Before I even start digging into the questions, I'd like to make a general
statement about this whole sequence, or rather about its effect on me.
It's always most amazing watching this 15 minute ending (including the return
to the Shire) because it doesn't feel right.
And I don't mean this in a sense that the scenes don't fit or the music doesn't
deliver or the directing is bad; it's a very weird feeling because what you see
on screen (Sam's marriage, the return to Hobbiton, Bilbo talking to Frodo) are
actually feel- good moments, but you can't help but think that it's unfitting.
And this is such a huge testament to the effectiveness of all three films: so
many movies try to convey a sense of change in the characters and fail, but
here, right in this sequence, you don't only think, you FEEL that all four
hobbits can't go back and live a normal life.
That is the essence of all three films, the testament of brilliant moviemaking,
right there.
1. How does the image of Frodo in Bag End reflect his state of mind after
returning to the Shire?
The scene has a very strong vintage (right word?) atmosphere, with the brown
tones and the dust being hit by sunlight. At this point, Bag End looks really
like a cold place, and, like I said, the vintage look makes you feel like
Frodo's standing in his own past. I love how the camera mirrors the opening of
FOTR. Bilbo's narration comes to mind, and we realise that maybe there won't be
always a Baggins living here, in Bag End.
2. The film maker use a voiceover technique to convey Frodo's final thoughts,
here, and later when Sam returns to the Shire without Frodo. Why do you
think they did this?
I guess the question is: what else could they have done? The thoughts uttered
by Frodo, in my opinion, couldn't be done in dialogues because this is really a
battle Frodo has with himself, in secret. It is, however, something that the
audience should be explicitly told because it's crucial to the story.
I think the voiceover in the final scene isn't really an abstract thing because
it seems to me that Frodo said those things to Sam at the Havens when they
hugged, and now Sam is just reflecting on it.
3. In the books, the reunion of Bilbo and Frodo takes place in
Rivendell, and always struck me as a lighter moment than what we got on
screen. Comments on moving the scene to the Shire? What about
making this a private moment between the two ringbearers here, rather than a
reunion scene with the other hobbits as well?
I really think it's great to have this private moment between these two. As it
is, there already are only a handful of scenes with Frodo and Bilbo alone, and
having the two talk about the ring is just very revealing and telling. The
contrast is great: on one side, there is a person who threw away the ring
freely, and on the other side there is someone who got brutally torn apart from
it.
4. How do these two scenes lead us into the Grey Havens?
Movie-firsters, what did you think was going to happen next?
For those who are sensible to these subtleties and subtexts, I think it's a
beautiful mental transition to the Havens.
To finally make up his mind about leaving, and to convince himself, Frodo needs
a definite moment, and I think the scene with Bilbo is just that.
When he sees what the ring has done to Bilbo, when he says he would have liked
to hold it just one more time, he realises what a lasting effect the ring
really has, and that there really is no chance of escaping it. Bearing this in
mind, watching Frodo softly closing his eyes and caressing Bilbo is just
heartwrenching.
5. Any other comments on these images?
No, sir. Madame, whatever
*g*
