1-02-03 Latest News

Tolkien Tower Facing Ruin
Xoanon @ 11:30 pm EST

City appeal to save crumbling landmark

The future of one of Tolkien's Two Towers, which inspired the famous book, is hanging in the balence.

While thousands of Brummies flock to see Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers at the cinema, conservationists and trustees are battling to save its inspiration - Perrotts Folly.

The tower, based in Waterworks Road, Edgebaston, is in desperate need of repair which, trustees fear, could run into hundreds of thousands of pounds. But members of the Perrotts Folly Charitable Trust are hoping that, with the help of the public, the future of the red brick, 18th century landmark can be secured. The tower, which has recently been placed on English Heritage's 'Buildings at Risk' register, is one of a pair, which are thought to be the main inspiration for JRR Tolkien's Two Towers. The second film in the Lord of the Rings trilogy was released in December and it is hoped that it will prompt members of the public to get together and help save the original.

Alderman Dennis Minnis, a trustee of the group, said: "There are cracks in the brick work which do need repairing and currently we are organising a feasibility study which is being funded by Birmingham Conservation Trust.

"This will show how much work needs to be done, how much it will cost and how the building can be used in the future. Although the repairs could cost hundreds of thousands of pounds, we are optimistic that with the trustees' enthusiasm and the public's help we can save what is such an important piece of history."

The conservation trust's administrator, Elizabeth Perkins, added: "The results of the feasibility study won't be known for some time but there is no doubt that people feel very strongly about the tower, so I too hope the public will get behind saving it."

If you would like to help you can contact Mr Minnis on +44 121 454 4152.

Los Vegas Film Critics Awards
Xoanon @ 11:19 pm EST

The winners of the 6th annual Sierra Awards were announced December 31, 2002 and these are the awards The Two Towers won.

* Best Director: Peter Jackson - The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

* Best Costume Design: Ngila Dickson and Richard Taylor - Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

* Best Film Editing: D. Michael Horton and Jabez Olssen - Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

* Best Visual Effects: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

* Best DVD (packaging, content and transfer) - Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring Special Edition, New Line Home Video

Sala Baker & Billy Boyd Interviews!
Xoanon @ 11:14 pm EST

We finally have some footage from The Two Towers Los Angeles Premiere that was held on December 15th at the Arclight Cinerama Dome. Sorry, it took so long to put something together - but Christmas, ya know.

We have a selection of interviews from the red carpet by that Hasty Ent, Quickbeam, and his noble steed Asfaloth. Normally I, (I being Asfaloth) edit our interviews quite a bit and just leave the choice parts. But this time I was looking at them and figured that since we are the ULTIMATE Tolkien site for fans, let’s just post as much of the interviews as possible.

In this piece we have a great interview with the Dark Lord himself, Sala Baker. Then Billy Boyd waves at Loons, talks to fans on the phone and discusses Pippin’s character development. And entertaining six minutes and forty-two seconds, if ya ask me.

You’ll see tantalizing glimpses of Elijah Wood, Dominic Monaghan, Bernard Hill, Brad Dourif, Andy Serkis and Miranda Otto in the background. Don’t worry! We have great interviews with Dom, Miranda, Brad, Andy, Bernard Hill, Karl Urban, John Rhys-Davies, Producer Barrie Osborne and Oscar winning special effects wizard, Jim Rygiel. We spoke to Viggo Mortensen on the red carpet and he took Quickbeam’s photo during the interview!

Unfortunately, we didn’t get to speak to Elijah on the red carpet. We did get to party with him at the after party, but that wasn’t on camera. (The best things in life never are...)The after party is a story for our next installment from The Two Towers LA Premiere!

Noro Lim!

Asfaloth

Helm's Deep is here!
Flinch @ 4:22 pm EST

As Saruman the fallen wizard sends his hordes to assail the lands of Rohan, King Théoden calls all his people together to take shelter in the fortress of Helm's Deep. Built across the mouth of a high-walled valley at the base of the White Mountains, the fortress consists of the tall Hornburg tower, a wide keep with room for the entire army of Edoras, and the long, arcing Deeping Wall with it's stone battlements. Properly provisioned, the nation of Rohan could shelter indefinitely in Helm's Deep from even a very large host, but never have they faced an assault such as that which Saruman had prepared.

This spectacular box set consists of a three-piece resin set of the massive gateway of Helm's Deep, hand-painted and ready for use. Constructed in scale for the models of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, it will be the centerpiece of many of the scenarios for the game as well as countless others players will create on their own.

The piece is $75.00 US and can be found here. This is a limited piece and will sell out fast, so if you want one get it soon!

Variety: 'Towers' reaching B.O. heights
Xoanon @ 2:16 pm EST

The new year is ringing in much the same way as the old one -- with a "Lord of the Rings" movie atop the box office and showing no signs of budging.
New Line's second installment in the action-fantasy trilogy is likely to three-peat this weekend, with no other wide releases set to unspool. "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" towered over competish last weekend with $48.9 million in B.O. compared with $30.1 mil for runner-up "Catch Me if You Can" from DreamWorks.

December 2001 opener and franchise original "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings" managed to top the B.O. heap four times, well into January 2002. "Fellowship" was finally displaced by Sony/Revolution's platforming "Black Hawk Down."

"Two Towers" could well match its predecessor's winning streak. But it's tough to say whether "Towers" ultimately will be overrun by a new wide opener or by a limited release reaching wide distribution -- something that's particularly common in awards season.

To date, "Towers" has rung up 28% more biz than "Fellowship" in a comparable span of time. And New Line execs say it appears a lock to do at least 10% more than the $860 million in worldwide B.O. rung up overall by "Fellowship."

Just on the face of it, that would be quite an accomplishment. But the sequel's B.O. surge is even more impressive when one considers that Warner Bros. now projects its "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" to underperform franchise original "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by about 10%.

One notable difference between the franchises is a greater continuity among the "Rings" projects, and that's translated into a lower must-see quotient for the new "Potter" pic.

"Towers" and "Fellowship" share a narrative thread -- along with next year's "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" -- because they are based on books written as a literary trilogy. "Harry Potter" pics are based on individual children's books that have characters in common but only incidental narrative connection.

" 'Potter' is a marathon for Warners, not a sprint, because they plan to release seven 'Potter' pictures in all and have to sustain a continuing momentum," observed David Davis, senior veep and B.O. analyst at Houlihan, Lokey, Howard & Zukin. "With 'Rings,' New Line knows that as well as they're doing with 'Two Towers,' the next picture will do even better because it's the final one in the trilogy."

School's out

Moviegoing is expected to remain robust through the coming weekend, as most kids won't head back to school from holiday breaks until at least Monday. That should help both "Towers" and "Chamber," along with midpackers such as Miramax's "Gangs of New York" and Paramount's "The Wild Thornberrys," which will be looking to sustain decent coin in a rare weekend free from newly bowing competish.

Twentieth Century Fox's Denzel Washington vehicle "Antwone Fisher" had been set to cruise into wide release this sesh. But the platforming pic's next expansion was recently postponed until Jan. 10.

"We wanted to give it more time to build," Fox distrib prexy Bruce Snyder said.

Towering cume

"Two Towers" has collected north of $200 million domestically and $400 million worldwide so far. Pricey tentpole got a day-and-date bow in the U.S. and many foreign territories on Dec. 18 but has yet to bow in Italy or Japan (where it's set to unspool in mid-January and February, respectively).

"Our goal is to be the No. 2 film of all time after 'Titanic,' and so far it looks like we're on track," said Rolf Mittweg, worldwide marketing and distrib prexy at New Line. "But from here on, it's all about longevity."

Lofty aspiration means "Towers" will have to gross more than the $986 mil in worldwide B.O. rung up by the first "Harry Potter," or 15% better than the first "Rings" pic.

"Indications are that we should be between 10% and 15% higher than ('Fellowship')," Mittweg estimated.

Golden Globe or Oscar wins could prove important to pic's further success, he said. But Mittweg added that there's little chance of "Towers" sustaining its current torrid pace in any event.

If "Towers" were to continue to outpace "Fellowship" by 28%, the sequel would see a total $1.1 billion in worldwide coin.

"I'd take a billion," Mittweg said.

And he just may get his wish.

TTT Nabs 12 Online Film Critics Nominations!
Xoanon @ 11:53 pm EST

Pippin's Scarf writes: TTT was nominated for 12 Online Film Critics Awards, including Andy Serkis as Best Supporting Actor.

Best Picture

Adaptation
Bowling for Columbine
Far From Heaven
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Minority Report

Best Director

Spike Jonze "Adaptation"
Todd Haynes "Far from Heaven"
Martin Scorsese "Gangs of New York"
Peter Jackson "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers"
Steven Spielberg "Minority Report"

Best Supporting Actor

Alan Arkin "13 Conversations About One Thing"
Chris Cooper "Adaptation"
Paul Newman "Road to Perdition"
Dennis Quaid "Far from Heaven"
Andy Serkis "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers"

Best Ensemble

8 Women
Adaptation
Chicago
Gangs of New York
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Best Adapted Screenplay

About Schmidt (Alexander Payne & Jim Taylor)
Adaptation (Charlie Kaufman & Donald Kaufman)
Catch Me If You Can (Jeff Nathanson)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Frances Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Stephen Sinclair & Peter Jackson)
Minority Report (Scott Frank & Jon Cohen)

Best Cinematography

Far From Heaven (Edward Lachman)
Gangs of New York (Michael Ballhaus)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Andrew Lesnie)
Minority Report (Janusz Kaminski)
Road to Perdition (Conrad L. Hall)

Best Original Score

Catch Me If You Can (John Williams)
Far From Heaven (Elmer Bernstein)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Howard Shore)
Punch-Drunk Love (Jon Brion)
Signs (James Newton Howard)

Best Visual Effects

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (John Richardson)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Jim Rygiel)
Minority Report (Michael Lantieri)
Spider-Man (Danny Cangemi, John Frazier & John Dykstra)
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (David Young)

Best Art Direction

Far From Heaven
Gangs of New York
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Minority Report
Road to Perdition

Best Costume Design

8 Women (Pascaline Chavanne)
Chicago (Colleen Atwood)
Far From Heaven (Sandy Powell)
Gangs of New York (Sandy Powell)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Ngila Dickson & Richard Taylor)

Best Film Editing

Adaptation (Eric Zumbrunnen)
Chicago (Martin Walsh)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (D. Michael Horton & Jabez Olssen)
Minority Report (Michael Kahn)
Panic Room (James Haygood & Angus Wall)

Best Sound

Gangs of New York (Philip Stockton)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Ethan Van der Ryn & Mike Hopkins)
Minority Report (Richard Hymns & Gary Rydstrom)
Signs (Richard King)
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (Ben Burtt & Matthew Wood)

LOTR Themed Ice Sculpture Exhibit
Xoanon @ 11:43 pm EST

I can tell you from years of experience, the one thing that can thrive outdoors in eastern Canada in January is ice...and we've got plenty of it!

The folks at Scotiabank put on an ice sculpture exhibit every year in Toronto, and this year it was Lord of the Rings themed! Take a look at these amazing pics from Martin and Annette...look at Legolas' bow! Amazing work!

This years winnner

New Tolkien Book!
Turgon @ 6:45 pm EST

Yes, there is a new Tolkien book just out, but it's not by J. R. R. Tolkien but his grandson, Simon Tolkien, a barrister in London. It's a legal thriller called Final Witness, published as a hardcover at $24.95.

The publisher's blurb reads:

One summer night, two men break into an isolated manor house and kill Lady Anne Robinson. Her son, Thomas, convinces the police that his father's beautiful personal assistant sent the killers, but Thomas is known for his overactive imagination, and he has reasons to lie.

Thomas's father, Sir Peter Robinson, the British minister of defense, refuses to believe his son. Instead, he marries his assistant, Greta Grahame, and will be giving evidence for the defense at her trial. He will be the final witness.

Author Simon Tolkien successfully combines legal suspense and psychological tension in this sharply etched portrait of four people whose lives are changed by a murder. Alternating between the trial in London's Central Criminal Court and private moments among the characters, Tolkien expertly describes the art of the trial, the clash between Britain's social classes, and, most notably, the complexity of family relations.

Who is telling the truth - the new wife or the bereaved son? What will Sir Peter tell the court?

With tantalizing ambiguity, Tolkien keeps readers guessing about the true motivations of these characters until the final witness.

On the back of the book there is a personal note from Simon Tolkien which reads:

Many people may think that being related to a famous writer would make it easier to become a writer yourself, but I have found the opposite to be true. I always unconsciously felt that I would be measured against my grandfather's huge achievement, and this kept me away from fiction for a very long time.

I have always loved The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, and my grandfather's mastery of the art of storytelling remains an inspiration to me, but my novel is set in the world of criminal law--obviously an entirely different realm from my grandfather's work. A courtroom is an extraordinary place. Witnesses often tell their own stories in the most dramatic fashion. My experiences as a criminal barrister in London have provided me with many ideas for stories, a wide experience of human nature, and an insider's knowledge of the courts, which means I can make my fiction true to life.

Simon Tolkien was born in 1959, the only child of Faith and Christopher Tolkien. He was educated at Trinity College, Oxford, and lives in London with his wife Tracy, and their two children.

For more information visit http://www.SimonTolkien.com

To purchase the book jump over to Amazon.com or your local bookstore. [Purchase at Amazon]

How to kill a Balrog in three easy steps
Flinch @ 2:58 pm EST

Here at Gaming Haven's we often get e-mails asking for help with various elements of the Lord of the Rings Video Games. This is one such e-mail from Haveneer Joe asks us "Just how do you kill that darn Balrog!?!"

Dear Havens:
    I have gotten all the way to the section where Gandalf fights the Balrog.  Nothing I tried seems to work, so I checked in the book I mentioned, and they suggest hitting the Balrog a number of times with a lightning blast (not a fiery blast) and/or a staff strike; then, while the Balrog is stunned, I stab it with Glamdring (as the game itself instructs).  It immediately gets up, and I have to start the whole process over again.  I've done this up to ten or twelve times.  According to the Prima Official (?) Strategy Guide, the Balrog should weaken and fall off the path; but this never seems to happen.  Aragorn makes a comment "Gandalf, take this"--but I have no idea what "this" is, and when I bring Gandalf to Aragorn on the other side of the bridge, I cannot approach him and get nothing from him.  I must be missing something here, since I've got the rhythm of restoring spirit, keeping health above fifty percent at least, casting a spell, stabbing the Balrog, backing away, and casting another spell.  But the thing just won't weaken and fall off that bridge.
    Comments?  Suggestions?  I have spent literally two hours at least on just this one part of the game.  Even following suggestions in the guide (and I have not had to do that since your comment on how to handle Old Man Tree), I get nowhere.
    Thanks in advance!
        Joe

Are you stuck? Need some help? Then drop us a line here at Gaming Havens and we'll find your answer, just drop your question into an e-mail and shoot it off to Havens@TheOneRing.net.

blah
Flinch @ 8:17 pm EST

Q. What is the Free People’s Coalition?

A. The Free People’s Coalition [FPC] is a gaming group dedicated to the fans of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth. Similar to ‘clan’ gaming of other specific games, the FPC operates for all games involved with Middle-earth and other fantasy gaming online.

Q. Does the FPC only play Lord of the Rings titles?

A. No. While we are a Lord of the Rings Gaming Group we are not bound only to games from that series. We wouldn’t want to restrict what games our players could enjoy, and many titles out there take from Tolkien’s work anyway, so often times even in a Star Wars game you’ll find some elements of Middle-earth.

Q. What makes the FPC Different from other Gaming Groups?

A. Where other gaming groups concentrate on stats and ranks, the FPC goes a step further by offering exclusive gaming content such as Interviews, Sneak Peaks, and Sanctioned Chats for the enrichment of our users and our community.

Q. How can the FPC offer it’s exclusive content?

A. The FPC is a part of Gaming Havens at TheOneRing.net. With this we are privy to the same exclusive content and insider information as the site, and that is passed on to our players.

Q. What can I play as in the FPC?

A. The FPC is broken up into four cultures, the World of Men, the Realms of the Elves, the Kingdom of the Dwarves and the Hobbits of the Shire. Every player can choose to represent any side they choose.

Q. If I choose to be a Hobbit in the FPC, can I not be an Dwarf in Middle-earth: Online?

A. Realistically, no. But the FPC is here for fun, so if you choose to be a Hobbit in the FPC, you can still use a Dwarf in Middle-earth: Online. Although it will look odd seeing a Dwarf scream “For the Shire!”

Q. I just joined the FPC, what rank am I?

A. Depending on which culture you’ve joined, you will be the entry rank for that culture. For the World of Men the entry level rank is LEVEL 1, the Realms of the Elves entry level is LEVEL 1, the Kingdom of the Dwarves entry level rank is Guard, and for the Hobbits of the Shire the entry rank is Rascal.

Q. How do I gain rank within my Culture?

A. Ranks are given based on participation and attitude. If a Hobbit Rascal goes around making friends and helping other recruits find information, then the Hobbit Thain will notice these acts of citizenship and award that Rascal a higher rank and possibly a monthly award.

Q. What are monthly rewards?

A. On the first meeting of every month all of the Senior Officials in each Culture will gather to discuss the members of each group, during these meetings they will select members who have shown exceptional citizenship or have done great services for their culture, or the Coalition. These selected members will receive an award specific to their culture, and will be featured on the FreePeoples.net front page in the awards section. Occasionally we will have prizes for members who show exceptional citizenship, donated from one of our many affiliates.

Q. Are there Coalition Ranks?

A. With each culture often times competing for this or that, it is illogical to place a member of any one culture as a ruling member over the four, in this way there are no ‘Coalition Ranks’, however the leader of each culture is part of the ruling council who make decisions based on what is good for the Coalition, not just for their specific culture.

Q. Are there subcultures within a culture, ie are Gondor and Rohan represented, or are the does the world of men cover all regions of that race.

A. Trying to keep things as simple as possible in a difficult world, each culture represents that entire race. With this being said it is not ruled out that within a culture there will not be troops or sects within that culture like the Riders of Rohan, or the Marksman of Mirkwood, these divisions are decided on by the culture during their meetings.

Q. I’m a Guard in the world of Dwarves, and I play a game that is not yet supported by my culture, can I become a Hammer Guard [Dwarven Game Official or GO]for my game?

A. We are not currently allowing entry level ranks to hold the rank of Game Official. To become a Game Official for a new game you must first speak with your cultures Senior Officials, in this case the Dwarven OFFICIAL. From there you must show him or her that you are responsible and can organize and lead a game group, then receive two promotions from Guard to LEVEL 3. As soon as you complete these requirements then you are eligible to be a GO.

Q. What are the responsibilities of a Game Official?

A. A Game Official is responsible for organizing the players within a specific game. Lets say Hammer Guard Dorin is the Game Official for War of the Ring, he would then be responsible for organizing all players who play War of the Ring [be it not out yet] and prepare them for play within the group, and either casually or competitively against other groups. A Game Official selects a Game Executive Official, or a Game XO. The Game XO acts as the Game Officials eyes and ears when they are not available, and answers any questions on the specific game as needed.

Q. Does every culture have a Game Official for each game?

A. No. Some cultures may choose to support different games, so the World of Men may have a group that plays Diablo 2, where the Realms of the Elves might not. Members of any culture can engage in casual or competitive play with any group, they may even play on the side of another culture as it is not unheard of in Middle-earth for a handful of Hobbits, a pair of men, an Elf, a Dwarf and a Wizard to accomplish great things when together

Q. Does the FPC support a game if only one culture plays it?

A. No. On the FPC main page you will find a link to each of the different gaming stats pages, for a page to exist for a specific game, at least two cultures must support it. This way the stats are arranged by participating cultures in way of number of games, kills, victories, or levels, depending on the type of game.

Q. What role does Competition play between Cultures in the FPC?

A. The FPC exists to be a friendly place for J.R.R. Tolkien fans to gather and play games, while the community is our primary goal here in the FPC, we will also hold competitions between cultures for various games. These competitions are optional but participation can result in awards and promotions. Competitions range from deathmatches, to cooperative missions and will depend on the options given by each supported game.

Q. What are my responsibilities as a member of the FPC?

A. From the Dwarven Guard to the Elven Herald, each member of the FPC is working towards a common goal. That goal is a positive community for fans of Middle-earth to play and enjoy their time. Members are expected to help one another and treat everyone with respect and dignity regardless of culture or rank. Sometimes it’s ok to poke fun at a fellow member during role play, say an Elf mocking a Dwarf’s eating habbits, but that is where it ends. We’re all here to have fun, and keep this community strong.

Media Watch: An Insight Into Mortensen
Demosthenes @ 7:35 pm EST

Ringer Spy Celebwyn writes:

I read a very interesting interview in the most important Argentine newspaper yesterday, and I thought many others could enjoy it like me, and so I translated it to English the best I could. In this extensive interview to Viggo Mortensen talks about Argentina, how he sees Aragorn, Peter Jackson, his impressions after seeing FOTR and TTT, his expectations for ROTK, how he deals with popularity, and he also explains his attitude on Rossie's show.You can find if you like the original interview in Argentine Spanish here.

I can't find the original article to link directly, the translation follows below - Dem.

It's 2 o'clock in the morning in Buenos Aires when the phone rings. On the other side of the line, the extra-Argentine voice asks: "Do the soccer players little cards still exist?"

Viggo Mortensen is in LA, the very same day that TTT, second part if the Rings Trilogy, is launched in the States. He's been talking to Clar'n for almost two hours, but he doesn't seem to care too much for the epic journey of his heroic Aragorn. His matters are much more earthly. "Do you remember that game where you threw cards onto a wall and the one which stayed closer to it won?", he asks. "What was its name? It was 'chupi', wasn't it?"

Viggo doesn't seem to be in a hurry _after all, it's 5 hours earlier in California_, and the conversation resembles more the one we could have with an exiled Argentinian who hasn't been back for many years, than the interview to a celebrity who stars the most expected movie of the year. This is because despite his nordic name, the actor has a long relationship with Argentina: son to a Dane father and an American mother, Viggo was born in NY, but lived here (in Argentina) from the age of 2 till the age of 11 years old.

"I left in 1969, " he tells us. "I came back one in '70 and then I couln't return 'till '95. I am dying to come back, but I am never able to. I wanted so much to travel this year! But I am in the middle of a movie now and they won't let me go. But next year I will be going, I swear to you. And I will invite you to eat a good 'asado' (Argentine barbeque). It's been so long since I last ate real Argentine meat!"

He keeps most of the 'must' Argentine uses, which obviously include drinking 'mate' (a green infusion similar to tea but drunk in a very different way). "I drink it all the time. Without sugar, of course. And I make my own 'dulce de leche' (milk 'marmelade' without which no Argentine could survive...). And here in LA I can find lots of things, such as 'empanadas', 'membrillo', 'yerba'...," he says with strong Buenos Aires accent. "There is an Italian place near my house which sells those things."

-"Do you ever get nostalgic?"

"With certain things... I keep a good collection of old tangos, and I listen to them all the time. I also listen to some other Argentine singers of the moment. And some old ones. I play soccer too. There is a square near my place where Mexicans and Salvadorians gather to play. I know there is a league where Argentines play. I am a big fan of San Lorenzo soccer team, I follow the results, everything."

-"Were you from Boedo (quarter of Buenos Aires suburbs where that soccer club is) ?"

"No, I was from downtown. The truth is that I can't remember very well how I became a San Lorenzo fan, but I can recall I wore their T-shirt all day long."

-"Do you follow the news of what is going on in the country?"

"I don't have a too close contact with the country because I have no remaining friends there, nor family. But I do follow the news, and I get very sad when I hear what's going on. But if you want to know what is really going on, you don't have to read the North-American media."

-"Do you have any strong memory of the country?"

"I remember boy-stuff. Barbeques, games, some streets, neighbourhoods ... When I came back a couple of years ago I spent the time going through all those places ... Recognizing them ..."

-"Despite the long time that has passed, you haven't lost your Argentine Spanish nor your Buenos Aires accent."

"So they all say. It got stuck on me. But I am losing some vocabulary because here I don't listen to Argentine Spanish, and the others are so extremely different! "

His Argentine side is not Viggo's only peculiarity. This 44 y.o. actor, lives alone his 14 y.o. son Henry, paints really well, takes even better pictures, plays music with his band _this not so greatly, to be honest_, and writes poetry, many of them in Argentine Spanish. (A few are shown in the article: 'Chaco', 'Parrillada', 'Otoño',etc.) His friends define him with this words: "He never stops".

This daring quota of constant discovery had lots to do with his acceptance of the role of Aragorn in Peter Jackson's saga. Despite his long career as an actor, Viggo was not the first actor in taking that role. He just got an urgent call one day, when the shooting had already began, to replace th Irish Stuart Townsend on that role.

"I had to take the desition that very day', he says. "I had to accept leaving for almost two years to shoot in New Zealand leaving my son alone. I told them 'let me think it over'. They only gave me a couple more hours. I called Henry and told him all, he knew quite a lot about the Lord of the Rings, I knew too little. He asked 'Who would you have to play?' 'Aragorn', I answered. 'Oh, that is cool! You have to do it!', he answered back. Henry was 11 back then. He is 14 now."

-"It was an offer you couldn't reject..."

"Yet, I had to think about it. I had the impression that it was a challenge and that if I didn't take it I would regret it. I didn't think "It's a huge movie". I didn't know it was going to be such a blockbuster. But I thought it was something important. And I am very happy that I have accepted it.

-"Did you start studying Tolkien right there?"

"I took the book with me and started reading it on the plane. I started getting more and more interested in the saga, and in the things Aragorn has that differ from other heroes."

-"Such as..."

"In general, heroes do very brave things and then they talk and sing about their deeds. But he is different. He does the things, keeps his mouth shut and then he leaves. He is more like the Lonely Rider. In the movie even more than in the book. He has every time more and more responsibility, as the enemy grows bigger.

"When I read the book I realized it was based on a mixture of different sources, mainly of nordic mithology, things I have read as a boy. I find things there even from the 'Mart'n Fierro' (Argentine most popular literary saga). You could take such great things out of Tolkien's book... "

"When I saw the first movie, I had the feeling that Jackson had been able to be faithful to the book and still show his own vision. The second movie it's more... free as an interpretation."

-"Where you interested in the gender?"

"Not quite so. I have memories of having read the Grimm brothers when I lived in Argentina. And I liked Doctor Zhivago and Lawrence of Arabia."

-"How is Peter Jackson like as a director? Is he easy to work with or is he too obssessed?"

"He let us do certain things, but always 'inside' his vision. I didn't know very well how it would all suit. The day by day was rather chaotic. He seems to be a man with great self-confidence and he really enjoys doing this. But what he likes the most is post production. He did many things there. I was pretty much surprised by the first movie: what he put took out, what he added. And in the second movie, I was even more surprised. There are entire parts literally missing or that he put them somewhere else. So I don't have a f****** idea of how the third one will turn out."

-"We know you had to do some reshooting. Can you tell me which and why?"

"We went back this year to mend some little things Peter wanted to change. And he did other things, in addition. He was so successful with the first movie tha New Line gave him permision to spend some more money. I'm sure next year we'll be back to to change some things of the third one."

-"For those who haven't read the book, what could they expect of ROTK?"

"I know what the book is, and I know what we shot, but I wouldn't risk to say a word, for Peter always surprises me. He has said in public that the third part is his favorite, and so has Elijah. I don't know what is their basis to say that, but I hope it will be true."

-"Alec Guiness was fed up of people only remembering him for Star Wars. Do you fear the same could happen to you?"

"That is how things are. Two years ago I was in a movie directed by Sean Penn and there are many people who remember me only for that. And, perhaps, it will be so with this movie, but I can't control that. I did the best I could and what happens next doesn't depend on my anymore."

-"Now that you are so popular, the attitude of people towards you have surely changed. Do fans 'chase' you more?

"There is this Japanese lady, obsessed with me, that sends me like 3 letters per day, all very nice... Fame braught me very good things, such as the protagonic role in Hidalgo, which wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for LOTR. But since I don't get out much, I don't know very well how things are out there. Yes, it is true that people stop me more, and look at me... But it doesn't bother me to sign autographs and so. The problem is that sometimes you're walking and feel a sudden need to scratch your ****, and it isn't fun to be watched by people..."

Between fantasy and very real life

Viggo went a few weeks ago to a TV show with a T-shirt that read "No Blood for Oil". In the militarits atmosphere that is lived today in America, that was seen almost as an offense. He explains us:

"The atmosphere in this country now (USA) is that if you make questions you are a traitor. It is a weird thing. The situation is very sad in all the world and USA is to blame for much of that. I wore that T-shirt because there are people who have compared the events in the movie, the struggle between good and evil, with the struggle of USA against 'Evil', and that made me very angry."

"If we are to compare that, then the poor people sorrounded by a sea of soldiers that suffer in the movie resemble much more the whay they feel in Iraq and Afghanistan with ten thousand beasts coming to them. That people is invisible for the Norh-Americans. Here nobody sees the people who die starving due to economic blocks. That people is much more than the people who died on Sept, the 11th. I saw what happened in NY and Washington and I felt so sad... But many more died in Afghanistan and nobody was captured. Every time people suffer more. And that people cannot be happy with USA. Why didn't we fight in Bosnia or Rwanda and we do fight in Iraq? It's because of oil. And that attittude has nothing to do with the heroes of this movie. There are people who tell me I shouldn't talk politics, but I don't care."

--

NB: The comments of Mr Mortensen are his own and may or may not not represent those of either this website or any individual staff members.

Line Party Lessons
Demosthenes @ 6:48 pm EST

Mr Cere checks in ...

While a vast majority of TORnados had great "Line Party 2002" experiences, there were some exceptions. Tulsa Oklahoma has checked in with a report that not all things went well. Those responsible have left the names of the guilty out, but the horrific details in.

With only 353 days to go until "Line Party 2003, The Return Of The Line Party" there are some lessons to be learned:

#1. GEEK POWER! Remember that line party or not, geek or not, fanatic or not, we are all consumers spending OUR money. Merchants of all kinds should be fair and honest. Those who treat us well should be rewarded, included locals who sponsor line parties. Those who don't should be avoided. TORnados will see this movie twice, thrice or many more times and if theater managers can't see past the price of a single ticket, well, spread the word at TORn.

#2. IT'S NEVER TOO EARLY! The world still underestimates us. In the report below it is obvious the theater was overwhelmed and had more than they could handle. Despite over $300 million in sales for Fellowship Of The Ring, despite numerous film awards, despite a film with longer box office legs than any since at least "Titanic," despite two versions of a DVD that sells like hot cakes (the extended edition at my local Wal Mart doesn't stay on the shelf more than a day - they "just didn't know it would be in demand") some folks just don't get how popular Tolkien's books and PJ's movie is. Line party leaders might find theater mangers receptive RIGHT NOW when talking about "Return Of The King." A POLITE inquiry about a particular theater's interest in hosting a TORn event next year might be well received.

Read on in amazed horror the account as delivered to TORn staff:

TORnado Mozone wrote:

Hullo!

I wanted to mention something about overbooking causing Filmgoer Angst. I guess you could call this a "Line-Party Report" but as the party itself was great, the theatre in which we participated caused A lot O' Angst. This is the Line Party for Tulsa, Oklahoma and I was not the coordinater, I have spoken at length with her about this (she is every bit as angry as I was). She had organized lasts year's event and the theatre management (at the time) agreed to do it again this year.

Then on the night of the Premier, they backpeddled for whatever reason to say that the Line Party was NOT going to be admitted first (which is what had been arranged) and that it was if fact NOT "in line" for admission (this was at about 8:00pm and the 'other' general
admission lines were already getting long) So of course after much debate with management, they agreed to admit the first 50 members of the Line-Party (we had close to 80 members present - I know that is still small but...) So if that was the best we could get then we would
just have to compromise. But come showtime, they broke our party into three lines for three theatres. We were told that there would be 15 people admitted from each line (15+15+15 = 50??)

I was the fifteenth guy in line for the first line. They cut me (and three of my seven companions off) They said that they had 15 already from my line and that we would have to wait to be seated. We were ESCORTED to the box office and told to wait there for further instructions. The took three people out of the next line one of which was the Line Party Leader. She looked angry. I was angry. The management wasnt able or willing to figure out what they were doing well enough to seat everyone so they just decided to open general seating to ALL theatres at the same time. One of the theatres was still showing the last 30 minutes of Star Trek Nemesis.

Imagine watching a movie and then 30 minuted before the end you have a hobbit in your lap! The next day I called the theatre to speak with the manager and asked if I could recieve a refund for the poor service I had recieved. I didnt ask at 3:30 in the morning for good reason. But the assistant manager (the same one who had detained some of us in the Line Pary) said he wasnt willing to hear my complaint and that it was MY FAULT for being in the Line Party instead of the 'Real' line. So I spoke with his manager and got told AGAIN that I was WRONG for expecting to be seated with the Line Party and that they did NOT recognize the Line Party as having any prearranged agreement with the theatre (even though they welcomed all the free advertising on the Radio that the Line Party had generated).

He also told me that since I had seen the movie that I had no right to refund. I explained (very nicely too) that I did not wish to receive a refund for the movie, but for the shabby service I had received. He was quite rude on this point and told me to leave. That he was not going satisfy his customer. So I had to cal HIS manager. The District Manager for Dickinson theatres. He was extremely nice about it and agreed that I should not have recieved this kind of treatment. He also apologized for the Line Party not getting seated. He let me know that my ticket money would be refunded.

I have never asked for my money back before and I didnt want to ask for it back from THIS movie especially, but I felt I was right in asking for it back. I have seen the movie three times since (at another theatre) and have been both pleased with the movie AND the service. I guess theatre management at the theatre I first went to doesn't feel obligated to do any more than shove you into a seat and tell you shut up and watch.

Media Watch: Arena Magazine
Xoanon @ 12:29 am EST

Plenty of folks have sent along these scans from Arena Magazine, featuring Orlando Bloom, Elijah Wood and Ian McKellen! Take a look!

Mortensen Shines on CNN en Espanol
Demosthenes @ 8:15 pm EST

Elvasdottir writes:

Greetings to all Tolkien fans from Delmar, New York! Here follows a resume of a program that will surely delight all LOTR geeks, especially those in Argentina, because it offers some personal details about Viggo Mortensen .... For your convenience I am sending this in English and Spanish.

Last night (12/28) on CNN En Espanol, the Spanish-language version of CNN, they interviewed Peter Jackson and several actors from TTT, including Dominic Monaghan, Billy Boyd, Elijah Wood, Andy Serkis, Brad Dourif, Bernard Hill, Miranda Otto, and Viggo Mortensen. The interviews were conducted in English with real-time Spanish translation. Because most of the information put forth was material we have already heard in one forum or another, I will not recap it here.

In particular our rugged yet sensitive hero Aragorn shone forth, as he surprised even the interviewer, who appeared to be a native speaker of Spanish, with his fine command of the language. He surprised me as well, even though I knew he was fluent, with his thoughtful answers and remarkable lack of an American accent. The interviewer admitted that his investigation of Viggo had failed to turn up the fact that he was fluent in Spanish! In addition to posing him questions regarding the film and how it has changed his life, the interviewer asked him where/how he learned Spanish. Viggo responded that his family had moved to Venezuela when he was 1 1/2 years old, and then a year later to Argentina, where he lived till he was 11. He has been back there once, recently, and toured all around Buenos Aires, finding the neighborhoods where he grew up largely by memory. Pretty amazing, considering how long he has been away! In addition, he rented a car and travelled all around the pampas and even went up into Cordoba. Unfortunately he was not able to visit el Chaco, where he also lived for a short time. He said he would like to go back to Argentina, in particular to promote the film. Acquaintances in Argentina have been asking him when he will go, but so far he has not officially been offered the chance to do so.

Viggo then asked the interviewer if the interview would be shown in Argentina, and the interviewer responded that, yes, it would be seen in Argentina, Mexico, the USA, and Canada. Viggo then sent kisses to all Argentine viewers, said he hoped that their economic and political situation would improve soon, and sent hugs to all the fans of an Argentine soccer team, San Lorenzo de Almagro. He then called out the slogan of the team, Up with the Crows! Hopefully, I have transcribed that properly:-)

Our hero is obviously not only a fine actor, sensitive, creative, artistic, and politically savvy, but a well-rounded human being as well. What a prince! whoops, I mean king:-) May his star continue its ascendance!

Sincerely,

Elvasdottir

Elvasdottir has also provided a spanish version of the report ...

Saludos a todos los aficionados de Tolkien desde Delmar, New York! Aqui esta el resumen de un programa que seguramente deleitara a todas las hinchas de El Senor de los Anillos, especialmente los de Argentina, en particular porque ofrece unos detalles personales acerca de Viggo Mortensen....Para que entiendan mejor lo presento en ingles y en espanol.

Anoche en el canal CNN En Espanol, el canal version de hablahispana de CNN, entrevistaron a Peter Jackson y varios actores de Las Dos Torres, incluso a Dominic Monaghan, Billy Boyd, Elijah Wood, Andy Serkis, Brad Dourif, Bernard Hill, Miranda Otto, and Viggo Mortensen. Las entrevistas se hicieron en ingles con traducciones simultaneas a espanol. La mayoria de la informacion es materia de la cual ya nos hemos enterado en alguno u otro foro, por lo cual no la presento en este informe.

En particular nuestro heroe fuerte pero sensible, Aragorn, se lucio, porque sorprendio al entrevistador, quien aparecio ser de hablahispana de nacimiento, con su fino dominio del idioma. Me sorprendio a mi, tambien, a pesar de que ya supe que era fluido, con sus respuestas consideradas y su inexistente acento "gringo". El entrevistador admitio que durante su investigacion de Viggo no habia descubierto su dominio del espanol! Ademas de preguntarle acerca de la pelicula y como ha cambiado su vida, el entrevistador le pregunto como y donde habia aprendido el espanol. Viggo le contesto que su familia habia vivido en Venezuela cuando el tenia un ano y medio de edad, y un ano despues se fueron a vivir a Argentina, donde el vivio hasta los once anos de edad. Ha visitado a Argentina una vez desde entonces, recientemente, y recorrio todo Buenos Aires, encontrando los barrios donde vivio mas que todo por memoria, lo cual es muy sorprendente en consideracion de que no habia ido alla desde que tenia once anos! Ademas, alquilo carro y viajo por toda la pampa y tambien hasta Cordoba. Lo que no pudo hacer fue visitar al Chaco, donde tambien vivio por un periodo corto. Dijo que le gustaria volver a visitar a Argentina, en particular para promocionar la pelicula. Tiene amigos en Argentina que quieren saber cuando podria ir alla, pero todavia no se ha presentado la oportunidad de una manera oficial.

Viggo en ese momento pregunto al entrevistador si la entrevista iba a ser presentada en Argentina. El entrevistador respondio que si, que se iba a mostrar en Argentina, Mexico, USA, y Canada. Viggo entonces mando besos a la gente argentina, deseandoles que la situacion politico-economica se resolviera pronto, y tambien mando un abrazo especial a los aficionados del equipo de futbol argentino San Lorenzo de Almagro. Tambien dijo la consigna de ese equipo, Arriba los cuervos! Espero que la capte bien:-)

Obviamente nuestro heroe no solo es un actor fino, sensible, creativo, artistico, y politicamente bien-informado, pero tambien un ser humano muy completo. Que principe! uupps, quisiera decir rey:-) Que su estrella siga su trayectoria!
---

McKellen As Dumbledore? Don't Count On It....
Xoanon @ 8:07 pm EST

From our friends at McKellen.com:

I haven't spoken to Sir Ian for about a week; I hope to hear from him soon.

We last spoke about Dumbledore a few weeks ago and he told me he was not considering it and approved my publishing the denial on our rumours page. As you know, just about anything is possible in Hollywood, but I will be very surprised if he takes the part -- though I'm sure he'd be interested to work with Alfonso Cuaron or on HARRY POTTER in some other non-bearded non-hatted role.

Of course anything in The Sun must be assumed to be only loosely based on fact and that story rings particularly untrue to me . . . and they are the ONLY source for this so they would have to be very well connected -- not every WB employee thinks of running to The Sun with the latest rumours.

Keep an eye on our rumours page for clarification (probably a stronger denial) in the next couple of days. I'll keep you posted.

As always, you can keep up to date with Ian McKellen rumors right here! [More]

New Tolkien Manuscript Unearthed
Jincey @ 12:15 pm EST

Ro alerted us to the astounding news that a handwritten manuscript of Beowulf was found buried in a box of JRR Tolkien's papers that are housed in the Bodleian Library in Oxford, England by Michael Drout, assistant professor of English at Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts. Drout was researching Anglo-Saxon scholarship at the time for his book 'Beowulf and the Critics', published earlier this month. According to the Sunday Times, which has reported this story, "I was sitting there going through the transcripts when I saw these four bound volumes at the bottom of the box. I started looking through and realised I had found an entire book of material that had never seen the light of day." This manuscript consists of a translation and line by line interpretation of the epic poem. It is considered by scholars to be much closer to the original Anglo Saxon than the latest publication.

We are searching for a postable link to this story now, but in the meantime, we wanted to bring you the news that Tolkien's Beowulf manuscript is going to be published next summer.

Overbooked Theatre Causes Filmgoer Angst
Demosthenes @ 6:27 am EST

BilboFett writes:

"They say Christmas day is one of the biggest days for movies, and I believe it. At the Cinemark in Victorville CA (USA), every single showing of LOTR:TTT was sold out .. in the morning. And, at one of the later showings, they overbooked the seating by 200!

The theatre employees believed that there were just a lot of people who snuck in, so they made EVERY SINGLE person stand up and stand in a line so they could check everyone's ticket! Sure enough, they had oversold by 200!

As you could imagine, when 200 people had to be turned away, some people got a little upset (imagine being a father and explaining this to your kids on Christmas day!) and one man started a riot that led to the police hauling several people away."

Very strange.

Te Papa Exhibit Pics & More!
Xoanon @ 3:11 pm EST

frodo's girl writes:

I had the pleasure of attending several events at Te Papa this past week. The first one was a black tie dinner for the embassy trust on the 17th. the members got to see the new LotR exhibit(http://www.tepapa.govt.nz/rings/) before it opened and have a delectable dinner catered by Te Papa's own Icon restaurant.

Members arrived at 6.30pm and were treated to drinks and allowed to peruse the exhibit for an hour and a half before sitting down to a 3-course meal. The exhibit is brilliant. Too much to describe really, there are costumes from FotR (Gandalf the Grey, Aragorn, small Frodo, Legolas, small Gimli, Galadriel, Arwen), sets of full armor with weapons (one suit from most of the races, plus the elf armor the used for the massive agents, and Theoden's), a few weapons and some chain mail you can touch, several concept drawings, lots of video (some are the extras from the extended dvd), the head of the Treebeard pneumatic puppet, the final marquette for the cave troll, and the boromir in the boat (which is absolutely fabulous, you keep thinking it is really Sean Bean, and that he is going to sit up at any moment), not to mention a myriad of props and more. There is also an interactive bit where you and your buddy can sit on Gandalf's cart and be the size of a wizard, or a hobbit - very fun. It was marvelous to be able to see the exhibit with a small crowd before it opened to the public. A truly great evening.

I returned to the exhibit on the 19th with the red carpet tours group and got to spend another 2 hours in the exhibit (it really takes multiple viewings to see everything), and though you can't take a camera in, I did get some shots of the statues at the entrance of Te Papa, and the entrance to the exhibit itself which I have included. I also got to spend the rest of the day with the tour while they went to some filming sites around Wellington.

I was back at Te Papa the next day to get Ian Brodie's signature in my travel guide. I had met Ian in my last trip through NZ and it was wonderful to catch up with him again. Ian was one of the lucky ones that got to the premier. While we visited Ian signed a bunch of books for the exhibit store to sell - you might be able to get one if you order them soon
(http://www.tepapa.govt.nz/rings/store_books1.htm)

Anyway, I’m sure I’ll be back to the exhibit at least another few times before it leaves at the end of February. If any of you have a chance to see it here, or at one of the other 4 venues, be sure and take it.

cheers,
frodo's girl

Ordesky's double dose of delight
Xoanon @ 1:33 pm EST

New Line exec Mark Ordesky was standing at Sydney harbor when he learned of the Globe noms for "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers." "Between opening day grosses and the Golden Globes, this is really exciting," he said.

The HFPA (Hollywood Foreign Press Association) attention is particularly satisfying since New Line has the challenge of reminding kudos voters that this is not a retread of last year's heavyweight contender. "This is not a traditional sequel, but three chapters of a long saga -- and they're three very distinct parts."

Ordesky had flown to Wellington, N.Z., for the "Two Towers" premiere with 30,000 locals. He said the immense event was "the equivalent of closing down all of Wilshire Blvd. at rush hour."

Bad News from Japan
Tehanu @ 3:42 pm EST

A while back we thought we'd made a difference - New Line got to hear about the substandard translations being done for the Japanese versions of the films, and Peter Jackson reportedly asked for that problem to be addressed. Whether it's a case of Japanese distributor saving face, or a misunderstanding, it seems that nothing is being done after all.

Japanse LOTR fan Herbalist writes, "We were so glad to hear PJ say, "We did change the person (to do the Japanese translation)" on TVNZ. But today the Japanese distributor, Nippon Herald Inc., OFFICIALLY made the announcement: they say that PJ never told them anything of the sort and that they do mean to keep the SAME TRANSLATOR Natsuko Toda.

"In her subtitles we had to see Frodo say to Boromir, "You are a liar!" and dozens of other terrible lines degrading your FotR! And she has never admitted her fault, on the contrary, she openly and repeatedly declares that she did not and would not read Tolkien's books!

"THE SHAMELESS TRANSLATOR STAYS IN SPITE OF WHAT PJ SAID ! Nippon Herald Inc. insists they have HEARD NOTHING FROM PJ!"

Herbalist goes on to say that she feels that FOTR suffered at the box office as a result, and offers the figures from BoxOffice Mojo as evidence - the numbers for FOTR seem pretty low.

Aftonbladet Spoiler Confirmation
Tookish @ 1:41 pm EST

From Ringer Fredrik: Sweden's largest newspaper, Aftonbladet, featured a story about Gollum... which confirms the news that we will see Smeagol murder his cousin Deagol! ... It's similar to all other "how Gollum was made" stories that are popping up in news papers around the would but in the middle of the article you can find some interesting information:

"Det är Deagol som hittar ringen, men Smeagol dödar honom och tar den."

"Den scenen kommer i tredje filmen."

Free translation:

"Degol finds the ring but Semagol kills him and take it"

"That scene will be included in the third film"

Perhaps this is old news but if not it's certainly interesting. [More]

Media Watch: Parade Magazine
Xoanon @ 1:11 pm EST

Ringer Spy Mystk sends along these scans from the December issue of Parade Magazine with our very own Elijah Wood (Frodo).

2.622940 Degrees of Separation from Christopher Lee
Tookish @ 1:04 pm EST

From Ringer PD:

Hey guys :)

So, I'm supposed to be working, and instead I'm surfing - what's new! Anyway, I randomly came upon a cool site called oracleofbacon.org ... the site allows you to link any actor with any other actor, through the actors they've appeared in movies with - as in the old game "six degrees of Kevin Bacon." The interesting part is this. The site figured out that on average, any given actor has 2.9 degrees of separation from Kevin Bacon... so they went and figured out who is the REAL center of the actor universe... and guess who? Our very own Christopher Lee. If you take all actors in any movie ever made and average out how many people it takes to get to Christopher Lee you get only 2.622940 !! Which proves Christopher Lee is the most prolific actor ever!!!

I included the top twenty bellow for your enjoyment.. check out the site, it's actually fun :)

Lee, Christopher (2.622940)
Steiger, Rod (2.627270)
Pleasence, Donald (2.651306)
Welles, Orson (2.661389)
Sutherland, Donald (2.662426)
von Sydow, Max (2.662549)
Hopper, Dennis (2.665564)
Quinn, Anthony (2.667077)
Heston, Charlton (2.670193)
Hackman, Gene (2.675916)
Keitel, Harvey (2.677892)
Connery, Sean (2.681795)
Caine, Michael (2.682431)
Mitchum, Robert (2.682564)
Stanton, Harry Dean (2.683768)
Sheen, Martin (2.684875)
Winters, Shelley (2.696842)
Plummer, Christopher (2.698008)
Gould, Elliott (2.699126)
Borgnine, Ernest (2.702159)