - hospital (Brünn was the old German name for Brno, capital of Moravia, but it hasn't really been used since the days of the Austro-Hungarian empire, i.e. before WW1! How they came up with it there I've no idea :confused: - maybe the English is from a German translation of a Czech article ??)

But still (sort of) on the subject of the Austro-Hungarian empire (the things we get to talk about in this thread :eek: :D ), my apologies, Mechtild. KV is short for Karlovy Vary in western Bohemia, formerly known as Carlsbad (but named after the non-AH Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV) - and a famous spa town which still hosts Europe's oldest international film festival, the BIG star of which this year was - to bring this back OT - one Mr E. Wood (yes, I know you know all that, but it's just in case someone here has somehow missed all the publicity!).
So no smiting of brows for a dunderhead (great expression, though!)
Nowadays KV is largely owned by Russians and so they have Russian TV in the hotels - and sometimes no Czech TV !! Most confusing. It has been totally transformed from its shabby status 10 years ago, when I first saw it (and stayed one night in Elijah's hotel, huge but shabby at the time, just for fun ... weird to think he was only 13 then!).
And still on the KV subject:
from Moondancer:
One student is studying in Prague and guess what? He ended up in a Thermal Pool with Elijah Wood. How about that! Serena, see what sort of opportunities were out there?
Moondancer, don’t ….. that was the day after I sprained my foot. Otherwise I just might have been in that thermal pool too (not that I KNEW Elijah was going there then or even at all, of course, but I had taken my swimsuit). Mind you, I’d definitely have drowned from the shock, so maybe it’s just as well.

Great news about mega-Kevin, btw. Am looking forward to that (despite subject-matter) - total change of image for EW!

Ylla :k That must have been so hard for you (and your Mum). Hope you haven't been put off writing yourself!

Good morning (afternoon/evening/whatever it may be in your neck of the woods! :) ) all and sundry of the Faculty!


"I met him once and we talked about what we did for a living and as I mentioned that I worked with cancer-patients (child-patients) he showed an honest interest and wanted to know if and how he could help" she adds
This is probably not the correct forum to make a comment like this, but I just have to say...isn't our boy a darling?!? :) The answer to which, is of course, a resounding YES! As unbelieveable as he is to look at and as amazing as he is at what he does (acting!)...those two things are not even (in my opinion!) the beginning of his REAL beauty. What a beautiful heart and bright spirit he has. That smile on his face when he's with those children says it all...big, goofy glasses or no...that is a genuine, joyful, heartfelt smile. Here in the south, there is a word we use to describe people like him - precious. If I ever am so fortunate as to meet him, I swear...I am just gonna HAVE to hug his neck! :k Look out, Lijah! :D Bless him! /end gush!

Eh-hem...now then. *gets self back together after all that adorable Elijah sweetness*

A couple pages back we were talking about Elijah's beauty and from whence he might have gotten said beauty. I was thinking of this over the weekend (yeah - :rolleyes: ) and another question occurred to me. I wonder, when/how was it exactly that the darling Ms. Debra Wood began to realize that her son was abnormally beautiful :D . I mean, ALL parents look at their children and think they are the most beautiful, perfect, adorable, wonderful creatures ever to grace the planet. I wonder how she came to realize that, in the case of her Elijah, that the rest of the world agreed with her? I wonder if it was pointed out to her by other, more objective people. Also, I wonder (and have to believe he WAS) if he was that beautiful from the very beginning or if his beauty/elusive 'something' only became really evident at a certain age. I have read that she was watching a commercial one day and, looking for a way to channel Elijah's abundant energy, thought "hey...my kid could do that!". But I just wonder when and how she realized that her son was not just the ordinary kind of beautiful.

Ok...I don't think I made any sense...but...well...I'll hush now. :p

cp

Serena, thank you for clueing me in so well on "KV". Thanks to you, I needn't smite my brow after all. :)

Honey/Eresh, what is this episode of "Homicide" you speak of? As a non-TV person, I confess I don't even know this show. Now you have made me very curious.

Moondancer, thanks for linking that detailed article about book-Sin City. I had no idea! It sounds just the sort of thing I don't care to see, but of course, I shall do so, under the circumstances! I cannot deny that I am highly curious to see what E.W. does with such a role.

Warning: talk about E.W.'s face ahead. I don't know whether it's permitted or not here; I hope not to get swoony.

Candy Girl, I have given your query some thought already, that is:
I wonder (and have to believe he WAS) if he was that beautiful from the very beginning or if his beauty/elusive 'something' only became really evident at a certain age.

I only began to watch E.W.'s films after seeing his work in LotR. But now, having seen all those childhood films once or twice, I have thought to myself, "Who'd have thought his face would turn out to be so beautiful?" I would not have. Usually child actors experience the opposite phenomenon: a lovely-faced child growing up into unremarkable-faced adult.

While I see him in his young roles as exceptionally "cute," he is "cute" in a highly engaging but "typical" sort of way, easily recognizable as the plucky-kid-with-big-eyes: a real "Everyboy" with whom audience members can identify and for whom they want to cheer when he's in dire straits.

But something seemed to happen to that "all-American boy" (or "-Western European" if I am more accurate) face after puberty. The bone structure began to emerge; I think that's what did it. It already had all the lovely textures and all that expressiveness (the big eyes, of course; but all children have relatively big eyes--he is unique in having kept them into adulthood). It took the coming on of adult bone structure, I think, to make the crucial difference. In my opinion "that face" (the "magic" one) came together just in time to begin shooting in New Zealand. But I also think, that the face PJ shot during those years already is gone, and has become quite different. It changed even during the filming. I was watching TTT last night I could see a distinct difference between 19 year old and 21-22 year old Elijah/Frodo, especially when footage shot years apart was edited together in the same sequence.

At this point, I think that while it's still a beauitful and highly distinctive face, that mix of Baroque angel and Michelangelo is gone and has transmuted into something else. For part of that look depended on his youth; the residual child softness of his Frodo face is no longer there.

I can't help picturing what that face will look like in the future, but I'm willing to wait and see.

Re: Elijah's face. I don't think Debbie Wood was the one who particularly recognized his potential for beauty. The story I read somewhere was that they were on a family vacation in Southern California, where they have people who are PAID to recognize such potential. She was approached to have her sons (Zach, too IIRC) do modeling, and recognized that as just the sort of thing to channel Elijah's abundant energy. Though, since the one pic I've seen of Debbie herself shows a petite, very pretty woman with very large eyes, I don't think the leap to cute kid/beautiful man would be all that huge.

And I think he was extemely beautiful as Frodo, with that lovely little layer of puppy fat rounding out his features just so. But he continues to become more beautiful as his features mature, and show more character IMHO.

Now if he'll just quit smoking before he ruins it all. His lovely mouth is already loosing some of its sweet softness.

But I think one of his most expressive, and at the same time masculine features, is his forehead. Stand in front of the mirror sometime and try to come up with some of the expressions he does! how geeky am I if I admit to having tried it? :rolleyes:

Mechtild, about Homicide. It was TV guide's "the Best Show on Television You're Not Watching" one year. It was a favorite of mine from the first episode. When it started out it had some really interesting 'faces;' like un-made beds, someone once said. It had a very gritty, real-life, and stylized at once sort of feel to it that no other show to date has quite acheived again. I watch the whole series from front to back everytime one of the cable channels picks it up.

Yaphet Kotto (he's been in one Bond film, and also Conan the Barbarian IIRC) played Lt. Giardano, a very dark-skinned black man who identified as Italian, and could talk at length about pasta, and food in general.

Andre Braugher's character, Frank, had been orphaned and basically raised by catholic nuns. He was very conflicted about faith, and science and if the two ever came to over-lap anywhere. He's done some film work since, smallish supporting parts.

Melissa Leo (most recently as Benicio del Torros wife in "21 grams") was my favorite. She was this petite woman, with a very scrappy attitude who held her own amoung all the street wise male detectives. As a plain woman she had trouble trusting or identifying with the pretty female characters. I identified with her. :D

The show was nominally about a homicide unit in Baltimore, but it was really about the working relationships of this motley bunch of detectives. In later seasons they lost their best writers, and began to hire 'pretty' actors, like Vanessa Williams, and things kind of went down-hill from there.

They would cast 'name' actors as the murderer frequently. And often these actors played against type. Robin Williams was one. And of course our own darling Elijah, who played a creepy little sociopath!

I don't know anything really about sociopaths. But in the story I wonder how much of McPhee's character was formed by his mother's ambition as a judge. And how much of her retreat to proffessionalism in the face of her son's crimes was created by his nasty twisted personality. There were some really interesting dynamics implied in the story. T'would be too cool, as someone here suggested months ago, if "Homicide" had a reunion show, and McPhee was the one who brought Bayliss back out of hiding. But Bayliss is a whole other story, isn't he?

Honey!

Honeyelf Wrote:
Re: Elijah's face. I don't think Debbie Wood was the one who particularly recognized his potential for beauty. The story I read somewhere was that they were on a family vacation in Southern California, where they have people who are PAID to recognize such potential. She was approached to have her sons (Zach, too IIRC) do modeling, and recognized that as just the sort of thing to channel Elijah's abundant energy.

Ahhh! I'd never heard that part of the story before. Hm. Well, that's interesting. The story I had always heard was that Debbie enrolled them (Zach and Elijah) in a modeling school in Iowa and then went to a modeling convention in SoCal at which time Elijah (and briefly, Zach I think) was 'discovered'. I had therefore, always assumed that she was the first to see his abnormal beauty. As far as Debbie goes, I've only ever seen the one pic of her and Elijah (the one where he's hugging her around the waist like a puppy!) and never in hi-res, so it was kinda hard to tell exactly what she looked like. Were you talking about another picture? If so, do you have a link? I'd love to see it. And, somone mentioned digging up that photo of Warren as well...any luck on that? Like I said, I saw it once a long time ago, but would love to see it again.

Mechtild Wrote:
I was watching TTT last night I could see a distinct difference between 19 year old and 21-22 year old Elijah/Frodo, especially when footage shot years apart was edited together in the same sequence.

I couldn't agree with you more on this. You can definately tell which scenes/shots were filmed earlier and which were filmed later. His face HAS REALLY matured. To me, there was a huge difference that you could really see between the face you see in the extras (Appendices) footage from the FOTR EE and the TTT EE - totally different, more mature face in those two instances - although, I have no idea how far apart they were shot.

I also agree with you that his look has changed into 'something else' - but to me, it's no LESS beautiful or otherworldly...just a different kind. I personally think he was more than just a cute kid...he was a beautiful kid, in my humble opinion. I think it was when he started talking/acting that he became the 'everyboy' you described. His unassuming manner (even at such a tender age) is to me what makes him the everyboy. Perhaps that's part of why he's had such bad fan encounters lately. Despite his star status and amazing looks, he remains approachable and dare I say, one of us.

**is rambling again** :rolleyes:

Ylla, I'm glad you were able to repair the relationship with your mother. Sometimes things can be extraordinarily difficult. *hugs*

Moondancer, thanks for that chilling snippet on Sin City. I hate spoilers, so I sort of quickly skimmed straight down (because I am weak) but it seems really exciting! (Not sure if I'd want to watch that, though... maybe at some point on a small screen...)

Serena, I'm so glad you didn't drown! See, it was fated that you not go to the Thermal Pool or we might have lost you. (Are you counting your blessings yet?) :p

from CandyGirl
I wonder if it was pointed out to her [Debbie Wood] by other, more objective people.
I'm agreeing with HoneyElf here. I think the crucial "objective" person was the agent who saw Debbie's sons at the addition, and said, "I'll sign that one immediately. Now. This minute. Here's a pen." (Zach was signed a while later, as I recall.) Somewhere there's a quote floating around about how the agent saw this effect coming from Elijah when he went on the stage, a kind of charisma that grabbed the audience. This was a little kid who had never done this before; this was his natural talent. And the guy said, "Yeah, I'll take one of those." And the rest, as they say, is history!

Mechtild, I loved your facial structure discussion. (In case you missed it, I have been recognized in posts past for discussing his musculo-skeletal structure.) :p I have some stills of Frodo (er, a few) and sometimes I can't help exclaiming, "How can anyone be that beautiful?" It makes no sense. It's a fluke. And I think this fluke was captured at precisely the correct moment in EW's life when the beauty would allow the inner beauty of Frodo to shine through. Not to get too metaphysical, but it's almost as if somebody upstairs was looking out for Tolkien's work when this movie came together. The movie is a wonderful effort, and it certainly benefitted from some lovely happy accidents. I'm pleased! :)

This is nearly a simulpost with Candygirl [EDIT: and Mariole! - um, will answer the Thermal Pool question later :p :D], and repeats some of what she has just posted ... but here goes anyway!

Here's an extract about the Start Of It All from here (http://www.ewfn.org/ext_biography.php?language):)

Different resources reported that, when she once saw a commercial, Elijah's mother thought that Elijah could "do" some TV-related jobs, as well. Thus, at the age of seven, she enroled him in a local modeling school, at Avant Studios (also known as Avant Models & Talent), Cedar Rapids. Half a year later, she traveled with her son to the International Modeling and Talent Association convention, in Los Angeles, which was actually the first time for Elijah being in California--this maybe makes it even more understandable why Elijah claims his mother having played a very, very important role in his career.
Later, Gary Scalzo, a talent manager, said that he relucantly had agreed being a judge at this convention. Totally, there were more than 200 children, as well as about 300 hopeful talents up to the age of 30, at this event. When Gary was suggested, by some of his friends, to watch Elijah's performance, he took quite some time to take a closer look at him. Gary himself put it into words, "(...) I watched him for two whole days without opening my mouth. He was packed with personality and nervous energy. The big question I asked myself was whether I could control his energy.”
Mr. David Guillod, one of those friends, who had suggested Elijah to Gary Scalzo, recalls "Oh!, he was such a cutie! I think what struck us was the simple fact that (...) when he walked out on stage, the room was silent. Elijah had this stage presence, and he commanded the stage with his smile. He did it with a natural charm and charisma, and he won the hearts of the people. It was just a quality."
Further, Gary Scalzo told, "It was only a few days before his eighth birthday when I saw him perform his monologue. It was evident that Elijah was talented and enjoyed what he was doing, which is important. After the competition I talked to his mother and asked if Elijah would like to come to my office with her the next day and talk about the possibilities of an acting career. Elijah and I read some scenes together and he was wonderful. He read brilliantly. He's also very directable."
Elijah himself recalls, "When my mom brought me to Hollywood for the convention, I didn't think of acting because I was just a model. But when Gary asked me if I wanted to be an actor, I said, 'Yeah, sure. I'll be an actor.' Gary was one of the judges in the talent auditions and my mom said it was OK with her. He said, 'I believe in you' and asked my mom if we could move out."
And the rest is history, as they say.

EDIT again: re-reading the above, it's just struck me that Elijah already had, at the age of seven, that almost otherworldly quality that spellbinds people today (you know, the glow, the electric buzz, the radiance that have been mentioned so often). Amazing.

So back to the beauty topic: I happen to think Elijah was exceptionally beautiful as a child too. So does Jill Cozzi (who she?), who wrote:
“Elijah Wood, who was one of the most otherworldly beautiful children ever to appear on the screen, managed to survive adolescence to capture a look of a somewhat disillusioned seraph in adulthood. He was born to play Frodo Baggins, and indeed, carries much of the film's emotions in his improbably large and expressive eyes”.
(already quoted here about a year ago … can it be that long?)

There are even a couple of shots in “The Good Son” (for example) where he looks startlingly like Frodo. Dunno, but I'm always a bit surprised when people say they can tell the difference between Elijah at 18 and Elijah at 20 or more when watching LOTR. Those movies were shot so totally out of sequence that it’s very hard to say when any one shot was filmed; also, to me Elijah can still look very different indeed from one moment to the next, depending on the angle/angel :), the lighting, the expression on his face etc. That’s all part of his charm. I was amazed when I found out (through the DVD extras) that the opening shot of him in FOTR, when he gets up and turns to face the camera with that huge grin of delight, was filmed in a PICKUP in 2001 - when Elijah was all of 20 and had been back in LA for 6 months. To me he looks younger and more innocent than ever in that shot! Nowadays, to me he sometimes looks older and sometimes looks as young as he has ever looked since puberty. That chameleon-like quality is quite fascinating.

But was it his beauty his Mum noticed? I suspect it was the beauty and the irresistible charm combined that made her enrol him; I suspect Debbie says she did it to find an outlet for his energy (also undoubtedly true, but incomplete!) because it would be somewhat embarrassing for her to admit she found him, her own son, the most talented and adorable child ever :).

hallo girls!!! very nice discussion in here i mean about elijahs face :lol:

what i can say about that well ( old friends in here don`t have to read it over again :D )

for new friends:i don`t know if you have read my early post but my
feelings for elijah is no secret in here i am totaly lost for that man!! :D

both his SO SO beatiful face and not to speak about his acting!!! :D

what iset that makes him so specel I HAVE NO IDE ,HE IS TOTALY MAGIC
TO ME :p :D enough about that(for now ;) )

great news about sin city and the yank i am so looking forward to
all three of his film!!!



TG!!! i have to say that i love all your work that you are doing!!
and i know i am not alone about this!!
i realy hope things will work out okej for you
i will be thinking of you!!! :z:

BLOSSOM,YLLA!!! ihope your husbands is feeling okej now
and that both will be home with you!!!!! :k :)


EDIT: IS IT EPISODE 5 OF THE HOMECIDE ELIJAH IS IN?
I SAW ON AMAZON.COM THE REALESE DATE IS SEPT.28 2004
I HAVE NOW IDE HOW TO ORDER FROM THERE IS IT
SOMEBODY WHO CAN HELP ME OUT??? :z: :z:

Serena,
My, all these interesting new people! Wendy, we should appoint you Faculty Lounge Personnel Officer


Oh my !!! :o ...I have a job here at The Faculty Lounge :D

Isn't it just Fab that all these people are liking this thread enough, not just to lurk and read, but also to actually post and contribute ?!!

The thread at TORC isn't all that different really...more of a mixture of the three threads we have here...a lot of Faculty Lounge mixed with a little of The Hugs Haven and a healthy shot of Frodo's Harem every so often for good measure...and garnished with the most beautiful signature pics, chosen to a theme each week...and very often the chat is about the same topic as that being currently discussed here, perhaps because of links that have come up...for instance, I can guarantee that there will be a discussion about the Hospital visit there too...

Kumari,
A very warm welcome indeed to The Faculty Lounge...like Ereshkigal and Mechtild, you will probably love it here, just like I do, even though I don't have the time to post as often as I'd like...

Bohemian,
A very warm welcome to you too...and don't worry about the poor English thing...I'll bet your bottom dollar that your English is a gazillion times better than my non-existant Estonian :D :D :D...as long as we can get the gist of what you are saying, who cares whether the spelling is accurate ?!!
Post often ...

As for the recent comments regarding Elijah's face, and his indefinable charisma...( yes, that's definitely it, isn't it ? - it's CHARISMA that this boy has in spades...by anybody's definition, this is Charisma of the gold-plated variety...even when he has been taken by surprise at the Press Conference at KV, by those girls handing him that very dubious pic, he handled it with charm, poise, humour, and warmth, and the biggest out-pouring of Charisma I have seen in a long while...
His face has matured an awful lot during the last two or three years, methinks...and now, although he has lost some of that classic quality of being likened to a painting by Carravagio - by virtue of simply being older, to my mind, he has acquired his own personality a bit more...he is much more self-confident and knows his own likes and dislikes, and doesn't mind telling you about them, and that shows in his face now !! An improvement ? Most definitely...

The Yank board at IMDB has some more info from Steve Benham.

http://imdb.com/title/tt0385002/board/nest/10671932

I still say there were plenty other child actors and models techinically as "beautiful" as young Elijah Wood was. If you check out a talent site, their portfolios are endless. What he had uniquely was what was cited above, from Gary Scalzo, per Serena's post:

"[8-year old] Elijah had this stage presence, and he commanded the stage with his smile. He did it with a natural charm and charisma, and he won the hearts of the people. It was just a quality."

Those are things that are not dependent on lovely looks, though looks help. What I see as notable in Elijah Wood's child acting are THOSE things--this special quality of charisma that connects with the audience at the level of its heart, acted through the body, face and voice of an extremely "cute" -- but not necessarily beautiful -- child. But what I saw come together for LotR was something else. What I saw was all of that, wedded to a timeless, classical beauty that his face was just coming into -- enough to send a geezy Book Frodo-loving aesthetic like me over the precipice.

I don't mean to imply that Mr. Wood is now bereft of his beauty, however much it is transitioning into a man's--not a youth's--beauty. Only, that it is different. Until he does some superlative work in another worthy role, however similar, or different, we won't know whether his face will add or detract from his genius. I am not such a fan that I can count his work in films like All I Want or its ilk, as examples of "worthy" work, as some of you know. I mean films that are really good, and roles that are really good.

So I have my fingers crossed for Everything is Illuminated, googly-eyed glasses and all.

-- Mechtild

I just saw the infamous press conference in Prague (Thank You to Lady Wendy :k )
I am so blown away by this young man's ability to handle anything thrown at him. His charm...grace and command of language is astounding. He is poetry in motion. Even his body language...the hand gestures...
He constantly amazes me. Maybe y'all are right (hope you don't mind me using that phraseology CandyGirl...I'm also Southern born ):k
He is an elf or a beautiful alien. It's just I don't know any young men( or old men for that matter) that are that graceful under fire.
Think I will design a new bumper sticker.....anyone want one ;)

ELIJAH WOOD.......BEST REASON TO ALLOW HUMAN CLONING :D

ELIJAH WOOD.......BEST REASON TO ALLOW HUMAN CLONING


And when you invent it, baby girl, I'll be the first in line to get one -- tee hee!

:k

I was just reading the cover article of the new Entertainment Weekly magazine, which speculates on who will be the new crop of Hollywood stars, now that the ones who have dominated the box office charts for nearly 20 years (Denzel Washington, Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise, Julia Roberts, Meg Ryan) are all approaching/in middle age and above. Names such as Matt Damon, Jake Gyllenhall, Hugh Jackman, Orlando Bloom, and Reese Witherspoon were prominently mentioned.

Also, the causes behind the "miniaturization of movie stars" were listed. First mentioned is the big buildup of "stars" by the studios before they do anything of note--Colin Farrell, Kate Bosworth, Josh Hartnett, for example. "Everybody is trying to score the next big instant hit. Nobody is paying attention to the long-term care and feeding of these new stars. They're being pushed into movies that are going to open huge, rather than movies that might be better for their careers in the long run," states a "head of a major studio." Second is that the media is a hungry beast, constantly in need of a new fresh face to exploit and expose (the magazine acknowledges its own fault in this!). Third is "the rise of the disposable star," which means that the old star system might just be obsolete in today's media world, filled with reality TV "stars" with careers as short-lived as the shows that spawned them. (This may be why the franchise film is doing so well, but actors cannot be relied upon to "open" a movie on the mere strength of their name alone.) Fourth is the appeal of the independent film to actors of real talent, for credibility is more important to them than name recognition due to a blockbuster film's success.

As for what all this means for EW's career, well, who knows? He wasn't mentioned at all, other than by inference ("Certainly none of [the new crop of stars] have established that they can galvanize a global audience across a multitude of cultures and demographics--the way Julia Roberts has been doing since she was in her 20s--and deliver them to theaters for film after film, at least not without playing a hobbit, a wizard, or an arachnid-enhanced superhero"), but I really think that he has the best opportunity out of just about any of the current crop of 20-somethings to be around in 20 years. He's got the depth of 15 years of starring roles behind him, the media (as much as they're now playing catchup) still have not fully embraced him as the Next Hot Thing, not like Orlando, Colin Farrell, or even Jake Gyllenhall, he has had the franchise hit already, and can now concentrate on the independent films he obviously enjoys. And last, but certainly not least, he has a lot more talent than just about everyone mentioned in that article, and has the respect of many Hollywood heavyweights as a result.

Just stopping by to thank Mariole for her kind offer of Frodo pictures to replenish those of mine which fled after my hard drive crashed. Your offer is much appreciated, but I believe that 95 to 98% of my horde should be safely tucked away on my website (which I currently have no link to, but should eventually. It’s tough being computer challenged. :rolleyes: )

Tg, I’d appreciate the address of your website when you have a moment. I want to place it amongst my Favorites again. Regarding your recent gifs… they’re moving very slow for me. Is there something I can do to put them at normal speed? P.S. I hope things go well for you. (((tg)))

I’d also like to say how much I enjoyed meeting Faculty members at the Seattle Hoot, namely honeyelf, Alyon, peaceweaver and Mariole. Lovely ladies all. :) I hope others have a chance to meet them someday. I have a rather nice picture of Mariole in the company of Eowyn and Arwen, which I’ll post in the Howard Shore thread in the Reception forum in the coming days. Middle Earth (or Hollywood) better watch out. Mariole stacks up very well against the elvish and Rohirric charm and appeal. :cool: And she loves (and defends) nature too, what could be better than that?

Oh yeah, and how about that Elijah… whatta guy. :k

Hi All

RL has been keeping me away the last few days. I dip back in here and I can't believe all the posts and the new people!! Welcome ALL!!! It's quite invigorating. I've only had time to do a little skimming of the last page or so...but I know there is definitely fine and delicious reading ahead for me. :k

And Ezzie :k I was so honored to be a part of the hoot and made welcome by all those who cavort more often with each other on the other threads. It is wonderful to see you post here.

There would be so much to comment on in the last few days, but I'll limit myself to seconding your opinion, Sharpe's Girl, of elijah's choices. I think the public often looks at actors from the blockbuster, leading man/woman point of view. But actors themselves know it is a career. A job. A way to support yourself...and when they are lucky they can make satisfying choices about how to spend their time working. Some have clued into the idea that it isn't all about money and fame...once they establish themselves as a working actor they can choose to be in movies they appreciate, or ones that provide them with interesting experiences. And they also know it's a competitive business and they have to find a niche...and there are only a few places at the top of the "fame" heap...and those places are not necessarily very satisfying. An astute actor might decide that he or she doesn't like those roles, and might not like what that type of fame means in their life. So that isn't what they decide to aspire to. After all---it's about how they want to live, as well. Anyhow, I agree that Elijah may be making choices that provide him with more staying power. Independent movies now have long lives on DVDs...so it isn't a leap into obscurity anymore to make those choices. I heard Bruce Davison who has been in countless movies say that he started out as a leading man, but was advised to go for character roles and supporting roles because as a leading man you might last only a few years, but as a supporting actor you can support your family for decades. Having said that, I love Elijah being the lead. But he isn't trying to be the lead in just huge studio pictures. He is establishing his craft. And honestly, independent movies seem to be where a lot of good actors are leaning -- even though a pay cut is part of the deal--it seems like, anyway. Independent movies at film festivals are now peopled with "stars."

Anyway--waving at everyone. And again, a huge warm heartfelt welcome to all the new voices. :k
Running away again....

Alyon

I second what alyon said about independent movies. I also think that's it's a good thing Lij is not recognized there and that he's not the 'next hot thing'. I think that would just put too much pressure on him. And that wouldn't be a very good thing. Also, is he was the 'next hot thing' he would have those kind of fans who only like him for him being that. For his looks and who would move on if he's not the 'next hot thing' any more. I think now he has fans who appreciate him for his acting ability and that's always a better thing. I hope very much that the LOTR hype will soon come down now.

btw, serena, I almost fell off my chair for the shock of you greeting me in Estonian..but I was able to stay on it when I read your commentary regarding that :)

:mad: I can't believe it. I had this long post ready. I must have hit the wrong button or something because all of a sudden, it was all gone. *sigh*

Let's try again, shall we?


I know that a lot of people are a bit apprehensive about movies like The Yank and Sin City. They seem to be fearing that they might be too nasty, brutal, violent,...
I'm really looking forward to it. I like the feel-good movies and excellent tv shows such as Pride & Prejudice (they are making a new P&P film, I hear. I'm a bit saddened by that. It's going to be very, very, very difficult to do better than that BBC series. Mister Darcy was so perfect).
But, I also like the darker movies and movies where dark and evil forces interact with good forces as long as it's done well (too many of those sort of movies are just plain dumn in my opinion).
But, like I said before (I tend to repeat myself from time to time, I do apologize), I'd like him to do subtle evil (more on a psychological level) which would require him to use his own natural charisma but in a dark way. Charisma can be used for good purposes but also for bad ones (Napoleon had charisma, I believe. They said that Hitler had charisma).
You know what I mean? The sort of person who can charm the hell out of a lot of people so that they don't even notice what his true (and bad) purpose is?
I've seen movies like that, but not a lot of actors can pull it off. I'd love to see him attempt it.


Going back to Elijah's mother. Now, I don't know her at all of course so this is just guessing work from me.
Judging by the way Elijah behaves around others, I don't think she gave him the feeling that he's extra special.
Let me explain this by using my own mother as an example. I'm the youngest of 4. When I was 5 or 6 years old, I asked my mum if I was her favourite (because of the special way she treated me...not noticing that she treated all her kids in a special way).
Her answer to me was simple: "No, of course not".
I was devastated to hear this but she continued:
"All my children are very special to me".
I'm guessing that Elijah's mother was more like that: letting him know that he's loved and that he's special without giving him the feeling that he's better than the rest.

Going back to Elijah's mother. Now, I don't know her at all of course so this is just guessing work from me.
Judging by the way Elijah behaves around others, I don't think she gave him the feeling that he's extra special.

I'm guessing that Elijah's mother was more like that: letting him know that he's loved and that he's special without giving him the feeling that he's better than the rest.


Actually, Elijah has even said as much. What surfaced a few months ago was a post from EW magazine, the fan club mag from when he was a child star. And in it, 12 year-old Elijah showed us his summer chores schedule. What a riot! "7AM -- walk and feed dogs", etc. -- just like any other kid would be expected to do. You can see that his mother was teaching him responsibility and he has said on a number of occasions that she stressed to him that he was no different or special than the other kids or anyone else either. A very very important lesson, particularly when you're being told just the opposite by your publicist, the media, fans, etc., and it's so easy to believe it.

As for roles, I watched Charlize Theron in "Monster" last night (superb!) and I kept thinking that Elijah needs a role like that where he's so thoroughly ugly and unlikeable. That's where an actor can really show their chops. Possibly Kevin is such a role. We're gonna see next year.

Moondancer, that's what Elijah has said about it--that he was never given the feeling that what he did was any more important than what Zach or Hannah did, which must have been difficult if he was at all aware that they had moved to California basically because of him. But one of the best (seemingly unconscious) "brother" lines I've ever heard was when Elijah was on Jay Leno's show during the short period of having that apartment in NYC--He said the owners were reluctant to rent to Hannah and him because they were actors. No difference noted between his acting career and Hannah's--they're both just actors. It seemed to be so "built-in" in the way he said it, that I suspect that's how he grew up looking at it. It didn't matter if he was making more money or working with bigger names--acting in, say, a school play, or Zach's interest in gaming, would have been treated as just as special. [Simulposted with Achila--but even though we were talking about the same subject I don't think we overlapped too much--the "chore" list is wonderful :) .]

And I'd just repeat what Alyon and Sharpe's Girl and many others have said about Elijah's career choices (whoo--that saved a lot of typing :D ). And offer a "ditto" to Mechtild on what he had a child that went beyond "cuteness." We've talked before about some of his ability to move almost seamlessly from child actor to adult actor came from the fact that as a child he usually acted in movies aimed at adults, where I think the acting ability is probably more important than "cuteness." Although in most cases they'd want someone basically attractive, they'd also want what someone here (forget who :o ) recently called the "everyboy" quality--something I think we see in, say, Avalon, Forever Young, The Good Son... And in those kinds of roles, it's the acting that's important.

Thanks to all for the support--I'll try to keep you informed, although right now it's mostly a waiting game. I'm breaking my own rules by going online in the morning (I'm supposed to be doing other things), but I was very good yesterday :rolleyes: .

Ezzie--Always good to see you drop in :) . Blossom is the gif queen, not me--I wouldn't have a clue ;) . Gifs always download slowly for me, but I have a dial-up connection. The first time through, when it's loading, I'll get one frame every few seconds--then once it's loaded, of course, it goes regular speed.

But I'll assume you do mean my website :p . The url's pretty easy to remember: http://www.frodolivesin.us (I've made use of that new .us extension for a couple of websites ;) ). You can also click on my name at the top of a post and follow "Visit tgshaw's homepage." :)

Oh, I wanted to also acknowledge Mariole as our resident expert in EJW's musculoskeletal system, since that's come up, epsecially his sternomastoid-whatsis :o muscle--which I'm always going to put into the glossary but can never remember how to spell long enough to do so :o . I still keep a folder of examples on Imagemagician, so I can post them from work if necessary ;) .

My blushes, Ezzie. :o Thanks for the compliment! I must see this piccie when it gets posted (Yes, I haven't posted mine yet, either). And do let me know if you need any particular Frodo pics after you get your computer working again.

Loved your post on the changing star, Sharpe's Girl, and Alyon's delightful follow-up. As Bohemian said (sort of), the 'next hot thing' is one step away from being the 'next not thing.' John Travolta gave an interview once that I loved, where he said (paraphrasing), "I've been on the Who's Hot and Who's Not list so many times, I can't even remember anymore. But it's not about being on those lists, it's about being able to get the work." That's the thing that every actor hopes for.

Tg, I'm so glad you're breaking your own rules and posting. That is living life! :p I look forward to your "Frodo looking at Sam" pic if you continue to be rebellious (go, you!). Here's some sternocleidomastoid pics, for old time's sake. It's really poppy in the first two (see side of neck), but the last one's pretty good to show the surrounding musculature:

http://home.ricochet.com/mdes/limages/hide1.jpg

http://home.ricochet.com/mdes/limages/hide2.jpg

http://home.ricochet.com/mdes/limages/scmttt.jpg

...I look forward to your "Frodo looking at Sam" pic if you continue to be rebellious (go, you!). Here's some sternocleidomastoid pics, for old time's sake...
Weird thing about that post from home this morning. I wrote the post, then tried to attach the pic. At first it didn't want to attach, but then it seemed to. Then I tried to submit and ended up in that mysterious land of "No valid thread indicated" :confused: . Couldn't refresh, the back button wouldn't work... :rolleyes: I decided it must be payment for my sins ;) and really didn't have any more time, so I ran off to work planning to post from here. Got here, opened the thread, and there was the post! But there wasn't the pic--so I edited out the paragraph that had talked about it. So if anyone's wondering what Mariole's talking about there--hopefully I'll be able to post it tonight. :)

But since I keep a folder of sternocleidomastoid [isn't the "copy" function wonderful ;) ?] pics at Imagemagician, I can post some of them (the one from AIW must be from the VCD--I'll have to see if I can get a clearer one from the DVD to keep in my "stash" :p ):

http://www.imagemagician.com/images/tgshaw/shoulder/cap1995-crop.jpg http://www.imagemagician.com/images/tgshaw/shoulder/capA0769-cropped.jpg http://www.imagemagician.com/images/tgshaw/shoulder/jawline2.jpg http://www.imagemagician.com/images/tgshaw/shoulder/jawline5.jpg http://www.imagemagician.com/images/tgshaw/shoulder/jawline3.jpg

John Travolta is an interesting example of the "Hot" and "Not" phenomenon [no pun intended ;) ], isn't he? I'd imagine he'd have a lot of insight into it. First a teen-girl idol during "Welcome Back, Kotter," then pretty much disappeared. Reappeared for "Saturday Night Fever"--which, BTW, was a much better movie than I'd expected when I finally watched it a couple of years ago. That role got parodied a lot, but he disappeared from the "hot list" again. But since he made his latest comeback, he's been playing quite a variety of characters--usually the heavy, but not always. Definitely a "working actor," and I suspect he's happier that way.

:::: staggering in after three days of utter heck ::::

Thanks to all for links, translations, Yank news, pictures of "resplendent" blue eyes, deep thoughts, etc.

I took the opportunity, yesterday, lying in my bed of pain, ;) to read Everything Is Illuminated. My word that's a good book! I think I'll be rereading it and thinking about it for a long time.

Something reminded me of recent discussion about people posting when English is not their first language. In the book, the letters from Alex were initially written in very awkward English. I went through last night and read them all in sequence. The last one, besides being brutal, was in much improved English. While it was an American who came up with the sequence of letters, it still illustrates what I was saying - that the only way to improve is to write.

I'm still trying to sort out the parts of the story; it's not a simple book. I also spent some time trying to picture how they might do certain parts in the movie. Elijah is perfect for J.S.F., of course, down to his masticated fingernails, but since so much of the book is told from another perspective, I'm wondering how they will handle getting to know the character, and if we *will* get to know the character, since I don't think we do in the book. I'm also very curious how they will portray various characters from different parts of the book, especially with the physical resemblance between generations.

In any case, didn't someone say that the book was an Oprah book club entry? If so, and if they do it properly, it could have OSCAR written all over it.

Re: Huck Finn - it's a good movie to watch when feeling absolutely horrible. I noticed a sequence of expressions, though, that I hadn't seen before. It's when Huck and the various Wilks bros. are being pulled through the streets, and Huck and Jim see each other. It lasts about 1.25 seconds and is about 4 different expressions. Is that sequence captured anywhere? Lovely expressions. Lovely. There was one that was very similar to Frodo's expression at the end of LotR when Frodo told Sam he was glad that he was with him.

There's another thing that I caught: When Huck walks in the front door of the Wilks house right before the Duke pulls him into the side room, there's a tall footman (?) standing by the door. He ruffles Huck's hair as he walks by. In one movie, an adult Frodo gets his hair inappropriately ruffled by Borimar. In the other, a hobbit-sized Huck gets his ruffled by someone else. It was just interesting to compare the two.

I also noticed at the very end: he makes a face when Renee O'Connor's character kisses him; he makes an even worse face when Susan kisses him; he has this look of stunned delight when Mary Jane kisses him. Again, it's all in the space of a very short time and I hadn't noticed the difference till this weekend.

Is it any wonder they cast him as Huck? I also decided that although Huck was probably younger than in the book, he probably was a cute kid with an angelic face; otherwise, how could he have gotten away with those outrageous fibs?!? And convince the housewife that he was a girl?

~grumpy

How fortuitous! The New York Times has a readers' forum that appears to discuss a book-a-month. This month's book is: Everything Is Illuminated. The thread has some good discussion and interesting insights. Link below. Forums are not available at the moment, but they'll be back soon according to the site.

http://forums.nytimes.com/top/opinion/readersopinions/forums/books/augustreadinggroupeverythingisilluminated/index.html?8dpc]

Ladies, I'm enjoying the current discussion very much (good to see you posting, Tg :) ) and am delighted with the reappearance of the famous sternocleidomastoid :D .


But I also think, that the face PJ shot during those years already is gone, and has become quite different. (...) At this point, I think that while it's still a beauitful and highly distinctive face, that mix of Baroque angel and Michelangelo is gone and has transmuted into something else. For part of that look depended on his youth; the residual child softness of his Frodo face is no longer there.
I can't help picturing what that face will look like in the future, but I'm willing to wait and see.

Mechtild's post on the possible future evolution of Elijah's face excited me to an experiment.

To simplify matters, I used my own first Frolijah drawing and made the attempt in adding a few traces of time to this lovely face. My apologies to you all for the rather sloppiness of the outcome (I think it looks a bit like these awful police sketches... :rolleyes: ), but it might give future prospects on the face we are talking in about 25 years. I mean, hey, it's research, not art ;) !


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/0903/whiteling/frolijah_older_2_72dpi.jpg


The next Elijah drawing will look better, I promise!

Whiteling--Interesting drawing indeed :) . So, are you going to keep it on file and pull it out in 25 years for a comparison :p ?

Ditto on everything zkg said about Huck Finn--except that I've never noticed the hair ruffling :) . IMHO, Huck Finn is the movie where for the first time you can really see what kind of actor Elijah's going to be. There are flashes of it in earlier movies, but I think it all starts coming together in Huck--the subtle (and not so subtle) expressions, the ability to show exactly what the character's thinking and feeling without saying a word, even the "How does he do it?" physical acting. It's also the first time he has to carry an entire movie--and does it incredibly well (I was going to say "for his age," but I don't think that qualification is even needed).

Good news on the book forum, Goldenberry--more people reading the book should lead to more people willing to plunk down a few bucks to see the movie :) .

Okay, here's the pic I was trying to post this morning. I'm still going to do it as an attachment, as resizing it or cropping it really takes something away. Even that dark expanse to the left adds to the picture, IMVHO. For those who missed the earlier paragraph before I edited it out :rolleyes: , I've been spending my "de-stressing" time working with some of the screencaps from my on-the-fly viewing of RotK right after the DVD came out. When I pulled up this cap, I LOL, which isn't something I'd expect from the scene in the tower of CU. It's Frodo's first glimpse of Sam in the tower, and what I love about it is that it's not a prisoner looking at his rescuer, or a victim looking at a hero--It's simply Frodo looking at Sam. That there'd be this kind of an expression in those circumstances, IMHO says a lot about their relationship.

Hopefully this will work this time!

Hello Everyone!!!! I'm back!!! :) Seems too long since I've been here.

[QUOTE=Sharpe's Girl]
As for what all this means for EW's career, well, who knows? He wasn't mentioned at all, other than by inference ("Certainly none of [the new crop of stars] have established that they can galvanize a global audience across a multitude of cultures and demographics--the way Julia Roberts has been doing since she was in her 20s--and deliver them to theaters for film after film, at least not without playing a hobbit, a wizard, or an arachnid-enhanced superhero"), but I really think that he has the best opportunity out of just about any of the current crop of 20-somethings to be around in 20 years. QUOTE]

Actually, if you look on the cover, where a mosaic of pictures form Julia Robert's face, you'll see that there are 10 pictures or so of Elijah. :)

hobbityme, you beat me to it! Not only pictures of EW, but some of his cast-mates. :) Let us hope they all have as much work as they want.

(((tg))) (((zkg))) Hope all is well with you. And you, too, ylla.

Off to read the discussion on EII at the NYT.

I find it funny that Elijah's mom looked to him as the Man of the house when he was 15. He had to tell her otherwise. Does this say anything about how his mother thought of him in general? I mean whose the Parent here? I found it awful that she even considered it in the first place. :eek:

If the career doesn't cause it, then why do most child actors wind up with divorced parents? I find that curious. :lol: . Are there any child actors that didn't end up with divorced parents? How sad is this? :confused:

Speaking of Elijah's body, what about his shoulders and chest? Clearly we can tell from the any of the Hobbit pictures, that this is a youthful looking guy. Not a big 14 year old. ;) Even in the early interviews of Middle Earth. I was :eek:

What is it about his facial features that is so Masculine? :confused:

i think it is his cheekbones,his eyes hi everything about his
face is masculin to me!!!!!! :D

and not to speek about his chest and shoulders and arms
his very masculin indeeed :p :D

i wonder if he is doing some workout or if it is naturel if you know what i mean
wonder what he would look like when he is training all swetty :D :eek:
enough of this talk now!!!or i will bee kicked out :lol:

very lovely pics everyone!!!! :k

i realy dont think elijah whants to bee on the hot list!!
i think he realy whants to do what he is best on acting and
to do as many movies as he can.as he sade to sean at the
commentery track at fellowship when thy discust orlando at moria
BEAUTI IS IN THE EYES OF THE BEHOLDER or something like that.
i dont realy think he cares about those things or what are you girls
think??

well anyway to me he is the beauti him self and the hottest actor
rightnow!!!

i hope you all understands what i am trying to say here!! :cool:

love you all :k

I mean whose the Parent here? I found it awful that she even considered it in the first place.
Think about it...it's a very weird situation.
Your 15 year old son is the provider of the family, the house, the food, the car,...are paid by him.
The line "as long as you're living under my roof, you'll do as I say" doesn't really apply here, does it?
When I think about it, it doesn't sound awful. It's not exactly the typical mother-son relationship.
At the time, the question "who's the parent here?" must have been a valid one. I would certainly struggle with it.

In this case, it seemed to have worked out in the end but how many tragedies are out there?
I once saw a program on parents who wanted to make their kids famous and the trouble they went through, trying to make their dream come true.
They quit their job so they can accompany that child to all sorts of auditions,... (It all happened rather quickly for Elijah and his mother found out soon that this would work out but how many parents keep on going from audition to audition?)
If they have more than one kid, you need to be able to take care of the other kids as well.
In many of these cases, one parent stays home with the other kids while the other one travels around with the one kid they believe has what it takes to become famous, often doing home schooling at the same time.
That kid gets a new and expensive wardrobe, learns how to walk and talk like a true star, how to do interviews, how to dodge questions, how to sit, how to behave in front of the camera. From what I saw, those kids lost all the natural charm, joy, typical for most children, much, much too soon. I saw a lot of little grown-ups in the body of a kid.

I think that this is where Elijah's parents went right.
In the days when Macauley Culkin was a big childstar but with parents fighting over him and the situation got from bad to worse...they talked about childstars on CNN and in that program, Culkin and family was a good showcase of "how not to do things" and Wood and family was a good showcase of "how to do things".
Back then, one person who worked with them both said that the difference between Macauley and Elijah is that they both are quite professional in front of the camera and it's obvious that they're used to being around adults a lot. But when the camera turns off, Macauley is still like a little adult whereas Elijah turns into a very typical and playful kid from the moment he's off duty.
Elijah's mother did do what many other parents of potential childstars seem to do: give up their own job to accompany their kid.
That would put pressure on any kid. To know that your mother and/or father takes quite a substantial financial risk in the hope that you can make it.
IMVVHO, that's a crucial thing Elijah's mother seemed to have done. In that CNN program, somebody who knew Elijah and his mother said that she always stressed that it should be fun for her son. No pressure. If he wants to stop, he can even if he's bringing in quite a bit of money. It's his life and his decision. That must have worked really well until he reached the age of 15 and the family situation made him the home provider.

In Belgium, there are strict laws for childstars(child labor). The number of hours per month they can 'work' is very, very limited and they have to be accompanied by a parent (or a legal guardian) all the time.
There was this singer (Silvie Melodie) who had a hit when she was about 9 years old (a cover of Michael Jackson's Ben). She (or her parents...don't know) wanted to continue but it was impossible to have a career because she couldn't perform enough to keep the momentum going. In Belgium, home schooling is not an option and you are obligated to go to school until you're 18!
So, she stopped performing all together (I think) and returned when she was a bit older (like 18 or so): she changed her name into Silver and she's now into dance music and quite popular in that scene.


Change of subject:
Whiteling, how interesting and how odd.
Of course, some of the features that make his face look so interesting will always remain. The eyes, the eyebrows, the shape of his mouth, the angular jawline.

I first noticed Elijah when I went to the theater to see Forever Young with Mel Gibson. Such a cute kid and I did wonder at the time what he would look like as an adult. Indeed, so many cute child actors lose their cuteness and become very average when they grow up.
It's been so much fun seeing him grow up and it'll be fun seeing him grow older.
:)


ETA:
Cancer Campaign launched by Top Store

Celebrities including rock star Liam Gallagher and film stars Liam Neeson and Elijah Wood recently added their support to the “GiveGet” campaign.

All three have been photographed by top celebrity snapper Jason Bell. Their photos will appear in a limited edition “GiveGet” book which will be sold exclusively in TK Maxx stores in September.
Source: The Scotsman
Find the rest of that article here (http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=3325662)


And...yet another EDIT :rolleyes: :
Yesterday, I was watching 'The Bumblebee Flies Anyway' and afterwards I decided to look up the site of the actress who plays his girlfriend in that movie (Rachael Leigh Cook):
I found this little snippit in a chat transcript from 1999:

**** Warning: SPOILER - The Bumblebee Flies Anyway ****





Question: What is your new movie about?

Rachael Leigh Cook: We shot "Bumblebee" two years ago, it's just sorta been going through the process for quite a while now. The movie is about this boy... Elijah Wood, who's awesome, but we'll get to that in a minute. :) He wakes up in a hospital for the terminally ill, and they tell him "Don't worry, you're not sick, we're just doing experiments to regain your memory," because he has no memory of his name or anything. But he goes on to find that he's there because of an experiment trying to find the link between having a terminal disease and KNOWING that you have a terminal disease. He's a guy who's had cancer, gone in and out of remission, for most of his life. So what they're trying to do is find out that his not knowing that he has cancer, if that will keep him healthy.

Rachael Leigh Cook: It's called The Bumblebee Flies Anyway because bumblebees, in all logic, shouldn't be able to fly, that their wingspan-to-body-weight ratio doesn't work. So they shouldn't be capable of flying. But they do anyway. The theory behind the bumblebee and the movie is that what you don't know, can't hurt you.



**** END SPOILER - The Bumblebee Flies Anyway ****


"Elijah Wood, who's awesome"...not the first time somebody who worked with him says a thing like that but it's still nice to read.
And before you ask: the "we'll get to that in a minute" part... :( ...no further mention of Elijah in that transcript I'm afraid.
PS: that :) smilie in that quote was not added by me...I just did a copy and paste.

witheling, that drawing of yours reminds me of Christopher Walken for some reason..heh

Think about it...it's a very weird situation.
Your 15 year old son is the provider of the family, the house, the food, the car,...are paid by him.
During the TTT media blitz, Sean Astin was on the Tonight Show a day or two after Elijah had been on the show--and Jay had gone through the second year in a row of kidding Elijah about stil living with his mother. I thought Elijah "disarmed" things pretty well by taking them to the absurd: "Yeah, I brought 25 laundry bags of dirty clothes home from New Zealand." (Not an exact quote, but you get the idea.)

That interview was the first thing Sean talked about when he came on--He didn't even let Jay get a word in before he said, "You're messin' with my man!" (And I'm pretty sure that is a direct quote. :p ) Then he pointed out something Elijah never would have--that it wasn't so much that Elijah lived with his mother as that Elijah's mother lived with him. And, of course, it speaks volumes that Elijah never would have brought that up.

I once saw a program on parents who wanted to make their kids famous and the trouble they went through, trying to make their dream come true...

...stressed that it should be fun for her son. No pressure. If he wants to stop, he can even if he's bringing in quite a bit of money. It's his life and his decision. That must have worked really well until he reached the age of 15 and the family situation made him the home provider.
IMHO, the main part of the problem with the folks in the first paragraph are the words I italicized--so often it's the parents who want it and not the kid. Which makes Mrs. Wood's viewpoint in the second paragraph so much the wiser. I think that she's a resourceful enough woman that if Elijah had decided to stop acting, the family would still have been provided for--I also think (guess?) that Elijah was smart enough to know that at a fairly young age, which would have given him the freedom to be a kid.

Another guess is that the money he brought in was handled carefully and not spent on trivial things, so that there would have been a reserve if he had stopped acting. That guess is based partly on knowing that his mother is a smart, savvy woman, and partly based on how Elijah tends to use money now that he's making his own decisions, especially if you compare him to many young celebrities who have a lot of money to throw around. An example was his giving up the apartment in NYC because he didn't feel he spent enough time there to make it worth the rent--how many people in his position would have kept it, just to have "a place" in New York (and we know he loves New York), even if they used it only occasionally? And I remember one story from shortly after it was clear that the LotR movies were all going to be megahits. Elijah saw a car he loved (possibly a vintage Mustang, but I don't remember for sure), and the person he was with said, "Just buy it!" the idea being, of course, that he didn't have to worry about the money. But Elijah said, no, he just didn't want to spend that much for a car. I have to think that's an attitude he grew up with, as opposed to some young stars who aren't used to having all that money and end up going broke. And to make his attitude even healthier [ :rolleyes: Let's see, he has a bad sense of direction, right? :p ], he obviously does spend money when he decides it is worth it--on some of his clothes, for example, and a CD collection that's probably worth more than everything a lot of people own. So it's not a miserly hanging onto every penny "just in case." It's simply using his money wisely.

IIRC, Elijah said it was around the time he made The Ice Storm that he made what he felt was his real decision to stay with acting. It would be interesting to know what all fed into that.

On the interview with Rachael Leigh Cook--I'm just glad I didn't read that before I saw the movie! I hope she's learned since then not to give away surprise plot twists :eek: .

And, yes, very disappointing that we never got back to that interesting earlier topic ;) .

Yes, also based on that CNN program I referred to earlier: that friend (?) of the family talked about the financial situation.
Apparently, his parents had opened a special bank account for Elijah that was blocked until he reached a certain age (can't remember if that was 18 or even 21). They said that it was important to his mother that most of the money Elijah earned went to him. They only used part of the money for expenses and stuff but nothing extravagant and the rest went to that special bank account.
(they specifically mentionned that because too many of these child stars end up with very little when they grow up. But, I don't know what US law prescribes when it comes to earnings from children).

Elijah also had weekly (?) spending money, pocket money. It was not much, actually.
Didn't somebody in here link to an article from when he was about 12 years old or so with a title like "Elijah Wood in debt".
When you read it, it was actually a cute article. Elijah wanted to buy his family nice Christmas presents or something like that but his weekly allowance wasn't enough to cover the costs.

On the interview with Rachael Leigh Cook--I'm just glad I didn't read that before I saw the movie! I hope she's learned since then not to give away surprise plot twists
Yep, exactly my thoughts, tg
I first saw the movie with very little information and a big part of the fun of the movie was seeing the twist in the plot I never saw coming.

Wait a minute...maybe I should go back to that post of mine, do another edit and put up spoiler warnings for those who haven't watched it yet.

Moondancer, thanks for the spoiler warnings :) ! TBFA is one of the "yet to view" films on my Elijah movie list.



witheling, that drawing of yours reminds me of Christopher Walken for some reason..heh

Christopher Walken :eek: ?! Wah! But well, I can see what you mean... it must be the eyes... :cool:

This is confusing... Can you tell this is a first post??? I'm glad to have found this forum. I'm sorry not to have known you before as I was in Seattle for the LOTR symphony too. However, Linda and her group were spectacular hosts! She went out of her way many times for us. (Thank you Linda!) I may lurk for awhile until I figure out this posting...until then.

Hello!

Thank you to everyone for your kind welcome. I feel like I'm in exalted company! There are so many people here with amazing contacts, insight and talent (Whiteling - I'm in awe of your drawing ability. I used to draw, but it could never compare with the masterpieces that have come from your pencil!)

I may not have a lot to contribute to this forum - except to say that I love reading everyone's posts! And to say that who but Elijah could bring such a diverse group of people together in appreciation of his talent.


Kumari

Hello to Shelbyshire--that first post looks fine to me :cool: !

Moondancer--When it comes to money in general, U.S. law usually leans toward doing as little protecting as possible (free enterprise, y'know). I'm not an expert on this, so if anyone has any corrections to make, please do. But the way I understand it is that it's assumed parents have their child's best interests at heart and will handle any money the child earns responsibly. Until the kid reaches legal age, when he or she can sign contracts, etc., the parents are in charge unless it can be shown in court that the parent(s) don't have the kid's best interests at heart.

-- Think Huck Finn--In the book, the money that Huck had gotten in Tom Sawyer, which is actually what financed his "disappearance" and his expedition with Jim, was kept in trust for him by the local judge because his mother had died and the court had ruled his father an unfit parent. In the first part of the book, Huck details all the things his father went through to try to get his hands on that money--by trying to show the court that he'd "reformed"--but thanks to the wisdom of that local judge and some other involved local folks, he was never able to. Huck would go and ask the judge for some of the money when he needed it (the judge seemed to trust Huck's responsibility more than his father's), which is how he got the money to run away. But as long as Huck was a minor, if his father had been ruled a fit parent, Pap would have had control of the money. (In the movie, it's changed into money that his mother left him, so they don't have to explain what happened in the previous book, but it was most likely more money than his mother would ever have had.)

But, anyway, you can see how a situation like McCauley Culkin's could have happened, and how a lot of child actors can end up with nothing. Like any other form of child abuse or unfit parenting, someone would have to bring the matter to the court's attention in order for the parent(s) to lose control over the money (I do seem to recall that has happened on occasion with child celebrities--probably one advantage they have from being in "public view"). Another :k and a :cool: for Debbie Wood. It was her decision to set up that special account--it wasn't something she was required to do.

Actually, California and New York state laws are very good at protecting child actors/performers, after the lawsuit brought by Jackie Coogan back in the 1940s (IIRC). Coogan was the child who costarred in "The Kid" with Charlie Chaplin back in the early 1920s, and his considerable fortune was completely gone by the time he reached 21, spent by his parents and managers. I believe that current law states that the money earned by the child must go into a trust fund that the child cannot access until 18 years old, but the parents can draw upon the fund for living expenses and as a wage if the parent(s) are the child's managers, as well.

I remember seeing something about child actors on TV where a TV star (Danny Bonaduce from The Partridge Family, IIRC) told of signing his majority papers on his 18th birthday and withdrawing just about his entire trust fund that day, and blowing through all of it by the time he hit 21. Of course, he was also not getting any parts due to the difficult transition phase, so he was earning no money to live on other than that trust fund.

welcome to shelbyshire!!! :k :k

and to kumari: TO KEEP POSTING ITS ALWAYES FUN TO READ OTHER OPINIONS!!!! :k

and i agree with you. it must be something realy magic and speciell
about mr.beautiful,i mean we are all from diffrent corners of the world
and i think diffrent ages to but i must say(again :rolleyes: ) i have
never(known)so good friends who totaly understands what you feel about
things and in this case ELIJAH!!!! :k

Sharpe's Girl--I'm glad some states are stepping in where the federal law hasn't. Do you have any idea how that played out as far as the Culkins?

Danny Bonaduce's been through a lot. He was on the Today Show a couple of months ago when they were reuniting casts of various sitcoms. He alluded to his past problems, and seems to have come out okay.

For anyone who's interested in child acting rights and laws in the United States, I recommend the website for the child acting support/advocacy group A Minor Consideration, founded by Paul Peterson, who played Jeff on The Donna Reed Show in the 1950s. They are the primary advocacy group for minor performers out there, and an excellent source for current and pending legislation not only in California and New York, but internationally.

http://www.minorcon.org/index.html

Definitely poke around that site--there's a touching letter of support for Macauley Culkin after he broke away from his parents, a heartbreaking obituary for Dana Plato, and many other items listed in the Contents.

Thank you very much for that link, sharpe's girl. Fascinating, a bit depressing reading about what can go wrong but fascinating.

Like you, I nosed around in it and found a couple of very moving things.
I read the open letter to Macauley too.

But, while I was looking around, I had a big shock:
Jonathan Brandis commited suicide? :( I didn't even know he was dead.
I liked him.
Paul Peterson says in the end of the 'in memoriam': "this one hurts". :(

Originally quoted by Grumpy:
Re: Huck Finn - it's a good movie to watch when feeling absolutely horrible. I noticed a sequence of expressions, though, that I hadn't seen before. It's when Huck and the various Wilks bros. are being pulled through the streets, and Huck and Jim see each other. It lasts about 1.25 seconds and is about 4 different expressions. Is that sequence captured anywhere? Lovely expressions. Lovely.

Here is that Huck Finn clip, Grumpy:

Huck Finn (http://www.imagemagician.com/images/blossom/HF1.gif)

(I had to trim Jim's shot down to the minimum in order to get all of Huck's in and keep the gif under 2MB.)

Hope you're feeling better now, Grumpy. :)

I also watched Huck Finn again only a few days ago. The fishing scene with Billy and his father is one of my favourites - the expressions that cross Huck's face there speak volumes.

A warm welcome to you, Shelbyshire.

Tg - I'll add my appreciation of 'Why I Love This Picture,' to everyone else's. Beautiful observations. I had no idea those 'sketches' were actual film frames - I honestly still thought they were pencil drawings, so thanks too for enlightening me on that score. Love the 'Frodo looking at Sam' pic from the Tower. :)

Moondancer - Thanks for the Rachael Leigh Cook quote. It is a pity her thoughts on Elijah weren't elaborated upon - sounds as though she really liked him and enjoyed the experience of working with him! I LOVE 'Bumblebee!'

Mariole - Hail the return of Elijah's sternocleidomastoid! It's beautiful! Thanks for the pics. :)

Whiteling - what a fascinating 'older Elijah' drawing!

Ylla - I hope all is going well with your husband.

*waves to Blossom!*

Erm, a while back someone mentioned all the posters here who speak more than one language, and our own Ainon was accidentally omitted from the list. *waves to Ainon too!* I'm sure, actually, that there are probably some multilingual others, perhaps lurkers. Come forth! ;)

I'm off to Boston early tomorrow to see the LOTR exhibit at the Science Museum there (our tickets are for Friday morning--if anyone from here is going at that time [but what are the odds?!], I'm the short one with dark curly hair, nose pressed to the glass! :) ). I'll check in when I get back.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! And thanks, once again, for all the great pictures and information. How do you do it??

...A Minor Consideration, founded by Paul Peterson, who played Jeff on The Donna Reed Show in the 1950s. They are the primary advocacy group for minor performers out there, and an excellent source for current and pending legislation not only in California and New York, but internationally.

OK...I don't know where my last partially typed post went - I hope it doesn't show up because it wasn't finished. Maybe I'll do it later. Basically, I was responding to Sharpe's Girl's quote from Entertainment Weekly about drawing power of "stars". The short version is that we're being bombarded by too many channels and the fringes of the entertainment industry desperately trying to prop up their own little corner of the industry by creating new "stars" if the old ones won't play. It's not any deficiency in the new bunch of actors; it's that they're less at the mercy of the industry and (hopefully) more in control of their lives.

I suspect there's a demographic that watches the lowest common denominator of TV; otherwise, most of the old demographics have been diluted beyond recognition. The attempts by TV and movie producers to pull in that ol' elusive 18-24 demographic is becoming increasingly hard. I also suspect that one of the strongest viewing/fan groups, besides sports, is Sci-Fi/Fantasy, which has always been dismissed by the Entertainment Weekly's of this world, and as long as they ignore it, they're going to be scratching their heads trying to figure out why the old formulas don't work. They never figured out that a whole lot of people tuned into the Golden Globes/oscars/every other award show last year because of LotR, and that viewers wanted to see those funny-looking short guys with that short funny-looking director. ;) I just feel like they've tried their darndest to ignore the actors who came out of those movies.

I think they're right, though - stars don't necessarily pull in the vast numbers of viewers on name alone. I think that in a sense, viewers have gone beyond star attraction, to genre, story, special effects, whatever. Peter Jackson took a bunch of relatively unknown (at least in the US) actors and a rip-roaring epic; people didn't go because of the big names, they went because it was Lord of the Rings. People don't just want to see "stars" anymore; they want to be entertained, and I think it's becoming less important that a big name is in the movie than that it's a good story. I hate to say it, but I suspect that at least some viewers are becoming more sophisticated, maybe?

Stardom has lost some of its appeal to the public, I think, and it's partly the result of too much familiarity. The old studio systems tightly controlled the actors's lives. We've now seen (or heard about) family squabbles, actors twitching to death on sidewalks, actors picking their noses in public, people using long-distance lenses to see inside an actor's bathroom. The control is gone; so is the protection. I think that at least some have figured out that the "stars" are nothing more than talented (hopefully) people in very visible jobs, and that their feet really do hurt when they're wearing 5" spike heels.

Back to Paul Peterson's (Oy, isn't he a doll-baby, even now? :::: hyperventilating ::::) advocacy group: I saw some program about child stars (don't remember what channel) and they interviewed him, along with Danny Bonaduce and Patty Duke and others, and of course MC was mentioned. I remember that in the part about MC, the program said that his earnings were in a trust or whatever, as required by law, but Kit C. sued and got it opened for family living expensives, despite that he was already drawing a salary (I think). It still happens - they talked about Gary Coleman, who at age 18 went looking for his fund and found absolutely nothing.

So I'd say that The Lad has had very good guidance and a good family. It must have been really difficult sorting out how to work it with a child supporting his family, but so far it looks like they did indeed work it out. At least I hope so.

Looking back on this post, it seems like I wrote a whole lot of nonsense. I think it needs to be shredded. Happy shredding, folks! ;) ;)


Edited to say: Thanks for the clip! The CU frame: that's one of those moments where you see inside Frodo's soul so far that it's uncomfortable. The "older EW" drawing: I think that his lips would be thinner; that happens as people get older. Noses also get longer and droop more, and ears get bigger. I think the angles of his face will get even more angular (unless he gets gains a lot of weight), and where there's softness, there will be lines. If he keeps smoking, his skin, unfortunately, will become more dry and wrinkled than it ordinarily would. Less devastating in an actor than actress, but considering that smooth, beautiful, translucent, (ok, ok - stop already) skin as it is now, that'll be a shame. I think that you got the difference in his eyes, though; I think that there will be a lot more wariness there and less of a sense that you're seeing into his soul.

May he be spared the things in life that would make that happen.

~grumpy

Shelbyshire, WELCOME :) ! Love the name.

Kumari, thank you very much for your kind words :) . Wood is right - please do post. Every point of view is welcome.

Blossom, :k for that HF gif. Only here I saw the outrageous facial expression of the woman behind Huck. *shudder*
Hope, hubby is doing well!



The "older EW" drawing: I think that his lips would be thinner; that happens as people get older. Noses also get longer and droop more, and ears get bigger. I think the angles of his face will get even more angular (unless he gets gains a lot of weight), and where there's softness, there will be lines.

Grumpy, of course you are right. The mouth was really the biggest problem. I didn't know what to do to these soft, youthful blooming lips (OT *sigh* ;) ), for the lips would change their shape probably the most.
With 20 you have the face that nature gave you, with 50 you have the face you deserve, as the saying goes. So how he will look actually - no-one can say. That depends, as you said already, on his further path of life and the sort of future experiences. May his eyes be bright and lumious even if he is eighty years of age! :z:

As you all probably noticed by now I am a great fan of quotations ;) , so here are a few I find very apt regarding the topic in question:
As we grow old... the beauty steals inward.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
You can only perceive real beauty in a person as they get older.
Anouk Aimee
Wisdom doesn't automatically come with old age. Nothing does - except wrinkles. It's true, some wines improve with age. But only if the grapes were good in the first place.
Abigail Van Buren
... and the winner of "Most Philosophical Comment" is:
Age is not a particularly interesting subject. Anyone can get old. All you have to do is live long enough.
Groucho Marx :D



Erm, a while back someone mentioned all the posters here who speak more than one language, and our own Ainon was accidentally omitted from the list. *waves to Ainon too!*

Flourish, I'm joining you in waving to Ainon :) ! And we have also our admirable Russian Faculty member, Rikka. Greetings to Moscow :) !

Good Morning. Silly question follows, when you post what/is the "Title" line for? Is that what is under the screen name? How do I change that? I've actually gone back and read many pages of the group's conversation and have thoroughly enjoyed it all! I doubt I could ever read all 300 and some. A little background for you. I had not paid attention to Elijah Wood prior to LOTR and in fact never saw FOTR in the theaters. I was going through a divorce at the time and life was stressful. I knew they were making a film since I worked as a cashier in a grocery store and saw magazine covers go by. I also knew the story since I read the books back in the late 70's as a teenager. Guess my age? I have since read everything Tolkien. Then I saw FOTR at home after renting it and I was hooked from that moment on. I did eventually see FOTR EE in the theater which was awesome. Back to Elijah... After FOTR I started renting/buying and downright searching for Elijah movies and now have a shelf devoted to just his stuff. Not to make any waves but...

Everyone talks about how great his mom is and I agree that she must have struggled to bring up a well balanced child as we all try to do (my kids are 11 and 9, two girls). After visiting the website for minor actors that was mentioned a few posts back any thought of my children going into an acting or modeling career can wait until they themselves are adults. Childhood is a precious thing. What about the things she shouldn't have done? I'm sorry but when I watched Paradise (again, I owned a VHS) the other day when my DVD arrived in the mail I can not help thinking of the scene where him and Thora Birch are swimming, get out with just their underwear on, him no shirt at all, sit there, obviously cold, and chat as just short of child porn. At that point in time was she anxious to get roles for him? Am I the only one that thinks that? I'm not comfortable watching the Ice Storm scenes with him and Christina either. Granted he is a teenager but wouldn't it be hard as a mother to watch your child do all that...

Hey, Shelbyshire,

Welcome to the Faculty Lounge, by the way.

As far as I'm concerned. I don't know his mother personally so I can only have an opinion based on my own impressions of what I see and read. It's certainly not a complete picture of her and almost certainly not a correct one.
From what I can see, she must be a good mother because other people in the business have complemented her with the way she guided her son but I'm also basing my judgement on what the man himself says about her.

About that Paradise scene with Tora Birch and the scenes from The Ice Storm with Christina Ricci.
I can't say that I have thought of those scenes like the way you just described it.
Paradise is not one of his best movies, I think (but for me personally, the choice of the two main adult actors played a major part in this judgement of mine). The scenes that stood out for me were the scenes between Tora and Elijah. Those two have chemistry but in a pre-adult way. I certainly never thought of those scenes as 'over the top' and not suitable for those kids. Those kids were approaching their teenage years and some of the scenes really reminded me of the way I behaved around boys. I mean, for me...it was an age were you start looking at them from a different angle. No longer 'those pests' but...you know, 'the opposite sex'. I like those scenes.
The Ice Storm...well, this movie is one of his very best in my opinion. I like it because a lot of the real story of the movie is not to be found in what the actors say to each other but it can be found in the way they interact with each other (body language, the way they look at each other or don't look,....)
A very nice bonus is the fact that this movie had a collection of very fine young actors (Tobey Maguire too) who did show their amazing talent in that movie. This movie is very high on my Elijah Wood appreciation list.

Now, somebody correct me if I'm getting this wrong but didn't Elijah Wood do an interview in which he mentions that kissing scene in The Ice Storm?
IIRC, when he saw the movie during the premiere, his mother was sitting beside him and it was a bit of an awkward moment as I can fully understand. :D

That's my opinion about those two movies.
Don't get me wrong here: of course you're very much entitled to your own opinion. :) That's one of the nice things of this place....discovering other ways of looking at things. So, thank you for telling us your viewpoint, Shelbyshire.

Now, in LJ land, I read that our very own Achila needs a bit of cheering up so this attachment is for you, Achila. :k (it's an oldie but a goodie :cool: )

Hi Shelbyshire and Moondancer, your last exchange has caused me to delurk.

Moondancer, you wrote,

Now, somebody correct me if I'm getting this wrong but didn't Elijah Wood do an interview in which he mentions that kissing scene in The Ice Storm?
Yes. In the very good Rolling Stone interview a few years back. Since he was a minor, his parent or guardian had to be on set anytime he was working. He mentioned that it was rather awkward to have to act the pool scene with his mother watching. I'll bet! Though I would have been far more embarrassed, myself, to have her there for the basement scene, when the rather reluctant-looking Mikey tries to de-trouser himself once he has been urged on top of the more forward Wendy. (Wendy the character, not you, Lady Wendy!) I thought that the "pool scene" was an excellently shot scene in an excellent film. The Ice Storm is the first film I ever saw him in, although I didn't know who he was, then. I watched it because it had good reviews and was directed by Ang Lee. I can't say I saw it as an erotically done scene, though; neither of them seemed to be particularly interested in each other -- just curious. The gum touch was great. But almost best I loved the pull-away shot of them, two little figures trying gamely to connect in the midst of that empty cement hole while dead leaves skittered and whirled around them in an autumnal landscape. I thought it was almost a sort of mini-image for all the difficult failed relationships that littered the movie as a whole.

I agree with you, too, about the scenes with Thora Birch in Paradise. Their scenes were the best by far. I did not think they were a bit salacious, as shot or to view -- and I have a definite eye for that sort of thing ; (Flipper wasn't shot to be salacious, either, but I have been known to freeze frame segments and pore over them, and I'm not looking at the dolphin, either) .

Whiteling, you may suppose your remark made me smile, "I didn't know what to do to these soft, youthful blooming lips (OT *sigh* )." Did you not? ;)

-- Mechtild

... rushing in breathless from RL ....

I think there was a report/interview quoted here recently which said that - fortunately for Elijah! - the (de-trousering) basement scene between Mikey and Wendy was shot in a closed studio without Lij's Mum watching - unlike the empty pool scene. Just as well!
;)

Bye for now (have Czech Lij article to translate .. will report back soon ....)

Translate away! Is it the Premiere Magazine Article????? Hopes!

Now, in LJ land, I read that our very own Achila needs a bit of cheering up so this attachment is for you, Achila. :k (it's an oldie but a goodie :cool: )


Moonie, you're the best :k -- thank you! And you can just about guess that my hormones had a role to play in that post yesterday too! This too shall pass, as my mom is found of saying. I'm just glad that I'm online -- the new hard drive I just bought had a few bugs in it and was back in the shop until yesterday afternoon. But I watched FOTR -- does anyone else do that? Watch Fellowship (or T2T or any of Elijah's other movies) if you find it on a cable channel, no matter where it is in the movie, and despite the fact that you have both the theatrical and extended DVDs (and in my case, I have a VHS too) and can watch them any time you feel like it??? -- and it made me feel a whole lot better. Glad to be back with my fellow Faculty members! Loves you all, preciousssss


PS -- I'm with you on Flipper, Mechtild...it makes me feel all naughty but I love it!

Serena, I can't remember the name of the article either, but I do remember him saying that the set in the basement was too small to accomodate his mother (and yes, there was a note of relief).

Glad to find so many others liked The Ice Storm. It was my favorite Wood movie before LOTR, largely because I was about Wendy's age in the 70s (and shared a lot of her temperment. I think I even gave a Thanksgiving speech close to her grace prayer! I know that was about the time that I read Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee ).

Guess your age, Shelbyshire? Sounds like you are about my age--and the age of many of us here, naughty aunties that we are.

Speaking of being a naughty aunty, and drifting off topic, I know, I just finished watching Sofia Coppola's film The Virgin Suicides , which was actually quite compelling. A very young Josh Hartnett is also in it (as well as a unbelievably insousciant and intriguing Kirsten Dunst), and I think I finally understand the Josh Hartnett crush my neice has. He is quite lovely, or was in youth--too bad he was the one responsible for Wood's smoking habit.


Mech--love your observation concerning the pool scene in The Ice Storm . The only true "love" relationship in the whole movie is between Mikey's younger brother Sandy and Wendy. Look at the lighting on Sandy's face when he and Wendy are snuggling during the ice storm that takes Mikey's life. Lee is really trying hard to demonstrate Sandy's angelic innocence.

Watch those Flipper viewings! Scandalous! ;)

hallo!!!
i to think the ice storm is one of elijhas best movie

i think all the actors in the movie does a great job.
and i agree with you eresh,it is true love in sandyes eyes!

oh puh, i thought i was the only one naughty pics in flipper :D

you are not alone achils i do the same thing is there a elijah movie in a
channel i can see.if i have seen it a thousend times who is sitting
in front the tv?yours truly :D :D :D

I'm right there with you,Wood, in spirit anyway, since I actually live thousands of miles away.

Ooops--I'd better sign off. Tropical Storm Bonnie is outside right now, with lightning and tornado watches. TS Charlie is supposed to hit tomorrow.

Batten down the hatches!

(Actually, just a lot of wind and rain--no hurricane force stuff).

Glad to find so many others liked The Ice Storm. It was my favorite Wood movie before LOTR, largely because I was about Wendy's age in the 70s (and shared a lot of her temperment. I think I even gave a Thanksgiving speech close to her grace prayer! I know that was about the time that I read Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee ).
I would have been in my first year of college (university to those in Europe and Asia) at the time The Ice Storm is set, and I swear I went to high school with Mikey :) . I wasn't quite as verbal as Wendy (except when it came to Nixon), but she was evidently based on my debate partner ;) . Actually, that can be pulled almost on-topic--I remember how mad my partner was (and how much we kidded her) after one debate judge wrote comments about her "expressive eyes" instead of her debating ability. :p

Guess your age, Shelbyshire? Sounds like you are about my age...
Yep--Any Tolkienites can tell how old I'll be on my next birthday by looking at my "location" :) .

Mech--love your observation concerning the pool scene in The Ice Storm . The only true "love" relationship in the whole movie is between Mikey's younger brother Sandy and Wendy.
I'd agree with that, although Wendy hasn't quite figured out what that means during most of the story. It's actually consistent with the book. IMHO, Wendy's the only character we come to know more in the book than we do in the movie, because some of it's told from her POV. Her interaction with Sandy when he's coping with his loss--at the end of the book--is probably the closest thing to true love in the entire story, but she doesn't come to that stage easily. Of course, she wouldn't, since she's having to teach herself about relationships, love, and life, without any help from her parents--as are all the kids in that story, book or movie.

Parallel to that, though, and thinking of the parental decision discussion, I would have been much more leery of the movie if I'd been Adam Hann-Byrd's mother than if I'd been Elijah's. Sandy's scenes with Wendy, IMHO, are much more sexually and emotionally charged than Mikey's (although, to be fair to Elijah, I think Mikey would have been a much more difficult character to play).

I haven't seen Paradise recently enough to remember what Elijah's and Thora's characters are talking about in that scene, so I can't speak to that. But I have some stills from it so can recall the general set-up. Maybe I'm showing my small-town roots, but I don't see two kids swimming in their underwear as unusual for the time and place. And I guess I see some shivers after swimming as a normal part of life. (From the director's commentary for Huck Finn, it sounds as if that movie was much worse than Paradise when it came to Elijah having to act in cold water.)

I probably would have nixed some things that Elijah's mother didn't, and she probably nixed some things that I wouldn't have. I don't think I've ever read or heard anything about what roles she decided against pursuing, but I'm sure there must have been some scripts she just threw away, and/or calls when she just said, "No, thanks."

One consideration we've talked about before--IIRC, particularly in regard to Radio Flyer and The Witness, both of which were made the year following Paradise--is that even child actors are aware that they're acting. Unlike those of us who're watching the movie unfold onscreen, they see the cameras and the lights and the crew members. They see the "unreal" parts of the sets, and things that aren't seen on camera (interesting director commentary on The Good Son regarding the safety devices and procedures they used for McCauley and Elijah when they were off the ground). They do lines and scenes over and over, and often out of sequence. And, maybe most importantly for movies like Radio Flyer and The Witness, they see the other actors as "themselves" on set and between scenes. When the intensity of The Witness gets to me, I remind myself that Elijah and Gary Sinese probably chatted--or even joked around--on set, maybe even in costume (now, wouldn't that make for a surreal candid shot? :eek: ). Same with "the King" in Radio Flyer, etc., etc. The earliest interview of Elijah's that I've seen was done during the filming of Radio Flyer, and he seemed very aware that everything was make-believe.

Not that I think it'd be okay for a kid to do anything and everything because it's all "pretend," but things are usually more complicated than what we end up seeing on screen.

----------

Ereshkigal--Be careful, and FES, hold on tight! :z:

----------

Since I don't have cable, I very seldom have the experience of an EJW movie on TV--but I do have my "private stock" :p . The few times I've noticed there's a movie of his playing on broadcast TV, you can bet I've watched it :) . Methinks the "shared experience" has something to do with it, knowing that a lot of other people are watching it at the same time. :)

Tonight was great, let me explain. The smile is still on my face. My brother, who lives across the street, had an old friend, his wife and their kids over to visit, they have not seen them in 3 years. I come home from work and their 15 year old daughter says, "I love your living room". Needless to say I have the 3 movie posters, a 3-D puzzle of Orthanc, pop cans with the characters on them and my most precious possession, Sting from the Noble Collection (I also have glowing Sting from Master Replicas). Most of all she liked my Elijah autographed picture which, unfortunately, I got in the mail (a story for another post). This girl is an Elijah fan! Imagine that! It was fun talking with her even though we are from different generations. But we did have one thing in common!! Isn't it a joy to be a "geek" at times like that!!! That's all, I just had to tell you...

Everyone talks about how great his mom is and I agree that she must have struggled to bring up a well balanced child as we all try to do (my kids are 11 and 9, two girls). After visiting the website for minor actors that was mentioned a few posts back any thought of my children going into an acting or modeling career can wait until they themselves are adults. Childhood is a precious thing. What about the things she shouldn't have done? I'm sorry but when I watched Paradise (again, I owned a VHS) the other day when my DVD arrived in the mail I can not help thinking of the scene where him and Thora Birch are swimming, get out with just their underwear on, him no shirt at all, sit there, obviously cold, and chat as just short of child porn. At that point in time was she anxious to get roles for him? Am I the only one that thinks that? I'm not comfortable watching the Ice Storm scenes with him and Christina either. Granted he is a teenager but wouldn't it be hard as a mother to watch your child do all that...

I must say that I have nothing but respect for Elijah's mother and great admiration for the way she guided his career. She saw that her son had uncommon energy, charisma and talent, and she helped him channel that into something worthwhile, rather than letting it rot. I don't think Elijah missed out on anything in his childhood; maybe he never got to play on the Cedar Rapids Little League Team, but he DID get to experience incredible things, people and places that most of us will never experience in our entire lifetimes. Childhood IS precious, and he spent his precious childhood years surrounded by creative people, visiting fascinating places, and honing a natural talent that will reward him---and us---for years to come. How I wish we could all say that about our own childhoods.

I believe Elijah's mother also showed great wisdom in the roles she picked out for her son. A few TV commercials aside, she didn't pimp him out to whatever cheap project came along, and I don't think that anything he did as a child or a teenager could possibly be considered exploitative. (I haven't seen Paradise, but I rather hope we haven't gotten to a place where an image of two children swimming, or some clumsy adolescent groping as in The Ice Storm is automatically associated with child pornography.) Nor did she push him into a recurring role in a TV series, where he might have been subject to the "child star" typecasting that could have ended his career when he hit 18. By the time he was a teenager, he had worked with some of the most well-respected names in the business, and built up the sort of solid resume without which he would never have been able to win the role of Frodo. And what a loss that would have been, to him, and to us.

I'm sure Debbie Wood made some mistakes, as all mothers do, but the final proof of what kind of mother she was lies in the person that Elijah has turned out to be. She somehow managed to raise a young man who is almost unbelievably gracious, kind, respectful, hard-working and modest---traits that few men Elijah's age seem able to demonstrate, even when they haven't grown up in the limelight. I wish there were more Debbie Woods out there to be mothers to such men, and my hat is endlessly off to her.

Hello Faculty! I know it's been a while since I posted, but I finally decided enough was enough! I'm still reading and enjoying every word, but I've found myself in a place where I often have so much to say that I end up saying nothing at all, for lack of time to say it properly, or to respond to all the wonderful discussions that I want to respond to.

First of all, welcome to all the new members! It's so nice to meet you, and I'm glad you've jumped right in and made yourselves at home. I'm the (not usually this quiet) mod for this thread, so if you ever have any questions that you can't find answers to in the FAQ, feel free to PM me.

(((tgshaw)))), I hope everything works out for you.

I FINALLY saw Radio Flyer about two weeks ago, when it finally appeared on one of the cable channels here. A very good performance, I thought, and I can't wait until it's out on DVD. What great news that it is coming! I rarely end up watching anything on VHS anymore, so I've been holding off on completing my EW collection until the last few movies came out on DVD.

I need a repeat viewing to decide about the ending, as I want to watch for clues - particularly as to the origin of the post card from the Wild West show. I guess that will have to wait for the DVD, unfortunately.

I moved my computer room at home around about two weeks ago, because I often work at the long side section of my desk, and couldn't see the computer screen from there. I moved the monitor so I can now see it while I'm working at this side section, and have been indulging in my own little EW movie festival ever since. (I don't know why I didn't do this years ago - I can be productive and watch movies at the same time!!) In the last two weeks I've rewatched The Good Son, The Bumblebee Flies Anyway, Deep Impact, and All I Want. Unfortunately, I also realize that a true research assistant would have been reporting on her findings as all of this went on, but....it's back to that whole issue of 'so much to say, and not enough time to say it in!' Bad Research Assistant. :( ;) Though I suppose it is a good thing that the research continues; I just need a more imposing deadline for submitting the results to motivate me. :D

Carry on, dear friends, and know that I am reading and enjoying every day. I'll try to actually say something once in a while, too!!! :k

**waves at Elda**

My Aunt Virginia taught me about Dorian Gray like this: "There is no such thing as Ugly People, only People who did Bad Things and got away with it." :lol:


I also want to know about that pic of Frodo in the cave looking at Sam. If it isn't a "Victim to hero" expression, then what is it? He's just looking at Sam, but how from a position of Strength? (Yeah right! :lol: ).

Why does He look so Painful? Is he too proud to tell Sam,"Help me it hurts?" :lol:

*waves to Flourish & whiteling* :D

Work's been keeping me busy ( :mad: ) and I had technical issues to sort out with the home 'puter, but I've been doing my best to keep up with the Faculty. An awesome task it is ;) but it sure gladdens one's heart to see that when it comes to Elijah we ain't run out of things to say yet. :D

But first, GREAT BIG WELCOME! to Bohemian, Shelbyshire, Kumari (hey there! we're almost neighbours - well, we're in the same time zone, at least ;) I'm in Malaysia), Ereshkigal, Mechtild, ... I do hope I haven't missed anyone out? Yeah, the native English speakers have thus far been quite tolerant of the rest of us trying to mangle the language. ;)

A very belated unforgiveably belated, I know Happy Birthday to serena, Rikka, estella rose :k

whiteling - your sketches are amazing! :k

(((Blossom))) hope everything's okay. Thank you for the gifs you make time to share!

((((tgshaw))) hope the legal matter will be settled soon, and for the better.

*waves to chattegrise* :)

((((Faculty)))) Very glad to see everybody, appreciating everyone's posts, and very thankful to all who're sharing the wealth of news and images. :)

To atone for my tardy posting habits of late, an update for ESotSM:


from chud.com

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Released on September 28; will retail for $29.98.
which must be the US date and price

-- 1.85:1 Anamorphic widescreen presentation
-- English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
-- English DTS 5.1 Surround
-- French Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks
-- Audio commentary with Michel Gondry and Writer Charlie Kaufman
-- A Look Inside Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind featurette
-- Conversation with Jim Carrey and Director Michel Gondry
-- Deleted scenes
-- Polyphonic Spree's "Light & Day" Music Video
-- Lacuna Commercial

godmorning ladies!!!! :)

i heard on the news today about the
hurricane in Florida! if there is any of
you who lives there I HOPE YOU WILL
BE OKEJ!!!!! :z: :z: :z:

LOVE WOOD

Good morning, everybody,

I was looking through posts on the TORC site in the movie section of the site after seeing a link in the Elijah/Frodo section.
There are quite a bit of book purists in there. I have read the LOTR books about 15 years ago but I don't consider myself a book purist. My book Frodo is different from movie Frodo but I love them both. :cool:
That's the main reason why I don't post there, I think. I don't feel quite at home between all those book purists.
But some of the threads are wonderful to read. There are many fascinating discussions in there.
Didn't somebody say that Diamond of Long Cleeve is also a member of KD but under a different username? I have read some of her posts in TORC with great pleasure. Reading her plea to PJ about Frodo (wonderful thread) to seeing how Diamond reacted to ROTK and the reactions from all the other posters. Wonderful. :)

At the moment, I'm reading Erishkigal's thread ("Jackson absolutely ruined Frodo".....needless to say that I quite disagree with that), and I'm half way through that.
It's really great reading all these well-written posts and how it made a lot of people see certain scenes from a different angle.


Off topic, did you guys see the opening ceremony of the Olympics? Certainly the first part with the rich history of Greece and the Olympics. The second part - seeing all these athletes from so many countries - was a bit boring, tough. But, that was a good thing because I like to watch tv when I have to do my ironing and I have a tendency to burn myself when it gets too good on tv (my right hand and wrist has a couple of burn scars :rolleyes: - I'm clumsy).
When I was 18, I visited Greece for three weeks and it's a fantastic country. I love Greek mythology and it's great to see the Olympics coming home. :) (I hope we won't have too many doping scandals).

Didn't somebody say that Diamond of Long Cleeve is also a member of KD but under a different username? I have read some of her posts in TORC with great pleasure. Reading her plea to PJ about Frodo (wonderful thread) to seeing how Diamond reacted to ROTK and the reactions from all the other posters. Wonderful. :)


Aye, Moondancer, Diamond of Long Cleeve is the lovely Pearl (mostly posting in our Harem sister-thread). And yes, I think, her posts are real pearls :) !

Have fun watching the Olympics, Moondancer. And take good care of your hands ;) :k


Have a nice weekend, everyone :) !

Good Morning to you, too, Moondancer.

I believe it was said earlier that Diamond ("Di") of TORC is "Pearl" here. Someone may correct me if I am wrong. "Di's Heartfelt Plea" is indeed a very good thread. You might love "Frodo's Disintegration" there, which was originated by Laureanna. It was a very angst-centered thread in which many thoughtful fans tried to understand why it was they seemed to love Frodo more, the more he suffered (witness the big spike in Frodo-centric devotion and swooning, after RotK was released). There are a lot of other terrific threads archived there that concentrate on Frodo. I could try and dig some out and link them if you are interested (their new search function there is wretched).

Speaking of Ereshkigal's thread (full of good back-and-forth, but more full of purist arguments, yes), Ereshkigal, I put a note for you in the TORC Elijah/Frodo swoon thread. As Wood noted above, Hurricane Charley is probably trouncing you right now. I think you live right in its current path. Let us know, when you can, how you are. I hope you saved your writing to a disc!

-- Mechtild

Morning Ladies, Hope any Florida residents are holed up somewhere safe and dry! :z:

Hullo to new-posters! Glad to see new faces here so often!

I'd never read the book until I'd seen the movies, so I'm obviously ruined for life! :p The first time I read the book Sam was my favorite character. I just suppose I related to him more. But Frodo has become my favorite, partly because of Elijah's (remember him? ;) )performance. While Jackson made film choices that I don't like (won't bore you by innumerating them) Elijah's incredible skill as a non-verbal actor helped me understand what Frodo was up against with that Ring chipping away at his resolve. (Reading the "Frodo's Kitchen" thread at TORC probably helped, too!)

I must say though, that the first time saw RoTK - on Trilogy Tuesday, I was so angry I hardly enjoyed it. Everything went south, in a movie I'd wildly anticipated, for me the minute Frodo told Sam to go home that first time through. Obviously I came to love the movie on it's own merits. But I think it's plain that PJ sees Sam as the "real hero." :rolleyes:

OK, topic whip-lash. I've been wondering lately about something in what I've seen of the filming of Elijah's latest films. He's indicated, in interviews IIRC, that he's not really interested in being famous because of the way he looks. Which is cool; surest path to "Not Hot" is to be the face-of-the-moment, and the best roles are not the parts that rely on that sort of fame.

But my logic here: (1) in ESotSM Patrick's full, un-graphically-altered, face is on screen for a tiny fraction of his too-short screen time. (2) In "Hooligans", from the pics we've seen, Matt's face seems to bear the brunt of much of the punishment. (3) From the pic someone posted here of Kevin, in "Sin-City" beauty is hardly likely to play a role in his character's developement, and we may see glasses of some sort. (4) In EiI JSF wears those googly-eyed glasses.


So, is Elijah deliberating choosing roles that significantly alter/ignore his physical gifts? Is he trying to avoid the "Frodo Effect?" (Have any of you ladies seen the "Osgiliate Dictionary" at TORC? :lol: "Frodogenic!" :lol: ) Did his appearance kind of over-shadow Frodo, and color people's perceptions as to "wimpiness," etc?

And will we ever see Elijah comfortable enough with peoples' reaction to his appearance to USE it in a role? For example, as Dorian Grey? (Hullo, ShadowCat! ;) )

Honey!? overusingthe?keythismorning

I believe it was said earlier that Diamond ("Di") of TORC is "Pearl" here.
Ah, right.
Well, as I mentionned before...my memory is a photographic one. I'm useless when I have to remember names, so people using different usernames confuses my poor 'names and dates' memory even further :D
When I first read the LOTR book, after a while, I got totally confused by all those names. Who's who and what does he do?
When Tolkien started using different names for the same people (Stapper (that's the Dutch name for Strider) = Aragorn=Dúnadan), I was lost. :confused:
So, I started the book from page one again but with a note book beside me, writing down the most important names with a short description. That helped me out a lot.


As far as the book purists are concerned:
I learned about Peter Jackson's LOTR project on the Ain't It Cool News site.
That's also where I saw the first Frodo picture (you know the one, the very first poster with Frodo looking to us with a concerned face and the ring on his hand).
I understood right then and there that movie Frodo was going to be different from book Frodo. This movie wasn't about my book Frodo.
So, I relaxed and decided to just enjoy somebody else's view. It may be different but maybe not less magical.
The weird thing about that was that I had a bad experience with one of my favourite book creatures coming to life on the big screen. I kind of mourned the loss of my book Lestat when I saw movie Lestat. So, why did I have faith in the LOTR movies? Something about that first poster made me relax about this experience. On the AICN site, not everybody thought that this was a good poster, but it worked for me.
After the premiere of FOTR, I briefly searched the internet to find out what others had to say about it but I stopped doing that because I didn't want to be influenced by the many people out their voicing their opinion. I only started looking for various LOTR related sites after I saw ROTK.

Just like Honeyelf, when I first read the book, I read it through the eyes of Sam. It took Elijah's subtle performance (not forgetting Peter's influence and Fran's,...) to fully understand what Frodo was all about.
So, my focus switched from Sam to Frodo. That's why I always have a bit of a problem reading that movie Frodo is a poorer version of book Frodo. Not that I agree with every choice in the movies but movie Frodo is as valuable to me and as precious as book Frodo now is and I will always be grateful to Elijah Wood for showing me a way to understand book Frodo better.
:)

Simulposted with Moondancer--I'll just add that the moment I was able to "relax" about the movies was when I heard Elijah'd been cast as Frodo. Frodo has always been the most important character for me, and I knew Elijah could handle the part. After he was cast, I still didn't know if the movies would be great--or even very good--but I knew they would't be horrible! (Also believing that anyone wise enough to cast Elijah Wood as Frodo would be likely to make some other good decisions :p .)

---------

While Jackson made film choices that I don't like (won't bore you by innumerating them) Elijah's incredible skill as a non-verbal actor helped me understand what Frodo was up against with that Ring chipping away at his resolve.
It's the part of that quote in parentheses that keeps me away from threads like the ones mentioned. My feeling is that, yeah, all of us have things we didn't like about the movies, we've all shared what our "favorites" are and why, so let's move on. I was more vocal online when the movies were still being planned/shot, as we knew that there were "movie folks" purusing Tolkien-related websites to see how the fans' opinions were shaping up, so there seemed to be some use in really speaking your mind. (I do think that "we" were instrumental in getting rid of Xenarwen at Helm's Deep; I don't know if we had any other effect.)

But now that what's done is done, I'd rather be in discussions that try to find insights into the movies from within the movies--the "Official RotK Discussion Thread" is one that's had some very good points--instead of complaining about what is or isn't there. Dwelling on the negative when nothing can be changed is simply frustrating and depressing (for me--maybe others are still finding some catharsis or insight in the process). Since I'm not a moviemaker, so I don't plan to learn from others' mistakes, I personally just don't have any reason for it.

What I like even better than the "insights into the movies" threads are thinking about and discussing what Honey talks about in the later part of that quote--insights into the book that I've gotten from the movies. And there have been many of those! If nothing else, we get to see the story from another fan's POV (PJ's), and that almost always brings up some occasions of "I never thought of it that way." The way he depicted the Elves (in general, not the individual characters) added dimensions to them that I'd never considered. The dramatic change of appearance between Gandalf the Grey and Gandalf the White was something I'd never considered, but when I saw it I thought, "Of course, that's how it would be." I'll stop with those examples so this doesn't get boring :p .

But, absolutely, what Honey said about Elijah's acting--yes, yes, yes!! It was after seeing TTT and getting a handle on the "inner Frodo" effect that I became really aware of that. That is, of what movie-Frodo was teaching me about book Frodo as he showed the emotions that book-Frodo would never have allowed himself to show outwardly but which he must have felt. And I don't know of anyone but Elijah who could have done it so well.

Honey, in light of what you said above about the movies helping you understand what Frodo was up against, I think the following quote is interesting :) :

...But I think it's plain that PJ sees Sam as the "real hero." :rolleyes:
IMHO, PJ sees Sam as the "traditional" hero--the "action hero" if you will. Those shots where we see Sting before we see Sam (the two times he comes to rescue Frodo), are almost classic--they remind me of old-fashioned westerns when we see the hero's gun before we see him. Sam also does a lot more physical fighting with Shelob (in fact, it goes on a bit too long, IMVHO).

But, also IMVHO, by giving that role so obviously to Sam, PJ emphasizes even more that Frodo's the non-traditional hero. It lets Frodo remain the "every person" character. And I believe the audience reaction to Frodo during RotK bore that out--at least in the dozen audiences I was with. I read somewhere ( :o ) that the action-type hero gives people someone to cheer for, while the everyman/woman/hobbit-type hero gives people someone to identify with. And I really think the audience members--in general--identified with Frodo. Some of the lines I was afraid would draw laughs ("Now that I'm here, I don't think I want to") never did, and I think that's because the audience was so "with" Frodo at that point that they understood what he was saying and why. Have to say that PJ's classic horror movie use of the every person character didn't hurt, either. The "There's something coming up behind me, but I don't want to look" in Shelob's lair, and especially that silent stalking by Shelob after Frodo "escapes", had people on the edge of their seats. They might have been cheering for Sam, but I think they were identifying more with Frodo, in the sense of "What would I be feeling if I was in that situation?" Because of that identification, the "action" that Frodo does have--cutting himself out of the web, for example--is all the more effective.

In the book, I think both Frodo and Sam have a bit of both roles. In the movie, they're separated out and defined more--kind of in line with the simplifcation of characters that happens all through the movies. Whether that simplification was needed is something I can't answer, not understanding audiences enough. But if PJ was going to simplify things, I'm glad he did it the way he did and not the opposite (which he could have done--in the book, more people probably see Sam as the "everyperson" character, and it could have been played that way in the movie, too). I'd rather have Frodo's non-traditional hero role emphasized than his traditional-hero actions. As has been said many, many times, IMVHO the people who don't understand Frodo's heroism in the movies wouldn't understand it in the book, either--it was misunderstood by a lot of people for over 40 years before the movies were made.

So, is Elijah deliberating choosing roles that significantly alter/ignore his physical gifts? Is he trying to avoid the "Frodo Effect?" (Have any of you ladies seen the "Osgiliate Dictionary" at TORC? :lol: "Frodogenic!" :lol: ) Did his appearance kind of over-shadow Frodo, and color people's perceptions as to "wimpiness," etc?

And will we ever see Elijah comfortable enough with peoples' reaction to his appearance to USE it in a role? For example, as Dorian Grey? (Hullo, ShadowCat! ;) )
Judging from some of his photo shoots :eek: , I don't think Elijah's particularly uncomfortable with his appearance :p . As far as post-LotR movies, I think it was used to good effect in AIW (the scene in front of the mirror, when he's flicking the lights on and off, is the one that most "gets" me in that regard, but there are others).

He's still in his "first round" of post-LotR movies, and some of them might very well be purposely against-type--although I can understand why he'd want to do EII and Sin City even without that being a factor. It's going to be very interesting to see what kinds of roles he chooses after this.

Somebody posted a translation from that Czech Premiere article.
I hesitate a bit to just copy and paste it in here (even with the proper credits) because it must have taken her quite some time.
I'll ask permission to copy it here before I do so.

But this is a snippit from it:
After Lord of the Rings, are you choosing movies like ‘ESOTSM’ and the current ‘EiI’ on purpose?

My instinct tells me, that, after having been part of something this big I should go the opposite way now. Which wasn’t so hard by the way, because movies as big as LotR aren’t filmed every day.
Now I want to concentrate on more intimate things that are more about the characters but I don’t completely exclude something similar (like LotR) for the future. I look at a lot of scripts and if I get the offer for an interesting monumental movie, I’ll happily accept
The LJ is from mys1985

I'll be back with more if the translator of this article responds to my request.


ETA: check out the new pictures on the Always & Forever site.
ETA n°2: Belgium has its first Olympic medal: bronze in road cycling - Axel Merckx, son of the legendary Eddy Merckx who was giving commentary on tv here and shouting and cheering when he saw his son cross the finish line (he was so happy it was great to hear).

Just like Honeyelf, when I first read the book, I read it through the eyes of Sam. It took Elijah's subtle performance (not forgetting Peter's influence and Fran's,...) to fully understand what Frodo was all about.

I knew it before, but it took the movies to finally form the thought. The first part of the book, we see primarily through Frodo's eyes, with some of Sam and Gandalf and a few of the others. After Frodo and Sam break from the Fellowship, it switches and I'm not sure even now how gradually. We eventually see Frodo enirely through Sam's eyes until the ship sails out of the harbor, when we suddenly switch back and see what Frodo saw - a far green country under a swift sunrise.

The switch back to Frodo couldn't have been more powerful and emphasizes the sense of what we're losing. That's the last we'll ever see inside that heartbreakingly brave hobbit's mind.

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

~grumpy

Hello!

First I have to say hello to Ainon! In comparison to everyone else here, you are my next-door neighbour. I've even been to your country (a long time ago, however).

Thank you also to Wood, for your encouragement. :) I'll try to post more often!

I would love to be able to comment on Elijah's acting in all those movies mentioned above, but I haven't seen many of them. Besides LOTR, I've only seen Huck Finn, Forever Young and Deep Impact (I enjoyed Elijah's performance in all of them).

Although my husband is mostly unaware of my interest in one certain young actor (he can't help but notice my wallpaper is of Frodo), he has no idea of the depth! So, if I went to the Video store and rented the type of movies that I may not normally show any interest in, or are obviously directed at a younger market (eg, Flipper) he would start to wonder when he saw Elijah in it! Perhaps one day I'll think of a good enough excuse!

In the meantime, I really enjoy the discussions in this thread, and appreciate the generosity of the people who pass on new information. I'm impressed.


Kumari

kumari!!i have the same problems
with my husband,my hole family
and friends thinks i am a nutcase!!! :confused:

but i have stoped to take ant attencen of them!!
the only time i write posts in here are at evenings when my
husbands are at work!!!
but buying his movies they can never stop me from doing!!!! :confused: :confused:
(but i have serios problems to find some of his films
so i can buy them)

so my friends as you all know buy now i only have you
to talk to and share my feelings with!! :k :k

i just wonder who i will take with me when esosm comes to the
theater in august(i think it is)pehaps i will go alone then i don´t
have to leasone to stupid commentarys :(

I knew it before, but it took the movies to finally form the thought. The first part of the book, we see primarily through Frodo's eyes, with some of Sam and Gandalf and a few of the others. After Frodo and Sam break from the Fellowship, it switches and I'm not sure even now how gradually. We eventually see Frodo enirely through Sam's eyes until the ship sails out of the harbor, when we suddenly switch back and see what Frodo saw - a far green country under a swift sunrise.
And to us "true believers" in the Red Book ;) that last part is actually written by Sam after Frodo sailed--putting into words his hopes for his friend, perhaps?

There are two more-or-less gradual changes of authorship in LotR*: Bilbo writes the beginning (following his writing of "There and Back Again", and somewhat in the same tone). But as Bilbo grows older he doesn't get much writing done, so most of the book is written by Frodo--until we get to those "last few pages," which he left for Sam.

But--and it's a very big but--although Frodo wrote even the part of the book that covers the time in Mordor, he had to rely on Sam for much of the story, as his mind at that time was so completely centered on resisting the Ring. So, in something of a twist, Frodo's writing that part of the story from Sam's POV. We don't get a description of what's happening within Frodo--except through what Sam is able to observe--because not even Frodo could remember it well enough to write it down. In Tolkien's opinion, Frodo would have remembered almost nothing of what had happened at Mount Doom, and IMHO the process started before that.

After we head back to the Shire, we do get some information that only Frodo would know--that he hid his illness from Sam on the day Elanor was born, for example. But we're always kept at something of an emotional distance, which I think would be completely realistic considering Frodo's state of mind (from one of my most serious major depressions, I have two years--more or less--that are simply a fog). He tells us about those last few years very quickly, and I even wonder if there wasn't something in them of "Please understand, Sam. This is why I had to leave."

But if we stay within Tolkien's literary conceit of the Red Book, that glimpse of the far green country is pure Sam. [There is, not surprisingly :rolleyes: , an essay (http://www.frodolivesin.us/id245.htm) on this for anyone who's interested.]

(((Kumari))) (((wood))) -- Keep the faith :k

---------
*Of course, Tolkien rewrote the material to make it easier for us to understand, but the only information he had was what the authors of the Red Book recorded.

OK...I asked permission to put the translation in and I got it. :)
The credit for this translation goes to mys1985 (go and check her LJ out, there are pictures there as well)

So, here goes (this is a 'copy and paste' from her LJ)


Everything is illuminated is the name of the movie, due to which the 23 year old Elijah Wood is spending time in Prague. Though in the movie sets of ‘Hostivare’ he also told us about ‘Lord of the Rings’ ‘ESOTSM’ his new popularity and his ultimate actor-beginnings.

Have you met Charlie Kaufman during the filming of ESOTSM?
E: He wasn’t often on set but he spend a few weeks with us during rehearsals, before filming started, while we read our characters and thought about them. We suggested a few changes and he accepted some of them in the script.
The remarkable thing about Charlie is, that he gets more acknowledgement for the movies made out of his scripts then the directors who make them. People say ‘Have you seen the new Charlie Kaufmann movie?’ which is a big success for a script writer. That’s because his scripts are important to him and he watches what happens with them – unlike other writers, who write something and then lose control over it so that the director and the studios make whatever they want with it.


After Lord of the Rings, are you choosing movies like ‘ESOTSM’ and the current ‘EiI’ on purpose?

My instinct tells me, that, after having been part of something this big I should go the opposite way now. Which wasn’t so hard by the way, because movies as big as LotR aren’t filmed every day.
Now I want to concentrate on more intimate things that are more about the characters but I don’t completely exclude something similar (like LotR) for the future. I look at a lot of scripts and if I get the offer for an interesting monumental movie, I’ll happily accept.

Do you remember your first role in the sequel to ‘Back to the Tuture’ every now and again?

Of course! That was awesome. You probably can’t imagine how thrilled I was to be suddenly playing with Michael J. Fox as Monty McFly... all those flying cars around us, it was as if I childhood fantasies had come to live all of a sudden. I even had a scene with Michael. It was only very short but it was just like a dream!

How did you become an actor in the first place?

As a little boy in Iowa I went to classes for models because my mum had the idea that I could do commercials as a hobby. But you don’t really start a big career in commercials from Iowa so me drove to a talent show in LA. That was where I met Diane, who later became my manager. She asked me if I didn’t want to become an actor. I was seven! My older brother was already studying acting and I had always liked it so I said: “Of course, that sounds awesome!” Soon after that I got my first job and I fell in love instantly because it was so much fun.

When did you realize that acting wasn’t just fun but also a job that you really wanted to pursue?

I think I always took it serious. Of course it’s more fun than anything else for a seven-year-old boy, but even back then I tried hard to be professional. And the older I got the more everything around acting started to interest me. I have to say, that I still love acting and I still enjoy it. Otherwise I probably wouldn’t be doing it anymore.

Did you ever consider taking a break from acting to go to university?

I thought about it, before going to New Zealand but there just wasn’t enough time. And now it’s too late, so I have given up on it.

Was it hard to come back from the magical world of Lord of the Rings and get used to reality again?

Tight bonds started to form between the crew and the actors during filming. A closed circle of people, who spend a lot of time together, who depended and relied on each other developed, so it was really hard to ascent from this vacuum and start something new.
Though at the same time it was really freeing, because filming LotR was really exhausting. In comparison everything else seemed plain and easy. I remember that the first movie afterwards was ‘Dust and Ash’. (???) We filmed not quite a month, I was on set for six days, make-up only took a few minutes. I just couldn’t believe it.

Did you except such a enthusiastic reaction to LotR?

I don’t think anyone expected such an amazing reaction. Of course we knew that the book was well loved, that Tolkien Fans would go to see the movies, but we rather expected a huge wave of critique. Who could have predicted that the movies would become such a phenomena and that people would love them so much?

Do you personally like your new popularity?

Well, it isn’t something I really act out at the moment, but I don’t mind it. I understand it because I myself have fallen in love with the trilogy and am a huge fan. LotR completely change my life, but also my career, so I won’t complain. I’m really thankful for the experience because working with Peter Jackson and all those amazing people in NZ was an absolutely incredible experience. I have great memories of the time and those movies will be a part of my life forever, because I made friends I will have till the end of my life.

Aren’t you afraid that people will associate you with Frodo till you start hating him?

Of course people will associate you with the character you’ve played, because he’s so famous. It happens all the time that people on the street yell ‘Frodo! Frodo!’ because they don’t know my name. I’m not him, but I don’t mind people calling me Frodo. I loved playing the role and I’m proud of it.

Hello everyone:

No, I'm blown out into the Atlantic. We are used to hurricanes passing us by here, and even though I take every storm seriously, this one was small potatoes compared to others I've sat through. Besides, I'm out of storm surge range and don't live in a mobile home, and I'm a good little girl scout in being prepared with my propane camp stove and camp fans and such. We didn't even lose power, and not one tree was down on my street, so we got off easy. Piece of cake.

Someone mentioned my thread on TORC about Jackson ruining Frodo. I must admit, I was rather emotional when I started that thread. You know, if Wood hadn't made such a beautiful Frodo I might not have been so upset about how many opportunities I felt Jackson wasted. Still, I try to look at the characters as two separate beings now, because to say I don't like the movies would be disingenious at best. That thread basically embarasses me now.

I still hate the scene when Frodo sends Sam home, and think much of the Shelob sequence is marred because of that decision. But I love much of the post Shelob sequence, and especially the "here at the end of all things" speech.

So, Huck Finn has a director's commentary on the DVD? I may have to rent it from Netflix just to hear that. I love that sort of stuff.

Ereshikigal!!! You are in the land of the living! I am so pleased! Thanks for the report. There were more trees down at my mother's (Wash. D.C. area) last summer than what you describe for Hurricane Charlie. Hurray!

Moondancer, thanks so much for that article. I actually got all weepy (the brandy, I suspect). He is quoted as saying,

I understand it because I myself have fallen in love with the trilogy and am a huge fan. LotR completely change my life, but also my career, so I won’t complain.

Does this mean he finally read it? I was wondering what his reading abilities were, frankly (don't hit me!!!!). I know he is brilliant, but in Modern Times, that does not signify. I have a close friend who has been teaching college courses in theology and ethics for the last 8 years to incoming students in the U.S. system. She says she is often astounded (since this is a "good" school) at how poor her students are at reading and writing, though they may be exceedingly good in discussion.

Elijah may be great at Gameboy, but can he read? Really? (Pick up your bats, I am ready!)

-- Mechtild

Er...uh...yes, our lad can read, luv, and obviously reads well, based on some of the other books he has read (Jane Eyre, etc.; he once said that Jane Eyre was his favorite, in fact). No, he still hasn't read LOTR -- doesn't see much point in doing so, apparently. I would tend to agree -- after all, he's basically lived in Middle Earth for the better part of five years.

Thank you, Aquila. If he can read Jane Eyre (a personal favourite), he can read anything. Then, let him play Puck in Midsummer after all! Joy! Rapture! I am happy, ecstatic to be proved wrong in my unworthy suspicions!

--Mechtild

There were more trees down at my mother's (Wash. D.C. area) last summer than what you describe for Hurricane Charlie. Hurray!

Yeah, we're getting the soggy remnants now here in No. VA. No wind, but lots and lots of rain. We had some bad storms in the past few weeks, and there are still huge branches sitting at curbs waiting for grinding. I suspect that because we get relatively few hurricane strength storms, our trees don't get naturally "pruned" like the ones down y'awl's way, so when an Isabel hits, there's a lot of damage.

Does this mean he finally read it? I was wondering what his reading abilities were, frankly (don't hit me!!!!). I know he is brilliant, but in Modern Times, that does not signify. I have a close friend who has been teaching college courses in theology and ethics for the last 8 years to incoming students in the U.S. system. She says she is often astounded (since this is a "good" school) at how poor her students are at reading and writing, though they may be exceedingly good in discussion. Elijah may be great at Gameboy, but can he read? Really? (Pick up your bats, I am ready!)
::::: boiiiiiiiing!!!! ::::: :eek: :eek: Hah. Wait till you find a kid who doesn't know when the War of 1812 (the American one) was fought, or who's buried in Grant's Tomb (or even when World War I was fought! Seriously!). This is one of my Big Issues!

I've also wondered the same thing about The Lad; I suspect he does more listening to music than reading. Sean Astin said he read 40 books during filming; I suspect that Elijah's track record is close to 0. :( I can't really blame him for not wading through LotR; he's 23 and very busy; that book takes some concentration. But if I find out he never read EII - !!! :eek:

Did you ever consider taking a break from acting to go to university?

I thought about it, before going to New Zealand but there just wasn’t enough time. And now it’s too late, so I have given up on it.
Too late?!? Too late?!? How old is he, 95? :eek: :eek: Somebody needs to send the boy some college catalogs! :::: pulling on Official Mary Baldwin blue stockings and adopting "Daughter of the South" accent ::::: There are more independent study, non-residential programs in the US than you can shake a stick at. USC at Berkeley is one of the best and it's where he *lives*! He would need to get his GED (high school diploma equivalent), which is probably offered at every community college in the country. Basically, you read some books and take a test. U. of Wisconsin has an excellent non-residential GED program, along with higher-level math and "hard science" courses - I took first year Calculus from them. In fact, I did my bachelor's degree without ever setting foot in a traditional classroom.

Joanne Woodward did her Master's after her kids were grown (she graduated the same year as her daughter, I think), after her career had slowed. I admit that it would be risky to stop his career to go to college, but he's never going to have a traditional college-boy experience anyway, and he doesn't have to stop his career to get an education.

Of course, his life is different from most people's; he may be fortunate enough to always have sufficient income regardless of his educational level and he may have good people around him and a lot of natural smarts that will keep him from being exploited. Formal education may never be a priority. It probably has never been because of his career; I think it would take exceptional teachers to keep a kid focused in the spaces between shots. Learning is a lifelong process, though, as I'm sure he knows, and it's never too late.

:::: looking around at Faculty staring strangely; stepping off soapbox and kicking it under a table, pulling off Official Mary Baldwin blue stockings and strolling away whistling nonchalantly ::::

~grumpy (now, at Mary Baldwin ADP, he could take those four years working on LotR and write up about 15 prior learning portfolios and get most of his general educational requirements out of the way...) ;) ;)

Actually I've heard that Elijah reads quite a lot. I know he said he read 'American Psycho' when he was filming LOTR and he's mentioned other esoteric books he's read that I've never heard of. Can't think of them now. I actually looked one up on Amazon that he mentioned but I forget the title. I'd have to hunt around through dozens of interviews.

I heard recently he was showing a rare copy of the book version of Cool Hand Luke to people in Prague. And I believe he spends nearly as much time in bookstores as he does in cd shops.

One of his favorite gifts from fans are books and he always tells those who give him a book he will read it.

Serena! Can you recall, with your amazing memory, the interivews where Elijah has mentioned his love of books? Anyone, anyone?

IIRC....Elijah said he was reading American Psycho on the plane when travelling to New Zealand in 1999. Also said he had started reading Fellowship.
I know myself I very often have 3 books going at the same time....usually one is a biography not that anyone cares what I read :haha:

I do believe reading scripts could count as "reading"
Anyone as articulate as Elijah probably can read circles around most young men his age :eek:


Obviously simulposted with Hobmom :)

Someone that I know gave him a book at Collectormania last October (wish I could recall the title!) and he was enthusiastic: said he had heard of it and couldn't wait to read it. And in fact, his eyes kept being drawn back to it through the rest of their chat and the next person in line, as well, like he couldn't wait to crack it open and start reading! So I think it's safe to say that he enjoys reading. ;)

Here are some pics of Elijah bookshopping in LA last year.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v18/Hobbsy/tower12.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v18/Hobbsy/tower11.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v18/Hobbsy/tower13.jpg

Grumpy, what you and I are sharing as "fears" for the lad have to do with a generational phenomenon (of cultural ignorance and illiteracy), perhaps not applying to E.W., since he was schooled in such an unorthodox way. Hobmom, you cheer me up.

Tgshaw, (LORD I love your screencap/commentary site!) I do not buy, totally, the "Redbook" conceit, but I loved your post. If the LotR was supposed to be taken directly from the memoirs of Bilbo/Frodo/Sam et al, how would they know what Gollum felt or thought when he saw them both asleep, in his famed moment of empathy/"hobbit-ness" in the Cirith Ungol? Obviously, the conceit was a great idea, but it can't be applied 100%. If you wanted to carry through that idea, literally, perhaps it would be easier to think that later generations (the heirs to the Great Tale, Sam's prodigious progeny) collated and harmonized the received texts and then "fan-fictioned" the "holes" in the narrative, with their own ideas for what might be plausible. I can't imagine Frodo having put down ANYTHING self-revealing, even if it was complimentary, and I can't imagine Book Sam having the presumption to put on paper, for all posterity to read, what he privately thought might have been going on in his master's mind in Mordor, without his master's leave. But they (Frodo or Sam, but I am doubtful Sam was much of a writer himself; maybe he "told" things to Elanor who transcribed and edited them) might have written entries into the Red Book in the form of diaries, chronicles and narratives (sort of like Lewis and Clark's) -- and, then, LATER generations "filled in the gaps" to produce a full narrative. For the "Sea Bell" Tolkien continues the conceit, saying that the poem was found in the pages of the Red Book, but that he (the anonymous editor) did not think Frodo actually wrote it. But, it is ascribed to Frodo. That implies that someone involved in the writing or the compilation of the Red Book thought the poem expressed Frodo's inner life. That is important! Does it matter whom, in the conceit of handed-down traditions, thought it was important? Someone, who knew the tradition, thought the poem expressed Frodo's inner angst and depressed/alienated state, ascribing it to him. That's good enough for me, to consider it largely "canonical". But that is not the same as saying Frodo wrote it himself. I think the LotR is meant to seem as though it came out of The Red Book --but not word for word. It would have to have been a later work, working with the received texts.

Let's also not forget that this is a guy who has gotten involved with promoting literacy charities -- does "Me and My Cat" ring a bell with anyone? No, Elijah is more intellectual than some of you are giving him credit for. Certainly you don't get a vocabulary which includes words like "germane" etc., from just listening to music.

...perhaps not applying to E.W., since he was schooled in such an unorthodox way.
In order to innoculate this post against the off-topicness that follows :rolleyes: -- I recall that Elijah read (yes, books ;) ) during the 4 hours it took to glue his hobbit feet on in the morning. In fact, that's where I remembered the American Psycho reference coming from, although that's probably a faulty memory at work.

Hobmom, I love those pics, partly because the store looks exactly like one of the used book stores I like to visit in Omaha--one my sisters have to make a pilgrimage to whenever they visit :) . The fact that he's shopping in a used book store (and can come out of it with two big bags of books) makes me think he probably has quite an eclectic taste in books--as he seems to in other things :) .
I think the LotR is meant to seem as though it came out of The Red Book --but not word for word.
Oh, agreed--Tolkien, after all, is considered the author, rewriting the story from material he got from the Red Book. And from "notes on the Shire records" in the prologue, it's clear that the book had many versions, as any book would have in those days when everything was hand-copied. In the Thain's book, for example, additional information about Gondor had been added. Also with hand-copied books, there would be things added along the way such as Frodos Dreme; nothing would ever be "final" in the way we think of published books. I don't think Tolkien is ever clear about how many or which of these versions he had access to--he does say that the original had been lost, so he never had access to The Red Book. The subtitle Frodo gave the book calls it his and Bilbo's "memoirs" ('...supplemented by the accounts of their friends and the learning of the Wise'), so it would have been that type of writing rather than a narrative.

There are little clues, though, that Tolkien took his historian role seriously. My favorite is the footnote in the chapter on Lothlorien, where he explains a mistake Frodo made in his writing--but doesn't correct it in the text. There really are amazingly few "POV breaks" in the story, if looked at as information that could have been known to the original recorders. The scene with Gollum is often mentioned, and another one I noticed (after 30+ years :rolleyes: ) is that at Amon Hen, as Frodo is running from Boromir, Boromir calls after him, 'But Frodo did not even hear his cries.' [So who did?? Ah, pure gold for Tolkienite debates :p .] Let's not talk about the express train and the brown fox ;) , which to my mind are leftovers of the storyteller's voice Tolkien uses in The Hobbit, where he's much more obviously retelling the story for modern listeners.

All in all, with Tolkien working as the historian/storyteller, IMHO it's a remarkably consistent conceit. If you venture onto the "non-screencap side" ;) of my site, you might enjoy "The Red Book" and "Why We'll Never Know if Balrogs Have Wings," from Is Middle-earth Real? You very likely won't agree with everything in them, but that's the fun part! :p

I heard a lot of People are in Acting because they need therapy. Is this true? :lol:

Judging from some of his photo shoots , I don't think Elijah's particularly uncomfortable with his appearance . As far as post-LotR movies, I think it was used to good effect in AIW (the scene in front of the mirror, when he's flicking the lights on and off, is the one that most "gets" me in that regard, but there are others).

No, I didn't mean that Elijah is uncomfortable with his appearance! Not at all! Just that he seems a bit uncomfortable with certain fannish reactions to him now that he's so visible and all. I mean, this is a guy who likes to do normal stuff, like go to Disneyland, and now suddenly he's sneaking through hotel kitchens just to go swimming. I meant THAT specific type of thing might make him seek a little less visibility on the big-screen for a few movies.

I was wondering what his reading abilities were, frankly (don't hit me!!!!). I know he is brilliant, but in Modern Times, that does not signify.

Well, I dunno, but I have the distinct impression from the way he speaks in interviews, that he loves words as much as I do. He even said, in one interview, that he loves cross-word puzzles. You don't keep word-lovin' types like us from books very successfully. Heck, I'll read the back of a cereal box if deprived of my morning paper!

USC at Berkeley is one of the best and it's where he *lives*!

Berkeley....only about 45 minutes from where Honey! lives.... :D :z: :)

Nope, never too late to complete one's education!

TG, I LOVED LOVED LOVED your thoughts on why PJ left out Frodo's strength/traditional action hero moments! Suddenly I like the movies 5 to 15% more than I did earlier today even! :) :cool:

On the Red Book, I think of it as compiled notes of Bilbo's, Frodo's, and Sam's with some official documents from Minas Tirith digested and inserted for good measure.

One fan-fic I particularly liked (Don't recall name of it) had Merry telling Frodo that Sam had written that Frodo had this sort of radiance/electric hum/light sort of thing. Frodo was horrified, and basically said he was going to have to disabuse Sam of that notion post-haste.

But about Gollum's "near-repentance" moment, maybe Frodo wrote it because he of understood how far the Ring had taken Gollum from whom he began as, and wanted us to understand why he could show mercy and sympathy for the slimy, duplicitous, traitorous, sneaking....Um, for Smeagol.

wood and Kumari, hang in there! My husband has come to terms with my little hobby, and seems to have decided that being pig-headed about it wasn't going to deter me. He hardly seems surprised at all when the most mundane thing, like the cross-word puzzle for example, has me mentioning a certain talented actor's latest movie! Although I do try to politely keep it down to a dull roar! :D

(((((Faculty!)))))

Let's see what posting at 12:00 Midnight, when I've had very little sleep, will have me clarifying tomorrow!
Honey!

Very interesting discussions about Elijah's attitude to reading, favourite books, and the value of a good education, generally....
I've been pootling around in the Interview Archives this morning, and I pulled up some quotes from the Lad himself, at varying times in his career, to all these issues...

From AICN 1998 :-
Quint: I know that The Hobbit is one of your favorite books. Some others?
Elijah: Dracula is probably one of my all time favorite books. Most people think that it's a horror novel, but it's not. It's an awesome, awesome book. It's told all in diaries. Hobbit, Dracula, Farenheight 451, Animal Farm. That's another thing, I just like too many books.


From The Prodigy Chat 1997 :-
sarahspoon: Are you going to college or are you going to focus on your career?
Elijah Wood: I'm actually going to do both. I feel a need to further my education. I truly value education, so I definitely want to go to college, but I don't want to quit acting for 2 or 4 years, just so I can go to college. I'm probably going to take classes that I can take on the road with me, so I can take the work on the road and finish it for the school. Interestingly, there are online colleges that offer plans like that.
But I haven't completely decided exactly what I'm going to do... but that is definitely one of my options, and I'm considering doing that.


From the Interview with Sheila 1996 :-
Q. How does school fit into your schedule?
A. I have a home study program. I work half on the Internet, and half with books. English has always been my favorite, because I love writing, creative writing and poetry are a lot of fun for me. I love reading, too. I have so many favorite books, like Dracula and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Q. I heard you're a straight A student. True?
A. Well, yeah, but on my last report card I had a few A minuses. I just want to have the best grades possible.

Q. Why are you concerned about your education?
A. A good education, especially English, can contribute greatly to an actor's perspective. An education also makes you a well-rounded person.

Q. What if someone told you they wanted to quit school to pursue acting full time?
A. I would say no. Education is too valuable. It forms who you're going to be, and helps you excel at more things. I guess I'm just a believer in staying in school. Quitting school is giving up, in a way.


From these snippets, I get the feeling that he is far more intelligent than interviews sometimes make apparent...it's all about asking the right questions, isn't it ? I mean, if he doesn't get asked about what books he likes than we never get to hear about his reading level...
The other thing is that the one-to-one schooling, that he talks about, just has to give you a better education than being in a class of thirty or more pupils, right ? You get the whole tutor's attention, and that is really excellent for bringing out the best in any pupil...no wonder he was a straight A student ! Nevertheless, he would still have to have it there in the first place, in order for the teacher to get it out of him...


Just one more thing I came across, which I found very interesting, and seeing as "The Ice Storm is a favourite with me and several of you lot, I decided to C & P this snippet too...all about the filming process with Ang Lee...
From The Prodigy Chat 1997:-
TK inChicago: What was it like to work with Ang Lee?

Elijah Wood: Ang was incredible to work with. The whole movie experience working on The Ice Storm was really amazing and completely different for me, because the approach to the film, and the filming process, was different. Being set in the '70s, there had to be a bit a research from that time period. A day before I flew into New York for a rehearsal, I received (from the production company) a 300-page packet of information about the '70s.

It also included a questionnaire for my character--questions pertaining to my relationship with my family, to how I relate to children in a social setting, to what my interests are--anything you can imagine, to go into the depth of the character. That was a new approach and a completely different way of thinking for me. Usually I create a character, and I get an idea of how I want to play it in my head, but not to that degree.

Not everything that we came up with was used for the character. Along with the packet and the questionnaire, I also sat down with Ang and a few of the other actors, including Christina Ricci and Adam Hann-Byrd, and we discussed, through the eyes of our characters, our relationship and how we got along, and where we stood as either a brother or a friend. It was quite an interesting process, and something I'll never forget.

Ang as a whole was just the sweetest and most wonderful man. It was just a great experience working with him, and to be a part of his vision, because he is truly brilliant.


"The Ice Storm" was such an emotion-laden movie, I thought this was an interesting insight into how Ang Lee worked with his young stars...after all, the probabilty of them actually being able to act out their roles from real-life experience was not to be assumed possible, considering the truly awful family relationships portrayed within this film...however, from the recent discussions about Elijah's non-relationship with his Father, I can quite see how Elijah would have some real-life experience to fall back on here !!

Just a quick fly-by post here, but it's just something I wanted to share:

Dutch_Eowyn has posted a very, very cute clip on her LiveJournal.
It's Elijah doing promotion for the movie Paradise and it's great.
D_E mentionned that in the last bit of that clip, you can see his mother and his sister standing there watching the interview. I think she's right.

If you can't find her LiveJournal, give me a PM and I'll give you the link.
It's worth the trouble of looking it up. Believe me.

Edit: Oh, yes...the credit for finding this clip goes to StarDom.

tgshaw, thank you for your detailed response. When we get back from our little campling trip in a couple of days, I will certainly want to have a look at the essays you pointed out. You sound as though you have given in a lot of thought to the "Red Book conceit" and so would be a good source for me.

HoneyElf, the quote from the fanfic in which, "had Merry telling Frodo that Sam had written that Frodo had this sort of radiance/electric hum/light sort of thing. Frodo was horrified, and basically said he was going to have to disabuse Sam of that notion post-haste," sounds like a recommendation in itself.

LadyWendy, thanks for so many tantalizing and informative pieces of info. gleaned in your "pootling" -- I am really getting my own education from all of you -- and all to the good. Thank you! I think you are right about the benefits of having a good tutor, absolutely. I wish my own child had had one! (Or me, for that matter; I loathed school after the elementary level.)

Moondancer, I'll pm you for the link, please.

Shadowcat, you wrote,
I heard a lot of People are in Acting because they need therapy. Is this true?
From your emoticon, I think you meant this as a joke. When I was studying acting, I thought a lot of us needed therapy, yes. ;) I would have needed therapy in order to act! But on the whole, my friends who continued in acting tended to have very sound indentities. Otherwise, they would fallen apart under the stresses of constantly putting themselves on the line and going through the rejections and humiliations involved in looking for work. When they ever got to act, it made it all worth it. They had foibles but not any real pathologies. E.W.'s life as an actor, from my lurking here, seems an exceptional one, however. He really didn't go through what anyone I knew did, since he was successful and sought after, had an agent and a protector, right from the first. That is massively different. And it hasn't hurt! He seems pretty sound from what you report here in this thread.

I AM GLADE YOU ARE OKEJ ERESH!!! :k

I JUST POP IN FOR A SEKUND I MUST READ ALL NEW POSTS :)
IT SEAMS THAT ALL NEW POSTS ARE AT NIGHT(HERE IN SWEDEN)
SO I HAVE TO READ THEM AT MORNING :rolleyes:

I MUST SAY THOUG I HAVE READ THE TRILOGY MANY TIMES
SPECILLY ROTK WICH IS MY FAVRITE.I MUST SAY THAT THE PART
WHEN FRODO SENT SAM HOME DOSEN´T BARTHERD ME AS MUCH
AS I THOUGHT IT WOULD,IT JUST SHOWS,TO ME ANYWAY,UNDER
WHAT SRESS FRODO IS ,HE REALY IS UNDER THE SPELL FROM THE RING
AND NOT TO SPEAK OF WHAT PART GOLLUM HAS IN THIS. WELL THAT IS MY
OPINION!!!

THANKS MOONDANCER FOR THE TRANSLATION!!
THANKS HOBMOM FOR THE PICS!!

AND I REALY THINS ELIJAH IS A VERY INTELEGENT MAN WHO READS A LOT
LIKE SOMEONE SADE WE WILL NOT KNOW ABOUT THIS IF THE
QUESTIEN DON`T COME UP!!
BUT FROM THE INTERWIES IN HOLE YOU CAN TELL HE IS
AND YOU CAN BE WISE AND INTELIGENT EVEN IF YOU DON´T READ
MUCH ,OR?
WELL AGAIN THAT IS WHAT I THINK!! :cool:

I SADE A SEKUND?? ;) WELL YOU KNOW ME WHEN I HAVE SOMETHING TO
SAY I CAN`T BE STOPED :lol:

LOVE YOU ALL/WOOD

ABOUT THE CLIP MOONDANCER MENTIONED TRY TO SEE IT
HE IS SO SO CUTE!!!! :D :p

Moondancer, I couldn't open it at first in the LJ location (it kept turning into an offer for Winzip that I didn't know how to remove) but I saved it into a program for photos on our computer. Then I could open it. That was GREAT!!! This sounds dumb, since it's not a clip of anything polished, but my impression of E.W.'s talent and intelligence and plain regular-kid-appeal just rose another ten notches, watching it. It really was all there, way back then, wasn't it? Wow. Thanks!

Forgot to thank Moondancer (and the translator) for that Czech interview :o -- (I was posting at 2 am because I couldn't sleep ;) ). Now I'll add thanks to Lady Wendy for the additional quotes. I plead lack of time for not tracking down things like that on my own, but I know everyone lives with that limitation, so many thanks! :)

Fahrenheit 451, eh :) ? A great book--about the importance of books!

IMVHO, there are many ways to be educated. "Formal" education is one of them. Reading widely is another. Choosing experiences you can learn from, and working with people you feel you can learn from, is another. I don't have any fear that Elijah (unless he becomes a very different person than he is now) will ever stop educating himself, however he does it.

Especially for zkg ;) --although I believe Elijah did get his high school diploma through his independent schooling :) :

http://www.frodolivesin.us/3db15f00.jpg

from wood:
I MUST SAY THOUG I HAVE READ THE TRILOGY MANY TIMES
SPECILLY ROTK WICH IS MY FAVRITE.I MUST SAY THAT THE PART
WHEN FRODO SENT SAM HOME DOSEN´T BARTHERD ME AS MUCH
AS I THOUGHT IT WOULD,IT JUST SHOWS,TO ME ANYWAY,UNDER
WHAT SRESS FRODO IS ,HE REALY IS UNDER THE SPELL FROM THE RING
AND NOT TO SPEAK OF WHAT PART GOLLUM HAS IN THIS. WELL THAT IS MY
OPINION!!!
This is one of the things about the movies that I'm never going to like, but being in some good discussions about it has helped me, as wood said, to not be quite as bothered by it. An important piece for me is that from an objective standpoint, and even more from Frodo's Ring-influenced POV, there are some real reasons for him to be afraid that Sam is beginning to be taken over by the Ring, which is the last thing Frodo would want. "You can't help me any more," would make perfect sense in that context. I almost have more trouble with Sam actually leaving; like movie-Arwen actually leaving for the havens, IMHO it shows that the movie characters don't always act the way the book characters would have--often that the movie characters have to mature in ways that the book characters already have and make decisions that the book characters already consider "done."

IIRC, it was zkg who talked some time ago about the conflict on Frolijah's face while he's telling Sam to leave--his eyes saying one thing while his mouth is saying something else. I definitely agree with that, and it lends itself to a number of different interpretations (which, IMVHO, is a good thing). One more reason I'm glad it was Elijah "behind" those eyes; I can't imagine many actors pulling off anything so complex. The stern voice--that cracks more than once--is another amazingly conflicted bit, IMO.

------

ETA (see how fast I learn ;) ?): Eresh--yes, the Huck Finn DVD (the one for Region 1, at least) has a director's commentary, and it's particularly interesting for EJW fans. This director really appreciated Elijah's talent and professionalism. There are times when I wish he'd come good on his promise to "beat him with a stick" if he ever started smoking :rolleyes: .

i agree with you tg; there is now way there is any actor in the world who coulde have done what elijah did in that scen maybe thats the reson i diden´t botherde about it.and the way he sade it that voice :rolleyes:

i mean if i remeber it right there was tears in frodos eyes when he sad
those words "GO HOME SAM"i feel in tears and couldent stop it was so sad
well it did turn out okej anyway diden`t it?


farenheit 451 what kind of book is that?

farenheit 451 what kind of book is that?
It was written by Ray Bradbury, and you could classify it as science fiction, but the science is really a very small part of it. It's probably more akin to something like Orwell's 1984. The government controls the populace by keeping them "content" with drugs and TV, and has banned books because they make people "unhappy" (i.e., they cause people to think). Any books that are found are burned--the title is based on Fahrenheit 451 being the temperature at which paper catches fire. The story follows a fireman (whose job it is to burn books) and shows how his life changes as he encounters people who think books are important enough to die for.

It was made into a movie by Francois Truffaut, which I also like very much. At first glance, "Ray Bradbury" and "Francois Truffaut" aren't two names I would think would work well together, but IMHO Truffaut does a good job of picking up on what Bradbury's saying and translating it into effective visuals.

[U.S. political footnote: From the way the government is shown in the book, it's easy to see that Fahrenheit 9/11 is more than just a simple play on the name.]

Ray Bradbury is one of my favorite authors. He's at least as much poet as Science Fiction author; nobody else I've read writes like that.

Mech, I'll hunt up that fic and pm you a link.

Usually I create a character, and I get an idea of how I want to play it in my head, but not to that degree.
There are certain questions I'd like to ask Mr. Wood, had I ever the opportunity. One of them would be how he creates a whole body language for each character. Stu Simmons is all-boy; Frodo Baggins the perfect little country gentleman carrying a burden millenia greater than his own weight, Sandy all sullen swagger, Jones optomistic/cautious bounce. How Does He Do It?

Honey!

Whew .... you stay away for a couple of days, and look what happens!

Moondancer, thank you SO much for finding the translation of that Czech Première article. Whoever did that did a good job (wonder who that was? The lj author herself?). It's saved me a lot of work - was just about to start translating it myself when I saw that - so double thanks! Had to send off for that Première and it's just arrived through the post. It has a couple of rather lovely pics, even though they are a couple of years old at least - am attaching the scans below. More from other Czech magazines to come ....

Anyway, the translation Moondancer posted is not quite complete - it leaves out a few comments on Prague, EII etc. So here's the end of it (have slightly changed one or two things):

Do you personally like your new popularity?
It's not something I really enjoy, but I don’t mind it. I understand why it’s the way it is, because I myself fell in love with the whole trilogy and I’m a huge fan. LotR turned my life upside down, but at the same time it helped my career, so I’m not complaining. I’m grateful for that experience, because working with Peter Jackson and all that amazing team in NZ was an unbelievably enriching experience. I have great memories of that time and those movies will be a part of my life forever, because I made friendships that will last till the end of my life.

Aren’t you afraid that people will associate you with Frodo so much that you’ll end up hating him?
It’s inevitable that I’m linked to that role, because it’s so popular. It happens all the time that I’m walking along the street and people shout ‘Frodo! Frodo!’ because they don’t know my name. I’m not Frodo, but I don’t mind people calling me that because I loved playing that role and I’m proud of it.

Do you think there’s anywhere on earth where people in the street wouldn’t recognize you?
I doubt they’d know me in Uganda! (laughs) [wanna bet? – ed. :D] Nothing like that has happened recently, though, which is a shame, because I’d enjoy a bit of anonymity. When I arrived in Prague, I walked around the city for the first few days and no-one stared at me, no-one asked for an autograph. I thought “That’s great – either no-one knows me here, or it’s not customary to speak to people in the street”. But I made a bad mistake! (laughs)

Tell us something about the film “Everything is Illuminated”, which you’re filming in Prague.
….. (tells story we already know) …. It’s a dramatic, funny and moving story about the relationship between him and his Ukrainian origins, and about his journey/pilgrimage and where it finally leads.

And finally the unavoidable question: how do you like Prague?
I’m in your country for the first time and I find Prague really magical. [the words literally mean “literally bewitched me” – not sure if EW literally said that or not ;) If so, then he’s literally languishing somewhere in that magical city under some magic spell :D – ed.] It’s a gorgeous city and I’m enjoying spending every free moment discovering its beauties. Travelling a lot and living in different places in the world is one of the advantages of being an actor. You’re always meeting new people, getting to know new places, having a lot of experiences. I love travelling, so I enjoy every minute. When you think about it, I’m really a very lucky guy.

(Oh dear - just hearing on radio about devastated citrus plantations in Florida ... not to mention people. Sorry, I digress.)

On being recognised - when he first arrived in Prague in early June, I guess very few people knew he would be filming there and so he'd be the very last person they'd expect to see walking the streets! Hence lack of recognition. But very soon the entire population knew, so they started noticing him wherever he went.
One of the artists on the Charles Bridge had drawn that famous b/w portrait of Frodo, full face, looking slightly up towards the camera with a half-smile. Not quite in Whiteling's class, but still ;) I've often wondered if Elijah has seen that (did he ever dare cross that bridge with all the milling hordes in broad daylight??) and whether the artist saw him - the living Frodo - suddenly standing next to his portrait. And did he then draw the genuine article, i.e. Elijah himself? Nice thought.

On EW's reading habits: I get the impression he's very well read (note Hobmom's bookshop pics with Elijah emerging seemingly weighted down with tomes - thanks, Hobmom!). Just one book he recommended recently is Mark Z. Danielewski's House of Leaves - very erudite and not at all an easy read, but gripping nevertheless (I ordered it to find out - haven't finished it yet).
Achila and I had an email discussion recently about the reasons why Elijah deliberately avoids reading the books on which his film screenplays are based (that's the case with EII as well as LOTR) until the filming is finished. We concluded that it would be too distracting for him to read them, especially if (as in both EII and LOTR) the screenplay deviates hugely from the book at least in places - as indeed most screenplays must. Reading them could easily give him an interpretation of his character/the story that was incompatible with the director's. And not reading them would remove any potential conflicts over interpretation.
Room for a bit of a discussion here, I suspect :)

EW has also said that he enjoys writing - even though he indulges in that largely through emails these days. What I'd give to read some of those!

Puck, Mechtild? Great idea! The other weekend I saw a film version of A Midsummer Night's Dream (the one with Rupert Everett as Oberon :D and Michelle Pfeiffer as Titania and Kevin Kline as Bottom :D) in an open-air cinema in a courtyard here. Yes - could definitely see EW as Puck. Could see him as Romeo too, for that matter. Hamlet? Henry V? (no, that's been done). Suggestions, anyone?
I'm sure that rubbing shoulders with the likes of Ian McKellen for so long must have awoken our lad's Shakespearian sensibilities (or whatever). That must have been an education in itself. Failing Columbia, how about a PhD from the University of Middle Earth? (sorry if I've said that before ... :rolleyes: )

Tg, thank you for your unfailing insight into the nature of PJ's Frodo. Sam as the action hero, Frodo as the person to identify with: yes yes yes!! Of course you're right, as ever :k
And as for the idea that PJ sees Sam as "the real hero" of LOTR, I think the closing sequences of ROTK demonstrate beyond doubt that he sees FRODO as the real hero. Those scenes are quite amazingly Frodocentric. And all to the good :)

And after seeing with my own eyes how much people in the Czech Republic value "our Frodoriko" (will explain that if anyone missed it earlier), I think huge numbers of people (there at least) probably agree.

And lastly ... a note about anonymity. I often hope Elijah doesn't feel too weighted down by such things as our own adulation. I hope he doesn't read this thread or look at any of the thousands of fansites devoted to him. He once said he ended a relationship with a girl (years ago) because it was so hard being the source of someone's happiness. Now he is a source of happiness for millions. That must be quite a burden to carry around with you. I hope he never realises the true size of that burden.


EDIT: Moondancer, I'd love to see that Paradise clip, but can't find it. Would you be so kind as to point me to it? Thanks :k

BTW, those pics of Lij shopping were taken at Book Soup in Hollywood. Very cool place :) The other bag was from Tower Records ;)

Achila is correct, only one bag was full of books. ;)

Serena-I figured you would be the one to know what book he recently mentioned. House of Leaves it is! I looked it up when Elijah mentioned it. I didn't buy it yet, though I may get around to it eventually. And thanks for the more precise translation of the Premiere article. I hope he is literally languishing somewhere in that magical city under some magic spell. Now that filming is done he deserves a lovely rest like that.

I'm glad we've found more quotes about Elijah's reading habits and view of education.

I think we have established that he is very well-read and highly intelligent.

I wonder what his IQ is? I strongly suspect it to easily be in the genius range.

Edit- And I think if Elijah reads the posts here in the Faculty Lounge he will be very impressed with the erudition of these lovely ladies. :cool: I have always thought this group represents his very best fans. :k I think he would be proud of us. :)

Good that you saw it in time, Serena. I was afraid that you were already doing all that translating work.


We concluded that it would be too distracting for him to read them, especially if (as in both EII and LOTR) the screenplay deviates hugely from the book at least in places - as indeed most screenplays must. Reading them could easily give him an interpretation of his character/the story that was incompatible with the director's. And not reading them would remove any potential conflicts over interpretation
I don't have time to look it up right now (am going to the movies :) ) but didn't Elijah say something like that in an interview? That the screenplay is the main focus for him, together with the vision of the director, not the book itself and reading the book might cause a conflict with how things work out in the movies?

Now he is the source of the happiness of millions. That must be quite a burden to carry around with you. I hope he never realises the true size of that burden.
Oh dear. :(
I hope he doesn't see it that way.
He gives me joy in my life but it's certainly not the only source of joy.
If (shock, horror :eek: ) he decides to stop making movies, that'll be a sad day for me but there are plenty of joyful things out there.


Moondancer, I'd love to see that Paradise clip, but can't find it. Would you be so kind as to point me to it? Thanks :k
One link coming up :)

PS and Off Topic: Second medal for Belgium in the Olympics (with a very happy president of the IOC Jacques Rogge watching): bronze in Judo. :) :)
my joy over two medals may sound a bit ridiculous to Americans but my small country usually doesn't get many medals - and being small is not an excuse: Holland isn't much bigger but they get more medals. I think that they are more competitive than us. In Belgium, kids learn how to swim to avoid them from drowning instead of seeing it as a fun sport


Edit: Serena, I think that the owner of the LiveJournal with the translation of the Czech Premiere article was indeed the translator because she asked people to tell her if she made language mistakes because she wants to learn from them.

From these snippets, I get the feeling that he is far more intelligent than interviews sometimes make apparent...it's all about asking the right questions, isn't it ? I mean, if he doesn't get asked about what books he likes than we never get to hear about his reading level...

Good point! Is it possible for a journalist to ask questions beyond his (the journalist's) level of intelligence? :p :p

Thanks for all of the thoughts and excerpts from interviews, everyone. It gives me hope that this obviously intelligent and articulate whippersna - er - Lad uses his head for more than a hatrack (or a forum for bizarre hairstyles ;) ). It sounds like he's tapped into non-traditional learning options and has some comprehension that learning *is* lifelong and possible outside of a classroom environment.

Re: actors and shrinks: I think it's kind of like taking Calculus by correspondence. You don't have to be nuts, but it definitely helps. ;) :p

It must be mind-bending, though, for him to walk out of a bookstore right into some guy who's clicking a camera in his face.

Edited:
And lastly ... a note about anonymity. I often hope Elijah doesn't feel too weighted down by such things as our own adulation.

I think this depends on how many people walk (or hobble, as the case may be ;) ) past him without bothering him, and how many cameras click when he's coming out of stores, and how many "fans" shove unsolicited photomanip. porn in his face.

I hope he doesn't read this thread or look at any of the thousands of fansites devoted to him.
I try to never write anything online that my grandmother couldn't read, so I'm ok.


Now he is the source of the happiness of millions. That must be quite a burden to carry around with you. I hope he never realises the true size of that burden.

Geez, I hope not! I don't see him as my "source of happiness". He's like the star that Sam saw when they were in Mordor, he is a reminder that there's "some GOOD in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it's worth fighting for!" (Ooops. Sorry. just washed my hands and can't do a thing with them) ;) ;) :p

~grumpy (what color was George Washington's white horse?)

Hello all!

Lovely to hear of EW’s book tastes, especially as I adore Jane Eyre and Dracula – the latter much underrated as a novel, IMVHO. And it proves the lad’s got a taste for the gothic, which is never a bad thing! I’d love to see him in an OTT gothic role, like the lunatic (but strangely alluring) younger brother locked in the tower or something. A role like that would positively require flouncy shirts! Yay!! Anyway.

I am surprised none of the UK faculty-ers have picked up Empire magazine yet. There happen to be TWO bits on EW in it. One a whole page about EII and the film festival in Prague. Alas, I haven’t got a scanner – anyone fancy picking up their own copy and scanning it? There’s nothing particularly new, but the accompanying pic is delightful.

The other bit is short enough to type out and contains a few new snippets I think:



[a bit about who else is starring in Sin City]…. We spoke to Elijah Wood, who plays mute serial killer Kevin in the story segment starring Rourke as unstoppable vigilante Marv.

“I love working with Robert,” said Wood. “And Sin City happens to be my favourite comic book of all time. It’s very film noir in its imagery, full of hard blacks and very white whites in the artwork. I thought the only way it could be done would be to make it an animated film. Then I went out to dinner with Robert and he said ‘I’ve made a short film to preview the technology for Frank Miller to show what can be done on the screen with live action.’ Then he proceeded to show me the short and prove that he could adapt it exactly as it was represented in the comic. So to be a part of the making of that was really exciting for me, because I’m such a big fan.”

Two things: this is the first real confirmation from EW that he’s to play Kevin, isn’t it? And I’m really pleased he got to work on an adaptation of his favourite comic book! (And isn’t that apposite to our discussion? The lad must be psychic!)

I am SO looking forward to this film!

Returning to some previous-made statements (but since the topics are coming around again :) ):

Achila and I had an email discussion recently about the reasons why Elijah deliberately avoids reading the books on which his film screenplays are based (that's the case with EII as well as LOTR) until the filming is finished.
Around the time of mega fan-angst about Elijah not having read LotR before making the movies, I happened to hear Meryl Streep talking about her role in Adaptation, where she played a real, still-living person. She said she specifically avoided meeting that person until after she'd finished making the film, so her interpretation of the character/script wouldn't be affected. I thought that was very interesting, considering she was talking about a living, breathing person who'd probably be sitting there at some point watching the movie. If that's a valid way to approach acting (and I think Meryl Streep is pretty well respected in that area), it should certainly be a valid approach to acting a fictional character (IMVHO). Good thing that's not a problem with Elijah's "favorite comic," ;) as Sin City is basically being transferred frame-by-frame from the book to the screen, so there shouldn't be any conflicts between the two versions.
Room for a bit of a discussion here, I suspect :)
Oh, yes, and there has been... more than a bit of it... believe me... :rolleyes: ;) .

Puck, Mechtild? Great idea! The other weekend I saw a film version of A Midsummer Night's Dream (the one with Rupert Everett as Oberon :D and Michelle Pfeiffer as Titania and Kevin Kline as Bottom :D) in an open-air cinema in a courtyard here. Yes - could definitely see EW as Puck. Could see him as Romeo too, for that matter. Hamlet? Henry V? (no, that's been done). Suggestions, anyone?
Also not a new idea on these pages, but I'd still love to see Elijah as Ariel in The Tempest, while he still has that youthful energy and catlike movement. (And it would have a bit of trivia interest in that Christopher Guard played the part in a BBC production some years back... "Which Shakespearean role has been played by two actors also known for giving life to a filmed Frodo Baggins?" :p ) And Elijah has played Hamlet, of course... well, a couple of lines... kind of... :p (ah, for a screencappable version of North :( ).

And for those who've missed it the previous several times around :p , it's not Shakespeare, but I definitely think it's time for a remake of Harvey, with Elwood playing Elwood (and, for the benefit of EJW geeks, a digitally enhanced Bruce Willis could play Harvey :D ). Great role for Elijah's type of comedic acting, IMHO. (Apologies to those who've read that paragraph 2 or 3 times already :rolleyes: .)

He once said he ended a relationship with a girl (years ago) because it was so hard being the source of someone's happiness. Now he is the source of the happiness of millions.
As Moondancer said so well, there's a big difference between being the source of someone's happiness and being a source of someone's happiness. Being the source of soimeone's happiness, IMVHO, does not make for a healthy relationship.

Erm, I wasn't actually suggesting that EW is the ONLY source of happiness of anyone here. (From what I've heard he almost is for some, however ... : :eek: )
Remedy: will correct post to say A source of happiness for millions.
He is certainly a source of happiness for me - only one on a long list, but fairly high up nevertheless. I am extremely glad he exists, because he reminds me whenever I lose sight of it that there is such a thing as magic.

Great interview extract, Random. And thanks for the Empire tip too!

EDIT after seeing Tg's simulpost: yes, Ariel was another one I was thinking of, Tg. And yes, it has been discussed here before. As have so many topics! But how about Mercutio - that would be even more of a challenge than Romeo. Or Richard III? (OK, I'll stop there before we start really detypecasting :) )

More Czech mag scans attached. (Rats - some are too big. Will have to re-scan them :( )

I am extremely glad he exists, because he reminds me whenever I lose sight of it that there is such a thing as magic.

Very well put, Serena - and that applies to me too :)

Damn! Just as I'm having to close down for the night I've discovered all these fascinating posts about Lij's books etc. I bought 'House of Leaves' (after Elijah's recommendation) some time ago - its a huge book and extremely unusual but it is gripping. Still haven't finished it though. I think I may have mentioned this before, but a book Elijah is very keen on is 'Girlfriend in a Coma' - he told us at CM4 that he had approached the author, Douglas Coupland, about making it into a film but he wasn't interested. I've also bought that but haven't got round to reading it yet. I love the fact that he's read 'Jane Eyre' as I've always enjoyed the Brontes - my favourite is 'Wuthering Heights' - I'd love to know if he's read that.

By the way, many pages back I said I'd post a pic of Elijah's dad if I ever found it. Well, I think I lost it from my pc when it crashed last year but I found a print-out of the article with a tiny pic. I scanned the article (though I think someone may have already posted that) and have also played round with the pic - enlarged it and tried to make it a bit clearer and that is also attached but still not too good I'm afraid.

Have to dash now or I'll be in trouble with the hubby :eek:

Sorry - it would only let me attach the pic - not the article for some reason :confused:

Hello to all!

Major, major "spoiler" article over at www.ringbearer.org regarding the
ROTK EE coming in December. Too bad all the added time wasn't devoted to just Frodo and Sam!! It appears we will definitely see more of them though. My all-time favorite scene from the books was the Mouth of Sauron and Gandalf, Frodo isn't even in it but his belongings are which was even more tragic. I was very sad when it wasn't in the theatrical release. Check out the article but again "major spoilers".

I was having a conversation recently with a member of this esteemed group of ours... when I mentioned to her my complete amazement at the similarities of my book-loves with a certain someone.
A note of mention...this conversation happened before the recent talk on BOARD of BOOKS occurred.
She made an interesting point.....when you really know someone...or are drawn to someone...the likelihood of having common loves is....well.... common
And much like WE are well so attuned to one another....to find Elijah and I have some common interest is not surprising.

I'm with you Honey...My screen name comes from a Bradbury novel....my favorite...The Martian Chronicles...he is truly a poet. I have read that novel at least a hundred times...not science fiction...it is poetry.

Farenheight 451 and Animal Farm have been on my list of favorite books since I was a young girl. When I read they were some of his favorites it reconfirmed to me something I had already suspected....I know and care about this guy not because he is beautiful on the exterior but beautiful on the interior... I adore this guy....and I know him :k


We embark on a journey tommorrow.....My husband and I are off to Boston for the big surgery...
I'll look in on the gang...and I'll carry your strength with me.


My Sam is with me...Thank You Achila....you'll never know how your friendship has kept me strong :k You are a treasure :k


With Great Love
And Friendship

Ylla :k

I in no way want to open the can of worms about this topic that was opened on a TORC thread, Shelby, but I should warn you that the source of the ringbearer link, Jedi the White, is widely regarded as making fraudulent claims of having "secret information." He has his staunch supporters, and for all I know he is legit, but his info all seems to come from other sources. Just take what is quoted as coming from him with a grain of salt, that's all.

And if you are a real Jedi the White supporter, I don't mean to offend. That's just the scuttlebutt at TORC.

I am a true swooner for Ray Bradbury, BTW. My favorite is Dandelion Wine , but of course I like The Martian Chronicles, Something Wicked This Way Comes, The Illustrated Manand Fahrenheit 451. I even tried to memorize Mary Shelley's Frankenstein after reading the last novel.

Did you hear Bradbury tried to sue to stop Michael Moore using the play on his title? Doubt he was successful.

Want to know what is really creepy about Fahrenheit 451? The TV that everyone is so mesmerized with is the ultimate "reality" TV, where the characters actually turn to those watching and include them in the conversation, and criminals are caught on TV. Sounds like us, no?

hallo girls!!!

i just pop in to say this.

in some wayes elijah is the light in my life
don´t get me wrong here!

sure i have my family ,kids ,husband,friends, home.work,
my garden and so on!!! :)

but otherwise he gives me joy, i mean i have met all of you
i have learn much about computers,acting.books,movies,
other actors.i have learn about other countryes.
but i have also learned about pure beauty,fysicly and physicly
if you know what i mean!!
just to read your posts i have learned so much about everything
and i have met you just becuse of him!!!!!!!!!! :k

and i love to discuss him with you,his magic,his acting,his beauty
his movies and so on!that is was i am trying to say HE IS THE LIGHT OF
MY LIFE!!!!!!!! :p :D

LOVE YOU ALL/WOOD

No, I'm not a Jedi the White supporter, I don't know who he is.

The weirdest thing happened.

This morning:
- last post was from Wood.
- received a PM from Ylla and replied to it.
- I posted quite a long message, came back to review it and edited it (as usual :rolleyes: )

Lunch break: came back to KD to check out new posts:
- last post is still from Wood :confused: Where's my post?
- received the same PM from Ylla again. Didn't I get this and reply to this already? Ylla, you did receive a reply, didn't you? I checked my list of sent messages and received messages. The PM's from this morning are no longer there. :confused:
- my own message from this morning has disappeared. :(

Is it my Groundhog day?
(you know, like that film with Bill Murray)

Can't be bothered to type up my long message again. Wasn't that interesting anyway.

MOONDANCER YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!!

I DID POST A DIFFRENT POST EARLIER THEN I CAME BACK
AND EDITED IT AND THE THIRD TIME I CAME BACK MY FIRST
POST WAS GONE!!!!!!!! :confused:

WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE TO DAY?????? :eek:

EDIT:DID I PRESS SOME BUTTOM SO IT DISEPERD OR?
BUT YOUR POST MOONDANCER WASEN`T THERE THATS
WHY HAVE TO EDIT!!

STRANGE THINGS ARE GOING ON HERE TODAY!!!!

Maybe it'll show up later, Moondancer -- you never know :)

Just wanted to say hi to wood, and to let you know that yes, honey, you're among friends. Does it sound like I feel that way too? Yep. Having a particularly difficult time of it these days, and sometimes the only thing that puts a smile on my face is a certain blue-eyed boy. I'm glad to have him and all of you. :k

HALLO ACHILA!!! :k

I know what you mean,if i hade a tuff day at work
or if i hade an argument with the kids or my husb.
it is so pecefull and so much love well it is a joy to come
in here and have a little chat with you all about mr.beautiful
him self.

well of topic-congrats to all of you who countryes won a medel in the os!!! ;)
sorry to say sweden dosen`t have ANY luck yet but i hope before
this is over they are getting something!!!! :k ;)

Moondancer and Wood, there was a server update. A few other people have noticed that recent posts and PM's disappeared as well. This happens during sever updates, if people happen to be posting at that precise time, so it won't continue.

sometimes the only thing that puts a smile on my face a smile on my face is a certain blue-eyed boy
:)

***warning, dangerous...Moondancer gets philosophical...feel free to ignore my ramblings *** ;)
You know, a lot of people I know, tend to look for happiness in the really big things. I'm not that way. If you wait for the really big occasions, you will miss a lot of great little things along the way.
I had a discussion with a friend of mine. She's almost never happy. Not really happy. She's never enthousiastic about things. After a long talk with her, it was clear that she's quite a dreamer and she can only be happy if her dreams can come true and - what's more - it has to be perfect.
She can not be happy when things aren't perfect.
For example: she once told me that she almost never finds another person beautiful because no human being is perfect. Nature for her is almost perfect but it is ruined by humans so it's difficult to enjoy that.
My sister is the same. I once asked her why she hardly ever finds something beautiful. It's almost always "average" for her. She said that she only wants to use the word "beautiful" when it's perfect, when it's really, really good.
After a pause, I responded to her: "But...that way, you will only find beauty on only a few occasions in your life."
She said yes, that's true.

I tend to find beauty in the most silly things.
That same friend once saw me read a Belgian comic book (Gaston Lagaffe if anybody knows that or Guust Flater) and she was amazed to see me roaring with laughter.
She said to me that she never tends to laugh out loud. She has stopped doing that since she was a kid. I couldn't believe that so I asked her: "come on, not once?" She replied no.
Isn't that odd?
She's a great, great friend of mine but she's also a mystery to me.

My sister and my friend sometimes say of me that I need to grow up a bit but as silly as it may sound...I'm going to let my inner child live as long as I can.
I tend to pick out the little things to put a smile on my face. Sometimes really stupid things. That's why I can't let one person or one thing be the ONLY source of happiness for me. I can't do without so many great things and people.
/ramble


So, Achila...I'm glad to see that this blue-eyed person is able to put a smile on your face.
Ylla...I'll be thinking of you and your husband.
Blossom... I hope your husband is doing well? :)


To get back on topic (or at least...a bit ;) ):
I loved the discussion about literature.
In the schools here, they tend to focus on our own literature (Dutch and Flemish) and I agree with that. It's a good foundation. There are a lot of fantastic youth authors here.
As far as English and other classics are concerned: I'm trying to catch up on my own. I've read a couple of works by Dickens and books such as Wuthering Heights, Pride and Prejudice, the Robot series from Asimov (I love Robots as odd as that may seem) and many more.
My dad has an English version of Shakespeare's work. I started reading it but stopped. The old English is difficult to comprehend very well. Maybe it's better to go out and see the plays on stage (but they don't tend to do that over here very often. Shakespeare does not translate very well, I think)
I tend to want to read from authors from around the world. Even if it's a classic thriller, authors bring their own culture in their work.
Books based in Scandinavia, China, Japan, Australia,....
They are a great window to the world and it's great to see that Elijah is a reader as well. I have often wanted to get Mary Shelley's Dracula from the library but I always hesitated to do so. Maybe I will do so if he recommends it.

Next time I get in the library, I'll look up Ray Bradbury.
I've heard of him before but never read his books.

OK...back to work now.


PS: Thanks for the info, Narya.
PPS: Talking about beauty: is anybody in here watching the Olympics? See those swimmers? Lots of great bodies, beautiful athletes. :D
PPPS: Why do those swimmers have to wear those big body suits? I miss this skimpy speedo's. :p
PPPPS: If anybody's interested: a Guust Flater link: Gaston...the eternal blundering fool (http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Cafe/2877/gaston/gaston.html)

yes moondancer i watch the olympics!!!! :)

and i agree with you beautiful bodys
speaking of mucels and then they have to hide them
in those suites to bad realy bad :D

how am i going to do this on-topic??!! :rolleyes:
imagine this(hi,hi :lol: ) elijah standing on those startblocks
and his skin with the coulor of bronz :p !
kick me out if you whant to!!!! :lol:
just trying to get this post on-topic but you have to agree
that would have been nice to see or is it just me who is a
little crasy in here???? :lol:

Hello from Australia.

Wood and Moondancer - I can watch Ian Thorpe any time, in a body suit or not! And he's a really nice person, as well (like one Elijah Wood!). As for Elijah on a starting block... an interesting thought!

With regard to an earlier post, I would like to clarify something. I don't think my husband's reaction would be anger if he knew of my interest in Elijah... he would think it strange that I have that type of fascination in a young man whose age lies between that of our two sons! He can understand fannish interest in an actor closer to my age, but Elijah would be a bit too young for it to be "acceptable".

Moondancer - Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I think it's a waste of a precious life (it's the only one we have!) waiting for perfection in anything. I feel your friend and sister are missing out on so much!

When one of my friends and I get together, you'd think we were a couple of children. We have a very similar (warped?) sense of humour, and we laugh until we cry. Why "grow up"? Life's too short to be serious all the time!

Kumari

Thank You Moondancer...I did receive your pm..with the link to the Paradise video
I actually pm'd you back Thanking You but there seemed to be a glitch when I sent it out to you...it was rather wierd my screen did WIERD things!!!
Maybe we were in some cosmic event.......

... how he creates a whole body language for each character. Stu Simmons is all-boy; Frodo Baggins the perfect little country gentleman carrying a burden millenia greater than his own weight, Sandy all sullen swagger, Jones optomistic/cautious bounce.
(who's Sandy?)
I know. Huck Finn is all resourceful and self-sufficient eternally optimistic rascal and exaggerated grownup mannerisms, too. I caught a few minutes of The Good Son last week (I simply *can't* watch that movie all the way through - the frustration of a kid not being believed touches some nerves and I don't really like MC), and Mark is franticworriedkid. I caught a few minutes of Forever Young, and I honestly did not recognize Elijah! Same face, same hair, roughly the same age; different expressions, different body language - certainly more "ordinary boy" than Huck or Stu. I was only sure that it was The Lad when I caught a glimpse of his teeth.

How Does He Do It? I know, I know. Drives me nuts, it does. Tricksey Lad! ;)

Edited to say...
Kumari quoth: ... he would think it strange that I have that type of fascination in a young man whose age lies between that of our two sons! He can understand fannish interest in an actor closer to my age, but Elijah would be a bit too young for it to be "acceptable".
Whereas, if your husband is like a whole lot of other guys, watching a bunch of guys with two apiece running around in short pants or baggy boxers or big shoulder pads after a third is perfectly normal. Yep. Uh huh. I will say that I have never watched any of my fandom obsessions during Thanksgiving dinner, nor leaped to my feet in the middle of a sentence (and mouthful) during said Turkey-day dinner yelling "GO! GO! GO!". Harrrumph.

P.S. Someone over the weekend made a comment about Belgium's gold medals (Yay Belgium!) and that Americans would find it unimpressive. That's not really fair. You'd think by the media coverage in the US that we only care about American athletes. We don't, and American Olympics coverage drives me nuts - all sound bites and over-coverage of some events.

A whole lot of American culture is based on cheering for the underdog, or in this case, the smaller teams. If not, would the NY Mets even exist? While it's cool when a Mark Spitz (now *there* was a speedo!) comes along and wins 7 medals, it's also really neat to see a country who sends maybe one or two athletes walk (or run) away with a gold.

I wasn't aware of it until a number of years ago, but from what I understand, American corporations (or is it the govt?) sponsor athletes from poorer countries, bring them to the States, and provide an environment where they can train. We just don't hear much about that.

~grumpy(though if The Lad ever stops to analyze it, he may lose some aspects of it so I'm perfectly happy doing "research" on his behalf :p and speculating along with the rest of you)(It's a rotten job but someone's got to do it) ;)

Sandy = Flipper

Kumari said:if he knew of my interest in Elijah... he would think it strange that I have that type of fascination in a young man whose age lies between that of our two sons! He can understand fannish interest in an actor closer to my age, but Elijah would be a bit too young for it to be "acceptable".

we have analyzed his expressions, line-delivery, body language, and sweetness of nature in here to a fair-thee-well. And I'm always up for more of it! :D

But what I've yet to see anyone explain is what, exactly, is it that this lad does to women of a certain age. What, in our adolescent past, is it that he draws out? Or is his magic drawing on something deeper even than that?

On NPR recently I heard a man interviewed who was official photographer to David Bowie, and also photographed several other rock stars during the seventies. Androgeny was in then, obviously with David Bowie and his alter-ego Ziggy Stardust. But lots of other rock stars were doing the "pretty school girl" look, as this photographer described it.

For a few moments, sitting at my sewing machine as I listened as is often my want, I thought "ah! that must be it! We all grew up in the seventies when a certain slightly feminized beauty was the counter culture, tweak-your-parents-off sort of look was the standard by which to be judged.

But then I looked at a picture of Elijah (not hard to do in my sewing room, surrounded as I am by Things That Inspire Me,) and no. He's more masculine than that. And there's no artifice there.

So what is it? Or do I want to know? Would the 'magic' be spoiled if I knew?

****
Sandy = Flipper

Achila, Flipper was the dolphin! :D Sorry! Couildn't resist! :k ;)

Honey!

SORRY KUMARI!! :( I THINK I WAS THE ONE!!!!

I can´t say that my husband gets angry in that way either
but i know he dosen`t like what i`m doing!!!he says dum things
gets irretaited,well he is jelous i think but maybe i woulde be to
if he wrote things like i do.
But i think it is a small diffrent i mean it isen`t just the guy next
door we discustion in here is it?
its a very famous actor who is liven on the other side of atlantic
what is the chances that i would met him?????? :eek:
maybe in my dreams :p :D
(as long as i don`t say his name in the sleep i think i will be okej :lol: )
but maybe my feelings are a bit diffrent for me that they you other ladies
have(i feel like i know you well enough to tell)my feelings i think is more romantic then yours i think(kick me out i you whant to)
but this is the way it is!!! :(
maybe this isen`t the place for this kind of feelings but were should i go????? :(


enough of this. you probebly is boered to death with me and my problems
maybe i should go to a shrink!!!!!!!!!!!!! :cool:




WELL IS THER ANYONE WITH ANY NEWS ABOUT ANY MOVIE
I CAN`T FIND ANY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!????????????? :) :lol: :k

Grumpy, our Belgian medals are bronze (not gold). I didn't mean to imply that Americans only care for their own and I'm sure that a bronze medal is just as precious to American athletes than to Belgians.


We all grew up in the seventies when a certain slightly feminized beauty was the counter culture, tweak-your-parents-off sort of look was the standard by which to be judged.
I was a teenager in the 80's. I remember David Bowie more from "Let's Dance" and "China Girl" than from Ziggy Stardust.
I think that Elijah has fans in various age ranges. Teenagers, tweenies,...and so on.
But, you're right, lots of his fans are ladies of a certain age.
Many of these "hot" looking actors seem to have more younger fans and less fans of a certain age.
As far as I can see it, Elijah's physical appearance is only part of the explanation. I think that his personality or how he comes across has a lot to do with his popularity with people from various age ranges.
Edit: I wonder if he would have had so many fans from various age ranges without the role Frodo. I was a fan long before the LOTR project but he gained lots and lots of fans through Frodo.
Lots of women can identify with Frodo, much more easily than with most other typical Hollywood heroes. Heroes who never seem to show fear in the face of danger.


PS Kumari, did you see it? Ian Thorpe got another medal. :)

Honeyelf:i Have The Same Questien Like You!!

What Is It That Makes Him So Magic? Does We Realy
Whant To Know?if We Find Out What Would We Talk About?

Is It His Eyes?when You Look At Pics Or When He Looks At
You From The Other Side Of The Tv,he Just Looks Throug
You, You Can Drown In His Eyes.
Is It His Face?pure Beauty Inside And Outside Like A Angel
Is It His Acting?what Can I Say,he Has Ubilyty To Show So Many
Expression Without Saying A Word,he Has A Bodylaug....
That Speak For It Self
Is It His Body?so So Sexy.so So Maskulin

But Is It All I Don`t Know He Just Is Pure Magical To Me!!!!!

Is This The Answers I Don`t Think So This Is Just How I Think
And Feel!!!

Love You All Wood

PS. CONGRATS KUMARI AND AUSTRALIA FOR THE GOLD
AND NETHERLANDS FOR THE SILVER AND ALLUS LADIES
FOR THE BRONZ!!!!

Zkgrumpy,
Good point! Is it possible for a journalist to ask questions beyond his (the journalist's) level of intelligence?

( You asked this a couple of pages back, replying to my remark that you only get the info from the questions that the reporter asks, and nothing more, and so it all depends on asking the right questions...)
The trouble with a reporter asking questions above his own level of intelligence, imo, is that he/she won't necessarily know what to do with the answers, once they've got them...or how to pursue an interesting line of questioning with the desired results ! :rolleyes: To get the real nitty-gritty you have to have an intelligent reporter asking intelligent questions that elicit really good answers...and not the same old re-hashed questions that every reporter has already asked...I've lost count of the times that poor Elijah has been grilled about his tattoo, or what was the worst aspect of the gruelling filming schedule !!!

Honey,
We all grew up in the seventies when a certain slightly feminized beauty was the counter culture, tweak-your-parents-off sort of look was the standard by which to be judged.

But then I looked at a picture of Elijah (not hard to do in my sewing room, surrounded as I am by Things That Inspire Me,) and no. He's more masculine than that. And there's no artifice there.


Yes, I think you are exactly right about that...I, too, am in my forties, and well remember the seventies with all the glam-rock thing going on ...and for many of us girlies, no boy was even interesting unless he had a pageboy haircutcut, or at least had his hair feathered ( remember that ?!! )
The feminised look for men was indeed, the best thing since sliced bread...you've only got to look at the popular stars of the time to understand the attraction...it was a daring, in-your-face bi-sexual look that challenged every moral going at the time...and we all loved it with a vengeance !!! So, these being the formative years for many of us, these tastes in what we find attractive surely stay with us for all our lives, don't they ? I certainly find myself being attracted to the same type of look over and over again....almost every guy I've been dating since I was a teenager ( and, boy, there've been a lot !!! :rolleyes: ) has had very dark, very thick, glossy hair, blue eyes, and been of a slight slender build, and could pass for gay at any Gay Pride March !!! ( Does this remind you of anyone ???!! )

I think that it may be the same for you as for me, and maybe a lot of other women of a certain age, as you so delicately put it ....the fact is that it wasn't necessarily Elijah Wood that we were attracted to in the first place, but Frodo....he definitely has that seventies look, far more than Elijah has, himself. Then factor in all that angst and suffering, and , well...that is a pretty potent mix for this old girl !!!:D :D

Yesterday, I was looking up pictures of one Marc Bolan ( anyone here remember T.Rex ? ) on the internet for a quiz that I was compiling for my Birthday party next weekend, and I was immediately struck by how much he resembled Frodo...the same mane of dark glossy curls, the same elfin face, the same slight build, the same penchant for rich, luxury fabrics, the same perfect skin, the same Cupid's Bow mouth...I could go on, but you get my drift !!!
Here's a link to the webpage I was looking at, and you'll see what I mean, even down to the gap between his teeth...
( How freaky is that ? )

Marc Bolan pic (http://www.t-rex-web.co.uk/TREX%20NEWS2004.htm)

I also remember that LOTR was VERY popular in the 70's, particularly amongst the art students and musicians that I hung out with at the time... must have been all the drugs we were doing at the time !! Anyway, my point is that your comment really struck a chord with me, as you can see, and I think that you may well be right...not for everybody, of course, but certainly for me...but it's Frodo that is the magic really, and it's Elijah that I admire enormously for bringing this vision into my life !!! Hence my interest in his career and where he will go in the future...

Serena,
One of the artists on the Charles Bridge had drawn that famous b/w portrait of Frodo, full face, looking slightly up towards the camera with a half-smile.

Oh please let me know which drawing this is ? !! :z: :z: :z:
I haven't heard of it...in fact, apart from Whiteling's lovely drawings, I am hard pressed to remember any really good artwork of the lovely Film-Fro...apart from Notabluemaia's CGI-work, of course !! So I'd love to see more...

As I said, the 70's explanation may apply to some of you but it certainly doesn't apply to me.

It's only part of the explanation.

Elijah seems to have a more universal appeal and I really do think that his physical appearance is only part of it.
Of course there's the eyes, the skin,...but his appeal is also about his spirit, his soul (or how we perceive it and I'm doing my best not to make a saint of this very human young man here :p )
On the site frodoandsam.net (owned by a former poster here, I think), you can read essays. Some of them are from people who post in here.

Just a quick sample:
At last, though, I'm thinking that I may have found the key. It's not exactly all Elijah, nor is it exactly all Frodo, but somewhere in between lurks the qualities that I wish more modern men had: undying love and loyalty for their friends that is given with no reserve, nobility of spirit, boyish vulnerability to the point of easy, unashamed tears, and the guts to admit fear. It also doesn't hurt that he has skin like polished marble and blue eyes big and bright enough to take your breath away! It will be fascinating to see what this talented young actor does next.
Essay by Ann.

and

I suspect that it is indeed Elijah, every bit as much as Frodo, that people love so much. On screen the two merge into one, yes, but it is clear from remarks by all kinds of people who have met Elijah that there is something extraordinary about that young man: everyone seems to love him to bits.
...
The film critic Mick LaSalle, who wrote that the role required a state of being as much as acting, was right: Elijah does not appear to be acting. Instead he simply exudes the magic and the intrinsic goodness of Frodo. He has extraordinary natural acting talent as well, of course (as witness Peter Jackson's comment "Elijah instinctively knows how to act for the screen, and he has awesome craft and technical ability. It's quite humbling to see so much talent in someone so young"),
Anonymous

Also:

I was amazed and happy to find there are so many others like me out there - specifically, middle-aged ladies who have developed a completely irrational love for a 21-year-old actor by the name of Elijah Wood! Everyone who has written has been most eloquent and insightful about the genesis of their love, and I can only say that my experience has been the same as theirs. First was the love for the character he is portraying, the wonderful and charismatic Frodo Baggins. But following quickly was my admiration and love for the luminosity of Elijah Wood's portrayal of Frodo. I remember catching my breath in the Mirror of Galadriel scene - I could only think of the statue of Michelangelo's "David" when looking at Elijah's face and neck on the screen. And those incredible eyes - they seem to lead the viewer down to the very depths of his heart and soul. How can anyone look so beautiful without somehow being that beautiful as a person?
Essay by ConnieMarie

For me, Elijah's appeal doesn't have anything to do with growing up in the 70's. I grew up in the 70's, and didn't find the 'in' look appealing at all. I liked my men big and strong. :D

The Harem has spent considerable time analyzing the Frodo effect :D ;), and by far the most common comparisons have been to classical beauty (Roman and Renaissance, in particular) as opposed to any more current period. I do think Elijah has a 'timeless' beauty that easily crosses generational lines - something that speaks to our collective unconscious, perhaps.

For me, the Frodo effect was initially the most important. Frodo's is the literary character that has carried the most importance for me for almost thirty years now, and the fact that he was captured so amazingly well was what tipped me over the edge. Age was irrelevant, once Frodo looked out from the screen.

Of course, since then I've gotten to know Elijah's work better, and he has grown on me as an individual as well. ;)

So many great posts and I missed my email notifications because of the server change. Trying to catch up.

Moondancer-
My sister and my friend sometimes say of me that I need to grow up a bit but as silly as it may sound...I'm going to let my inner child live as long as I can.

I couldn't agree more! Laughing at things out loud and finding beauty all around me is how I stay relatively sane. I don't know how people can live without laughter and the joy of simple or extra-ordinary beauty (Elijah! :k ). Yes some people think I'm flakey for acting like a 'child' but I'd rather be like Peter Pan and never grow up than grouchy Captain Hook. ;)

And your quote from ConnieMarie deserves requoting-

I was amazed and happy to find there are so many others like me out there - specifically, middle-aged ladies who have developed a completely irrational love for a 21-year-old actor by the name of Elijah Wood! Everyone who has written has been most eloquent and insightful about the genesis of their love, and I can only say that my experience has been the same as theirs. First was the love for the character he is portraying, the wonderful and charismatic Frodo Baggins. But following quickly was my admiration and love for the luminosity of Elijah Wood's portrayal of Frodo. I remember catching my breath in the Mirror of Galadriel scene - I could only think of the statue of Michelangelo's "David" when looking at Elijah's face and neck on the screen. And those incredible eyes - they seem to lead the viewer down to the very depths of his heart and soul. How can anyone look so beautiful without somehow being that beautiful as a person?

Of course Elijah is 23 now and we still love him as much if not more than when we first discovered him.

Serena-We need your translation skills again. Here's a nice long article from a Czech newspaper.. http://zpravy.idnes.cz/filmvideo.asp?r=filmvideo&c=A040806_231757_filmvideo_kot

This is bits and pieces from work, but I just checked the thread and it doesn't seem to have moved on too far from what I've written.

[Okay, in the relatively short time since I wrote that, things have gone off in an entirely different direction... I'll have to catch up later.]

---but ylla has probably left for Boston by now. When you see this, ylla, know that you and your husband are in my thoughts and prayers. :k


Maybe we were in some cosmic event.......
Methinks a server update may just qualify for that label... ;)

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

As far as my fan interest in Elijah, I think most people who know about it (family and otherwise) know it's because he's such an incredible actor, and so don't even think about it as an age issue (hey, I'm a Claude Raines fan, too ;) ). My high-maintenance/control-freak sister doesn't get it at all, but then she doesn't understand what I find in the LotR movies (which she hasn't seen), specfic (it's not really "literature" y'know), and especially Tolkien (although she says she's happy to have contributed to my interest through my stealing her LotR paperbacks back in 1969).

***warning, dangerous...Moondancer gets philosophical...feel free to ignore my ramblings ***
You know, a lot of people I know, tend to look for happiness in the really big things. I'm not that way. If you wait for the really big occasions, you will miss a lot of great little things along the way.
I had a discussion with a friend of mine. She's almost never happy. Not really happy. She's never enthousiastic about things. After a long talk with her, it was clear that she's quite a dreamer and she can only be happy if her dreams can come true and - what's more - it has to be perfect.

She can not be happy when things aren't perfect.
This is giving me something to think about, probably for quite some time, because IMHO finding happiness in only "big things" and finding happiness only in perfection are two different things. Both can be symptoms of underlying difficulties, and maybe they often go together. But I'm pretty sure they don't always go together because I've never had a problem with the "only big things" side, but perfectionism is something I'm very prone to--the feeling that if something isn't perfect, it's horrible (great for the self-esteem :rolleyes: , as you can imagine). Especially a problem in decision-making: If I make the right decision everything will be wonderful, but if I make the wrong decision everything will be terrible. I know consciously now that that isn't true, but it's still an attitude I have to watch out for. Another is being afraid to be "happy where I am" in life, for fear that means I won't try to go further--which would mean that I couldn't allow myself to be happy until, as you said of your friend, I've "reached my dreams," or I'm sure to never reach them. That may sound strange, but it's completely logical to a perfectionist. (Even as I write this, it sounds completely logical to me, although I know it's not correct. With a lawsuit hanging over my head, though, I think it's fairly rational to not be particularly happy at the moment.)

But yet I can marvel at the smallest (or, to some people, silliest) things, and have always been able to do that. Maybe because those things are completely outside me, and the only thing that I'm prone to perfectionism in is myself? I dunno, as I've never thought about the two things together.

To get back on topic (or at least...a bit ):
...As far as English and other classics are concerned: I'm trying to catch up on my own.
I seem to be less widely read than most people here (at least in fiction--I do read a lot of nonfiction). But what I lack in width, I probably make up for in depth. Besides all of Tolkien's fiction (except for the Father Christmas Letters--I have to get hold of those--but if you ever get a chance to read Mr. Bliss :D :D ), I've read Charles Williams's 7 novels, all of C.S. Lewis's fiction... do we see a pattern here :p ? I've also read a fair amount of the nonfiction of each of those Oxford gentlemen, but I can't claim to have read all of it. Also, of course, shelves of literary, historical, and theological criticism of said Oxford gentlemen (one in particular). I could tell you the differences between JRRT's and CW's depictions of purgatory or CSL's depiction of women in LWW and Til We Have Faces, show how CW used his theology of romantic love in each of his novels, discuss the current argument regarding the degree to which Tolkien's cosmos is Anglo-Saxon (and not), give a brief rundown on the Evil of the Ring according to Shippey and The Gospel According to Tolkien according to Wood (and why Wood's take on it is infinitely better than Wright's), and list a few theories on the identity of Tom Bombadil (including JRRT's rebuttal of each)...
...but I've never read anything by a Brontë sister.

Maybe it's better to go out and see the plays on stage (but they don't tend to do that over here very often. Shakespeare does not translate very well, I think)
I'd think Shakespeare would be very difficult to translate--it's not only poetry, but it's poetry in a very specific meter. Just translating the meaning of the words would really lose a lot, IMHO.

Maybe it's because I'm not a "lit person," but I get much more from watching the plays than I do from reading them; I figure I fit in pretty well with the groundlings ;) . Of course, IMVHO a creative work is almost always at its best in its original medium, and Shakespeare's plays were written to be acted and watched, not just read. But, in addition, I find that watching the play gives the archaic English a context, so I can understand what's being said without always understanding it, if you take my meaning ;) . If there aren't many live performances around, the BBC has done some good performances that are probably available in some format. (And, I've never seen Kenneth Branagh's [sp?] Hamlet, but IMHO his Much Ado About Nothing and Henry V are wonderful.)

I tend to want to read from authors from around the world. Even if it's a classic thriller, authors bring their own culture in their work.
I've found that to be true in fantasy--it's still an emerging trend to have culturally diverse fantasies available in the U.S., but what I've read has been intriguing. (Over about the last decade, many traditional stories/myths from a variety of cultures have been made into beautiful children's books, which I think is a Very Good Thing.)

I have often wanted to get Mary Shelley's Dracula from the library but I always hesitated to do so. Maybe I will do so if he recommends it.
Better try Bram Stoker's Dracula. Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein ;) . I agree with what's been said about Dracula, BTW--a much better book than you'd think from seeing movies with the same name.

PPPS: Why do those swimmers have to wear those big body suits? I miss this skimpy speedo's.
For streamlining (which can be beautiful, too).

For Olympic body type, I'll take the gymnasts :p . And not just the men. There's beauty in watching the women perform, too. That little Chinese gymnast, who's 15 years old but looks like she's 9 or 10, and has the most beautiful smile. Her routine on the uneven parallel bars blew the announcers away, but I think I was more blown away by that smile. I hope it stays with her as she grows up.

zkg--regarding Thanksgiving, cheering for underdogs, etc., I think the original post on soccer/football was lost in the downfall of Imladris :( . (Written by Maeg, was it? It's been a long time!) But here's the American football follow-up: The Fellowship Has the Ball (http://www.frodolivesin.us/id119.htm). (Some of it's a bit ironic now, as Nebraska's had two pretty bad football seasons since this was written ;) .)

(((wood))) dear, I get a lump in my throat whenever I read your posts!
maybe my feelings are a bit diffrent for me that they you other ladies have

I wonder. Maybe we're just all too inhibited to admit it! :D

EW's appeal to people of all ages? I think it's because there is something ageless about him. It's so unusual to come across someone who is so much part of his generation and yet also so timeless. Sean Astin explained it by saying Elijah was a thousand-year-old soul in a 21-year-old body. I think I know what he means: he can change in an instant from being a typical (oh, OK, atypically beautiful :)) hip young guy with a 23-year-old taste in music and video games and gags to being a kind of sage. I can't properly put it into words, but I keep on hearing it in his voice and seeing it in his pictures, in the video clips, and in person.
And amazingly it was already there in that little clip Moondancer pointed us to - the one of Elijah at age 9 (?) talking about Paradise (must get that on DVD instead of the scratchy second-hand VHS tape I bought through E-Bay a couple of years ago). Even then there were flashes of what someone (a critic talking of Frolijah after FOTR) called a fearful maturity. It's almost like shape-shifting. Very, very disconcerting.
And no, we're not imagining it. If the whole of the LOTR cast can see it and comment on it, so can we.

And yes, if karate were an Olympic sport (it isn't, but there sure is a campaign going on) our lad could be up there in the arena - boy, could he kick at the age of 9! Bet he could be a sprinter too if he put his considerable mind to it. Or a gymnast or a high-jumper or a fencer. More or less anything except a shot-putter, perhaps. Let's hope Sin City allows him to fly.
Moondancer, congrats to Belgium!! Doing a tad better than the UK, to put it mildly. About time there was some GOOD national news coming from my north-western neighbour.
Your Gaston Lagaffe reminds me of a certain Superjhemp (a local cartoon series which - in this very small country - tends to feature PEOPLE YOU KNOW !! And they are recognisable too!!!!)
I got another lump in my throat when the tiny Grand-Ducal contingent paraded past the other evening .... :) Aaaaah .....

Lady Wendy, just seen your post. Yesssss! Seventies androgyny, Marc Bolan, Queen, Bowie .... Frodo fits that mould!
But it's still Elijah that fleshes out Frodo. And there's still something quite unique about Elijah even when he isn't Frodo. The fact that he WAS Frodo is almost a miracle too far. Tg saw it from the start - I bow to you, Tg :)

That Frodo portrait on the Charles Bridge? It was a b/w drawing of the famous b/w photo of Frolijah looking so innocent and yet so knowing - which I fear I've lost, but I bet someone here knows which one I mean. I photographed the drawing, so will post it when I get round to downloading my latest lot of digital pics. Honest!

EDIT: Grumps, thanks for your hilarious little asides about such things as, ahem, certain Elijahfans limping past him without looking. We can always pretend to be mature and dignified even when inside we're going Sqeeeeeeee!

Serena we must have cross-posted.

Can you translate this article?

http://zpravy.idnes.cz/filmvideo.asp?r=filmvideo&c=A040806_231757_filmvideo_kot

Hobmom, that's some article! :cool: Looks as if there's lots of interesting stuff about EII that we haven't seen before. Will try to have a go tomorrow - in between the 96 pages of extremely boring stuff (plus management chores) I have to do for work :(

Thanks! :k

Tg,
your explanation about perfectionism: you sound exactly like my friend.
feeling that if something isn't perfect, it's horrible
That describes my friend exactly. I don't get it myself. The endless (friendly!)discussions I had with her. It's intriguing to talk to her because she sees life from a totally different angle than I do.

And I'm looking at the male gymnasts as we speak. Look at those arm muscles! I hated having to do gymnastics at school. I preferred outdoors athletics or swimming. I'm so in awe of those gymnasts (male and female). Japan's male gymnasts are fantastic!
And talking about gymnasts:
For the very first time in our history, Belgium has a girl in the finals. :) .

Better try Bram Stoker's Dracula. Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein . I agree with what's been said about Dracula, BTW--a much better book than you'd think from seeing movies with the same name. :lol:
Right! Told you my memory for names is terrible. ;)

For streamlining (which can be beautiful, too).
pfff....who needs streamlining in sports? ;) :p It's such a shame hiding such a great body in such a suit.


Serena, isn't that Paradise clip fantastic?
In the beginning, it's a more serious interview. Some of his answers are mature for a 9 (?) year old. The last part of it is just great. (The interviewer was rather good, wasn't she?). See him do these karate moves with his own sound effects.

And for those who haven't seen that Paradise clip yet. Give me a sign if you want to see it but can't find it. For those with a slow internet connection: somebody chopped it up into three pieces to make it downloadable.
It's really worth it.


ETA:
News about the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind DVD (http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/040816/lam089_1.html)

That describes my friend exactly. I don't get it myself...
Well, that's good... :confused: I mean, you don't really want to "get it," except maybe to understand her a bit more. It's an irrational thought pattern--but it seems completely rational when you're inside it. Even after years of therapy and self-help groups, I can still fall back into it very easily if I'm not careful.

---------

Well, I'm a child of the 60's, so the 70's-type androgeny doesn't appeal to me very much. But, in a way, I guess I was attracted by "internally" androgenous men--the ones who weren't afraid to get in touch with their feminine side (although I don't think it would have been worded that way). Hobbits are awfully good at that, aren't they :p ? Could have something to do with why I fell in love with them--especially Frodo--during that same time.

I was basically a folk-rock listener--especially if there was any anti-war sentiment involved. Those were the days of the 45, so most records that I have from that time were bought for the specific song rather than a person or group. My only multiple-album artists are Simon and Garfunkel--with Paul being the most important to me, because he was the writer and the poet. And also somewhat hobbit-like ("The mirror on my wall casts an image dark and small..." ;) ). Except for his height, there was nothing externally androgenous about him--and there still isn't! We had very good seats at the concert earlier this summer, and when he took off his jacket halfway through... let me tell you, for a 60-year-old, he's built (the fact that there was a red short-sleeved t-shirt beneath the jacket made for a good "research environment" :p )!

But... he was (is) a poet, would have to be in touch with his emotions and those of others to write much of what he has--especially obvious if you take the words from the songs he was writing in the 60s. He understood things in a way that wasn't limited by gender--I probably identified more with his songs than with most of those written or performed by women. And although he had some great anti-war music, there were/are also songs that are intensely personal, and IMO that's where the "internal androgeny" would come in. I think Frodo Baggins and Paul Simon were the first two people who gave me the courage to look inside myself, because I knew they felt some of the same things I did. That wasn't something most males were comfortable admitting in those days.

Okay, so I'm permanently and hopelessly in love with Frodo and Paul. But if you want swooning--and here comes dark, curly-haired androgeny at its best--it was Donovan :cool: . A poet, too, of course, but also beautiful (with a fold-out of half-naked pics inside the album :eek: ) and with a voice that bordered on the erotic (and I know I wouldn't have worded it that way back then :p ).

Originally quoted by Lady Wendy:
I think that it may be the same for you as for me, and maybe a lot of other women of a certain age, as you so delicately put it ....the fact is that it wasn't necessarily Elijah Wood that we were attracted to in the first place, but Frodo....he definitely has that seventies look, far more than Elijah has, himself. Then factor in all that angst and suffering, and , well...that is a pretty potent mix for this old girl !!!

Don't know about the 70's look, Lady Wendy, but pale and interesting has always been appealing for me. In my case, it was definitely 'the Frodo factor' that first attracted me. I've been a devoted Frodo fan for nigh on thirty years (which puts me firmly in the 'women of a certain age' category, and no mistake!) so all my attention was on my favourite hobbit the very first time I saw FOTR. I'd never heard of Elijah Wood, and though his Frodo wasn't exactly book-Frodo, there was an indecipherable quality in his portrayal of this beloved character that gripped me - when I discovered later that he was only eighteen when filming began, and that he was American I was simply astounded!

But it was through lurking, and then joining this wonderful group of ladies in the Faculty Lounge - originally at Imladris - gradually getting to 'know' Elijah and his pre-LOTR work, that really led to him becoming rather special to me. Reading interviews, seeing him on various chat-shows and then seeing all that lovely behind-the-scenes footage on the 'extras' DVD's, I realized that the quality that shone through his Frodo originated somewhere in Elijah himself. Would any other actor have captured the 'essence' of Frodo the way Elijah did? I don't think so. He was, as so many have said, born to 'be' Frodo.

While it was my love of Frodo that introduced me to him, I don't think I would have followed his career so closely if Elijah himself did not possess that same innate goodness and beauty (the 'inner light') that so defines the character of Frodo.

Originally quoted by serena:
But it's still Elijah that fleshes out Frodo. And there's still something quite unique about Elijah even when he isn't Frodo. The fact that he WAS Frodo is almost a miracle too far.

That's so true serena. A remarkable coincidence? Fate? Divine intervention? I don't have any answers, but I'll be eternally grateful that everything and everyone - PJ & co, films, Elijah - came together as they did.

As for the future - I hope Elijah continues to take roles that interest him for the sake of his craft and professional satisfaction. I have high hopes for 'Everything Is Illumated.'

Moondancer - just saw your post - Your quotes regarding Elijah from Anne, Anonymous and ConnieMarie say what I feel much more articulatlely than my own feeble attempts could hope to. I think they express perfectly what all of us feel about this very special young actor. Thanks so much for those.
Btw, I loved your post about happiness. I basically agree with your outlook on life. I laugh at daft things, but I also have quite a serious side - I do love my angst - especially the Frodo variety!

Going back to the 'Ice Storm' discussion a couple of pages back. Here's a little snippet from a review of the film I saw at Rotten Tomatoes. It's from an interview with Ang Lee.

Quote:
Mostly, though, it was by relating to the characters that Lee was able to get in tune. "I felt close to Mikey, the spaced-out kid. I remember directing Elijah Wood and saying, `Your speech is not right, it's too clear, too articulated. You're two seconds behind everyone. Try to loosen up here a little bit, let your jaw slacken when you talk.' And he got the idea right away.

Mechtild - I only found 'Return to Frodo's kitchen' at Torc, courtesy of dear Flourish (Zazinka) who steered me in that direction - and it was well worth the visit. I actually have one of your very own monster posts saved, I enjoyed reading it it so much.

wood - I second serena's words. Don't ever change - we love you just as you are. :)

Ylla - I'm sure all our thoughts will be centred on Boston over the coming days. I sincerely hope all goes well. :k

Lady Wendy - thanks for asking about hubby. He's doing much better, though having good days and bad days.

Tg - I spent a couple of hours reading your wonderful book v film essays on frodolivesin.us last night. I was in my element - they were a pleasure to read. I take so much from your observations both of the books and films. Thanks.

Thanks to all for the wonderful posts, as always. I love this thread.

Ainon - Hope you find more time to post in here - soon. :)

Third post today .... only because the infamous glitch seemed to delay several posts, including Hobmom's first one with the link to that article and Tg's megapost about such topics as perfectionsim, and Moondancer's last but one - so I hadn't seen any of those when I sent my last two. We're having thunderstorms here that interfere with satellite reception, and there is severe localised flooding in the UK. All very odd.

And since I wrote that, another has appeared from Tg! We're being spoilt ;)

Tg, I missed that Chinese gymnast! Those girls are astonishing to watch (anyone old enough to remember Nadia Comaneci of Romania?) And as for the men :cool: (to bring this back on topic, EW was once pictured on a beach in LA with his arms through a pair of rings (The Two Rings :D) that male gymnasts use. He looked as if he was itching to use them. Bet he could, too :cool:

from tgshaw:
Another is being afraid to be "happy where I am" in life, for fear that means I won't try to go further--which would mean that I couldn't allow myself to be happy until, as you said of your friend, I've "reached my dreams," or I'm sure to never reach them. That may sound strange, but it's completely logical to a perfectionist.

Entirely logical. There's danger anyway in reaching your dreams, because suddenly there's nothing left to strive for. (I wonder if Elijah felt this after completing LOTR, which must have felt like The Ultimate Movie Project and possibly still does?) People are usually happiest when they have a goal (which for perfectionists is presumably a permanent state ;) - so logically perfectionists should be permanently happy?? Bit of a paradox there!). But there's also the "this is too good to be true" factor: we are so used to feeling unfulfilled that, as soon as we really do feel happy with something, we start to think it can't be that good - disaster must be lurking just round the corner - so we start back on the downward spiral (maybe to make sure we have something to strive for after all - i.e. climbing back up the slippery slope :rolleyes: ). I've caught myself doing that a few times (and yes, I'm sure it ultimately put the lid on several relationships). Perfectionism in relationships is something I wouildn't wish on anyone :rolleyes:
Note to self: give it up!

PS Beautiful quotes, Moondancer. Thanks yet again :)
PPS Just looked up Donovan in Google to see how beautiful he was. Couldn't find a single pic! Now, there's a challenge ....

EDIT: Just saw your post, Blossom. Wise, heartfelt words as ever! It's always good to hear from you.
And (((ylla))) - meant to say this ages ago - my thoughts are with you and your husband.

Hi -- I'm new here, although I've been lurking for a few days. I came upon this forum by accident, and was so delighted to see such intelligent conversation about the performances (and person) of the wondrous Elijah.

The question about why we are so fond of him (particularly those of us who are older) has been plaguing me for some time now. I confess that I HATED this man for several years. The only time I had seen him was in the "Homicide: Life on the Street" episode that several people have mentioned, in which he played a thoroughly dislikable, smug, smirky, murderous prep-school boy. That, to me, was Elijah Wood. So when my friends tried to persuade me to see FOTR, I refused -- partly because I had no interest in Tolkien, and partly because I didn't want to have to watch the little creep (that was how I thought of him) for two and a half hours.

I eventually did see the film, and fell in love with it and its successors. But insofar as any of the actors caught my interest, it was Viggo Mortensen. It wasn't until "Return of the King" (and an interview on Ellen de Generes's show) that Elijah got through to me. And the question is, why? Certainly, he is physically attractive, and personally charming, and a fascinating actor. But I think the person who said that it was the combination of tjese characteristics and the character of Frodo that appealed to so many of us: the humility, the vulnerability (oh, yes!), the determination to fulfill a mission that he never asked for, the unconventionally "heroic" heroism.

I also remember reading a review by a (male) critic who spent the first paragraph tearing Elijah's performance apart, as the worst thing in the movie (I think this was ROTK). This critic admitted, however, that he had taken an informal poll of his female friends, and had determined that for many of them, Elijah/Frodo represented "some sort of approximation of masculine innocence." Maybe that's part of the charm as well, for his older fans.

I could say much more, but I'll save that for later posts. Thank you all for providing such an interesting gathering place!

Welcome, Pelagia!

I confess that I HATED this man for several years. The only time I had seen him was in the "Homicide: Life on the Street" episode that several people have mentioned, in which he played a thoroughly dislikable, smug, smirky, murderous prep-school boy. That, to me, was Elijah Wood. So when my friends tried to persuade me to see FOTR, I refused -- partly because I had no interest in Tolkien, and partly because I didn't want to have to watch the little creep (that was how I thought of him) for two and a half hours.

WOW! LOL -- that's the first time I've ever heard this! But that sure tells you what a good actor he is, that he convinced you he was a little maggot in real life too. In fact, as I think you probably found out, nothing could be further from the truth. But welcome again, and I hope you enjoy yourself here as much as I have!

Welcome, Pelagia! :) Such wonderful thoughts in your first post (and your opinion of McPhee sounds kind of like how some people felt about Patrick in ESOTSM--"You can tell he's a great actor by how much I loathed him." :p )

But I think the person who said that it was the combination of tjese characteristics and the character of Frodo that appealed to so many of us: the humility, the vulnerability (oh, yes!), the determination to fulfill a mission that he never asked for, the unconventionally "heroic" heroism.
Yes, that combination, plus somehow the feeling that no other actor could have made that same "combination" and made it as truthfully. I really believe Elijah and Frodo resonate with each other--in the scientific meaning of the word: the "vibrations" of one reinforce the vibrations of the other.

..."some sort of approximation of masculine innocence." Maybe that's part of the charm as well, for his older fans.
Hmmm... I like that. The idea that "masculine" and "innocent" aren't necessarily at odds, even though some parts of society seem to think the two qualities can't co-exist. And I think that entire circle of male friends that came out of the LotR movies make that statement just by who they are (well, I'm not too sure about Dom... ;) -- just kidding!). Maybe that's why so many people love them, and why so many other people can't figure it out? It certainly fits the characters they played; I think Tolkien would be pleased :) . PJ made some wonderful casting decisions, just by realizing that he had to cast people who could live and work together so intensely--without ending up killing each other :eek: .

I could say much more, but I'll save that for later posts. Thank you all for providing such an interesting gathering place!
...and I could try to say more, but I'm so braindead it would make less and less sense...

--But I'm glad for the promise of your future posts :) .

This is impossible (though apparently not for the many of you who have managed to post such long and brilliant and wide-ranging thoughts). This is such fertile ground lately--how is one supposed to come in and read several pages and catch up and then respond to all the provocative commentary???

Well, I'm glad for those of you who manage, because I feel like the speaker who opens her mouth and luckily someone else comes in with a better response than I would have, before I get a chance to respond.

But oh I have so much to say I just can't say it. So carry on ladies.

Okay--I can add this quickly. Yep. Donovan Leech. Very pretty man. Paul McCartney. Another very pretty man. I was a teenager in the 70's, but I loved the 60's. And many 60's men had the slightly feminized, doe-eyed look, as men tried to change out of the robotic breadwinner roles of the 50's. And of course the love/pity/compassion theme. I think that's where Frodo fit in real well, and why I've always liked his brand of heroism. And Frolijah looks very much like he could have been a 60's free spirit waify type man.

One more thing. Elijah looks both so young and yet so adult. When Honey and I watched Chain of Fools this struck me deeply. In one way he looked SO YOUNG. But also, he looked adult, too. That Dorian Grey quality (but good). That Armand quality. Yes, Serena was just talking about that ageless quality. It is true. Whenever I watch the movies and I know how so many are breathing deeply over the men--their looks and their brand of heroism--I know times will come around to appreciate the hobbit type of heroism again. And certainly the more expressively dewy ;) look of our angelic hero.

Moondancer--I could go on and on commenting on (and agreeing with) your philosophy of knowing how to appreciate small things. It's all relative. Sometimes things only look small because we are too used to them. Like a reflection in the water. But paying attention to small things is a way to keep joy close and not get jaded by all of the stimulation thrown at us these days. Well, I could really really go on. But I'll spare you and spare me as I need to get back to work.

So enough. said I wasn't going to post anything but a couple of lines.

Tg---you are lucky to have got to see the S & G concert. Tickets were sold out within minutes here in Seattle. A.D. and I really wanted to go!!! I also love the poetry of Paul Simon. Gives me shivers.

Welcome Pelagia!!

Welcome, Pelagia!

Another thoughtful lady joins the Faculty!

Surely IF Elijah did read anything like this online the Faculty would have to be his favorite bunch of fans. This really is one of the best behaved, respectful, intelligent, insightful online groups anywhere. And I've seen a lot of online groups and this is definitely one of the best.

I think I've mentioned a few times that I ..yes me the Elijah obsessed fan that I am now... also did NOT LIKE HIM ONCE! :eek: I also thought he was just a bratty kid actor with an attitude problem. I'm not sure why I had this impression but it might be that before LOTR ever got started filming I too saw him on Homicide and his McFee is truly evil. Now of course I didn't realize that this was due to Elijah's incredible acting talent and that he is the polar opposite of McFee Broadman. It took FOTR to completely win me over and the rest is history.

Also I recall Elijah on an interview with Regis Philbin when he was promoting..I think.... The War. Elijah was somewhere between 12 and 14 and maybe he just wasn't feeling well that day or tired or it was when his parents were divorcing but the lad actually seemed in a bad mood. So at the time I wrote him off as a spoiled Hollywood kid. Which, of course, he wasn't.

Has anyone ever found this particular interview anywhere online because I would love to watch it again with my new Elijah appreciating eyes?

Anyway all that is way in the past and you all know how much I love him now.

He does have that rare combination of masculinity and innocence and I do think that's a large part of his appeal especially to we ladies. I've found some men just don't 'get him'. I've heard Elijah berated for the very qualities we like so much in him. IMVHO Elijah is a REAL man and that's rather rare nowadays.

I have just returned from a camping trip and have not yet read through the posts I missed.

But to Pelagia, effusive greetings. I wanted to say I enjoyed your post very much. Unlike you I did not come to LotR hating E.W.; I didn't even know who he was to hate! But I do NOW. And no, not to hate. Indeed, no.

-- Mechtild

Marc Bolens. How scary is that? Our boy also looked like Justin (American Idol) on an SNL joke. Now I think of him as British Dennis the Menace. I am sure after Mcpheeters of "Homicide" he definitly could pull it off. Oh, and Kevin of "Sin City" too. :D

Pelagia, welcome!! Love the name and the post. Great to have you here! And, as others have said, it’s particularly gratifying to welcome converts to this Elijah Wood shrine. :lol:
Hobmom is another – well, just goes to show ;).
Next thing we know, my Hostess acquaintance who called EW “obnoxious” and “full of himself” after seeing him earlier this year on either Jay Leno or Graham Norton (not sure which – probably the latter: see posts from Feb/March) will be joining us. Hey – maybe she’s here already! :D (Funny thing: she shares Lij’s mother’s name!)

So how on earth did she reach that conclusion? First, she knew nothing about him (having lived outside the US for 15 years wouldn’t help there) and assumed he had been completely unknown before LOTR. Second, she mistook his natural exuberance and enthusiasm about the whole LOTR project for enthusiasm about himself (he’d been talking about the Oscars and promising others would get a look in again next year).
As we know, he’d actually felt GUILTY, not boastful, about ROTK taking all the awards, but I can see how someone completely uninformed might misinterpret that.

One thing that has struck me about Elijah in interviews – and this is another of his virtues - is that he doesn’t suffer from the false modesty syndrome that plagues so many of his contemporaries. The false modesty thing actually invites the listener to think the opposite: “I know I’m amazing, but of course I’m far too modest to admit it, and you guys will see that”. If someone asks Elijah if he is good at something (such as karate or getting straight A grades or remembering obscure facts) and he is, he says so. But he also constantly steers the conversation away from himself and on to the attributes of other people (as in the DVD commentaries where, unlike the others, he never once refers to his own performance or its difficulties but instead praises others). That to me is genuine modesty.
Elijah is (as Andy Serkis and Ian McKellen put it) “incredibly tuned in” to and “genuinely interested in” other people, and that too comes across strongly in those commentaries.

from Pelagia:
The question about why we are so fond of him (particularly those of us who are older) has been plaguing me for some time now.

I think (mature) women like vulnerability and emotion in men because it makes them human and accessible and capable of love while still being masculine: an irresistible combination! To me there are few things more boring than Macho Man. But if the man who isn’t afraid to cry or to admit he cries also happens to exude wisdom, innocence, honesty and beauty, I’m lost :)

from Alyon:
Elijah looks both so young and yet so adult.
Yes, doesn’t he? His whole persona can change in seconds, depending on the expression, the angle, the lighting .... That's why I'm sceptical about saying how much he matured during the LOTR filming; he could already look mature at 18 and can still look extremely young at 23.

Following Whiteling’s Olderlij drawing, I noticed a pic of him on the livejournal site which really does suggest to me how he may look at, say, 35 or 40! It’s quite amazing. And all a matter of lighting. See attachment.

Hey Pelagia,

Great first post indeed! :) Looking forward to your next posts.
I only discovered that Homicide episode a couple of months ago. That tv series was on tv here but it was never that popular here. I never saw it.


I wanted to post a site about Sin City but decided against it. It had a couple of Sin City stories.
One reason I didn't post it is that it's in German.
The other reason is that it had major, major spoilers in it. I found out what finally happens with (and to) Kevin. I'm not sure if I wanted to know that. The bit I read featured Marv, telling us about his hunt for Kevin. I liked what I saw but I'm going to avoid reading more until after the movie.
Those who are interested in it: I found it with the Yahoo search engine by typing in Sin City+Miller+Kevin (it's on the second or third page). Don't say I didn't warn you about the spoilers ;)


Hobmom, the only tv interviews I saw before LOTR were a couple of small ones on CNN showbiz news (that used to be presented by a couple of dumn looking presenters but they had great interviews) and Jay Leno's show (we can no longer see that either :( ).
Remember the last time Elijah was on Leno's show? They had a flashback to his first appearance there and Leno tested his memory? I remember that first interview (I remember his conversation with Jay about Leno's car collection and about flying cars).
Interviewing kids on a late night tv show is not an easy thing, I assume. There's only so much you can ask them. Leno always seemed to go for the "and....do you have a girlfriend" :rolleyes: Predictable.


I think (mature) women like vulnerability and emotion in men because it makes them human and accessible and capable of love while still being masculine
Yes, it's more than just vulnerability and emotion, isn't it?
Women do like men who are not afraid to show a bit of vulnerability (there are times when I appreciate men being strong but there are times when I would appreciate it even more if they would show their vulnerable side) and emotion.
It's more than that. I think that Elijah's confidence (while staying humble without fake modesty) has a lot to do with it.
Remember what Sean Astin said: "do what you can but you won't knock him off centre" (or something like that).

Women like men who are not afraid to show their vulnerable side and who can show their emotions but we do like our men to have confidence, don't we?

Like Serena says, if I should describe why I like him - it's a combination of factors. Watching him in an interview, he can go from playful and a bit mischievous to mature and wise and back again in only a fraction of time.

This is impossible (though apparently not for the many of you who have managed to post such long and brilliant and wide-ranging thoughts). This is such fertile ground lately--how is one supposed to come in and read several pages and catch up and then respond to all the provocative commentary???

Well, I'm glad for those of you who manage, because I feel like the speaker who opens her mouth and luckily someone else comes in with a better response than I would have, before I get a chance to respond.


Alyon, we are in the same boat :) ! This thread is so sparkling and vivid, it's wonderful. Could only try to keep track, since I've been a bit under the weather.

Just a few comments -
Tg, I hear you regarding the burden of being a perfectionist. I myself am trying for years to overcome this straining pattern. I am yet elaborating the perfect strategy for it. ;) :rolleyes: :k

Lady Wendy, I think, Serena meant the black and white picture of Frolijah you can see here (http://aquafraternal.twin-elements.com/misc/frodo.html). It is a drawing rendition (very, very good artwork IMHO). Am I right, Serena?

Ylla :k - all my positive thoughts are going to you and your husband!

Pelagia, WELCOME :) !


Bye for now, my friends :) !

Very quick extract from that Czech iDnes article, Hobmom:

One day the filmmakers occupied Štvanice island. The local discothèque was transformed into a Ukrainian club that exists only in the imagination of one of the heroes, the eccentric Ukrainian Alex with the broken English and a taste for American pop culture. "That scene is untypical of the film because it uses artificial lighting and smoke", said the film's spokesperson Emma Cooper.
Aha.

I think the name must be Cooper: in the Czech article it's "Coqoerová", which looks like a total misprint (the "-ová" ending is always added to female surnames in Czech, but the rest looks as if it's been mistranscribed).

IMDb tells me a certain Emma Cooper worked as a publicist on The Great Raid, Ned Kelly (with Orlando??) and The Quiet American.

Aha again.

No more references to said Emma in article.

Štvanice island is an island in the Vltava River (Prague 7) where sports and cultural events are now often held (the facilities there were renovated recently). And next door to it there is a Rohan island, of all things.

PS I was there when that photo of EW was taken.
In fact I have a similar one buried deep inside my non-digital camera with the zoom lens. Better get that film developed ....

Whenever I watch the movies and I know how so many are breathing deeply over the men--their looks and their brand of heroism--I know times will come around to appreciate the hobbit type of heroism again. And certainly the more expressively dewy ;) look of our angelic hero.
I wrote an essay (it's on my homepage--just scroll down a bit ;) ) a number of months before FotR came out, saying that I hoped the movies might give another generation a chance to discover that kind of heroism (although I didn't use that word). And although not everyone "gets" it (not everyone did during LotR's original popularity, either), I think that's happened for a lot of people. Thanks in large part to Elijah--and to everyone working on the movies who "got it" so well.

[ETA: Whenever I mention something that's online I try to check it out. In checking that essay, I realized I haven't looked at it for some time :o . The underlined words in it are still text-links to amazon.com (except for the one to New Line)--thought I'd gotten rid of all of those.]

Sometimes things only look small because we are too used to them. Like a reflection in the water.
One of the awards my super-focused boss has in his office is made from a piece of cut glass that's about a square foot in size. For a week or two last spring, the morning sun was coming through his office window at just the right angle to shine through the cut glass and spread out into a gorgeous rainbow on the floor. The first time I saw it, I made a rather excited exclamation about it. Of course, he hadn't noticed, and probably wouldn't have if I hadn't mentioned it. But because he's been so focused in one direction most of his life, he can have a child's wonder when something like that is pointed out to him, and that's how he reacted to this. It was kind of cute :) -- and made me appreciate it even more.

Tg---you are lucky to have got to see the S & G concert. Tickets were sold out within minutes here in Seattle. A.D. and I really wanted to go!!! I also love the poetry of Paul Simon. Gives me shivers.
I'd had his website bookmarked for quite some time [very right-brained website, BTW :p , with navigation by color: http://www.paulsimon.com/index_main.html ]. So the moment I heard they were coming to Omaha (literally--I heard it on TV while I was online) I was able to click in, take the link to the tour news, and be set to get the password for the pre-sale as soon as it was announced. So I was able to buy the tickets the day before they went on public sale--and got better seats than some people who paid more money the next day. Even with that, the tickets were anything but cheap. There are very few people in the world I would have paid that much money to see, but Paul Simon (and Simon & Garfunkel :eek: , an entity I thought I'd never see!) qualified :) . As with a lot of movie stuff before LotR ;) , I had no idea til then that such things as "fan pre-sales" for concerts existed :p ; I went to the site just because I wanted to get whatever news I could as soon as I could.

Sorry to go on so long, but it's one of those events I'll probably always be excited about. The evening was everything it could/should have been; absolutely no disappointment. Such open, reciprocated love between the fans and the performers was amazing to be part of. Since S&G and LotR came into my life around the same time and had somewhat the same effect on me, I've always had the two somewhat linked--at least in my subconscious--and that concert just reinforced it in a way I'm not sure I can define. But I think being able to have both of my "original hobbits" from the '60s now in the flesh (even though I've only seen one of them personally) had something to do with it--so this is really very on-topic ;) :cool: . (Wonder if Elijah's ever had someone connect him with Paul Simon before--he looked a bit like Art in that one SNL skit :p ).

from Whiteling:
I think, Serena meant the black and white picture of Frolijah you can see here.

Yes, Whiteling, that's the one - at least, it's another pencil drawing of that same photograph. Better get my digital pics sorted as well :rolleyes:

Simulposted last time with Tg. Yes, it's often said that artists need to have the eyes of a child, i.e. look at things from a fresh and unbiased angle. Let their inner child live, as Moondancer put it so beautifully.

Maybe we can all be forgiven for being overgrown kids :)

hallo ladies!!!!

this is my first post for the day!!!!
i posted so many yesterday so i was thinking
i have to see how long i could wait to day, not very long :lol:

welcome to pelagia!i hope you will enjoy the friendship in here
i will tell you the same thing that i have sade to other newcomers
I LOVE IT HERE!!!! :)

no luck for swedish team today, hoping for lillhage to night in swimming!! :z:

today is my last day on the holliday tomorrow i start working again!! :(

i was born in middle of the 60 so i can`t agree with you on that one!!
but like some sade before i guess thats fits fore me to it was
Frodo i fell in love with at the beginning and during this hole time my
love have come to elijah and has gone deeper that i thought was
possible and now i am totaly lost to elijah!!!! :p

Serena, ihope you not are falling in tears every time when you
are reding my post is they so sad then i will try to be more cheerful!!

LOVE TO ALL/WOOD

Pelagia, welcome! So cool to be seeing new faces around here! And I find it fascinating that you loathed our lad at first. Proves just exactly what a great actor he is!

Serena:
I think (mature) women like vulnerability and emotion in men because it makes them human and accessible and capable of love while still being masculine

Ah! You've said it so well once again!

Moondancer:
It's more than that. I think that Elijah's confidence (while staying humble without fake modesty) has a lot to do with it.

Yes, the confidence too.

Serena again:
If someone asks Elijah if he is good at something (such as karate or getting straight A grades or remembering obscure facts) and he is, he says so. But he also constantly steers the conversation away from himself and on to the attributes of other people (as in the DVD commentaries where, unlike the others, he never once refers to his own performance or its difficulties but instead praises others). That to me is genuine modesty.

Yes, and I find that very appealing to be so honest. I've never understood the way most people, especially women it seems to me, handle compliments. If someone tells me I have a good color sense, or pretty hair why act like I don't acknowledge those facts? After all, it's not my choice, but just some vagary of the way I was wired.

And yes, Elijah does seem like a genuinley modest person, and genuinely interested in other people.

But I have to admit that there was a pair of interviews when I actually felt a little annoyed at him. It was between the release of RoTK and ESotSM. He was on Conan O'Brien one night, and then maybe John Stewart's show the next, or very soon thereafter? Anyway, he said something about all the women fans of the LoTR movies, and then went on to say something like "of course they're really interested in Viggo Mortensen and Orlando Bloom, right?"
One of the aforementioned hosts said something about "not selling yourself short," and EW grinned and the audience went wild with applause.

I suppose he was trying to make a funny? I mean, come on, if I woke up and saw THAT in the mirror every day....And he can hardly have any illusions about his affect on women, can he? From what I understand, when he appears all eyes are on him.

So that just struck me as a bit of false modesty. But maybe his sense of humor and mine are just different.

Anyhow. Watched "Bumblebee" last night. I was really struck by how soft and young his face was. He really has just got better looking, with those really interesting planes emerging.

Oh, and back to Whiteling's drawing of OlderLij. Might take a look at Omar Sharif for an example of what happens to a pair of unusually large eyes with time. And it seems to me his jaw line would soften alot, loose some of the angularity over time. Not to say I'm not totally in awe of your drawing skill. In fact I've been meaning to do this for a while, just a subtle little hint :D :

Editted to add: I'm not at all a perfectionist. I'm one of those odd sorts who can be fascinated by a patch of pure color on a peeling, weathered door, or the contrast of moldy leaves and a bright flower. And where others think Elijah ought to get his teeth fixed, acquire a tan, and stop nibbling his finger nails, it is those little "flaws" (and I'd consider the only the latter to be a flaw) that heighten his beauty. It also fascinates me endlessly that someone who looks like that can still be so sweet and geeky!

Honey!

He was on Conan O'Brien one night, and then maybe John Stewart's show the next, or very soon thereafter? Anyway, he said something about all the women fans of the LoTR movies, and then went on to say something like "of course they're really interested in Viggo Mortensen and Orlando Bloom, right?"

I suppose he was trying to make a funny? I mean, come on, if I woke up and saw THAT in the mirror every day....And he can hardly have any illusions about his affect on women, can he? From what I understand, when he appears all eyes are on him.

It's surely not unusual with very good looking people that they have no idea they really are "all that". I think in Elijah's case, he just views himself as a big-eyed little geek, and not much more and maybe part of it is because of the way he was raised to not be "special". But yes, I did notice that he seemed to be "fishing" for compliments on those two shows. I think that perhaps it got a big response the first time and he liked it and decided to do it again. Someone with admitted shyness around women would surely enjoy the ego stroke, even if there's no reason in the world why he would have to go out looking for it.

People are interesting, aren't they? ;)

ETA -- Honey, the pic you posted was upside down -- was it supposed to be?

...Anyway, he said something about all the women fans of the LoTR movies, and then went on to say something like "of course they're really interested in Viggo Mortensen and Orlando Bloom, right?"
This doesn't apply to how things were at the time of those interviews, but it's been an interesting dynamic to watch since then. It probably has a lot to do with the kinds of movies Orlando and Elijah have decided to be involved with, but Orli does seem to have taken over the fangirl base. Used to be that he and Elijah were given about equal attention--I think it was YM that had an issue with two covers, one with Orlando and one with Elijah, and the readers were to vote on which one they'd rather have a date with or something like that. I still see Orlando often on the covers of adolescent-girl-type magazines, but haven't seen Elijah for quite a while... not that I consider that a bad thing ;) . That type of attention is probably not very helpful if you're trying to be seen as a serious actor.

(Not sure what's going on with Viggo fanwise these days--He attracted the women of a certain age who prefer traditional heroes, I think, so he and Elijah pulled from different groups to begin with.)

Editted to add: I'm not at all a perfectionist. I'm one of those odd sorts who can be fascinated by a patch of pure color on a peeling, weathered door, or the contrast of moldy leaves and a bright flower. And where others think Elijah ought to get his teeth fixed, acquire a tan, and stop nibbling his finger nails, it is those little "flaws" (and I'd consider the only the latter to be a flaw) that heighten his beauty. It also fascinates me endlessly that someone who looks like that can still be so sweet and geeky!
Oh, yes, I could say the same things about myself (except I'd substitute smoking for the nail biting where Elijah's concerned). Very often the only thing a perfectionist thinks should be perfect is her/himself. (Now, if I was the one who'd painted that door, and it was peeling sooner than it "should"... so I obviously did something wrong when I painted it... :rolleyes: )

Very often the only thing a perfectionist thinks should be perfect is her/himself. (Now, if I was the one who'd painted that door, and it was peeling sooner than it "should"... so I obviously did something wrong when I painted it... :rolleyes: )

That's so true, Tg. Not the others have to be perfect, but you. And even knowing you can never fulfill the ridiculous standards you tend to set for yourself, there is deep within you a nasty little voice commenting all your actions with nice things like "That won't do it... that's not enough... try again... try harder!" - You cannot win this game, it's hopeless. Best way is to learn how to turn a deaf ear to that nasty little booster.



Honey, that upside down DDL picture :lol: :lol: :lol:
Okay, okay, I get it ;) !
Grumpy, the bronze lines - send 'em over!

DUH -- of course it's upside down (smacks head). Never mind, honey. LOL

This doesn't apply to how things were at the time of those interviews, but it's been an interesting dynamic to watch since then. It probably has a lot to do with the kinds of movies Orlando and Elijah have decided to be involved with, but Orli does seem to have taken over the fangirl base. Used to be that he and Elijah were given about equal attention--I think it was YM that had an issue with two covers, one with Orlando and one with Elijah, and the readers were to vote on which one they'd rather have a date with or something like that. I still see Orlando often on the covers of adolescent-girl-type magazines, but haven't seen Elijah for quite a while... not that I consider that a bad thing ;) . That type of attention is probably not very helpful if you're trying to be seen as a serious actor.

(Not sure what's going on with Viggo fanwise these days--He attracted the women of a certain age who prefer traditional heroes, I think, so he and Elijah pulled from different groups to begin with.)


Oh, yes, I could say the same things about myself (except I'd substitute smoking for the nail biting where Elijah's concerned). Very often the only thing a perfectionist thinks should be perfect is her/himself. (Now, if I was the one who'd painted that door, and it was peeling sooner than it "should"... so I obviously did something wrong when I painted it... :rolleyes: )
I recognize some of my friends in you, tg. :)

I have another friend who's a real perfectionist (he also has a depressive nature and that's a bad combination :( ). The strive for perfection applies to him and if something he has done is not 'perfect', that reflects on him mostly but he likes to be in control of a situation, of a project he works on. So, he demands perfection from himself but also from those working with him.
He was varnishing a wine rack once. When I visited him, I asked his wife about it and she told me that he has been working on that little rack for three days now.
"Three days? On varnish? Why?", I asked.
"Well", she said, "there's this little spot on the rack he's not happy about. It's not how it should be and it's eating him up"
"But", I responded, "that wine rack goes under the stairs in a dark place. Nobody will see that bad spot".
"Visitors won't see it", she said to me, "but, he will know it's there and that's enough".

Aren't humans fascinating?


But I have to admit that there was a pair of interviews when I actually felt a little annoyed at him. It was between the release of RoTK and ESotSM. He was on Conan O'Brien one night, and then maybe John Stewart's show the next, or very soon thereafter? Anyway, he said something about all the women fans of the LoTR movies, and then went on to say something like "of course they're really interested in Viggo Mortensen and Orlando Bloom, right?"
One of the aforementioned hosts said something about "not selling yourself short," and EW grinned and the audience went wild with applause.
Good point, honey!
I'm assuming that this has got to do with the way Viggo and Orli were marketed and the sort of response they got from the audience.
I'm guessing that he knowns that he's quite popular and not bad to look at but maybe his reaction there reflects on how he views himself?
I mean, maybe he thinks that he's not bad looking but certainly not in the league of Viggo or Orlando?

achila!i thought you whanted us to stand on our heads
like the gymnasts in the olympics!!!!! :lol: :lol:

no medels to sweden this day!!!!
hoping for the atletics this weekend!! :z:

biting his nails,gap between his teeth,pail skin
iaen`t that things we love him for,among many others?

for the smoking i am a very big smoker my self and know what this
does to you so i rather having him biting his nails instaed of smoking!!

no news is good news they are saying! but are there not
anything about his filming??
and that for being in girls fan magasin to like you sade tg
nothing for serious actor

love wood :k

Serena-Thanks for the bit of translation. Cooper? I thought that loooong Czech name was a bit of a mouthful. So it seems Emma may be English ( I pick English because she seems to have turned up whilst Hooligans was filming)or American after all? These little tidbits keep adding up. Perhaps we should move any Emma discussion to Hugs...Tiptoes over to Hugs... ;)

What we've been saying about men being strong and vulnerable as opposed to macho reminds me of the Gregory Peck discussion of last year and how Greg is one of the men Elijah hopes to emulate. For our newer members I'll post that bit of the interview where Elijah mentions this..


Gear Magazine Interview Dec.2002

"What it means to be a man these days is lost," he says, suddenly focused. "We used to have men like Gregory Peck, heroes like Steve McQueen. They were men, but they were layered, they were sensitive. That idea has been
lost. Being a man's man; hanging out with the guys for football games; competing for sleeps-with-the-most-women titles -- that's all bull****. It has nothing to do with manhood. Too many men stand for being macho and nothing else. They're caricatures of men. Then there are the men who are girl thingies. They're too sensitive and whiny, and they don't stand for anything. There are too many men like that. That's just as bad as the other side." His own goal, he says, is to be his own man, sensitive and strong."

"ConnieMarie" (or someone) is quoted:
How can anyone look so beautiful without somehow being that beautiful as a person?
:::: banging head repeatedly on keyboard :::: (OUCH!)
Having battled this misconception and the associated stereotypes my entire life, I would just like to say that it's absolute bull puckey. As I'm sure the Faculty (whose brains I greatly admire) know, it is entirely possible for a physically beautiful person to be really bad, or a physically ugly person to be a saint.

I think that part of Elijah Wood's appeal is that, besides being very good at what he does for a living, he is physically beautiful, has a good set of brains, *and*, by all accounts, he appears to be a good person and a Nice Guy. If he did not have the (apparent) goodness along with the beauty, I doubt that he'd stir a heartbeat for me.

re: 70's: LoTR was not just popular among the counterculture. The early computer "geeks" also loved it. I've probably mentioned the occurence of "Program Gandalf" and "Subroutine Frodo" in more than one simulation that I saw.

Harrrrumph.

~reallyreallygrumpytoday
Certified Computer Geezer
(Oy! - pushed some buttons there)

zkgrumpy:
If he did not have the (apparent) goodness along with the beauty, I doubt that he'd stir a heartbeat for me.

Me too!!!!!

serena:
I think (mature) women like vulnerability and emotion in men because it makes them human and accessible and capable of love while still being masculine
moondancer:
It's more than that. I think that Elijah's confidence (while staying humble without fake modesty) has a lot to do with it

Yep--the ingredients are coming together.

And now, since Tg got to talk about Paul Simon, I get to throw two (or more ;) )sentences in about the Beatles. I was a teenager in the 70's--after they had broken up...but I learned all about them and they profoundly influenced my perception of things. And one thing that was really attractive to me is that though they were edgy and outspoken, they were clearly affectionate and loving towards one another. Their press agent said that one of the most valuable lessons he learned from the Beatles is that it is okay for men to hug one another--he found that one of the most valuable gifts they gave us. They weren't afraid of being open about their affection. And they weren't afraid of just having fun in an exuberant way, without always trying to act cool (though they were cool :) ).

Sort of like hobbits??!!

Okay, not altogether like hobbits. But of course the Beatles loved lotrs because it did appeal to their sense of things (wanted to make the movie, didn't they? Paul was to be Frodo. Well, I'm glad that effort died...but you get the idea).

There is something very attractive about people who can love life and find joy, but still be smart enough to be able intelligently comment on what is going on in the world and among people. It shows possiblity that this life can be beautiful, but you can appreciate that without being blind and dumb to the problems in the world. It allows people to know that beauty isn't just an illusion when it is still enjoyed by people who are also astute enough to be able to articulate the flaws in the world, too. And beauty in life is such sustenance. (and I am not talking about someones physical beauty of course, just in life itself)

Elijah is like that, I think. And all the last several pages of Faculty writing seem to attest to that. Ain't it cool? :cool:

And I think it is true that as we as women get older, we do value those things that bring us personal sustenance. We can get a little cynical about what is macho, because we discover that macho doesn't necessarily deliver what we find we need to get on with life...

Hey everyone!
I have just been going through many pages of posts here. I wanted to comment on something you've all left far behind by now (sorry, am not in sync) and that's the discussion about Elijah's relationship with his dad. I noticed some people here have experienced an absent father in one way or another. Curious, that.

I lost my dad when I was ninteen. He died. But before that he was kinda lost to me because my parents were divorced and my dad - who was a brilliant man in many ways - just wasn't the parenting type.

I believe that the importance of parents cannot be overestimated. I'm thinking this dad-thing has shaped me and still has a profound effect on me. Probably the same is true for Elijah. So do you all think it's possible that we sense that in others, that we sense when we have something like that in common with people? According to certain surveys we can pick out people in a crowd just by looking at them, and inside a five minute span get hold of those who have similar backgrounds and family structures, without exchanging any words.
ok I wont go on and on about it as I know you've left this topic a while back.

Love this site. Also, I did visit Prague, did go to the Hostivar Studios but did not meet E. Was very happy though because I was able to leave a gift for him that I think he really got. :)

Serena, ihope you not are falling in tears every time when you
are reding my post is they so sad then i will try to be more cheerful!!


Oh wood, don't worry - I can cope! As someone else said a page back: please don't change! I love reading your posts! :k

Alyon, you're so right about The Beatles! I'd forgotten it was they who made it OK for men to hug each other (in addition to all their other virtues).
No wonder The Hobbits invaded Abbey Road recently (you have seen those pics, haven't you?? - you know, the ones of the Hobbles/Beatits? :D If not, let me know).

from zkgrumpy:
it is entirely possible for a physically beautiful person to be really bad

The Dorian Grey syndrome again?

I'm not so sure. Inner beauty has a way of showing itself outwardly. If Elijah were bad, for instance, it would show. He just wouldn't look the way he does. There's a light behind those eyes.

I remember a friend recently pointing out a fellow passenger on a plane whom she thought physically beautiful, but lacking in inner beauty. She said she could actually see this lack. And I know what she meant: some people fit the beauty stereotype perfectly, and can be fascinating to look at, but you just sense it's skin deep - and that ruins the effect.
As for inner beauty, you can see it as well as feeling it. IMHO.

So was Elijah fishing for compliments? Maybe he was. But he's said often enough in interviews that women don't react to him the way he would like them to, and I'm sure he genuinely feels that. He really does come across as under-confident with women. But of course by "women" he means "real women" met in non-fan situations. Fans aren't real women - those who worship him are ineligible by definition (so that rules us out, folks! Maybe we should start playing hard to get :D ).
Remember Groucho Marx, who famously said he wouldn't belong to any club that would have him as a member?
(Have I quoted that before? If so, sorry! And yes, I do seem to have Sammy Davis Junior (Junior) on the brain. Wonder why?)

EDIT after seeing EandMe's simulpost:
Sorry to hear you didn't see Lij at Hostivar ... but leaving him a gift was a great thought. I'm sure he really appreciates such things. Wish I'd thought of it!

Thanx Serena!

yeah so what do you give Elijah Wood? I gave him a CD. :rolleyes:

On the subject of Elijah's beauty: it's often spoken of in terms of innocence and integrity. I wonder then why so many people feel the need to write about him (I'm thinking fanfic and slash here) in a derogatory way. I don't mind, because it has nothing to do with him, it's all in the mind of the writer, I just wonder why.

Also, I think he was perfect for the role of Frodo because there is a specific innocence there. Frodo is innocent of wanting to dominate other beings, which is why he has such resistance to the Ring, right.. I think this might be true for Elijah also, at least that's what I see in him. He seems really laid back, and content to govern himself rather than other people. Just a thought.

On the subject of Elijah's beauty: it's often spoken of in terms of innocence and integrity. I wonder then why so many people feel the need to write about him (I'm thinking fanfic and slash here) in a derogatory way. I don't mind, because it has nothing to do with him, it's all in the mind of the writer, I just wonder why.


Not to get into the morality of fanfic, in its many stripes, because some folks here have expressed their opinions on it already (and we don't want this to turn into a big kerfuffle). But let me say that as a writer myself, fanfic serves a number of purposes. For me, it is an outlet, plain and simple. A way to express myself through a "known" (or somewhat known) quantity, and have relationships with people I can never get close to. I don't write slash, although I do enjoy reading it if it's well done and the characters feel "real".

"Derogatory" is sort of subjective. Some types of fantasies people write don't work for me, and I'm sure, vice versa. And in some cases, I've watched "Elijah" be used as a device to explore what are obviously some pretty dark feelings. Is it because he is familiar, gentle, feels safe? Maybe. Is it simply the writer's wish to turn his personality on its ear and see what comes out, that beauty can be evil (like Kevin)? Also maybe. The way that I see it (IMVVVHO), each person who writes fanfic ultimately writes about him or herself -- one of the characters, whether male or female, tends to be the writer. So maybe Elijah becomes an old boyfriend/girlfriend, etc., who spurned them. Therefore, by making him unsavory, they exact some revenge. Who knows? It's complicated.

But I can say with certainty that 99.9% of the fanfic writers I know love and respect Elijah -- they would surely not spend so much time and effort writing about him if they didn't.

Thank you all for being so welcoming. What a nice group of people! I haven't had time yet to figure out how to insert quotes (in those nice boxes) from your wonderful postings (have been too busy reading what you all have to say), so I'll just have to do it this way:

Serena, you wrote: "I think (mature) women like vulnerability and emotion in men because it makes them human and accessible and capable of love while still being masculine: an irresistible combination! To me there are few things more boring than Macho Man. But if the man who isn’t afraid to cry or to admit he cries also happens to exude wisdom, innocence, honesty and beauty, I’m lost."

And Alyon, in a similar vein: "And I think it is true that as we as women get older, we do value those things that bring us personal sustenance. We can get a little cynical about what is macho, because we discover that macho doesn't necessarily deliver what we find we need to get on with life..."

It's too bad that more men don't realize that!

Honeyelf, you said: "He really has just got better looking, with those really interesting planes emerging. . . . And where others think Elijah ought to get his teeth fixed, acquire a tan, and stop nibbling his finger nails, it is those little "flaws" (and I'd consider the only the latter to be a flaw) that heighten his beauty."

That's exactly the way I feel. He is really becoming handsome, rather than just cute or even "just" beautiful. The teeth are fine -- maybe he never had them fixed because he has a good "bite" (my significant other of many years was a dentist :D ). And a tan wouldn't go with the rest of his coloring. It's the smoking that I'd want to change.

I was also interested to see that several of you had the same reaction as I did to Elijah's comments (on talk shows) about Orli and Viggo being the big attractions for women in the LOTR movies. I, too, was uncomfortable with that, and wondered if he was fishing for compliments (which he got). On the other hand, what he said was accurate, wasn't it, if you look at the furor over Orlando, at any rate? I think "Orli" is a more conventionally appealing actor. He's tall, for one thing; and he cut a more obviously heroic figure than Frolijah did. As an actor, Elijah is odder and more offbeat (and I mean that as a compliment!), and I think he also has a broader range. I DK much about Orlando's fanbase, but I somehow don't think it extends as far up, age-wise, as Elijah's seems to. We want more than just a pretty face, as so many of you have noted.

And also (going back to the "fishing for compliments" issue), Elijah is a bit geeky, and I think he realizes that. And I also think he's smart enough to use it and make it part of his appeal. (How many times have you seen references to "geeky charm" in articles about him??)

I loved the quote about Gregory Peck (can't remember who posted it). That's another part of the boy's appeal: he does seem to have brains and good sense.

Now I'd like some advice from all of you. So far, I've seen LOTR, "The Ice Storm" (I plan to go back to read the posts about that one -- I was surprised at how shattering I found it), "Eternal Sunshine. . ." (which I adored; EW was indeed a creep in that one, but still not as bad as McPhee), and (gulp) "The Faculty." What would you recommend next? (I REALLY don't want to see "Flipper". . .) :rolleyes:

Now I'd like some advice from all of you. So far, I've seen LOTR, "The Ice Storm" (I plan to go back to read the posts about that one -- I was surprised at how shattering I found it), "Eternal Sunshine. . ." (which I adored; EW was indeed a creep in that one, but still not as bad as McPhee), and (gulp) "The Faculty." What would you recommend next? (I REALLY don't want to see "Flipper". . .) :rolleyes:

My vote is for The War -- an utterly brilliant Lij performance and the one where I think it became obvious just how much depth he has. And after that, Radio Flyer, which is my personal favorite "babyLij" movie. As for Flipper -- well, don't watch it for the acting. ;)

What Achila said (nice avatar, BTW :) )... Before the LotR movies came out, The Ice Storm and The War were neck-and-neck for which one I considered Elijah's best movie--and with such completely different characters!!

For childhood movies, Radio Flyer and Huck Finn--The latter especially if you can get hold of a DVD with the director's commentary on it, as he talks about Elijah's acting quite a bit. (Of course, then you have to watch the movie twice--ah, the sacrifices we make ;) .)

(and, Pelagia--Hit the "Quote" button at the bottom of a post, and it'll open up for you to add your comments. Anything that's between the open QUOTE and close QUOTE tags will show up in the "box". :) -- :lol: at myself--I first typed that using the actual tags in the text and came out with a box with "and" in it :p .)

Pelagia, I second (or third or fourth) the nomination to see him in The War. Not a perfect film, but worth watching. All the child actors do very well in it, but Elijah! I think he fully proves himself as a serious actor in it, even at that young age. It was the first of his pre-LotR films that I watched (I had only seen The Ice Storm prior to seeing LotR) where I thought, "Frodo was no fluke! This person really can act!" Stu is a complex, difficult character (but not unappealing) and Elijah's performance in the role is, for me, utterly convincing. He gave, at 13 or whatever he was then, the performance of a consummate adult actor.

Hi all,

Just got off the phone with ylla and she asked me to pass on the latest. Her husband had his triple by-pass today and the next 24-48 hours will be critical. So please keep her and her family in your best thoughts -- thanks!

Achila, thanks for the update on Ylla's husband. Send her our love and best wishes!!! I'll be thinking of them.


And I third fourth or fifth the nomination of The WAr. I only saw if for the first time last month (thank you HOney!) and was blown away. A little tanned, deep-voiced (relatively)Elijah!! Can you imagine??? ;) A really sterling performance. Someone here posted a bunch of reviews from that movie --all speaking of Elijah's stunning performance.

Welcome to the Faculty, Pelagia! :)

(((ylla & hubby))) Thanks for bringing us the news, Achila.

Yup, strong recommendation from me too, for 'The War'. It's not my favourite Young Elijah movie - that'd be Huck Finn - but in terms of profesionalism and performance, Elijah's Stu is truly remarkable.

'Flipper' is fun! Granted, it gets annoyingly cloy at some point :p but hey, dolphins! :D :D

... and (sorry to repeat myself again, but Pelagia's new to this!) The War was the film that finally prompted Roger Ebert (America's No 1 film critic, don't they call him?) to call Elijah the most talented actor in his age group in Hollywood history.

My other Young Elijah favourites (as well as Huck Finn and Radio Flyer, quoted by Tg) are (in chronological order) Forever Young (somewhat soppy story, but great acting from Elijah), The Good Son (if you can stand young Mac and what he gets up to), The Bumblebee Flies Anyway (EW at 17 and gorgeous) and Chain of Fools (ditto - if you can get it ... with or without Chinese subtitles! Very different and very funny).

Tg's website will give you the lowdown on all of these (sorry I can't remember the URL right now ... on wrong computer .... maybe someone else can?)

http://www.frodolivesin.us

I'm also going for The War. The film has its weak points but Elijah's acting in it is just brilliant.

Chain of Fools: to get to know Elijah's talents for comedy (and his timing). Elijah doesn't have a big part in this but it's a great movie if you want to see him in a different sort of role (different for him)


The site you can't link to in here has added a couple of family pictures:
publicity shots of a young Zach, a cute picture of Hannah, that picture we've seen here from Elijah's dad but in color.
Even a couple of interviews with Zach, but that's business related (he's a video game producer)


Edit: thanks for the info on Ylla and her husband, Achila :)

Hello, Facultites!

Between work and RL, you have left me in the dust! I hope to get caught up later this week. I miss you!

In the mean time, for those of you who went to the Howard Shore symphony in Seattle, I have begun posting my pics here:

http://www.khazaddum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2132&page=23&pp=25

There are 2 batches up, and should be one more batch after this (possibly tonight). Thanks for all the delightful memories. I hope to be back here soon!

Cheers!

HALLO LADIES!!!
JUST POP IN TO ASK A LITTLE THING
THAT I HAVE FORGOTTEN EVERYTIME I AM POSTING!!!

WERE CAN I GET THIS LOVELY AVATARS!!??
IS THERE ANYBODY WHO IS WILLING TO HELP ME OUT?? :z:

LOVE/WOOD

EDIT:IF THERE IS ANYONE FROM HUNGERYA CONGRATS TO THE SILVER
IN SWIMMING!! ONLY 15 YEARS OLD MY MY??? :k

Edit after reading wood's post: An avatar can be made out of just about any pic you want. It just has to be resized so it's not more than 50x50 pixels--I used to think they had to be gifs but have been informed (by Bridget, IIRC) that they can also be jpegs. Then, using your "member CP," you can either upload it to KD or link to it on your own hard drive.

I used to change my avatar every day, so have quite a few "in storage" and can easily make another one if there's a different pic you want to use. Then I can email it to you, you save it to your hard drive, and it's yours :) . I've done that for several people already. All you need to do is tell me what specific pic you want to use. If it's from one of Elijah's movies, I can probably screencap it myself. If it's a "non-movie" Lij pic, you might have to post it or email it to me. (Some pics obviously work better than others when you have to make them so small, but most of them can be "tweaked" in some way to make them look pretty good.)

BTW--above offer is open to anyone who wants to use it (you have to have a certain number of posts before you can have an avatar-- 30? 50? Anyone know for sure?

(((ylla & hubby))) Thanks for bringing us the news, Achila.
I can't say it any better than that... :k

'Flipper' is fun! ...but hey, dolphins!
Well, that's why Elijah took the part, after all ;) -- to have the chance to work with dolphins (he has taken advantage of some unique educational opportunities, hasn't he? :) )

Thanks to Moondancer for posting my hopefully not-too-difficult-to-remember URL (http://www.frodolivesin.us) :p . I love that new ".us" extension--supposed to stand for "United States," of course, but... ;) The domain name powers-that-be sent me a notice when frodolives.com became available (it wasn't when I set up the site), but I decided to keep my "substitute." :) You can also click on my name at the top of one of my posts, and along with the "email" and "PM" options you'll see "visit homepage"--clicking on that will get you to the site, too.

The page to go to for the comments Serena mentioned is "RE: 26 Elijah Wood movies" (http://www.frodolivesin.us/id24.htm)--then clicking on a movie's name in the list will take you to its individual page (and that page will have links to any scenes that have been screencapped and posted from that movie).

I'm not giving this info completely for SSP (but, hey, after 3 years, I've almost made it to the $10.00 commission level I need to reach before amazon.com will actually pay me :p ), but also for any of the many :) new folks who haven't been to the site yet. Although I have evidence that there are a few visitors to the site who don't read this thread, I basically consider it an extension of the Faculty Lounge.

So any scene that someone would like to have screencapped and posted for discussion, let me know and I'll do my best. After ruling out a request for the Nixon mask scene in order to keep the site PG :rolleyes: , I think the only outstanding request I have is for some caps from The Witness. I'll finish Shelob's lair--sometime :eek: --but I'm already past the point that had been requested in that scene (the shifting emotions on page 9 (http://www.frodolivesin.us/RotK/id15.htm)).

There's also the new Guest Contributions (http://www.frodolivesin.us/contributions) area that so far is hosting full-size versions of a few of Whiteling's drawings, but is open to other contributions. Just keep 'em PG and copyright legal (which basically means no fanfic unless it's an obvious parody).

--I didn't mean to write so much, but just consider this a "new user's guide" to frodolivesin.us :) . The site's been around (in various incarnations) for several years, and I've been adding stuff regularly, so there's a lot to look at by now. (((Faculty)))

Hi all,

Nothing new to report yet from ylla -- you guys will be the first to know when I hear something.

Thanks, tg, for all your outstanding work on the site. Have I told you lately how much I love going on there?? I could cruise around for hours. :k

But now I have a question, and it concerns Chain of Fools. Do you (or does anyone) know when Elijah filmed this? The release date was some time in 2000, but they were down in Zid from Oct 99 to Dec 2000, and looking at him in the movie, it seems inconceivable to me that he filmed it before LOTR. His face seems so much thinner -- is it just the Frodo wig that makes the shape of his face look so different? For that matter, when was Bumblebee filmed? (Edited to correct the mistake -- I ALWAYS call this movie Butterfly -- sheesh) Any ideas?

Thanks! {{{Faculty}}}

But now I have a question, and it concerns Chain of Fools. Do you (or does anyone) know when Elijah filmed this? The release date was some time in 2000, but they were down in Zid from Oct 99 to Dec 2000, and looking at him in the movie, it seems inconceivable to me that he filmed it before LOTR. His face seems so much thinner -- is it just the Frodo wig that makes the shape of his face look so different?
Hmmm.... This may call for some detective work and deductive reasoning ;) . [Added after writing rest of post--When I started this, I actually thought I might come out with an answer at the end of it, which didn't happen :o . But maybe this collection of facts and speculations will help someone else to put the pieces together. Hobmom may very well know more of what went on behind the scenes...]

What we know is that casting for LotR was going on--or was at least being planned--while Elijah was making The Faculty, 'cause Harry Knowles told him about it while they were shooting in Austin. The Faculty is dated 1998.

We also know that Ash Wednesday was the first movie Elijah shot after principle filming was finished for LotR.

B&W and Bumblee are dated 1999--and although TheAnimatedMovieThatShallNotBeNamed wasn't released until 2002 (coincidentally :rolleyes: on the same day the FotR VHS/DVD went on sale), its copyright is from 1999. Chain of Fools is dated 2000, but there's a working title from 1999.

That's all I know as far as facts. For speculations ;) :

I don't know (and don't much care) when Elijah did his work on TAMTSNBN--let's face it, that part could have been phoned in. We have some pretty good evidence that Bumblebee took longer than most movies to get from shooting to release, and IMHO he does look young in it, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was filmed before The Faculty? I don't know how much time B&W took, for either shooting Elijah's small part or doing the post-production work, so don't know what to say about that one.

My understanding has always been that Elijah did Chain of Fools not long before LotR, which would work if the movie were being made in the earlier part of 1999. He might even have been signed up for it before he was cast in LotR. I haven't watched CofF in awhile, but IIRC, it's one of those movies where EJW's age seems to change depending on the shot. When he's in "hitman mode," he tends to look older, but doesn't he look younger when we see him in his bellboy uniform?

Hobmom... Anyone... Able to run with this?


(Edited to correct the mistake -- I ALWAYS call this movie Butterfly -- sheesh)
:D :D -- So do I! I always have to stop and think and have had to correct it more than once! :D

And thanks for the kind words about the website--it's nice to know that someone who's been visiting it for awhile still finds something interesting there :) .

Bumblebee was released in 1999 but it took two years to make (according that chat transcript on the site of that actress who plays his girlfriend)

Chain of Fools: Filming: Production began on June 7th, 1999 in Vancouver (and wrapped later that year
(found in Yahoo!movies)

Bumblebee was released in 1999 but it took two years to make (according that chat transcript on the site of that actress who plays his girlfriend)


He was only 16??? That seems impossible, considering how he looked in Oliver at 16.


Chain of Fools: Filming: Production began on June 7th, 1999 in Vancouver (and wrapped later that year
(found in Yahoo!movies)


OK -- so it was RIGHT before LOTR then, since he left in August. That doesn't really satisfy me tho -- I mean, "Mikey" sure doesn't look like Frodo, but I guess I'll believe them. :)

tg: i love you site i can watch toose screen caps forever
i just love them!!!!
they realy makes you see the shiftings in his face!!

and thoose expression pics ahah i just love them!!!

only one expression bah bah!!!! :confused:

i wonder why they whon`t reales all this wonderful movies on dvd
with commentary or not in sweden they dosen`t have the episode
frome homocide either :confused: :confused: i did a bad copie with out text
but it diden`t turn out very good(thanks moondancer for the borrow
it was very lovly of you)

LOVE/WOOD

He was only 16??? That seems impossible, considering how he looked in Oliver at 16.
Well, Achila,

According to a TV Guide chat transcript from december 20,1999, it took two years.
This is the quote
Question: What is your new movie about?

Rachael Leigh Cook: We shot "Bumblebee" two years ago, it's just sorta been going through the process for quite a while now.



The Chain of Fools info comes from here:
http://movies.yahoo.com/ (http://movies.yahoo.com/shop?d=hp&id=1808403403&cf=prev)

Oh, I'm not questioning the sources, Moondancer, just that maybe Rachael's off a little (like maybe it was a year and a half, not two years). I could believe he was 17 but 16 just doesn't seem right, based on how he looked at 15/16.

I keep NOT getting email updates and you gals post too fast for me to keep up!

The War is my rec too. I love Elijah's fiesty Stu!

If any of you would be interested :rolleyes: I have hundreds and hundreds of caps of Frodo in Mordor etc. If you have time to watch the caps in slide-show mode you will not be sorry. ;) And the large size pics can be saved, as well.

http://rp.photosite.com/Shelair/

http://rp.photosite.com/Sting/

http://rp.photosite.com/CU/

http://rp.photosite.com/FSMordor1/

I wouldn't be surprised to find out he'd been 16, or even a bit younger, in Bumblebee. Despite sc's frequent notice of his pecs in that movie ;) , IMVHO his face still has a youthful roundness (as opposed to "babyfat" :p ).

http://www.frodolivesin.us/421eec80.jpg

http://www.frodolivesin.us/84d20c00.jpg

And when he's in the shower--no pic handy of that, since I'm not at home--IMVVHO he has more of a boy's body than a man's. (I realize there may be some disagreement about that ;) .)

Well, clearly these movies were made before LOTR, and that was my original question. I guess we can quibble until the end of time exactly when we think each was made but it would hardly serve any purpose. BTW, thanks for your praise of my avatar, tg -- but I changed it already! ;)

Chain of Fools: Filming: Production began on June 7th, 1999 in Vancouver (and wrapped later that year

Now I'm really confused - unless they're saying that only production was done in Vancouver. I thought only All I Want was actually filmed in Vancouver. Where was Chain of Fools filmed? (My ignorance on this is because I still haven't had a chance to see COF - I guess I'm going to have to break down and buy the VCD!)


And when he's in the shower

Oh, I dearly hope he wasn't sixteen in that scene. :z: :D

I'm not at home either, so I can't do screencap comparisons :p , but I'm pretty sure there is more than one or two years difference between Flipper!chest and Bumblebee!chest. (And I am the parent of a young man, so I have perfectly innocent reasons for having this knowledge. Honestly. :p )

Stop looking at me like that!!


I guess we can quibble until the end of time ... but it would hardly serve any purpose.

Ah, but the Faculty is all about discussing these things until we've either figured them out or come to a consensus of opinion or moved on to something else. :D Isn't that why this is so much fun? ;) :k

Now I'm really confused - unless they're saying that only production was done in Vancouver. I thought only All I Want was actually filmed in Vancouver. Where was Chain of Fools filmed? (My ignorance on this is because I still haven't had a chance to see COF - I guess I'm going to have to break down and buy the VCD!)
I should know this, Narya, ( :o ) but I'm gathering that you live in/near Vancouver, or know it well?? Would some screencaps of the big bridge involved in the story help? Not that I want to discourage you from seeing CoF--It's hysterical (by more than one definition :p ).

Ah, but the Faculty is all about discussing these things until we've either figured them out or come to a consensus of opinion or moved on to something else. :D Isn't that why this is so much fun? ;) :k
Well, of course ;) :k ! And the best things about it are that we can be so respectful of other opinions while doing so, and that anyone who gets bored with one topic can always ignore it in favor of several other ongoing discussions (or start a new one) :p .

Speaking of Chain of Fools - for anyone of you who likes real off-key humour, pay a visit at www.traktor.com. Traktor is the bunch of 6 Swedish filmmakers who filmed CoF and other great stuff. I've just watched one of their Music Videos and I'm sure, Elwood would quite like them :D :cool: . (You can watch them on the site) The film itself is only briefly mentioned at the end of an article about Traktor's creativity (can be found under "press").