LORD OF THE RINGS



Cartoon film by Ralph Bakshi from JRR Tolkien's book


Identification sheet:


1979, USA
Running time: 133 minutes
Direction: Ralph Bakshi
Scenario: Chris Conkling
Production: Fantasy Films
Sound Track: Leonard Rosenman

Main characters:

The Dark Lord Sauron seeks to enslave the free peoples of the mythical realm of Middle-earth by recovering a mighty ring of power he forged in the fires beneath Mount Doom. After many generations, the ring has been entrusted to Frodon the Hobbit, Bilbo's nephew. Elves, dwarves, hobbit and many other fantastic characters will help him on his dangerous quest, together with Gandalf the wizard.
No new characters on the film version of Lord of the Rings. Due to the richness of the book, its adaptators have needed to darken some chapters and get rid of some minor characters of Tolkien's book.


The Obvious impossibility to adapt all Tolkien:



It would have been a real challenge to try and "transcribe" Frodon's adventures to the screen. Tolkien's three volumes are the result of years of studies and experiences, an overactive but structured imagination, the evocative power of his words.
What about those introductory chapters ("Hobbits" and "....") which sketch perfectly weel the world into which we readers are going to be thrown, whithout being directly related to the main action plot.
Bakshi and his scenario makers decided to focus on the essential plot of Lord of the Rings, and thus present a coherent whole. They chose to focus the film on the main fight led by Sauron, in his attempt to get his ring back, guarantee of all power.
As it happens, the film cannot pretend to be the perfect version of the book, but just an hommage which makes the audience feel like reading it.


Tolkine, source of inspiration for a film genre:



Sword and Sorcery is a narrative genre which owes a lot to the English literature of the 20th century. Two books are specially quoted: Connan the Barbarian (close to Heroic Fantasy too) and Tolkien's cycle. The later is composed by the three volumes of Lord of the Rings (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King), another book where Bilbo the Hobbit is its main character, under the unmistakable title of The Hobbit (chronologically speaking, it should be placed before the trilogy) and Silmarillion, a coherent compilation of mythological texts which found the epic world of Lord of the Rings. Willow, Ladyhawk, Kalidor and The Unbeatable Daar. All these films, some successful, some a commercial failure, are direct results of John Ronald Reuel Tolkien's work.