Generally speaking, I didn't expect much in the way of high style from the film's dialogue, so every time I got something nice I was pleasantly surprised; but at key moments where, you know, I happened to know the original lines by heart, and they didn't especially try to reproduce the tone of the original, I can't help but be disappointed.

Yeah, that's pretty much how I feel. There was a lot of high-style dialogue I was just as happy to do without, but I wanted "You stand between me and my lord and kin, and living or dark undead, I will smite you if you touch him."

I suppose that didn't fit as well with the earthier Eowyn of the the movies as it did with the brittle woman of the books.

I'm mostly bitter about the Arwen nonsense. I see the point of what was done at a high level, but it made no sense in the details, and had a lacklustre actress to boot.

As for the dialogue, I'm mostly at peace with how much Tolkien got in. He may read aloud well, but that's not the same thing as speechifying nine hours of film.

My head would have exploded.

Late to the party, but must add my two coppers:

"Begone if you be not deathless! For living or dark undead, I will smite you if you touch him"

Speaking as someone who is only just now reading the books for the first time--I think that if they'd used this whole line in the film, the context would make "smite" work better. As it was, the standalone "I will kill you if you touch him" sounds fine to me, and imagining "I will smite you if you touch him" in Miranda Otto's Eowyn voice just isn't sounding right in my head. YSMV.

"Begone if you be not deathless" sounds a whole lot more confident and kick-ass than what we got. OK, granted, damned scary situation to be in, but in the book, Eowyn was way beyond fear or caring about survival, she was completely in the "one more step and you're dog food" moment. I wanted a bit more skill in the fighting, too.

I wanted a bit more skill in the fighting, too.

ITA--for a kickass chick, she just didn't kick as much ass as she could've...

(nodding vigourously with all points. Yeah, on both sides.)

I love the movies, but there are some really really bad decisions in them. Which in a way may be the zen-type blemish that enhances the overall....if Spielberg had done them, there would be no jarring missteps, but there would be nothing new and breathtaking (also, the Nazi imagery would've been more than just the one scene).

IMHO, most of the missteps were in ROTK. The way Merry and Pippin joined up with Sam and Frodo sucked, as did the interesting physics of "Lean forward, Frodo! Your 80 pounds will affect this several thousand tons of falling stonework!" But otherwise, FOTR was amazingly good. I'm even reconciled to Arwen, although not to Liv.

TTT, I'm still wavering on Theoden's possession. The only things I really really hate from that movie are Slapstick!Gimli and the bullshit with the warg battle and disappearing Aragorn (tho they did give us Arwen the Magical Kissy Horse). The stuff in Osgiliath I hated at the time but am OK with now.

ROTK fell down hard for me, because every scene that was an emotional walloper in the book was changed for the movie, and lessened in the change. Pippin being tempted by the Palantir. Saruman's death scene (missing entirely, and even the one that will be in the EE isn't as meaningful). The Scouring, gone. The Fellowship's despair at the Morannon. Denethor's attempted destruction of himself and his son, his madness in general, and his death. It just comes off silly in the movie. Eowyn's descent into that dark desperate place, and her and Merry's victory over the Witch-King. Sam's choice.

The battles and the beacons were way more emotional than in the books, so I guess that's the trade-off.

watching FotR EE day before yesterday and during the scene at the end when he rescues him from drowning I got all sad thinking about Frodo making Sam leave in RotK

This is a great thing about these movies: the rewatch potential is amazing. I tear up at the Council of Elrond now when Mippin joins up, and I tear up seeing happy healthy Frodo.

I watched the extras on Once Upon a Time in Mexico this afternoon and you know what? I now want one of the LotR dvd sets to have a track w/o dialogue but with soundtrack and soundtrack commentary only.

The Matrix did that, and it was marvellous.

Oddly, Don Juan diMarco had one too, with subtitles. It was really fascinating.

Raquel, it is but a tiny nitpick, but I thought Aragorn had Frodo "lean forward" so as to be better positioned for the jumping and carrying him forward, not to affect the swaying stone staircase, 'cause, like, that would be silly, right?

I definitely thought Aragorn had Frodo lean forward so as to affect the direction of the toppling slab of stone. La la la, not thinking about it too hard...