Oh boy. I don’t know how many of you have heard the big announcement but a new LOTR movie is coming rather soon. The good news is that it is being directed by Andy Serkis and produced by Peter Jackson and Phillipa Boyens. That bit of the news actually got me very excited. They are the original A-Team behind the trilogy. But something does not feel right in the pit of my stomach, friends. After the abomination that was Rings of Power, I truly do not want to let myself get excited anymore. And Peter Jackson and Andy Serkis also did the Hobbit trilogy together, which I had significant problems with.
All I want is for this story to be darker like LOTR. No Marvel-esque idiotic comedy thrown in there to get chuckles from the audience. Please no. I beg of you. I beseech you. Have mercy upon me. I am too weak. My heart will not be able to take if this turns out to be a CGI fest of goofs and gaffs.
The reason I detest Rings of Power so much is because it is merely the world’s most expensive fanfiction. Tolkien did not write any of that trash. The plot and many of the characters are just made up by writers that do not have half the talent that Professor Tolkien did. It was an embarrassment.
But my heart holds onto some hope when it comes to this upcoming project. It is, at the very least, covering a canon event. Aragorn and Gandalf hunting for Gollum would make for a pretty awesome standalone story. HOWEVER! I just read news today that the main character of the movie is Gollum himself. I find this to be a peculiar choice. It would be far wiser to focus on Aragorn, but have Gollum be a major driving force of the narrative. But perhaps that is what’s going to happen anyway. Perhaps Gollum will merely be the main character in the same fashion that Frodo was, where other POVs are still taking place, but he happens to be the center of the plot. I am hoping. As much as I adore Serkis as Gollum, I feel like the character will not do well as the center of attention for 3 whole hours. Gollum is one of the most iconic creations in all of literature, but he thrives in short segments interspersed between larger complimentary arcs.
We’ll see how things unfold. I am anxious but hoping to be pleasantly surprised.