Sunday 15 December 2013

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In The Lord of the Rings books, Frodo doesn’t start his adventure until 17 years after getting the Ring.

The movies were drastically different from the books in many ways. In the books, when Bilbo leaves Frodo with his home and the ring, Frodo is already 33 years old. Gandalf convinces Frodo to keep the ring and keep it secret before departing. 
For many years, Gandalf visits Bag End (where Frodo lives) several times. It’s only when 17 years have passed that Gandalf tells Frodo the truth of the ring- when Frodo is already 50 years old. Many other changes were made in the movies to condense the story to under three hours a film. 
Many characters like Fatty and Tom Bombadil were cut from the story entirely, while many other elements were shortened or removed. If you ever decide to read the books, you’ll be very surprised at just how in depth and extensive they are compared to the films.


 In The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien speaks more often of the "Company" of the Ring rather than the "Fellowship", as reflected in the page references in Robert Foster's The Complete Guide to Middle-earth.

The Beatles wanted to star in a film version of the Lord of the Rings. They wanted Stanley Kubrick to direct

 Kubrick is one of the best movie directors that ever lived. Some of his best known movies are '2001: A Space Odyssey,' 'A Clockwork Orange,' and 'The Shining.' When the film rights to The Lord of the Rings were sold to United Artists, The Beatles tried to jump on the opportunity to make a film about it. The Lord of the Rings was a huge hit with the '60s liberation movement and it makes sense that The Beatles would take interest in a project like this.
However, Stanley Kubrick had to turn them down. For him, the stories were impossible to capture on film. Indeed, the only projects based on the property were some animated movies for a long time, until Peter Jackson made the early 2000 versions. Peter Jackson later said that Tolkien had been against the idea of The Beatles being involved with such a project. Indeed, Tolkien was very protective of his IP and reportedly set up a clause that prohibited Disney from being involved in creating a movie based on his works.
Return of the king facts


Lord of the Rings Return of the King has the highest body count for any movie made!

The film tops the list with 836 bodies. The second place winner is Kingdom of Heaven with 610 bodies. Lord of the Rings Return of the King was released in 2003. Although it shares a name with the third volume of JRR Tolkien's epic novel, it actually incorporates a good chunk of the second volume, The Two Towers. Specifically, much of Sam and Frodo's journey was taken from the second volume. This was for two reasons: 1. because otherwise, Sam and Frodo wouldn't have had much to do in the movie, according to the director, and 2. because those events match up chronologically with the events that everyone else is going through, so it made sense to move them
Read more at http://www.omg-facts.com/lists/42/7-Little-Known-Lord-Of-The-Rings-Facts/3#kT1R6kFScQQbyZst.99

The film tops the list with 836 bodies. The second place winner is Kingdom of Heaven with 610 bodies. Lord of the Rings Return of the King was released in 2003. Although it shares a name with the third volume of JRR Tolkien's epic novel, it actually incorporates a good chunk of the second volume, The Two Towers. Specifically, much of Sam and Frodo's journey was taken from the second volume. This was for two reasons: 1. because otherwise, Sam and Frodo wouldn't have had much to do in the movie, according to the director, and 2. because those events match up chronologically with the events that everyone else is going through, so it made sense to move them
  • It's one of the greatest critical and box-office successes of all time.
  • It was only the second film to ever gross $1 billion worldwide.
  • It won all 11 Academy Awards that it was nominated for.
  • Most notably, the film won the Academy Award for Best Picture, the first and only time a fantasy film has accomplished that.
  • It was 200 minutes long and shot in New Zealand, concurrently with the other films in the series.
  • It had a $94 million budget. 
  • It contains 1,488 visual effects shots and for the battle, 
  • they shot 450 motions for the massive digital horses. 

Frodo wasn't the real hero of Lord of the Rings… Sam was









  • It's one of the greatest critical and box-office successes of all time.
  • It was only the second film to ever gross $1 billion worldwide.
  • It won all 11 Academy Awards that it was nominated for.
  • Most notably, the film won the Academy Award for Best Picture, the first and only time a fantasy film has accomplished that.
  • It was 200 minutes long and shot in New Zealand, concurrently with the other films in the series.
  • It had a $94 million budget. It contains 1,488 visual effects shots and for the battle, they shot 450 motions for the massive digital horses. 

    • Read more at http://www.omg-facts.com/lists/42/7-Little-Known-Lord-Of-The-Rings-Facts/3#kT1R6kFScQQbyZst.99
    JRR Tolkien considered Sam Gamgee the "chief hero" of The Lord of the Rings. If you’re unfamiliar with The Lord of the Rings, it is a world famous story of the struggle of a group of people to destroy a powerful ring before it results in the resurrection of the evil Sauron. The “main character” of the story is Frodo Baggins, a hobbit (a person with large hairy feet and in short stature). 
    Frodo is tasked with taking the ring to Mordor, the place where it can be destroyed. Frodo is joined by his gardener, Samwise Gamgee. Throughout the course of the story, it might seem obvious that the main character and carrier of the ring is the story’s hero. J. R. R. Tolkien, the author, saw things differently though. Tolkien claimed that Sam was the true hero of the story. 
    To be fair, the claim holds some merit. Sam did beat a man eating giant spider in single combat, storm a tower full of orcs on his own, resist the temptation of the ring, and carry Frodo up the side of a volcano essentially carrying the fate of the world on his back- all while suffering from starvation and dehydration. So it seems to stand to reason.

    The Lord of the Rings isn't a Trilogy!


     J.R.R Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” is often erroneously called a trilogy when it is actually one book often published in three volumes! The Lord of the Rings is a single novel with six books and appendices. It is sometimes published in 3 volumes and people erroneously call it a trilogy. 
    The reason for this was that paper was scarce and expensive at the time, so the publisher decided that it would be better to publish it in 3 volumes, so that they could recoup the cost of paper. 
    The first volume, “The Fellowship of the Ring” was first published in Great Britain in July 1954 and in the U.S. in October 1954. The publication of the first volume began a problem that Tolkien continued facing with each volume published. 
    The editors made many well-intentioned corrections that actually ruined what Tolkien had tried to write. Instead of Tolkien’s “elven” they would correct it to “elfin” or “dwarves” to “dwarfs.” Tolkien’s invented language was continuously “corrected,” something he constantly fought to get reverted back to his original writing. 
    The second volume, “The Two Towers,” was published in Great Britain in November 1954 and in the U.S. in April 1955. The third volume was delayed, because Tolkien had promised in his first volume that he would add an index and full etymological information on the languages, especially on the elven tongues. 
    In the end, there wasn’t an index in the third volume, only an apology from the publisher for the lack of index. Volume three was finally published in October 1955 in England and January 1956 in the U.S.



    In The Two Towers, Aragorn ’s scream of grief at seeing burning Orcs is actually Viggo Mortensen breaking two toes. 

    The scene in Lord of the Rings where an angry Aragorn kicks a helmet across the landscape upon seeing a pile of burning Orcs? Well, actor Viggo Mortensen was instructed to kick the helmet as close as possible to the camera lens to give it the appearance of flying past it. With each take, the helmet closer and the shot got better.  Peter Jackson, the director, was satisfied with the fourth take, but then he thought that one more take would make the scene perfect.  When Mortensen made that last kick he broke two of his toes, but rather than asking for medical attention and yelling “cut,” he used his pain to inspire his performance and released that legendary scream of pure agony. The director called it the “best take” and used it in the movie.

     

    Viggo Mortensen got so attached to his horse that after filming had finished he purchased it off its owner

     

    Elijah Wood dressed up in breeches and a flowing shirt and went out into the hills to shoot his audition tape. His friend George Huang, directed the video.

     

    The large tree that stands above Bag End was built especially by the production department. Every leaf had to be manually attached.

     

    The Tolkien estate was never in favor of Peter Jackson’s film adaptation but seeing as J.R.R. Tolkien signed the rights away in 1968 for $15,000, there was nothing they could do about it. Tolkien’s grandson Simon came out in support of the production and was disowned by his relatives. Tolkien’s son Christopher Tolkien later retracted any opposition.

     

    Andy Serkis, who played Smeagol in LOTR, also played the role of Caesar in the Rise of the Planet of the Apes.  


    During filming, most of the members of the Fellowship took up surfing in New Zealand in their spare time. Among them was Viggo Mortensen, who wiped out terribly one day, and bruised one whole side of his face. The next day, makeup tried to mask the bruising and swelling, but were unsuccessful. Instead, Peter Jackson opted to film Mortenson from one side for the entire scene in the Mines of Moria.

     

    Hobbiton was made a year before production began to make it look like it was a natural, lived-in place, complete with real vegetable patches. The greens department regulated the length of the grass by having sheep eat it.

     

    The original cut ran four hours and thirty minutes.

     

    It is estimated that filming of the trilogy pumped about $200,000,000 into the New Zealand economy. The New Zealand government even created a Minister for Lord of the Rings, whose remit was to exploit all the economic opportunities the films represented.


    The design for the Hobbits’s feet took over a year to perfect. Over 1800 feet were produced for the 4 lead Hobbits alone, and each pair would take about an hour and a half to be put on over the actors’ real feet.



    John Rhys-Davies, who plays Gimli the dwarf, is the tallest of the actors who play members of the Fellowship. He is 6′ 1″.



    The main sound elements for the cave troll were a walrus, a tiger and a horse.


    After filming the 3rd installment of LOTR, the New Zealand government planned to make Hobbiton into a tourist attraction, it never happened. Instead, the Shire is now inhabited by sheep, bringing the original sheep-eat-everything theme full circle.


    SOURCED  

    Fellowship of the rings facts 
    Stuart Townsend was originally cast as Aragorn, but was replaced by Viggo Mortensen after four days of shooting because Peter Jackson realized that an older actor was needed. 


    Gandalf's painful encounter with a ceiling beam in Bilbo's hobbit-hole was not in the script - Ian McKellen banged his forehead against the beam accidentally, not on purpose. But Peter Jackson thought McKellen did a great job "acting through" the mistake, and so kept it in. 



    When Pippin is being hit with the apples after asking about second breakfast, it is Viggo Mortensen himself chucking the apple at his head. They had to shoot the scene 16 times to get it just right, and Billy Boyd says he believes Mortensen enjoyed himself immensely.

    Two sets of Bag End, Bilbo Baggins's home, were built. One to accommodate the Hobbits, the other 33% smaller for the full size Ian McKellen, right down to smaller versions of the books on the bookshelves.



    During the fight between Lurtz and Aragorn, Viggo Mortensen successfully parried the dagger thrown at him on his first attempt.



    Viggo Mortensen did his own stunts. He also insisted on using only the real steel sword, instead of significantly lighter aluminum sword or safer rubber sword which were manufactured for battle scenes and stunts.


    Aragorn battling the Ringwraiths at Weathertop was Viggo Mortensen's very first day on set. It was also the first time that Mortensen had ever handled a sword. 



    Veteran sword master Bob Anderson called Viggo Mortensen "the best swordsman I've ever trained".



    During the Council of Elrond, leaves are continually falling in the background to suggest that this is a meeting that is taking place outside. This meant about half a dozen crew members were positioned above the set, dropping leaves at various intervals. This also meant that the production department had to collect sacks and sacks of leaves during autumn, and of course dead leaves turn brown fairly quickly. Which also meant that every single one of those leaves had to be individually painted. 


    The nocturnal screams of possums were used for the screeches made by the Orcs in the mines of Moria.  

    For the musical background to the chase in the mines of Moria, Howard Shore wanted some heavy chanting, so he cast a Maori choir.



    The three trolls which were turned to stone in "The Hobbit" make a cameo in the background while Frodo, Sam, Merry, Pippin, and Strider/Aragorn are resting after fleeing from Weathertop/Amon Sul.  

    When Gandalf has his big stand-off scene with the Balrog, Ian McKellen is actually acting to a ping pong ball. 




    The Two Towers facts


    The different colors of blue for the elves' eyes revealed what race they were. The Lothlorien elves had light blue eyes, and the Rivendell elves were dark blue.

    Fangorn is entirely artificial: miniatures, CGI and studio set.


    The Warg attack was originally conceived as a night attack on Edoras, however they couldn't light it so it switched to a daytime attack. 

    The return of the king facts

     

    The film tops the list with 836 bodies. The second place winner is Kingdom of Heaven with 610 bodies. Lord of the Rings Return of the King was released in 2003. Although it shares a name with the third volume of JRR Tolkien's epic novel, it actually incorporates a good chunk of the second volume, The Two Towers. Specifically, much of Sam and Frodo's journey was taken from the second volume. This was for two reasons: 1. because otherwise, Sam and Frodo wouldn't have had much to do in the movie, according to the director, and 2. because those events match up chronologically with the events that everyone else is going through, so it made sense to move them
    Read more at http://www.omg-facts.com/lists/42/7-Little-Known-Lord-Of-The-Rings-Facts/3#kT1R6kFScQQbyZst.99

    • The film tops the list with 836 bodies. The second place winner is Kingdom of Heaven with 610 bodies. Lord of the Rings Return of the King was released in 2003. 
    • Although it shares a name with the third volume of JRR Tolkien's epic novel, it actually incorporates a good chunk of the second volume, The Two Towers. 
    • Specifically, much of Sam and Frodo's journey was taken from the second volume. This was for two reasons: 1. because otherwise, Sam and Frodo wouldn't have had much to do in the movie, according to the director, and 2. because those events match up chronologically with the events that everyone else is going through, so it made sense to move them
    • It's one of the greatest critical and box-office successes of all time.
    • It was only the second film to ever gross $1 billion worldwide.
    • It won all 11 Academy Awards that it was nominated for.
    • Most notably, the film won the Academy Award for Best Picture, the first and only time a fantasy film has accomplished that.
    • It was 200 minutes long and shot in New Zealand, concurrently with the other films in the series.
    • It had a $94 million budget. 
    • It contains 1,488 visual effects shots and for the battle, 
    • they shot 450 motions for the massive digital horses.



    members of the fellowship  of the ring


    Frodo Baggins Hobbit He is the adopted heir of Bilbo and Ring-bearer. He was 33 when he inherited the ring from Bilbo, and 50 when he set out for Rivendell.
    Samwise "Sam" Gamgee Hobbit He was employed as Frodo's gardener and became his faithful companion on his quest.
    Meriadoc "Merry" Brandybuck Hobbit The son of the Master of Buckland, cousin to both Pippin and Frodo and is particularly close to Pippin.
    Peregrin "Pippin" Took Hobbit The son of the Thain in Tookland, he is the youngest member of the group and cousin to both Merry and Frodo.
    Gandalf the Grey Maiar A Wizard who leads the Fellowship until he falls from the Bridge of Khazad-dûm, in Moria fighting a Balrog of Morgoth.
    Aragorn (Strider) Man Chief Ranger of the North and heir of Isildur and Elendil who accompanies the hobbits from Bree to Rivendell and becomes a member of the Fellowship.
    Legolas Elf He is son of Thranduil, king of the Silvan Elves of Mirkwood. He came to inform Elrond of the escape of Gollum.
    Gimli Dwarf Son of Glóin. He came to Rivendell from the Lonely Mountain with his father to seek advice on the disappearance of Balin, Ori and Oin and to warn Bilbo that Sauron's agents are seeking him.
    Boromir Man Son of Denethor, Steward of Gondor. He came to Rivendell seeking the meaning of a prophetic dream.
    You probably know that the movies were drastically different from the books in many ways. In the books, when Bilbo leaves Frodo with his home and the ring, Frodo is already 33 years old. Gandalf convinces Frodo to keep the ring and keep it secret before departing.
    For many years, Gandalf visits Bag End (where Frodo lives) several times. It’s only when 17 years have passed that Gandalf tells Frodo the truth of the ring- when Frodo is already 50 years old. Many other changes were made in the movies to condense the story to under three hours a film.
    Many characters like Fatty and Tom Bombadil were cut from the story entirely, while many other elements were shortened or removed. If you ever decide to read the books, you’ll be very surprised at just how in depth and extensive they are compared to the films.

    Read more at http://www.omg-facts.com/lists/42/7-Little-Known-Lord-Of-The-Rings-Facts/2#FScpIChVfFXZPFRo.99
    You probably know that the movies were drastically different from the books in many ways. In the books, when Bilbo leaves Frodo with his home and the ring, Frodo is already 33 years old. Gandalf convinces Frodo to keep the ring and keep it secret before departing.
    For many years, Gandalf visits Bag End (where Frodo lives) several times. It’s only when 17 years have passed that Gandalf tells Frodo the truth of the ring- when Frodo is already 50 years old. Many other changes were made in the movies to condense the story to under three hours a film.
    Many characters like Fatty and Tom Bombadil were cut from the story entirely, while many other elements were shortened or removed. If you ever decide to read the books, you’ll be very surprised at just how in depth and extensive they are compared to the films.

    Read more at http://www.omg-facts.com/lists/42/7-Little-Known-Lord-Of-The-Rings-Facts/2#FScpIChVfFXZPFRo.99
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