Elbereth
Ranger
~The light of Il?vatar lives still in her face.~
Posts: 190
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Post by Elbereth on Mar 14, 2005 1:06:13 GMT -5
What is with that? I mean, when I read the books, I never pictured Elrond as some mortal-hating guy with a hangup about his daughter marrying and the whole "eyebrows of doom" thing. Maybe the fact that Hugo Weaving played him makes people think about that, but the whole Agent Smith thing is also screwed up.
I, personally, liked him in the books. I liked him in the movies, too, but a lot less than in the books. I always pictured a more fatherly relationship with him and Aragorn, and while I'm not sure how I expected that to play out on film, that certainly wasn't the way I pictured it, with him discouraging the marriage (like before the Fellowship left).
I thought he was a really cool character in the written work - his past, with Earendil and Elwing and Elros, really captivated me; all these mortal/Elven unions really struck me. The fact that Elwing went after Earendil in dove shape after her children were captured by the sons of Feanor was another of those things that set me thinking.
I don't know... am I the only one who thinks that Elrond changed too much?
~ Elbereth
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Post by Varda on Mar 14, 2005 17:07:10 GMT -5
*snorts* No kidding. I thought Elrond was all right in the films, but he seemed way to harsh and strait-laced. The canon Elrond was so much nicer; a smaller part, yes, but with a much better character. That sort of innate wisdom and ancient history, what with him being a part of the Last Alliance as Gil-galad's herald or whatnot really struck me, and the fact that he knew so much was really intriguing. And yes, the whole "Eyebrows of Doom" really bugs me. It just doesn't seem right. It's not something I'd care to see paired with "Elf-lord". I do think that while Hugo did a nice job with what was given him, I wish the script had been less... strict with Elrond. He was a neat character, and his parents and brother (like his ties to Numenor) are really incredible. I'd love to see that captured on film, but then... I guess with the length and depth of the Sil, we'd never be able to do it... ~ Varda
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Post by Lady Elwen on Mar 19, 2005 1:30:27 GMT -5
Elrond... well, he wasn't Elrond in the films, if you get my meaning. He was there, he carried the name, he carried the titles, etc., but he carried none of the persona that I had expected from him.
For some reason, he seemed so much nicer in the books - more to the entire "grace and wisdom of the Eldar" type, as opposed to an almost arrogant, anal elf with a history dating back to before half the characters were in existence, that we furthermore don't really understand.
I really liked him in the books, for all that there wasn't a whole lot on him. And his history for the Sil, and even UT and further, really intrigued me. His past is so... tortuous, and, up to a certain extent, ambiguous, and that's what really had me going.
But then, with the whole "Eyebrows of Doom" thing, I just flipped. It isn't one of the worst things of the film, but... I don't know... Just for the image, perhaps Hugo Weaving was not the best choice, just because of his previous roles, the most prominent being in the Matrix. I've never seen those, and I think that he did an excellent job with the limitations set on his character for LoTR, but I wish that people would get out of the entire Matrix mindset and see Elrond as something else.
And yes, with Aragorn as his forster son, I'd hoped to see a slightly more paternal relationship there. I'm not saying he should have constantly been telling him how great he was and how much he loved him, but I do wish there'd been a little less of the whole bitter tension. Having him tell Aragorn to leave Arwen the way he did? What was up with that? He seemed way too harsh... on both Arwen and Aragorn, and I just didn't get the image I'd hoped for...
~ Elwen
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Elbereth
Ranger
~The light of Il?vatar lives still in her face.~
Posts: 190
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Post by Elbereth on Mar 24, 2005 1:50:06 GMT -5
Glad I'm not the only one who thinks this - I just thought that he really defied the "meaning" behind the wisdom of the Eldar. I'm not sure why, but he did.
The literary version was excellent. It really enhanced that idea and made me appreciate the wisdom even more, much like Galadriel. And, as I've mentioned before, the tumultuous past is just fascinating - I've memorized that lay of Earendil that Bilbo says in Rivendell, long as it is.
And I agree with Varda in saying that though the book's part for him was smaller, it had a much better personality and characterization, from birth to the end of the Third Age. I mean, how many times does he ever smile? People are actually counting!!
~ Elbereth
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Post by Lady Elwen on Apr 23, 2005 22:35:31 GMT -5
Yeah, Elrond's part in the books were smaller, but the smaller part still managed to lend him more depth and wisdom than anything in the films did. I don't know why, but it did. The whole thing with him smiling bugs me as well, but I'm not even going to start.... I've memorized that Lay as well - I think it's lovely. One of my favorite lines is Bilbo's, saying that Aragorn told him to go ahead with that lay if he was 'fool enough to mention the name of Earendil in the House of Elrond'. I always found that so great. He doesn't seem to be too terribly favoring the elves, either... Listen to his lines in the Council scene - or rather, just prior. It kind of makes me wonder... ~ Elwen
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Post by Coriandra on May 27, 2005 20:34:52 GMT -5
I had a problem with the way Elrond seem in the movies. I couldn't help thinking, is this the Elf Bilbo referred to as "kind as summer? Although to be fair, he was fighting for Arwen's eternal life in the movie. If he was harsh, it was obviously because he loved her.
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Post by Lady Elwen on Jun 4, 2005 22:04:13 GMT -5
Yup, "kind as summer" - when a hurricane's blowing through. Elrond... Seemed just a bit too overprotective for a daughter who was over a thousand years old. Yes, parental love etc. but nonetheless.... I suppose it goes both ways, and I have no energy to argue. ~ Elwen
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Post by Coriandra on Jun 4, 2005 23:33:04 GMT -5
At least he didn't lock her in a tower, as Luthien's father did.
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Post by Lady Elwen on Jun 6, 2005 0:11:48 GMT -5
*snorts indelicately* Yeah, no kidding. Arwen didn't have the spell to make a cloak out of her hair, either, or lull the guard to sleep, so where would ME and Gondor have been then?? ~ Elwen
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Lady Adara
Dwarf
.:~:. Adara's Rose .:~:.
Posts: 71
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Post by Lady Adara on Sept 29, 2005 0:46:27 GMT -5
*laughs* Good question; do we want to know the answer? But as for Elrond, he went against canon indefinitely. I don't understand it, to be honest - he was almost the pitome of Elven grace and wisdom and kindness. Stern, yes, but 'tis what comes of managing a kingdom, and, I can assume, living for so long and seeing so much. Quite frankly, he became a rather anal, paranoid person/Elf/whatever with what appears to be a hatred for all mortals and an overly possessive attitude towards his daughter. The lines in the Appendices about him telling Aragorn that he couldn't wed Arwen until his destiny was achieved were, I think, overused and overly twisted to make him this way, and that bothers me. Elrond was supposed to be the Elf that cared, despite the stern outward appearance and all - we have to remember that he lost his wife. And where did all that go? ~ Adara
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