cochart:

I’m sure many who study Tolkien’s works have already mentioned this before, but recently, I’ve been focusing much on the anti-war message in many of his stories. It is one of the elements that tells us that the Middle Earth series indeed part of the modern literature and not ancient folklore, despite the fantasy elements. 

Tolkien never depicted wars as “cool.” In a realm occupied by wizards, magic, dragons, and the assortment of fantasy people, wars remain strangely modern, fought not by knights for sake of their honor but by everyone, destroying everything. Elven lords’ valor–Fingolfin, Fingon, etc.–only ends in their own gruesome demise. Throughout the First Age, we see elven homes (kingdoms) ravaged. It would not be a stretch to recall a bombing of a city when reading the fall of Gondolin. In the LOTR, one of the most heartbreaking passage is when the hobbits return home to the damaged Shire, where they have to fight their own kind to save the village. 

This is why I am so annoyed when I see the anti-war message completely diluted and unrecognizable in adaptations. An example would be how the Battle of the Five Armies turned out in The Hobbit movie. In the book, the Battle is anything but cool. It’s depressing. To see American producers turn what the author meant as a tragic, atrocious event into an “epic” spectacle is annoying at least for a fan. This is the main issue I have with adaptations: their bro aesthetics, obsession with “EPIC!!!!” and complete lack of respect for the author’s ideas. 

Do I believe that Tolkien’s works should remain off limits to any adaptation? No! I quite liked the LOTR movies. But I would like to see some respect for the material instead of “milk until dry” attitude by corporate. Do I see hint of that in Amazon? 

*

To make something clear, I think even the LOTR films are guilty of spicing up war scenes just a little. But I also believe that it was a reasonable compromise between remembering the author’s intentions and keeping the film fairly entertaining.

*I’m also aware that the LOTR and The Hobbit’s producers were New Zealanders, but as MGM and WB (distributor) were American companies, I understood it as more of collaborative effort. I don’t know the details of their funding structure, but it’s often the case that producers&investors in such blockbuster films have more than necessary influence.