Easterlings

[curandir]

I think the Easterlings were my least fave from the films as they were shown as a distict race; whereas in the books (though there was little real detail), they came across as varied tribes.
Some nomadic and some sedatery...

The characters from the film came across to my mind, how the Khandians would look; what do you think?

[Lady Arwen]

Well, the people portrayed in the movie weren't anything like what I had in mind from the books. I mean, they were sort of what I thought, and the Oliphonts were awesome, but the culture the movie presented just wasn't what Tolien presented.

[galadriel]

I have a lot of complaints about how the movie deviated from the books...but the Easterlings aren't one of those complaints. I think that the Easterlings would protrayed exactly how they needed to be in order to make the most impact with the audience. They needed to be dramatically different in style from anything we'd seen before them to show that they simply aren't from the same general area as our heroes, but because of time constraints, it was probably best that all the easterlings were rather uniform. I'm just happy that the movies got into how there's division within the orc and uruk camps, that was enough for me.

I've always thought easterlings were pretty cool though and, had the movies go on for twenty hours instead of thirteen, perhaps more could have been revealed about their history.

Honestly, I think Jackson & Co. did make a real nod to Tolkien's Easterlings with the inclusion of Faramir's speech over the body of the fallen soldier...was that in the theatrical release or only the EE? I can't remember, but I just really think that all those many hours of film were summed in those few minutes of David Wenham waxing philosphical....so that's why I'm okay with the protrayl of the easterlings.

[Lady Arwen]

In that sense, you are right my dearest lady. Jackson et al did try their best with the time they had, and I must say, for what it was it was great. Yeah... woot.

[Grima Wormtongue]

I've never actually read the books, to tell the truth. My knowledge of Lord of the Rings comes from the movies and a lovely little site called Thain's Book. However, I do have something of an opinion about the Easterlings as they were portrayed in the movies.

I wasn't too fond of them, quite frankly. I picture the Easterlings(the nomadic tribes, anyway) as resembling the Mongolian tribes around Genghis Khan's time. Very horsey sort of society, always warring with each other, etc. In the movies, I didn't even realize that those were the easterlings. I figured they were some barbarian tribe from the Misty Mountains or wild men or something.

So there's my two cents on the matter. *shrug*

[curandir]

Mongolians for sure i'd say, Wainriders also. If you know what wains are that is.

I can see why they did it the way they did; but why so briefly?

They march into Mordor and then vanish from the script altogether (in that sense they may as well not have bothered or shown them riding horses or something)

Am I bothered though...

[galadriel]

curandir said:

Mongolians for sure i'd say, Wainriders also. If you know what wains are that is.

I can see why they did it the way they did; but why so briefly?

They march into Mordor and then vanish from the script altogether (in that sense they may as well not have bothered or shown them riding horses or something)

Am I bothered though...

But they don't actually disappear. I can think of three distinct spots inwhich we saw easterlings:

1. Samwise sees the Oliophaunt

2. Frodo & Sam hide from the Easterling under Sam's cloak at the gate.

3. Pelennor Fields.

It's true that we don't really get to see them fight, and we don't see them on horses, but we do see them do (slightly) more than just march to Mordor.

[curandir]

You seriously don't fair lady;

1)They were Haradrim,

2)The only Easterlings you see in the film entering the Morannon

3)They were Haradrim

A token showing i thought, and where were the Haradrim riders of the red snake?
But as i said before the reasons for doing it were obvious:
Time and Finacial constraint.

So i'm not bitter really

[galadriel]

Ha, oops!

I'm gonna watch all that later today 'cause I'm having difficulty remembering when Jackson properly introduced the men from Harad as the Haradrim.

No, I agree that this should be chalked up to time & money. What I'm upset with most concerning races is how Jackson led the audience to believe certain untruths about the elves....and especially the half-elves. Was the word Peredhel even used once throughout the film?

[curandir]

Untruths!? That sounds interesting, prey continue...

I guess you mean they went to helms deep. (can't think of any more off hand)

I think that was shocking, especially when in the intro to the first film, they called the battle scene 'the last alliance of men and elves'. Obviously forgot about that when they made the second film.

Did you know at one stage they were going to have Arwen at Helms Deep (I suppose it would make for good drama) in full armour etc.

Liv Tyler was upset when they cut that one!

Great films though!

[galadriel]

Yes, I did hear that Liv was at Helm's Deep...there's actually footage of that floating around somewhere.

But that wasn't part of the untruths that I was referring to.

What I was really talking about is how, after seeing the film, so many people think that elves become mortal if they marry a man which, I must say, is totally laughable. Arwen's situation was unique and her mortality really had little to do with Aragorn and more to do with her father. Elrond and Elros each made a decision...Elrond chose immortality and Elros didn't...thus creating the line of Numenor. The children of Elrond were also granted immortality, on the condition that they will one day follow their father to the undying lands. Arwen didn't die because she tied herself to Aragorn...Arwen died because she tied herself to Arda (admittedly, because of Aragorn).

I think they could have very easily slipped in enough history about Beren and Luthien to explain this away, but instead they chose to devote full twenty minute segments of nonsenical, romantic fluff that really did nothing for the plot or the pace of the movie.

I have a list of greivances against the movie and the majority revolve around Elrond's family, especially his daughter. Let me make it clear though...the book-verse Arwen is intriguing and I like the idea of her and wish more was known...I just think that Jackson and Tyler did a real piss-poor job of bringing her to the screen.

[curandir]

I agree with you whole heartedly; Liv was the only one who seemed to have not enjoyed making the film, i think if they had thought of a more (how do you put it)...

I think it could have been better for the actress and tolkien fans [such as my self]. Ce la vie.

I also wish the Uruk-hai chapter was represented better. They ended up making one scene out of an original 3 seperate ones; in these three scenes the distinct races of Yrch [and their alleigances] were portrayed and the differences between them made more apparent.
That chapter of the book gives life to a race only described in third person through most of Tolkien's works. Even Jackson admitted he wanted to go into more detail on that one: Pressure from above no doubt.

Saying that though I must admitt i didn't think they would put it in at all. Ce la vie encore.

Not to mention the very ring bearer being taken to Osgilliath, don't get me started on that one

[curandir]

Faramir wasn't given any kind of Justice in the films... and that is a tragedy. He was portrayed as weak and at times reclessly stupid.
In the books he was perhaps the noblest of his house (In my opinion he was...); then agian they didn't even introduce Prince Imrahil and his daughter, what figures?
I would have liked to see swan knights...

My version of the film would have cost a Billion, Billion pounds and been 24hrs long: Awesome!

[hhhaaa]

Humm, from my opinion Easterling could be compared to our worlds Turks and Middle-East (not earth) people; Haradrims more of an Egypto-African type; Khandians should look like the mix of the two.

Arwen and Galadriel are right about the films holes but P.J. did his best in making a movie from a book so rich with cultural aspects, small details(as important as they are), lots of highly described text and lots of the writers imagination.

while keeping the movie attractive and also short, some people just don't read books because they are too long for them.

And as Curandir said in the beginning: Middle-Earth's south-east tribes are very varied...