Hello, and Happy Friday!

Today, I wanted to write about one of my favorite films (slash trilogies): The Lord of the Rings.

Recently, at the recommendation of my screenwriting mentor, I began listening to a great podcast, What Went Wrong. In each episode, Lizzie Bassett and Chris Winterbauer discuss, well, what went wrong with pretty much every film (and some TV shows) out there. Like every millennial, I loved the TV show Lost and listened to their two-part episode on the tribulations of that show (spoiler alert: it’s insane the show managed even to have a pilot episode). After that wrapped up, I saw the three-part episode dedicated to the Lord of the Rings, and I had to give it a listen.

Quick aside:

A little-known fact about me is that I really like movies, especially horror movies. My wife and I have a subscription that lets us see “free” movies at the theater, and we try to go at least 2-3 times a month. We watch lots at home and spend too much on Amazon Prime movie rentals. We acquired a ton of BluRays early in our relationship – when we lived in our roach-infested apartment in Southwest, DC – when we ventured out to Best Buy and dumpster-dived in the bargain BluRay bin. As time passed, BluRay made way for BluRay 4K, and various series and movies were re-released with higher fidelity movies. Enter: The Lord of the Rings.

For Christmas a few years ago, one of us got the other this beautiful set of movies. We watched them all in a few sittings, and they were just as great as I remembered them in regular BluRay. But still, it was nice seeing them again, and the films have so many memorable and iconic scenes that I’ll never pass up a rewatch.

A few years before, we watched all of the extended editions during an all-day marathon at our friend’s apartment. Like Peter Jackson, I firmly believe the extended editions are overrated, and the “regular” cuts are how the films should be watched. Fight me.

Or don’t; they’re just movies. Debate me, I guess. But if you want to, I will just point to the Mouth of Sauron scene as my rebuttal, and that will be the end of any fight or debate or mix of both.

Anyhoo, after listening to two out of three episodes of What Went Wrong’s LOTR series, we, of course started a rewatch. Only, we didn’t break out the BluRays. You can thank my Xbox for not working for that. But the movies look fine on HBO Max (or is it just Max?) and, just like every rewatch, I get to experience each film and remember all the other times I saw them.

I think that’s why I like rewatching movies so much. I can recount most times I saw a film for the first time, whether at home, in theaters, solo or with family, friends, or my wife (or any combination). Each time I watch the intro to The Fellowship of the Ring, I remember my grandma taking my sister and me to the theater. I remember hiding my tears when Gandalf met what I thought would be his end. I remember reenacting the battle sequences with my action figures after the movie. I remember being blown away that the story wasn’t over by the movie’s end (either I didn’t know they were based on books, or I just assumed they mushed them all into one film), and I would have to wait a long time before the second movie came out.

The Fellowship of the Ring is one of my favorite movies of all time, as much as I like the other two. It stands on its own, and after rewatching it after taking some screenwriting classes, I can see lots of the little things the creators did to make such a great film. The little jokes to break up the serious moments (see, Pippin asking, “So, where are we going?” after volunteering for the deadly mission to take The One Ring to Mordor), the character introductions that immediately tell us who each character is. Sam is shy but dependable; Strider aka Aragorn aka The King is brave and willing to put his life on the line for the hobbits. I could do quick little snippets of each character, but I’d suggest rewatching the movie to see what I mean.

Did I mention I also had the soundtrack to The Fellowship of the Ring? Because I did, and even if you think the extended editions are the way to watch the movies, we can at least agree that the movies have amazing music. I will unashamedly nerd out when I reach the 2:55 mark of The Bridge of Khazad Dum. Howard Shore, you don’t get enough credit for your work on the movies. Why does John Williams’s name get thrown around so much for his work on Star Wars, but Shore’s isn’t a household name? Alright, now we’re getting off-topic.

We still have to finish The Return of the King, which will mark this rewatch’s end. Next time I rewatch the trilogy, I’ll likely think of this blog post, much the same way I think of spring’s rewatch, just how I think of the Christmas we got the BluRays, and like how I thought of all the times before then – including falling asleep at two in the morning during The Return of the King and feeling sad when Gandalf fell at the Bridge of Khazad Dum.

I hope you all can look back at the movies you’ve watched with the same joy I have, and if not, I’d suggest giving The Fellowship of the Ring a rewatch with some friends or family. It’ll be worth it.

PS, I have a bonus photo of me with my little goblin, Tangerine. He liked being held like a baby. Promise.