6 ms·

Can you elaborate a bit on what you mean by the portrayal of Aragorn "falling a bit flat"? Perhaps he was a bit too gruff or something, especially in the Fello

Can you elaborate a bit on what you mean by the portrayal of Aragorn "falling a bit flat"? Perhaps he was a bit too gruff or something, especially in the Fellowship of the Ring? I could possibly see that because in the book he was definitely clear-cut 'rough and ready good-guy'.

scop 7y ago
No problems with his "gruffness" as you term it; that indeed very much captured his Ranger walkings in Fellowship etc. What was a tough pill to swallow was the self-doubt infused into the character. I know I know, character development, relatability, etc etc. But, c'mon, Aragorn is the damned KING and a leader with unflinching will (a contrast to many around him). ... Also, where was the damn standard w/ the White Tree, Elendil when Aragorn arrived at the boat?!
- Pigo 7y ago
  As someone who had not read the books before seeing the movies (I know, I know) it added a lot of context when I found out why the elves were leaving at the end. I remember wondering why everyone was leaving if they had won. I know it was already long, but I wish they'd explained the ring's connection to magic better. It also would have explained why everyone was so willing to take the rings of power in the first place, and given more weight to the somber tone at the end.
m4r35n357 7y ago
murdering an ambassador is a little beyond "falling a bit flat"
- scop 7y ago
  wow, I honestly forgot about that. I'll leave my original comment untouched, but per your reminder let the record show that "falling a bit flat" fell a bit flat.
hoorayimhelping 7y ago
In the books, he's a confident, charismatic leader. He has self doubt when things go wrong, but he knows who he is and he has a plan - reforge Narsil, go to Gondor, unite all men, fight Sauron. In the books, he fights off 4 ringwraiths with nothing but a couple of flaming sticks (he didn't have a sword at this point). He was courage incarnate - he looked into the Palantir knowing Sauron was looking back, and he beat him. He led his men through hell - they literally go to a crypt and recruit a bunch of undead - and it was only his will and his courage that kept all of them except legolas (who doesn't fear the dead) from losing their shit. In the movies he's a blubbering wuss. He whines about how weak he is and how weak men are, he talks about how he doesn't want to lead, he can't lead, blah blah blah. It takes Elrond saying, "you're not getting any elf strange if you don't act like a leader," for him to shape up.
- throwawayhhakdl 7y ago
  Yeah but in the first movie someone accidentally threw a real knife at him, which you can see Aragon (Vigo) unscriptedly deflect it with his sword so I think that notches him up a bunch
- selimthegrim 7y ago
  Elf strange?
  - low_common 7y ago
    Elf pussy aka Arawen
- laurus 7y ago
  Totally agree, glad you brought this up. The actor was good but the script and the direction didn't fit with the original character at all. It felt like a modern take on the role.
- analbumcover 7y ago
  I'm pretty sure Elladan and Elrohir were perfectly comfortable traveling the Paths of the Dead as well.
vkou 7y ago
The problem with Aragorn in the films is that he is... An important protagonist. And Storytelling 101 tells us that an important protagonist needs to have a character arc. The thing is, Aragorn doesn't have a character arc in the LOTR books. His character is largely static. His entire arc was in the backstory, prior to the events of the books. By the time the book starts, he knows exactly what he wants, he knows exactly what he's willing to do to get it, and he does it. The film, in order to give him an arc, muddied those waters. He turns from being a noble, confident, driven man, into a wishy-washy one-foot-in-one-foot-out wandering stoner, who spends most of his time moping, and the rest with no idea of what he wants, or what he should do to get it. It makes for character development, but it is not an accurate portrayal of his book character. Much of his nobility in the books comes from him not having these kinds of hangups - he knows what the right thing to do is, and he does it, and people around him are awed by his conviction and charisma. I usually don't like 'great man' stories, but I have a soft spot for his part in the LOTR books.
- pdonis 7y ago
  > His entire arc was in the backstory, prior to the events of the books. Not only that, but even the character arc in the backstory (the Tale of Aragorn and Arwen) is nothing like the arc portrayed in the movies. Even as a young man, Aragorn is noble, confident, and driven: he is only twenty years old when he returns from great deeds in the company of the sons of Elrond and is told his true name and lineage, and from that point he knows he wants to fulfill that lineage; he is never in any doubt about it. His character arc is about all of the things he has to do and all of the knowledge he has to gain in order to be able to fulfill his lineage when the time comes.
  - vkou 7y ago
    That too. In the film, he hemms and hawws, and can't make up his mind of whether or not he wants to be king, but he never actually articulates a single reason for why he would not want to be one. The film: * Expects the audience fill in the blank for why he doesn't want to be a leader. * Tries to make him more sympathetic as a leader, by turning him into a reluctant leader, as opposed to a guy seizing power because... Something something nobility, something something hereditary monarchy is how things are done in Middle Earth, but doesn't fly super-well for modern audiences..?

scop 7y ago

No problems with his "gruffness" as you term it; that indeed very much captured his Ranger walkings in Fellowship etc. What was a tough pill to swallow was the self-doubt infused into the character. I know I know, character development, relatability, etc etc. But, c'mon, Aragorn is the damned KING and a leader with unflinching will (a contrast to many around him). ... Also, where was the damn standard w/ the White Tree, Elendil when Aragorn arrived at the boat?!

Pigo 7y ago
As someone who had not read the books before seeing the movies (I know, I know) it added a lot of context when I found out why the elves were leaving at the end. I remember wondering why everyone was leaving if they had won. I know it was already long, but I wish they'd explained the ring's connection to magic better. It also would have explained why everyone was so willing to take the rings of power in the first place, and given more weight to the somber tone at the end.

m4r35n357 7y ago

murdering an ambassador is a little beyond "falling a bit flat"

scop 7y ago
wow, I honestly forgot about that. I'll leave my original comment untouched, but per your reminder let the record show that "falling a bit flat" fell a bit flat.

hoorayimhelping 7y ago

In the books, he's a confident, charismatic leader. He has self doubt when things go wrong, but he knows who he is and he has a plan - reforge Narsil, go to Gondor, unite all men, fight Sauron. In the books, he fights off 4 ringwraiths with nothing but a couple of flaming sticks (he didn't have a sword at this point). He was courage incarnate - he looked into the Palantir knowing Sauron was looking back, and he beat him. He led his men through hell - they literally go to a crypt and recruit a bunch of undead - and it was only his will and his courage that kept all of them except legolas (who doesn't fear the dead) from losing their shit. In the movies he's a blubbering wuss. He whines about how weak he is and how weak men are, he talks about how he doesn't want to lead, he can't lead, blah blah blah. It takes Elrond saying, "you're not getting any elf strange if you don't act like a leader," for him to shape up.

throwawayhhakdl 7y ago
Yeah but in the first movie someone accidentally threw a real knife at him, which you can see Aragon (Vigo) unscriptedly deflect it with his sword so I think that notches him up a bunch
selimthegrim 7y ago
Elf strange?
- low_common 7y ago
  Elf pussy aka Arawen
laurus 7y ago
Totally agree, glad you brought this up. The actor was good but the script and the direction didn't fit with the original character at all. It felt like a modern take on the role.
analbumcover 7y ago
I'm pretty sure Elladan and Elrohir were perfectly comfortable traveling the Paths of the Dead as well.

vkou 7y ago

The problem with Aragorn in the films is that he is... An important protagonist. And Storytelling 101 tells us that an important protagonist needs to have a character arc. The thing is, Aragorn doesn't have a character arc in the LOTR books. His character is largely static. His entire arc was in the backstory, prior to the events of the books. By the time the book starts, he knows exactly what he wants, he knows exactly what he's willing to do to get it, and he does it. The film, in order to give him an arc, muddied those waters. He turns from being a noble, confident, driven man, into a wishy-washy one-foot-in-one-foot-out wandering stoner, who spends most of his time moping, and the rest with no idea of what he wants, or what he should do to get it. It makes for character development, but it is not an accurate portrayal of his book character. Much of his nobility in the books comes from him not having these kinds of hangups - he knows what the right thing to do is, and he does it, and people around him are awed by his conviction and charisma. I usually don't like 'great man' stories, but I have a soft spot for his part in the LOTR books.

pdonis 7y ago
> His entire arc was in the backstory, prior to the events of the books. Not only that, but even the character arc in the backstory (the Tale of Aragorn and Arwen) is nothing like the arc portrayed in the movies. Even as a young man, Aragorn is noble, confident, and driven: he is only twenty years old when he returns from great deeds in the company of the sons of Elrond and is told his true name and lineage, and from that point he knows he wants to fulfill that lineage; he is never in any doubt about it. His character arc is about all of the things he has to do and all of the knowledge he has to gain in order to be able to fulfill his lineage when the time comes.
- vkou 7y ago
  That too. In the film, he hemms and hawws, and can't make up his mind of whether or not he wants to be king, but he never actually articulates a single reason for why he would not want to be one. The film: * Expects the audience fill in the blank for why he doesn't want to be a leader. * Tries to make him more sympathetic as a leader, by turning him into a reluctant leader, as opposed to a guy seizing power because... Something something nobility, something something hereditary monarchy is how things are done in Middle Earth, but doesn't fly super-well for modern audiences..?