The Horror, The Hobbits
What evil influence could these horror movie types have on Lord of the Rings?
      by Caroline Ziemkiewicz

A beautiful -- yet rather ominous, wouldn't you say? -- landscape from Lord of the Rings.

It's very possible that the combination of Peter Jackson's background and that of much of his crew could result in a different interpretation of the books than one might expect. There is undoubtedly a lot of darkness in Tolkien's work, but what would happen if the emphasis fell on the horrific aspects? The orcs might change from mostly revolting creatures to truly frightening ones. The battle scenes might be more graphic. Gollum's simpering might be more sinister. As seen in the case of poor Saruman, characters of all kinds might have somewhat nastier death scenes. In other words, changes will be made, and the movies may end up with a much more ghastly flavor than the books ever had. The question is, would that be a good thing or a bad thing?

Hardcore Tolkien fans on the whole seem to be pretty unsettled by the thought of a horror-skewed Lord of the Rings. The general consensus seems to be that while it will probably result in strong and frightening visuals, which is good, the idea of the epic's dark side taking over is not a pleasant one. While there are many horrific aspects to the novels, there are many beautiful and ethereal aspects as well, not to mention a fair bit of lightheartedness as far as the hobbits are concerned. If the movie is being made from a horror filmmaker's perspective, these aspects could conceivably be lost. Sure, Mordor may look awe-inspiring, and the Balrog may be terrifying, but what of the radiant elf-forest of Lothlorien? And what of the idyllic Shire? Could filmmakers with horror backgrounds bring these things to life as well as they could the scarier parts of the story?

Aragorn. Oh yeah, baby.

Besides, horror is a niche genre, with many conventions attached to it, and very few fans want those conventions attached to the classic story. It makes sense. The last thing a lover of the books needs to see is Gollum leaping on Frodo to the sound of Psycho-style REE! REE! music or buckets of fake blood spurting from Boromir's chest. Or, for that matter, Saruman stuck on a big spike.

Or would that be the worst thing in the world?

If you think about it too hard, it strikes you just how much of the story really would work well in a horror movie. Most of the scenes with Gollum, for instance. And the encounter with the giant spider Shelob. Most of the journey through the dark land of Mordor, filled with paranoia and despair, would fit right into a good suspense flick. And what of the Black Riders, and the Balrog, and the other horrendous monsters that populate Middle Earth? Why, even some scenes that you wouldn't really think of in those terms might benefit from a bit of horror. The lovely elf-queen Galadriel is described as "terrible and worshipful" at one point; perhaps a good scary movie director could convey this better than any other?

Sean Bean as Boromir. Courtesy of lordoftherings.net

Actually, if you think about it too hard, you could find ways to fit parts of the books into every conceivable genre. Obviously the sword and sorcery plants it firmly in the realm of fantasy, but there are also times where it becomes a wrenching drama, a buddy flick, a road movie, a fairy tale, a coming-of-age story, a thriller, a film noir, a musical, a philosophical study, and a historical allegory. (Tolkien denied that last one, though many fans insist it's all about World War II. You decide.) There are even a number of marvelous comic moments scattered throughout. It's striking that although many have worried about Peter Jackson shifting the focus to the horror side of things, no one has thought that he might just as easily shift the focus to the comedy side of things. Whether or not that would be a good thing is another article entirely.

The point is that the original Lord of the Rings has a tendency to draw from many, many genres. It is not that easily categorized. The conventional fantasy world that it so obviously fits into was actually largely defined by the books themselves, so it can't really be declared a simple part of that world. So why should the film adaptation fit into only one genre? Perhaps infusing some horror into the mix makes more sense than directing it as a basic fantasy.

And indeed, that's really what it comes down to. Yes, the movies may end up being slanted in a slightly horrific direction. But isn't that better than the movies being slanted in no direction at all? If a more conventional fantasy-type director like Robert Zemeckis or Steven Spielberg had ended up directing the movies, he would most likely have kept things very neat and very Hollywood. Few risks would have been taken, and in the end he probably would have pissed off the hardcore fans by simplifying things too much. And who knows whether the movies would have been good or not. Peter Jackson and company may be pissing off the fans in some ways, but at least they piss them off by taking risks. Lord of the Rings is so classic that it could easily be done in a completely unoriginal way, but an adaptation like that could never do justice to the source material. Tolkien didn't stay within previously constructed boundaries, so there's really no reason for the filmmakers to do so.

For all the fans, there is a fear of the movies doing something to hurt the memory or the mythology of the books. We worry about people getting the wrong idea about what Lord of the Rings is based on what the films are. But I think that the really alarming thing wouldn't be an adaptation that disrespects the original, unpleasant as that would be, but rather one that respects the original yet is a just plain bad movie. These filmmakers have so much going for them right now! They have the perfect set in beautiful New Zealand, the perfect deal with a large budget and license to make all three movies, and what most fans agree is a near-perfect cast. (Besides Liv Tyler, of course.) It doesn't bother me so much to think that they might change things around a bit. It bothers me to think that they might take all that potential and make crappy movies out of it. An exact adaptation of a book won't guarantee a good movie, but allowing a talented cast and crew to do things their own way makes your chances a hell of a lot better.

Whether the horror background of the filmmakers is ultimately going to help or hurt the films, however, is impossible to predict at the moment. We still have to wait over a year until the movies even start to be released, after all. And no doubt there will be more scandals like the impaled Istari between now and then. But it's hard to imagine that these small inaccuracies could harm the movies more than an across-the-board lack of creativity. Let the dark side come forth, I say.

The 11th Hour would like to extend special thanks to Messiah, jincey, Amyd, irhobbitish, and Iluvatar for offering up their opinions.

We welcome your comments on The 11th Hour and this feature. Please send letters to: letters@the11thhour.com

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