Word Count = 1487
With the Return of the King, Peter Jackson was left with the daunting task of bringing the Lord of the Rings trilogy to a close. Any film director would most likely have problems ending a trilogy in general, but the Lord of the Rings and more specifically the Return of the King presents a whole other set of problems. Thomas Shippey, a Tolkien scholar, wrote an article in which he discusses the challenges that Peter Jackson will encounter while trying to make the Return of the King. In this article he predicts that Jackson will have difficulty making the ending of the Return of the King, will have difficulty displaying the relationship of Aragorn and Arwen, and lastly making a film from the disconnectedness timeline and plot of the Return of the King.
Peter Jackson’s decision on the final ending was a difficult one for him. Trying to remain loyal to the fans of the books and yet appeal to the large visual audience are only some of the difficulties he experienced. Also, remaining loyal to Tolkien’s visions while trying to make a major motion film were challenging. Jackson was faced with the problem of the novel having multiple “endings” and how to translate this to film. There are many perspectives on the degree to which he successfully handled this problem. Some say he didn’t handle this problem too well because like the novel, the film has multiple endings as well. And multiple endings in films generally do not work. Others say he didn’t end the film properly because he neglected to include the scouring of the shire scene.
Tolkien’s views and thoughts of the hobbits is that they are simple creatures. Jackson addressed this view by ending the film with the controversial and simple ending with Sam saying “Well, I’m back.” Most directors and filmmakers may say this is not the best approach to take to ending a film such as the Return of the King. Jackson did this because he wanted to stay true to Tolkien and fans alike.
Tolkien has a strong worldview about evil and the world. Although peace and goodness may surround you, evil still lurks somewhere. This is illustrated in the scouring of the shire scene because although the ring is destroyed, evil still remains in the world. The world can never be rid of evil. Tolkien also felt that happing endings cannot or should not exist because there is still evil in the world. So one could say the happiness that resides in a happy ending is not perpetual. Jackson deals with this worldview by having Frodo leave to the Undying Lands. This can be seen as an unhappy ending and is basically happening because of Frodo’s inability to cope with the stresses and evils that had once plagued him.
Peter Jackson ingeniously portrayed Gollum in a way that made the audience empathize with him. For viewers who had not read the books prior to watching the films, this portrayal of Gollum is crucial. Throughout the book one feels a sense of compassion and understanding for Gollum that is necessary for the film viewer to experience as well. It was also difficult for Jackson to build more of a main character for Gollum in the Return of the King amongst all of the other things he had and wanted to include into the film. Gollum demonstrates Tolkien’s views on what happens to people when they let themselves become completely absorbed with evil. Gollum was once a hobbit but became corrupted with the power of the ring. Gollum as we see him in the novels and films has been irreversibly damaged mentally and physically. He places himself within the ring as if to become one with the ring. This is demonstrated by Gollum referring to himself in the plural person. Gollum kills to obtain the ring and ultimately dies trying to keep it.
Peter Jackson failed to include the Scouring of the Shire scene in his film which is crucial to the development and progression of the Shire and its hobbits. The Battle of Bywater is pivotal in displaying the leadership and combat abilities of Merry and Pippin. This also displays the honor and respect with which Merry and Pippin receive. This scene also demonstrates that the hobbit’s beliefs and world views must change. Previous to the scouring, hobbits generally believed that if they kept to themselves and minded their own business that harm would not come to them. This belief was obviously debunked by the arrival of Saruman and his reign of terror. Portrayed in the film were the hobbits returning to the Shire with ease and peace of mind when in the book the opposite actually occurred; the hobbits had to fight to retake their homeland which was by no means an easy feat. In the film there was peace after the destruction of the ring while in the book evil still lurked in Middle Earth. Also with the Scouring of the Shire scene, Frodo’s mercy for Saruman is displayed which could not be effectively portrayed within the film in any other scene.
Since Jackson did not include the Scouring of the Shire scene, he found it difficult to come up with a scene in which Saruman’s death occurs. Saruman’s death at Isengard was effectively executed and properly placed within the timeline of the film. In this scene the viewer also sees the development of Wormtongue and his eventual resistance to Saruman. Jackson was effectively able to portray Wormtongue’s uprising at Isengard. By leaving out the scouring of the shire, Jackson had to show the development of the hobbits in another way. He did this for Merry and Pippin by having them pledge their allegiance to kings. This displays the chivalrous and selfless view that Tolkien holds dear.
In the book Arwen and Aragorn are separated by a vast distance yet we still feel the connection between the two. Jackson found it challenging to introduce and display this connection between Aragorn and Arwen. In the film, the only was Aragorn can have Arwen as his lady is if he becomes king. To become king Aragorn must successfully defend and ultimately help save Middle Earth. Jackson places the forging of Anduril in the Return of the King as opposed to the Fellowship of the Ring at the Council of Elrond for effect. This gives the viewer a sense of hope and somewhat ties Arwen and Aragorn together again.
Peter Jackson was effectively able to overcome the overall disconnectedness of the books by allowing scenes to flow in a more natural timeline. Also, allowing major events to take place within the timeline as opposed to showing them as flashbacks or retellings allows for an overall improved presentation. In the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Tolkien tells the story of one group of people and the reader follows that group for a while. Then, Tolkien will bring the reader back in time and have them follow another group for the same duration. This can sometimes leave the reader confused about the timing of certain events and can lead them to forget where the other group has left off. Although this must have been a nightmare for any filmmaker to tackle, Jackson was able to successfully develop and produce a well flowing timeline.
Tolkien was quoted saying “I do not think that Power and Domination is the real center of my story. It provides the theme of a war, about something dark and threatening enough to seem at that time of supreme importance. But that is mainly a ‘setting’ for the characters to show themselves. The real theme for me is about something much more permanent and difficult: Death and Immortality…” Jackson did not follow Tolkien’s world view in this respect because the trilogy has war as its central theme and all other themes are secondary.
Peter Jackson was successfully able to portray Samwise Gamgee as the true hero of the film while not displaying him as the main character. Without Sam, Frodo would have never been able to complete his mission and the ring would have found its way back into the hand of Sauron. Sam displays perseverance, faithfulness, and strength throughout the Return of the King. He never betrayed Frodo and always looked out for him. For the most part, Sam protected Frodo from Gollum and also saved him on countless occasions form certain peril. Sam even took possession of the ring not because of lust for it, but because he knew what needed to be done and was intent on rescuing Frodo and returning the ring to him.
Not only did Peter Jackson create a worthy film out of the Return of the King, but he also stayed true to Tolkien and his worldviews. To a certain degree, Jackson successfully handled the challenges that Shippey predicted. Jackson created a film that can be appreciated by Tolkien loyalists and newcomers alike.
Works Cited
Steven Wilser? September 24, 2008, at 11:32 PM
