Hey guys! So I've realized I've made a HUGE MISTAKE with this one, that I swear to you I'm gonna fix for future reviews. For some reason, I completely forgot to mention the things I LIKED about the Rankin Bass Hobbit. From the animation, to Gandalf's portrayal, to its faithful retelling of the book's events. I'm honestly so ANNOYED WITH MYSELF, that I didn't mention any of the positive aspects of the movie, and this review makes it seem like I hated the movie more than I did. I apologize, my take here is PISS POOR. Forgive me.
Maybe update your thoughts on some video game movies cause some good video game movies came out since you made that old top 10 good video game movies and I can totally see an update about them
@@Double-R-Nothing Yeah; wish I could. TH-cam's really picky these days with that sort of thing (don't wanna get demonetized). But I've dialed it back in this one allowing the less harsh swears come through. But words like f-bombs I really better censor. Though I do keep the Patreon versions of uploads uncensored, as they're ad-free anyway.
19:49 the reason they keep switching between Arrowman and Saruman is because the studio thought Saruman and Sauron sounded too similar. The only problem is that they decided to tell Ralph Bakshi this after they recorded half of the movie, so that’s the reason they keep switching names.
@@Suspect_Greenanother dumb thing the studio did: the movie was originally going to be called ‘Lord Of The Rings Part One’ but they scrapped the idea because they said “no one would pay to see half a movie.” And then they went on to never advertise it as a two-parter. Unsurprisingly, people came out of the theater furious to be left with a cliffhanger they were never warned about.
13:08 It should be noted that in the full scene this line is part of a gag: Thranduil, Bard, and Thorin were all about to begin fighting, and when the Goblins appear they all immediately start talking of their age-old bonds and each others' nobility: this causes Bilbo to say "Truly, I do not understand war" and walk off, sitting out the pointless battle entirely.
And, of course, the film was made only a few years after the United States pulled out of Vietnam. It's very noticeable in the climactic scenes that the film is seeking to convey a pointed antiwar message which isn't present in the book in the same way.
Yeah, I thought that juxtaposition was well crafted. It rings true at many levels. I grew up watching the 1977 hobbit in the 90s - I still watch it to this day and love it much more than the PJ trilogy. But i still think i like the trilogy more than most, probably because of watching the animated version so much and my dad reading the hobbit to me 3 times as a child.
@@anthonybernacchi2732 Although, Tolkien hated war a lot. I didn’t read the book, but I think Bilbo just trips and gets knocked out, missing out the entire battle
One of the very first comments I made on the internet, back in the days of the bulletin boards and Usenet, I mentioned Gene Deitch's name in passing when discussing old Tom and Jerry cartoons. Later that day I got a personal email from him saying that someone he knew had seen his name in my posting and passed it along to him and that after being off in Czechoslovakia for the past 35 years he thought it was awfully nice that somebody remembered him...
Wait, Adolf Born is actually a quite beloved Czech illustrator and cartoonist who is mostly famous for his children's cartoon Mach a Šebestová and his illustrations of children's books. The fact that he somehow got involved with the first Hobbit adaptation is wild to me, because it was his first ever work in the film industry by almost 6 years, his first proper shortfilm called What if...? released all the way in 1972. Imagine getting the chance to work on the first ever film adaptation of The Hobbit and then getting stuck in communist Czechoslovakia and making child cartoons nobody outside of your country will know about.
That little 1967 cartoon version of 'The Hobbit' really should have been split into 3 separate cartoons: "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Princess," "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Slag," and "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Characters"
Apparently Sean Astin had seen the Bakshi LotR film before filming Fellowship and was really worried that he'd have to play Sam as an idiot. Boy I bet he was glad to find otherwise haha
When I was in elementary school, it was always a treat when we got to watch the Rankin-Bass Hobbit in class every couple years. It's far from perfect, but it's still a classic.
The Animated Hobbit was magical to me as a child I use to watch it at my Aunts house with my brothers & we were completely into it. I loved the animation, songs & story it took me to another world. I liked Return Of The King also there was nothing else like it as far as I knew. I've tried to watch other animated classics as an adult like Fire & Ice witch don't seem as good but I wasn't child watching but I do think Hobbit was special for me, so was Reteurn OF The King. The movies were so amazing to me when they came out absolutely the best but I'm not much of a reader. I never would have read a book that big so I'm glad they made it into films for people like me.
"Oh, and this is supposed to be the Shire, by the way. Why it looks so bloody dark and depressing, I don't know." Because it's the Finnish version, d'uh!
The Finnish version was originally a stage play, which was very popular and they then wanted to adapt it to TV screens for wider audience. The quality is definitely bad to modern standards, but if you think about it as a play instead of an TV show you can kinda overlook most of the stuff :'D When it was first aired in 1993 it was the coolest thing I had ever seen and I still rewatch it every now and then just to have a good laugh.
Ryhmäteatteri's stage play was absolutely amazing. Best 6 hours of theater I have ever witnessed. I saw it back in 1989. The cast was great and most of them reprised their roles on the TV series Hobitit. Siispä #Torille !
It kinda reminds me of the TV productions of Narnia done by BBC. It took a long time for TV to match the kind of production quality we see in (good) films, I'd say that the streaming media revolution kinda accelerated that.
I actually like the fact that The Rankin/Bass did the Return of the King straight away, it's like a continuation of the Bakshi LOTR with the Hobbit made the whole adaptation series complete.
That was my thinking at the time. I assumed Rankin Bass knew about Bakshi's movie and thought they would just finish the story off. From what I hear now, that wasn't their thinking at all. They had long specialized in one-shot holiday specials and thought this was the best way to cover LOTR in under two hours. The thought of a three movie/special franchise didn't occur to them and that's unfortunate. We would then have a truly full animated version of LOTR.
@@folgore1 "We would then have a truly full animated version of LOTR" Give it time and it almost certainly will happen. The industry has come along leaps and bounds since the really basic virtual production techniques on Avatar 1. In another 5-10 years I could see actors getting full body and facial motion capture all in real time and being able to see what they are reacting to on wall displays like they are using for The Mandalorian.
@@mnomadvfxI seriously doubt it, considering how much Hollywood/the entertainment industry throws animation under the bus and dismisses it for children. The only way I can see it getting greenlit is if someone made a compelling argument and had some impressive storyboard and concept art
@@sawyer6264I'm far from an AI stan. I think it's way over promised and a bubble. But even I think it's within a few years of high quality animation fit for a cartoon movie.
@@folgore1 I think everybody but them thought this. THat's precisely how I viewed the movies as a kid ( even won some drama contests doing the RB version of Gandalf ). Because the three films worked so well together, at telling the main points of the story even if the look and tone differed, most, including myself, figured RB got the rights and said "well, we did Hobbit, no point in doing Fellowship and Two Towers since Ralph pretty well covered that, we'll just finish up with ROTK." I think, for years, some WB DVD sets even put all three together as a package.
Lots of the songs in the Rankin Bass version were also taken directly from the book including Goblin Town, 15 Birds and the Elf song when they arrive in Rivendell. That gives the Rankin Bass version major points in my book and the interaction with Smog is perfect
Boorman's script is absolutely insane. Besides Galadriel and Frodo having sex, he also had a scene with Aragon and Boromir passionately making out. Also, at the Council of Elrond, the history of The Ring is portrayed in dance on the table... with a dog dancing one of the main parts. It just gets weirder and weirder until a lot of it has nothing to do with the original books. A lot of it is supposed to be symbolic, but it's just confusing and really strange.
I love the Rankin/Bass films. Although they aren't perfect, the animation, voices, music and overall treatment of the story is so incredibly charming and detailed. I like the Rankin/Bass Hobbit better than Peter Jackson's treatment and Return of the King is still fun, even if it isn't on the same level. I won't argue that Ian McKellen didn't do an amazing job as Gandalf...but when I think of the character, John Huston's voice is the one I hear. I also think the Rankin/Bass Gollum is far more intimidating, terrifying and monstrous.
This nerd likes the PJ version of the Hobbit better… that tells you enough about him on an intellectual level. He clearly read the Cliff’s Notes, not JRRT actual books.
@@teethhuller8275 He did a better job than Jackson. You act like you read the books. Ya know Gandalf is supposed to have "great bushy eyebrows that stick out beyond the rim of his misshapen hat". Jackson didn't put Gandalf in his movies...just some tired old man.
24:00 Actually, Shelob was in the second book, not the third book. It was actually the Ralph Bakshi film that gave Peter Jackson the idea to end his adaptation of The Two Towers on the cliffhanger of Gollum taking the Hobbits to Shelob, since that is a deviation from the books.
@@FaithCrisisSurvivor it's not very accurate to the source material, but I found it pretty solid. Tolkien didn't even want to split the novel in 3 books, so the choice where to start and finish each one of the 3 parts is not really that important.
another point to consider: in the Two Towers book the battle in Isengard is narrated from start to finish after the battle in Helm's Deep, so even if Jackson's film ends in the half of the second book that doesn't mean that the Two Towers only adapted half of the book.
I will NEVER forget the Rankin-Bass LOTR/Hobbit movies. Those had me reading the books as a kid when the vast majority of people had no idea that they existed.
That is a good result. Doubtlessly the version that your mind conjured up while reading the books tops all adaptations, including the one by Peter Jackson. Reading can incite such a creative process.
The Rankin Bass version of Smaug, while comical seeing the dragon look and act more like a draconic cat, delivered the "I am fire, I am death" speech far far better than Peter Jackson's Smaug ever could.
That is the power of Richard Boone's voice and talent. Same guy who played Paladin in "Have Gun Will Travel" if you know that show. I sort of liked the feline/wolfish look of Smaug. It had a certain uniqueness to it.
@@corporateturtle6005 I read the Hobbit recently and Smaugs floodlight eyeballs were seemingly an interpretation of how Bilbo felt the dragons gaze was. Poetic speaking made visual.
The Rankin/Bass adaptation is what got me to discover fantasy/sword & sorcery and reading Tolkien. I was 8 years old. Respectfully, I think your criticism of it misses the forest for the trees. It was made for children about a novel best suited for children. It captures the heart and spirit of the novel so much better than the Peter Jackson version; much more faithful in capturing the essence if not always the details; but even the details are paid proper homage (note the many songs are actual lyrics from Tolkien's own poems/songs in the book). John Huston has the perfect narration voice, as Gandalf. The message about an unassuming everyman homebody who undergoes personal growth and change- the reluctant hero- and about war and peace are excellent. Instead of focusing on the quick turnaround of the 3 kings, note how moving the words are between Thorin and Bilbo upon his deathbed; how beautiful the scene is when Bilbo climbs the tree in Mirkwood Forest to find sunlight and butterflies; and the lyrics of the theme song. It's all well done. And for 1970s animation, the Japanese artwork/animation has a very cool, ancient look.
The Rankin/Bass version is the closest to the actual book compared to Jackson's nonsensical movie with over the top action sequences and inclusion of side stories that were to pad the damn thing out to 3 films.
I often find myself wishing John Huston was alive in the age of audio books. I would love to hear an audio book version of the series with him reading it!! Also with you on the songs. It's cool that some are actual lyrics from the books and they help capture the feel of each scene. I realized later on that Thurl Ravenscoft (main singing voice in How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966) and Tony the Tiger was one of the voices in the faster songs! He's the really low voice in The Goblin Song and Fifteen Birds! You can really hear it in Fifteen Birds when he says "Bake and toast em, fry and roast em..."
@@DocBrown086Huston was an amazing director as well. Kind of fascinating to think someone with such an amazing voice and acting was mostly working behind the camera. His filmography and breadth of work is incredible.
The Rankin Bass Hobbit was judged a bit harshly I think, since it wasn't judged in context. It was a Rankin Bass production, it was aimed squarely at children. And it did a great job at it. As a seventies kid that watched it when it was new, I absolutely loved it. There was nothing like that at the time.
I think the author is too young to appreciate it for what it was. In the 70's adults would typically change the channel when a cartoon came on. But they would leave this one on and everyone enjoyed it, both adults and children. The style was so different from the typical animated shows (like Popeye, Tom & Jerry and Disney). Also it was TV friendly for the 1970s (loads of restrictions then), hand drawn and told the story quite well. I love Jackson's work very much but this is a great work of art.
I watched it in like 1999, maybe 2000? When my grandma took notice of me reading Harry Potter, she bought The Hobbit for me to watch and it was my first introduction to Tolkien, and I’m grateful for it. The animation, music, and voice acting are all amazing. I even really love the design for Gollum.
The Bass version of the Hobbit is awesome! The animation is beautifully water colored, and in spite it's campiness the film gives you a feeling of otherworldliness that you just don't get from the Jackson version.
Agreed ! They had to rush through some parts because it was a TV Movie , back when there were 3 Channels . But it was absolutely true to the story , unlike Jackson's Hobbit , uh , Trilogy .
Exactly! The only thing that always confused me were kinda goblinish looking elves which were supposed to be beautful. Nevertheless love that one, true classic indeed.
Its fun seeing these different interpretations of Tolkien's world. As much as I love the Jackson trilogy, an unfortunate side effect is that its become the template not only for the look of Tolkien and his world but for most of fantasy. A lot of the joy of previous adaptations is just how different they all look.
Yeah, the Jackson films definitely set a standard that a lot of films try to poorly mimic. Some of these versions of LOTR were tough to get through, but it was at least interesting to see what they did differently.
Mm. i was thinking the same thing. Older fantasy designs before they'd become consistent and cemented in pop culture. I don't know how much of it was Jacksons LoTR films and how much of it was Warhammer Fantasy. A surprising amount of things copying Tolkien are actually copying the specific way Warhammer Fantasy copied Tolkien. Which is why Tolkiens orcs and elves don't really resemble the standard fantasy version of them all that much. I think they might have completely dominated the way Dwarfs are depicted as well. You know how Dwarfs never use spears in anything despite that being something that'd be really useful for them? In fact, they only ever use hammers, axes, and maybe picks? Warhammer Fantasy is why. Their Dwarfs specifically only use weapons that double as tools. Every other Dwarf depiction is copying that trope, but usually doesn't have the in universe reason why.
@@ASpaceOstrich Tolkien's dwarves are complately unique. In mythology they were just elves who lived underground (also known as 'dark elves'), whilst in medieval and later folk tales they were usually tiny, and rarely interested in anything apart from mining and punishing or helping human miners. Basically every 1m20 dwarf who does any sort of warfare is purely Tolkienesque.
@@jeremiaas15 You've missed my point. Tolkien absolutely redefined modern fantasy. But his specific versions of the redefined modern fantasy are actually quite unusual, as the "generic fantasy" versions of things like Elves and Dwarfs aren't copying Tolkien directly. They're copying the first wave of things to copy Tolkien. Very notably Warhammer Fantasy. Warhammer Fantasy only had one even vaguely original thing in it. The Skaven. But the specific way Warhammer Fantasy copied earlier fiction became the standard that everything else is often based on. Tolkien popularised Elves as forest dwelling pointy eared high tech artisans. Warhammer Fantasy is the reason those else are always such massive assholes. Same goes for other fantasy races. Its responsible for green Orcs, scottish Dwarfs, and many more things. And its influence on Dwarf aesthetic design is huge.
26:00 This is how it goes in the book, Gollum dances around in delight and trips and falls. The idea is that Evil always destroys itself. I would argue that Frodo fighting him for it does this better as Frodo is under the influence as well by this point, the ring might have survived with just Gollum but by corrupting Frodo as well it causes the fight that leads to its destruction. Dare I say the people who prefer Gollum just tripping are those that prefer book accuracy.
I think that the book version has another layer as well. The ring is just too powerful, being so close to it's maker, that it's influence can't be resisted anymore. Frodo is unbelievably resilient to make it so far, when everyone else fails by owning it for a fraction of that time or thousands of miles away from Mordor. But in the end even he is not strong enough, even he fails. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Even the purest of hearts will be corrupted eventually, noone is immune to such immense power. Frodo carried it to Mount Doom, but even he can't have enogh willpower to cast it into the fire. And this corruption doesn't end with his finger bitten off. Just like everyone else is effected by even the presence of the ring (Bilbo, Boromir, Gollum, Gandalf, Galadriel, even Aragorn, Faramir and Sam), Frodo is still under it's spell. He can't just switch and destroy the ring with Gollum (and arguably himself). And to fight for the ring, to get it back also doesn't make more sense. He is exhausted and had his finger bitten off. He has immense pain (that part was acted brilliantly by Elijah Wood) and he just wouldn't have the strenght after all the ordeals and a quite heavy bloodloss (also remember, that he couldn't drink enough water for a long time, so he's also heavily dehydrated) to just get up and wrestle Gollum. And even if he would get some kind of adrenalin rush or the corrupting force of the ring is just that powerful, that I don't think he would attack Gollum the way he does, because that would be too dangerous for the precious ring (as it is proven by Gollums fall). So yeah... It's not just "Because that's how it's written in the book" - I think the way Tolkien wrote it has a lot of deep meaning and I think he thought a lot about how to find the most consistent and meaningful way to destroy the ring. I kinda imagine it like how Aang in ATLA spends day and night to find a solution to defeat Ozai without killing him even though everyone tries to convince him, that this is the one and only effective way to end the war. Simply casting the ring into the fire or falling tragically only to be rescued - that's the Hollywood solution, the one that seems the obvious one. The scene is not bad - it's acted well and creates dramatic tension, but it just lost so much layers of meaning from what was a so much more well thought out way to end the whole threat once and for all.
Tbh i prefer the book Version for the sheer Slapstick Energy of it all. But i also Loved gimli dragging Legolas to Go Sightseeing in the caves of Helms deep because - SCREW THIS WAR, THERES SHINY ROCKS TO LOOK AT
I prefer the interpretation that Illuvatar didn't literally push Gollum into the fire, but rather subtly orchestrated the events that would lead to that eventuality. He so rarely intervenes directly, and this just doesn't seem like something that would warrant him to do so. If Illuvatar really wanted, he could have just destroyed Sauron and the Ring altogether at any time. I think it was essentially the ring itself, and Frodo's curse upon Gollum should he betray Frodo. Gollum swore by the ring to serve his master, and Frodo told him the ring would keep him to his word, because it is treacherous, and created to dominate the wills of others. Later, Frodo said (prophesied?) that if Gollum touched him again he'd be cast into the fire, and that's exactly what happens.
Andy Serkis’s portrayal of and voice for Gollum/Sméagol and the character design is so iconic that when you go back and look at the various designs and voices the character has had in the pre-Peter Jackson adaptations, it’s pretty jarring. I know not everyone might agree but I think the visual design of Gollum in Ralph Bakshi’s animated version from 1978 might have been a big inspiration for the version we all know and love.
@@FaithCrisisSurvivor IMO he sounds like Gurgi from "The Black Cauldron", but I doubt Andy Serkis knew about it since it's so obscure for a Disney movie.
There are several visual references to Bakshi's LOTR in Jackson's films, especially in Fellowship. Gollum is described as having dark skin in the books.
Cheers to Sauron's bard brigade for their groovey disco number "Where There's a Whip There's a Way". If Sauron had only had more bards, he might have won.
I personally like the Rankin Bass movies. Not as good as the Peter Jackson, but feels a bit closer to Tolkein's work, where the dialogue and narrative can be VERY flowery and poetic, mirroring epic poems. It can be a bit grading at times to read through when they're like just walking or looking around a house. But when it reaches the more climactic moments, it works really well.
A fun example of a Non Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings project is that in between the release of Fellowship of the Ring and Two Towers, a game based on Fellowship of the Ring was released, except it was based on the book and not the film. I'm like 90% sure that it was done on purpose to confuse fans of the movie (I know that's why we owned it). Funny enough, a game based on Jackson's Two Towers was released a month later and it was way better.
Rule with the LOTR games is, if its based on the book licence (like Gollum), its probably not very good. The movie games were rocky too, but genuinely, are of better quality. Compare War of the Ring to Battle For Middle Earth
@@DeadManSinging1 I rather like War of the Ring. Has it's charm being based on the Battle Realms engine. I also appreciate as Mordor, you can get ALL NINE Black Riders out. Which is cool to pull off.
I was seven when that movie the hobbit came out on TV and we immediately started playing. The hobbit had never heard of the Lord of the rings cause we were seven. It is amazing. I still watch it today I have a VHS of it and a DVD of it. Loving memories of it. And it’s cooler now that I have a sword to go with it.
The rank and bass, animated hobbit movie is an excellent introduction to sword and sorcery for children. But it is good enough for an adult to watch with them and it’s still enjoying..
I really like the animated Rankin Bass Hobbit film. I watch every year after I reread the Hobbit. It’s not perfect like you said, it is rushed as hell and Beorn and the Arkenstone were cut which is a shame, but I still enjoy it. I really love Gollum’s portrayal in it and I personally don’t mind the songs.
Ah, the cursed Finnish Lord of the Rings adaptation. What I really like about it, is that it had quite an ensemble cast in Finnish standards. A lot of the actors are well-known even today and they sort of represent the classically theatre trained actors. Bilbo's actor is even internationally known for his role as Ahti in the video games Control and Alan Wake 2. And in true Finnish fashion, you get a glimpse of Gollum's balls in episode 7.
My dad had a VHS copy of the Rankin/Bass Hobbit and my mom absolutely would not allow me to watch it. I always thought it was because it was either too scary or too “adult”, (wink wink), but looking back, I think it was because she didn’t want me to become too nerdy. Well JOKES ON HER!
I don't know if this has been said before but the 1978 Lord of the Rings wasn't intended to be an animated film! It was originally going to be live action but stuff happened as they were filming and they ended up going with animation, rotoscope-ing most of the stuff they had already filmed and color grading what they couldn't rotoscope, adding in fully original animation in other places
In the books, Gollum dances on the brink of the crack of doom and then falls in (as shown in the R-B version). I believe that Tolkien states in his letters that no mortal would have been capable of destroying the ring. An act of God was necessary. An act of God that was made possible by Bilbo and Frodo's earlier acts of mercy towards Gollum.
I remember reading this, but in a sense. "God" doesn't exist in Middle-earth! or I'm sure He does but no one knows about Him? So in the books the ring is destroyed partially by an act of kindness on the Hobbits part, and partially by an act of revenge by the ring itself as Gollum broke a promise that he swore on the ring. In a sense, it was meant to be destroyed. In the movies... perhaps the ring was hoping (if such an object can hope) that Frodo would jump in and save it... but Frodo after looking down at the floating ring, chose to take Sam's hand instead. so ... Frodo chose Samwise over the lure of the ring? only then did the ring sink into the lava. It was actually a pretty clever decision by Peter Jackson.
@@ebonypegasus9864 Eru Iluvatar certainly exists (see the Silmarillion), but is not discussed much, if at all in the other books. In Lord of the Rings, we do hear of the Valar Elbereth Gilthoniel (to use the Elvish name that Frodo used to drive back the attack of the Nazgul on Weathertop - she is Varda in the Silmarillion).
@@markpolo97 I know who Iluvatar is but was more referring to the real God, not a fantasy one. You had said "an act of God" not "an act of Iluvatar" or "an act of the Valar" so I felt a bit confused? Having said all that I still do understand what you mean. You meant "Divine intervention". Personally, I like both the books version and the movies version of how the ring is destroyed. they both have value. Gandalf even said "There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides that of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, in which case you were also meant to have it." so he knew something divine was going on.
Now I'm going to have that damn "Where there's whip" song stuck in my head! Seriously though, its excellent to see you back. Been watching since your review of the Phantom Menace game 10 goddamn years ago! I was in middle school then, and now I'm here as a full-blown adult getting a job at Intel, and yet I've never stopped watching your stuff. Great job staying entertaining, man. I bought Persona 5 because of your review, so there's over a hundred hours of my life changed because of your stuff haha
As a swedish person i feel absolutely embarrassed at SVT's lack of respect for the source material and their viewers. I remember thinking i hated Tolkien's work just because my only impression was this soulless low budget adaptation with a narrator who couldn't sound more bored if he tried.
You know, I actually like the Rankin/Bass adaptations of The Hobbit and The Return of the King. There is just something about the animation that reminds me of those fantasy illustrations you see in classic children's storybooks. I can't really explain it, but it just does for some reason.
Honestly i hate when people criticize things when they didn't live through that era. When The Lord Of The Rings animated film came out, it became kind of an underground cult film, because it was so different, and back then animation didnt have computers, and it was at the time when Disney had pretty much lost it's magic from the previous era. So Lord Of The Rings was sure, full of faults, but Gandalf spinning around was 100% in character for Gandalf if you follow how he is, he often dramatizes while telling stories, so that spin was not 'laughable' to most people who watch it. It was about magic, and about some power greater than some Hobbit village had ever encountered. The scene I remember many people who lived through that time remember, and tell me about wsa the scene when they first hide from the black rider, the bugs crawling out of the ground all over them, while they are trying to stay quite was what left such a strong memory for everyone I know who watched it back then as we kid, etc. The problem with judging a film like thatso many years later is that you have no idea what films it was competing with, including animated features, and you are judging it after having watched a film like Peter Jackson's Lord Of The Ring, so many of the best original ideas that were in Ralph Bakshi's film, so you having watched Jackson's film later, you are not even aware that some of the impact that that film was stollen from Bakshi's film, and you can't possible watch Bakshi's film after and give it a fair critic, because you are attributed all those good ideas to Jackson rather then Bakshis film. I see this all the time. If you perhaps had seen Bakshi's film first, then watched Peter Jackson's I might have some respect for you opinion, but watching them not in the order they were created is a recipe for incredible cognitive bias, and much of it will be unconscious...
People think the Soviet Union collapsed as a result of internal and geopolitical failures. It actually committed suicide out of shame for creating Khraniteli.
Oh, but I wouldn't say it was too bad. My impression is that it was intended for live theaters, which would explain part of the way the hobbits looked and acted - the viewers in the last row must be able to see also. I also came to the opinion that the look and dress of the hobbits was a deliberate decision. They were intended to look peasantish. Which they were, canon. Looking at the elves, wardrobe was capable of making more stylish dress. But I was a bit surprised that nobody came jumping in to the hobbits' sleeping-room in the middle of the night, shouting _noro lim, Asfaloth_ . cheers! / CS
Crazily enough, the 1977 Rankin-Bass version of The Hobbit was my introduction to Middle Earth. For perspective, I was born in the latter half of the 90s, which makes it all the more baffling that I got introduced to Tolkein's stories that way, and not through Jackson's trilogy.
Damn, that kinda hurts to hear. I kinda don't want to believe that. I mean, surely the man himself must've been somewhat impressed with it. Considering the only adaptation he ever saw, was that god awful Snyder one. In comparison, the Jackson version would've blown his mind.
I like to believe Christopher was more protective of his father’s legacy, and Tolkien himself would be in awe of how much love was put into the production and music even if he had reservations about some changes.
Maybe he would have appreciated the visual (New Zeland), but it terms of the story, no : pratically all characters have a different personnality, some events really diminish Frodo espacially (Book version : Frodo standing up to Nagul at the Weathertops and at the Bruinen, he never distrust Sam over Gollum, standing up to Shelob he gains instantly Faramir's respect by being educated and assertive etc), also battles take way too much space compared to the Books etc. These are great movies, and a beautiful introduction to the Legendarium, but there are not Tolkienians at all.
I loved the Rankin/Bass version of The Hobbit as a kid and that Gollum continues to be my favorite version. Serkis was brilliant of course, but that animated version is so creepy and menacing that I can't help but love it.
Haha, yeah, there's a few words here that would take a whole new meaning if they became a thing stateside. Always find it funny when Americans find out that trump is British slang for fart.
I always thought "slag" meant something similar to "dross"? It's definitely a term from mining and geology: There's volcanic slag (scoria), and the useless stuff that remains behind in a furnace when metal is refined from ore and purified... slag being the impurities that stay behind and have to be skimmed off the molten metal or scraped out of the furnace afterwards.
One more thing about Rankin/Bass Return of the King: The whole sequence where Sam and Frodo dress up as orcs (where there's a whip there's a way) inspired Jackson because if I'm not mistaken, it's not in the books. But it's in Jacksons movie.
@@ailon92 And the sequence in the book includes the line, "Where there's a whip, there's a will," which the film slightly changed to get the first line of the iconic song.
The reason why Frodo is so resilient to evil is because he doesn't fight or kill. Because if you kill the ring would have a much easier time corrupting you!
Well, Sagan om ringen (1971) was basically a brief voice-narrated synopsis of The Lord of the Rings presented in a video of non-speaking live actors superimposed over hand-drawn backgrounds, inspired by a music album inspired by the novel, financed by a Swedish government (taxpayer) funded budget of about one millionth of Peter Jackson's budget, so it might compare favorably with Peter Jackson's movie trilogy in terms of quality per dollar (or kroner). 😏 Plus extra points for authenticity in being the only Lord of the Rings movie that correctly included Glorfindel's part in the story. 😛
Love the new content more styled around film history. I’m a huge LOTR fan and it’s refreshing to learn stuff about it that I never knew. A lot of work went into this vid and it shows
As a Finn, it's nice that people form other parts of the world talk about our little low budget LOTR miniseries. Haven't seen it yet so that's on my watching list.
I also watched some of it as a kid and hated it. I was a fantasy nerd and a hard-core Tolkien fan and the tv series felt like a travesty. The dull, depressing atmosphere, the awful jazz score, the overacting... ugh. Not a fond memory.
I worked at a place that sold movies called Suncoast. Warner Brothers released The Hobbit, Lord Of The Rings and Return Of The King on DVD. I was looking forward to Lord Of The Rings because I'm a huge Ralph Bakshi fan. I remembered it's release date , 9/11/01. My girlfriend and I bought them before the store closed for the day at noon.
It was the 1977 TV special "The Hobbit" that turned me on to high fantasy. The most memorable part of it for me was Richard Boone's voice acting as the voice of Smaug.
I never knew about the Finnish version, and I’m so glad I found out now. It looks exactly like what I’d expect from Finland and that song is brilliant.
Yeah, the Finnish version is worth a look at least. It's an interesting take and Frodo's song and dance number is so good! Best skip the Gollum twerking scene though. I can't believe I just typed that.
@@Suspect_Green the Finnish version/their theatre stage play had an actual soundtrack released and most of it is online. Some of those songs are weirdly fitting, like Durinin aika (Age of Durin). Sounds like something a Dwarf would sing with a hammer in his hand while being nostalgic and melancholic. Some of the songs are... weird in execution, even though they all come straight from the book.
@@Suspect_Green I like Hobitit a lot. (Several of the Trivia and Goof items on the IMDb pages for its individual episodes were my contributions -- which is also true of Rings of Power Season 1, as it happens.) I used to have a recurring dream that there was another movie version of Lord of the Rings that I had never seen. Since learning that Hobitit exists and watching it, I've never had that dream again -- Hobitit fulfilled that unconscious desire. Also, the first time I saw Hobitit I didn't realize it was available with English subtitles, so I watched it without them. I was amazed at how much of the story I was able to follow from having read the book and watched the other movies.
The Rankin Bass version of Return of the King wouldn't have shown Shelob since in the books, the encounter with her was in Two Towers. The Jackson version changed that
Ahhh; I didn't realize that. My bad! I always assumed Shelob was in the RotK book, as Bakshi's film covers the two towers too and he didn't include Shelob in his movie either.
@@Suspect_Green The Two Towers book covers up to Pippin and Gandalf riding off to Gondor and Frodo's unconscious body being carried off by the orcs leaving Sam alone with the ring.
2:15 "Wasn't really kid-friendly enough for the Disney brand"?! All of the animated Disney films (the majority of which are G-rated for some reason) that either featured or implied death to certain characters: *"ARE WE A JOKE TO YOU?!"*
Yeah, Disney definitely has its dark elements. Bambi no doubt scarred children for life (always reminded of the Animaniacs episode where Skippy balls his eyes out at it).
@@Suspect_Green Heck, I'm still surprised that none of their past Disney animated films (from 1937 onwards) were re-rated to a "PG" in today's society.
Can't forget when Clayton snapped his own neck after hanging himself on vines while trying to murder Tarzan, all the while Tarzan tried to prevent it from happening just moments before. Yup. A very kid-friendly Disney movie history moment.
@@Xilivian Don't forget about Ursula from *"The Little Mermaid"* who got stabbed by Eric with the broken bowsprit of a shipwreck, which might have been inspired from the ending of Universal's *"JAWS: The Revenge"* (In the original Theatrical Ending - which was seen in old TV airings on AMC - Papa Jaws just gets stabbed to death by the bowsprit, before they changed it to having him get stabbed & then blow up for some reason in the International release, which had been used for all home video releases).
Once again another fantastic video and actually it’s given me an idea for a video you could do as a subsequent sequel to this one: All adaptations of The Chronicles of Narnia. To this date, there has been 4 attempts to adapt this fantasy franchise (a lost television adaptation from the 1960s, the 1979 animated film of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, then the BBC adapting four of the books into a 3 season television series. And of course, the films by Disney and Fox from 2005-2010). And with a fifth adaptation now in the works by Greta Gerwig (Director of Barbie) for Netflix, I thought this might be a subject that’s right up your alley Suspect.
Yeah, I think this could be a good idea to do for several franchises, looking at ALL the adaptations it got (including the lesser known ones). If this video does well, a Chronicles of Narnia one could be good to do when Gerwig's version comes out.
As a Czech person, I saw the art style of the first, horrible version of the Hobbit and thought, wait a minute, I recognise the style. The artist, Adolf Born, illustrated Czech children's books and cartoons. For example, he illustrated cartoons about Mach and Šebestová, approximately 9-year-old kids who have a magic phone. Here is the only episode that I truly remember, where the kids shrink themselves to microscopic proportions and fight germs in their classmate's throat: th-cam.com/video/MKi6GPiC_pc/w-d-xo.htmlsi=64JY9osg-HvlTfu2 As you can tell, I saw it as a kid and am still weirded out.
10:04-10:11 R.I.P. The main antagonists of Mel Brooks' *"Robin Hood: Men in Tights",* Roger Rees as "Mervin, the Sheriff of Rottingham" (1944-2015) and Richard Lewis as "Prince John" (1947-2024)
@@Suspect_Green Yes, but it literally took them decades to finally redo it, even after various Transformers cartoons were using slag as a substitute swear word. They even acknowledge it in Transformers Animated, where the Triceratops Dinobot was renamed Snarl and Scrapper remarks "Well I was gonna call him Slag but I was worried he'd take it as an insult." and in the IDW comics they called him Slag for half the run until 2014 where the name change happened, with the in-universe reason being Arcee tells him that his name is offensive.
Oh hey, thanks for checking out my translation of Sagan om ringen! It took me a few months, so I'm glad to see it getting some exposure. If nothing else, I think it's worth checking out for the music alone - it's quite good imo.
I just found your stuff again after about 10 years. When we were teens, me and my friends used to laugh our ass off at your Two Towers review video and we still reference many of your jokes from that video. They have become some classic inside jokes for us. I got the same old laughs out of this video and immediately subscribed. So glad you are still doing you!
I am so glad you brought up the trippiest S & M anthem ever committed to animated film: 🎵 Where there's a whip (whuppish) There is a way 🎶 Dude, that is the ONLY THING I remember from any of The Lord of The Rings adaptations. (And I saw it back in '85!)
_Where there's a whip there's a will, my slugs_ LOTR Part Three (book VI) pp 255-256 Tolkien's american authorised version, Ballantine Books The lord of the lash, indeed. That song has such a catchy beat that it amazes me. I almost wish I had a whip in my hand... cheers! / CS
Great to see you back, Ross! I missed you. I've been watching you for years. Since the Star Wars ten things video from I want to say 2013. Certainly simpler times with the series. Your videos always cheer me up. I can't wait to see this one. By the way, are you excited or are you also like me cautiously optimistic about Legends Pokémon Z-A?
Thanks! And Legends ZA I'm intrigued by. But this is Game Freak we're talking about. It's not gonna be a super AAA polished experience. Still, Legends Arceus was the best Pokemon game of recent memory (albeit hampered by performance issues and never-ending reams of text getting in the way of the good stuff). Hope it's good.
@@Suspect_Green No problem. I couldn't agree more. Here's hoping it will surprise us since it's getting an extra year of development and they're trying to get it right instead of rushing it out like it feels like has been the case too often with Switch released Pokémon games.
The reason for gollum falling on his own in the animated return of the king is because he falls on his own in the book. In the book gollum takes the ring, dances and trips.
I love Ralph Bakshi. His movies have moments of straight up surreal transcendence! I really wish his LOTR was given a proper budget and better! (or at least finished!)
When I watched the Lost In Adaptation video for Die Hard, Dominic Noble’s summary of how Nothing Lasts Forever became the movie that we all know and love reminded me strongly of the start of your review of Die Hard, and now it feels like everything has come full circle with you telling the story of the first ever Lord Of The Rings adaptation in a way which I find very reminiscent of Dominic Noble’s video on the subject, with you even reacting to Smaug’s name change with the exact same words.
Yeah, Dominic Noble is British too right? Me and him probably had the same reaction upon hearing slag, haha. I can't believe they thought that was a good idea.
12:30 this version of The Hobbit I like the lot. One of the reasons is the eagles talk. I was really looking forward to the live action Hobbit having talking eagles.
The 1977 "The Hobbit" has a special place in my heart. I like to sing that "Greatest Adventure" song when a friend is going to the airport/starting a new job/etc.
As a Finn, I'm obliged to say sorry for that "Hobitit". I don't know how they got some of the best actors of the time in Finland for *that* one... Like Gollum, who was played by Kari Väänänen!
I think it has some charm with all the shittiness of it all. I love how Väänänen says "Aarre!" as Golum, it's the only way I pronounce it whenever like playing RE4 or something. Torille vai Hobittilaan?
I had the records of the Rankin Bass The Hobbit and The Return of The King, which I listened to alot when I was a child. I can never forget those songs or Bilbo's strange speech patterns. Thanks for reminding me, again.
Hey guys! So I've realized I've made a HUGE MISTAKE with this one, that I swear to you I'm gonna fix for future reviews. For some reason, I completely forgot to mention the things I LIKED about the Rankin Bass Hobbit. From the animation, to Gandalf's portrayal, to its faithful retelling of the book's events. I'm honestly so ANNOYED WITH MYSELF, that I didn't mention any of the positive aspects of the movie, and this review makes it seem like I hated the movie more than I did. I apologize, my take here is PISS POOR. Forgive me.
So far, my only note is to un-bleep the swearing. I wanna hear every dirty syllable. Love your videos, man.
Maybe touch on Back to the Future movies, tv shows, games, and parodies of them like Doctor Who and Rick & Morty.
Maybe update your thoughts on some video game movies cause some good video game movies came out since you made that old top 10 good video game movies and I can totally see an update about them
Whenever you upload it makes my day and makes me laugh you are one of my faves on TH-cam 😂😂
@@Double-R-Nothing Yeah; wish I could. TH-cam's really picky these days with that sort of thing (don't wanna get demonetized). But I've dialed it back in this one allowing the less harsh swears come through. But words like f-bombs I really better censor. Though I do keep the Patreon versions of uploads uncensored, as they're ad-free anyway.
Two songs stuck in my head... "Where there's a whip there's a way" and "Froooodoooo, of the niiiiiiine fingers!"
Ah yes, FROOODOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OF THE NIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINE FINGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!
And the Ring of DOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!
@@noahfessenden6478WE DON'T WANNA GO TO WAR TODAY BUT THE LORD AND MASTER SAYS NAY NAY NAY!!
I hear it in Tomar and Chris's voice from OneyPlays now, I've got brainrot 😂
Bearer of the Ring was good too
19:49 the reason they keep switching between Arrowman and Saruman is because the studio thought Saruman and Sauron sounded too similar. The only problem is that they decided to tell Ralph Bakshi this after they recorded half of the movie, so that’s the reason they keep switching names.
Ahh; studio meddling at its finest. Ironically, their decision ended up making it more confusing.
@@Suspect_Greenanother dumb thing the studio did: the movie was originally going to be called ‘Lord Of The Rings Part One’ but they scrapped the idea because they said “no one would pay to see half a movie.” And then they went on to never advertise it as a two-parter. Unsurprisingly, people came out of the theater furious to be left with a cliffhanger they were never warned about.
Too similar names is just bloody funny to me, seems very American.
@@JoakimOtamaaH O L L Y W O O D
@@theobrianbros1168the studio is stupid
13:08 It should be noted that in the full scene this line is part of a gag: Thranduil, Bard, and Thorin were all about to begin fighting, and when the Goblins appear they all immediately start talking of their age-old bonds and each others' nobility: this causes Bilbo to say "Truly, I do not understand war" and walk off, sitting out the pointless battle entirely.
Guess it just went right over his head because it was a great bit imo 😂
And, of course, the film was made only a few years after the United States pulled out of Vietnam. It's very noticeable in the climactic scenes that the film is seeking to convey a pointed antiwar message which isn't present in the book in the same way.
Yeah, I thought that juxtaposition was well crafted. It rings true at many levels.
I grew up watching the 1977 hobbit in the 90s - I still watch it to this day and love it much more than the PJ trilogy. But i still think i like the trilogy more than most, probably because of watching the animated version so much and my dad reading the hobbit to me 3 times as a child.
@@anthonybernacchi2732
Although, Tolkien hated war a lot.
I didn’t read the book, but I think Bilbo just trips and gets knocked out, missing out the entire battle
One of the very first comments I made on the internet, back in the days of the bulletin boards and Usenet, I mentioned Gene Deitch's name in passing when discussing old Tom and Jerry cartoons. Later that day I got a personal email from him saying that someone he knew had seen his name in my posting and passed it along to him and that after being off in Czechoslovakia for the past 35 years he thought it was awfully nice that somebody remembered him...
Wait, Adolf Born is actually a quite beloved Czech illustrator and cartoonist who is mostly famous for his children's cartoon Mach a Šebestová and his illustrations of children's books. The fact that he somehow got involved with the first Hobbit adaptation is wild to me, because it was his first ever work in the film industry by almost 6 years, his first proper shortfilm called What if...? released all the way in 1972. Imagine getting the chance to work on the first ever film adaptation of The Hobbit and then getting stuck in communist Czechoslovakia and making child cartoons nobody outside of your country will know about.
Hm, hrozný
That little 1967 cartoon version of 'The Hobbit' really should have been split into 3 separate cartoons:
"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Princess,"
"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Slag,"
and "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Characters"
Ja...res je. Tipično! Nikdar ne bomo vedeli, koliko talentov je izzvenelo v prazno v tistih časih.
Yeah, it was definitely him. That OC princess in the Hobbit is apparently called "Mila Milovaná", (a Czech name), so that gives it away.
Apparently Sean Astin had seen the Bakshi LotR film before filming Fellowship and was really worried that he'd have to play Sam as an idiot. Boy I bet he was glad to find otherwise haha
Haha, didn't know that! Man, am I glad they didn't go down that route!
That's hilarious
That version of Sam honestly freaks me out in a way that I can't really describe.
Oh, hurray! (said in a squeaky voice)
Samwise wasn't an idiot at all in the Bakshi version.
He just wasn't a borderline possessive billy no mates like Austin's Samwise.
When I was in elementary school, it was always a treat when we got to watch the Rankin-Bass Hobbit in class every couple years. It's far from perfect, but it's still a classic.
Same here, I always looked forward to watching it in school 👍
It was always a treat...
Exactly
Yes! I watched them every Christmas when I was a kid!
The Animated Hobbit was magical to me as a child I use to watch it at my Aunts house with my brothers & we were completely into it. I loved the animation, songs & story it took me to another world. I liked Return Of The King also there was nothing else like it as far as I knew. I've tried to watch other animated classics as an adult like Fire & Ice witch don't seem as good but I wasn't child watching but I do think Hobbit was special for me, so was Reteurn OF The King. The movies were so amazing to me when they came out absolutely the best but I'm not much of a reader. I never would have read a book that big so I'm glad they made it into films for people like me.
"Oh, and this is supposed to be the Shire, by the way. Why it looks so bloody dark and depressing, I don't know."
Because it's the Finnish version, d'uh!
LOL! Exactly.
You have no idea how confusing it was going from Rankin Bass to Ralph Bakshi back to Rankin Bass as a little kid in the 80s.
most have been confusing as heck, lol.
Huh, really did go there and back again
Huh, really did go there and back again
John Lennon as Gollum? There really is no limit to what we can… IMAGINE.
Ba dum tsss! Haha, but wow; I wish I could go peek into an alternate reality to see that. Out of pure morbid curiousity.
@@Suspect_Green me too.
You monster.
Have you seen "How I Won The War" (1967) movie featuring John Lennon in a small role? A typical Gollum he's there, actualy.
@@Zholobov1 I’ve heard of it, but never seen it
The Finnish version was originally a stage play, which was very popular and they then wanted to adapt it to TV screens for wider audience. The quality is definitely bad to modern standards, but if you think about it as a play instead of an TV show you can kinda overlook most of the stuff :'D When it was first aired in 1993 it was the coolest thing I had ever seen and I still rewatch it every now and then just to have a good laugh.
Ryhmäteatteri's stage play was absolutely amazing. Best 6 hours of theater I have ever witnessed. I saw it back in 1989. The cast was great and most of them reprised their roles on the TV series Hobitit.
Siispä #Torille !
Klonkun tapa lausua "Aarre!" on mulla ihan normikäytössä.
@@JoakimOtamaaTodellakin. Legendaarinen "aaaarrre". Muistatko tämän levytyksen:
th-cam.com/video/ZF-_hHAPdjQ/w-d-xo.html
The music is great! And I love the stoic humour Frodo has. He's closer to the books than Elijah Woods version
It kinda reminds me of the TV productions of Narnia done by BBC.
It took a long time for TV to match the kind of production quality we see in (good) films, I'd say that the streaming media revolution kinda accelerated that.
I actually like the fact that The Rankin/Bass did the Return of the King straight away, it's like a continuation of the Bakshi LOTR with the Hobbit made the whole adaptation series complete.
That was my thinking at the time. I assumed Rankin Bass knew about Bakshi's movie and thought they would just finish the story off. From what I hear now, that wasn't their thinking at all. They had long specialized in one-shot holiday specials and thought this was the best way to cover LOTR in under two hours. The thought of a three movie/special franchise didn't occur to them and that's unfortunate. We would then have a truly full animated version of LOTR.
@@folgore1
"We would then have a truly full animated version of LOTR"
Give it time and it almost certainly will happen.
The industry has come along leaps and bounds since the really basic virtual production techniques on Avatar 1.
In another 5-10 years I could see actors getting full body and facial motion capture all in real time and being able to see what they are reacting to on wall displays like they are using for The Mandalorian.
@@mnomadvfxI seriously doubt it, considering how much Hollywood/the entertainment industry throws animation under the bus and dismisses it for children. The only way I can see it getting greenlit is if someone made a compelling argument and had some impressive storyboard and concept art
@@sawyer6264I'm far from an AI stan. I think it's way over promised and a bubble. But even I think it's within a few years of high quality animation fit for a cartoon movie.
@@folgore1 I think everybody but them thought this. THat's precisely how I viewed the movies as a kid ( even won some drama contests doing the RB version of Gandalf ). Because the three films worked so well together, at telling the main points of the story even if the look and tone differed, most, including myself, figured RB got the rights and said "well, we did Hobbit, no point in doing Fellowship and Two Towers since Ralph pretty well covered that, we'll just finish up with ROTK." I think, for years, some WB DVD sets even put all three together as a package.
Lots of the songs in the Rankin Bass version were also taken directly from the book including Goblin Town, 15 Birds and the Elf song when they arrive in Rivendell. That gives the Rankin Bass version major points in my book and the interaction with Smog is perfect
Boorman's script is absolutely insane. Besides Galadriel and Frodo having sex, he also had a scene with Aragon and Boromir passionately making out. Also, at the Council of Elrond, the history of The Ring is portrayed in dance on the table... with a dog dancing one of the main parts. It just gets weirder and weirder until a lot of it has nothing to do with the original books. A lot of it is supposed to be symbolic, but it's just confusing and really strange.
Tolkien would surely have a heart attack upon reading the script.
Sounds like a load of rubbish to me
@@ChristianKnight-1054 He'd think C. S. Lewis wrote it to spite him
It sounds like a badly written fanfiction 😂
Sounds like first ever attempt to film movie adaptation of someone's porn fanfiction.
I love the Rankin/Bass films. Although they aren't perfect, the animation, voices, music and overall treatment of the story is so incredibly charming and detailed. I like the Rankin/Bass Hobbit better than Peter Jackson's treatment and Return of the King is still fun, even if it isn't on the same level. I won't argue that Ian McKellen didn't do an amazing job as Gandalf...but when I think of the character, John Huston's voice is the one I hear. I also think the Rankin/Bass Gollum is far more intimidating, terrifying and monstrous.
Rankin/Bass’s The Hobbit is my favorite animated film ❤️
Same it's what got me interested in tolken he is being way over critical I even had the book and the complete soundtrack loved it
This nerd likes the PJ version of the Hobbit better… that tells you enough about him on an intellectual level. He clearly read the Cliff’s Notes, not JRRT actual books.
@@teethhuller8275 He did a better job than Jackson. You act like you read the books. Ya know Gandalf is supposed to have "great bushy eyebrows that stick out beyond the rim of his misshapen hat". Jackson didn't put Gandalf in his movies...just some tired old man.
YES.
part of why I love reading the books is I hear John Huston's voice as the narrator AND Gandalf lol
24:00 Actually, Shelob was in the second book, not the third book. It was actually the Ralph Bakshi film that gave Peter Jackson the idea to end his adaptation of The Two Towers on the cliffhanger of Gollum taking the Hobbits to Shelob, since that is a deviation from the books.
Yeah, messed up there. Didn't realize. Hope the video wasn't too disappointing.
@@Suspect_Green It wasn't. I actually really appreciated this deep dive into the adaptations. I'm really glad that you're making video reviews again!
The Peter Jackson Two Towers was such a mess, from a pacing standpoint. It didn’t start or end in the right spot.
@@FaithCrisisSurvivor it's not very accurate to the source material, but I found it pretty solid. Tolkien didn't even want to split the novel in 3 books, so the choice where to start and finish each one of the 3 parts is not really that important.
another point to consider: in the Two Towers book the battle in Isengard is narrated from start to finish after the battle in Helm's Deep, so even if Jackson's film ends in the half of the second book that doesn't mean that the Two Towers only adapted half of the book.
4:05 "Fifty Shades of Gandalf the Grey." I love the joke.
Haha, thanks. Originally, I had it written as 50 Shades of Middle Earth. But then I realized I missed the most obvious pun.
I'm gonna be rolling on the floor laughing a TON from now on xDDD
Haha, was laughing my ass of and went to the comments if anyone else noticed this and here we are xD
Where there's a whip, there's a way!
Solid joke. Well done
The Whip song is ridiculously invasive. Thanks for playing a snippit so it will be in my head all week.
I will NEVER forget the Rankin-Bass LOTR/Hobbit movies. Those had me reading the books as a kid when the vast majority of people had no idea that they existed.
That is a good result.
Doubtlessly the version that your mind conjured up while reading the books tops all adaptations, including the one by Peter Jackson. Reading can incite such a creative process.
The Rankin Bass version of Smaug, while comical seeing the dragon look and act more like a draconic cat, delivered the "I am fire, I am death" speech far far better than Peter Jackson's Smaug ever could.
That is the power of Richard Boone's voice and talent. Same guy who played Paladin in "Have Gun Will Travel" if you know that show. I sort of liked the feline/wolfish look of Smaug. It had a certain uniqueness to it.
@@thenson1HaloYeah I agree though having car headlights for eyes seemed kind of funny to me as a kid lol
Please don't mention Jackson's Hobbit films.
The fact that they had Bilbo remove the ring in a weird 'precious' fit is utterly ridiculous.
@@corporateturtle6005 I read the Hobbit recently and Smaugs floodlight eyeballs were seemingly an interpretation of how Bilbo felt the dragons gaze was. Poetic speaking made visual.
WELL Where are your riddles now😂
"Brothers that literally twenty seconds ago I was willing to slaughter in their thousands"
Yea, that sums up having a brother
The Rankin/Bass adaptation is what got me to discover fantasy/sword & sorcery and reading Tolkien. I was 8 years old. Respectfully, I think your criticism of it misses the forest for the trees. It was made for children about a novel best suited for children. It captures the heart and spirit of the novel so much better than the Peter Jackson version; much more faithful in capturing the essence if not always the details; but even the details are paid proper homage (note the many songs are actual lyrics from Tolkien's own poems/songs in the book). John Huston has the perfect narration voice, as Gandalf. The message about an unassuming everyman homebody who undergoes personal growth and change- the reluctant hero- and about war and peace are excellent. Instead of focusing on the quick turnaround of the 3 kings, note how moving the words are between Thorin and Bilbo upon his deathbed; how beautiful the scene is when Bilbo climbs the tree in Mirkwood Forest to find sunlight and butterflies; and the lyrics of the theme song. It's all well done. And for 1970s animation, the Japanese artwork/animation has a very cool, ancient look.
The Rankin/Bass version is the closest to the actual book compared to Jackson's nonsensical movie with over the top action sequences and inclusion of side stories that were to pad the damn thing out to 3 films.
I really liked how they did Smaug in this version.
I often find myself wishing John Huston was alive in the age of audio books. I would love to hear an audio book version of the series with him reading it!!
Also with you on the songs. It's cool that some are actual lyrics from the books and they help capture the feel of each scene.
I realized later on that Thurl Ravenscoft (main singing voice in How the Grinch Stole Christmas (1966) and Tony the Tiger was one of the voices in the faster songs! He's the really low voice in The Goblin Song and Fifteen Birds! You can really hear it in Fifteen Birds when he says "Bake and toast em, fry and roast em..."
@@DocBrown086Huston was an amazing director as well. Kind of fascinating to think someone with such an amazing voice and acting was mostly working behind the camera. His filmography and breadth of work is incredible.
Yes agreed this suspect green guys is a nobody and his appear should be cast into Mount Doom.
The Rankin Bass Hobbit was judged a bit harshly I think, since it wasn't judged in context. It was a Rankin Bass production, it was aimed squarely at children. And it did a great job at it. As a seventies kid that watched it when it was new, I absolutely loved it. There was nothing like that at the time.
I think the author is too young to appreciate it for what it was. In the 70's adults would typically change the channel when a cartoon came on. But they would leave this one on and everyone enjoyed it, both adults and children. The style was so different from the typical animated shows (like Popeye, Tom & Jerry and Disney). Also it was TV friendly for the 1970s (loads of restrictions then), hand drawn and told the story quite well. I love Jackson's work very much but this is a great work of art.
I watched it in like 1999, maybe 2000? When my grandma took notice of me reading Harry Potter, she bought The Hobbit for me to watch and it was my first introduction to Tolkien, and I’m grateful for it. The animation, music, and voice acting are all amazing. I even really love the design for Gollum.
The Bass version of the Hobbit is awesome! The animation is beautifully water colored, and in spite it's campiness the film gives you a feeling of otherworldliness that you just don't get from the Jackson version.
Agreed ! They had to rush through some parts because it was a TV Movie , back when there were 3 Channels . But it was absolutely true to the story , unlike Jackson's Hobbit , uh , Trilogy .
I love the rank and bass hobbit. The music is great.
Exactly! The only thing that always confused me were kinda goblinish looking elves which were supposed to be beautful. Nevertheless love that one, true classic indeed.
I prefer the Bass version because that one was just the Hobbit, it didn't try to be Lord of the Rings. It's much closer to the feeling of the book.
Its fun seeing these different interpretations of Tolkien's world. As much as I love the Jackson trilogy, an unfortunate side effect is that its become the template not only for the look of Tolkien and his world but for most of fantasy. A lot of the joy of previous adaptations is just how different they all look.
Yeah, the Jackson films definitely set a standard that a lot of films try to poorly mimic. Some of these versions of LOTR were tough to get through, but it was at least interesting to see what they did differently.
Mm. i was thinking the same thing. Older fantasy designs before they'd become consistent and cemented in pop culture. I don't know how much of it was Jacksons LoTR films and how much of it was Warhammer Fantasy.
A surprising amount of things copying Tolkien are actually copying the specific way Warhammer Fantasy copied Tolkien. Which is why Tolkiens orcs and elves don't really resemble the standard fantasy version of them all that much. I think they might have completely dominated the way Dwarfs are depicted as well.
You know how Dwarfs never use spears in anything despite that being something that'd be really useful for them? In fact, they only ever use hammers, axes, and maybe picks? Warhammer Fantasy is why. Their Dwarfs specifically only use weapons that double as tools. Every other Dwarf depiction is copying that trope, but usually doesn't have the in universe reason why.
@@ASpaceOstrich Tolkien's dwarves are complately unique. In mythology they were just elves who lived underground (also known as 'dark elves'), whilst in medieval and later folk tales they were usually tiny, and rarely interested in anything apart from mining and punishing or helping human miners. Basically every 1m20 dwarf who does any sort of warfare is purely Tolkienesque.
@@jeremiaas15 You've missed my point. Tolkien absolutely redefined modern fantasy. But his specific versions of the redefined modern fantasy are actually quite unusual, as the "generic fantasy" versions of things like Elves and Dwarfs aren't copying Tolkien directly. They're copying the first wave of things to copy Tolkien. Very notably Warhammer Fantasy.
Warhammer Fantasy only had one even vaguely original thing in it. The Skaven. But the specific way Warhammer Fantasy copied earlier fiction became the standard that everything else is often based on. Tolkien popularised Elves as forest dwelling pointy eared high tech artisans. Warhammer Fantasy is the reason those else are always such massive assholes. Same goes for other fantasy races. Its responsible for green Orcs, scottish Dwarfs, and many more things. And its influence on Dwarf aesthetic design is huge.
Yeah it gets old of seeing the same Sauron design over and over again, i want to see original and unique designs.
26:00 This is how it goes in the book, Gollum dances around in delight and trips and falls. The idea is that Evil always destroys itself. I would argue that Frodo fighting him for it does this better as Frodo is under the influence as well by this point, the ring might have survived with just Gollum but by corrupting Frodo as well it causes the fight that leads to its destruction.
Dare I say the people who prefer Gollum just tripping are those that prefer book accuracy.
I think that the book version has another layer as well. The ring is just too powerful, being so close to it's maker, that it's influence can't be resisted anymore. Frodo is unbelievably resilient to make it so far, when everyone else fails by owning it for a fraction of that time or thousands of miles away from Mordor. But in the end even he is not strong enough, even he fails. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Even the purest of hearts will be corrupted eventually, noone is immune to such immense power. Frodo carried it to Mount Doom, but even he can't have enogh willpower to cast it into the fire. And this corruption doesn't end with his finger bitten off. Just like everyone else is effected by even the presence of the ring (Bilbo, Boromir, Gollum, Gandalf, Galadriel, even Aragorn, Faramir and Sam), Frodo is still under it's spell. He can't just switch and destroy the ring with Gollum (and arguably himself).
And to fight for the ring, to get it back also doesn't make more sense. He is exhausted and had his finger bitten off. He has immense pain (that part was acted brilliantly by Elijah Wood) and he just wouldn't have the strenght after all the ordeals and a quite heavy bloodloss (also remember, that he couldn't drink enough water for a long time, so he's also heavily dehydrated) to just get up and wrestle Gollum. And even if he would get some kind of adrenalin rush or the corrupting force of the ring is just that powerful, that I don't think he would attack Gollum the way he does, because that would be too dangerous for the precious ring (as it is proven by Gollums fall).
So yeah... It's not just "Because that's how it's written in the book" - I think the way Tolkien wrote it has a lot of deep meaning and I think he thought a lot about how to find the most consistent and meaningful way to destroy the ring. I kinda imagine it like how Aang in ATLA spends day and night to find a solution to defeat Ozai without killing him even though everyone tries to convince him, that this is the one and only effective way to end the war. Simply casting the ring into the fire or falling tragically only to be rescued - that's the Hollywood solution, the one that seems the obvious one. The scene is not bad - it's acted well and creates dramatic tension, but it just lost so much layers of meaning from what was a so much more well thought out way to end the whole threat once and for all.
Also the fact that apparently GOD HIMSELF (Eru Ílluvatar) intervened to make Gollum trip in the books. But yes the film makes a better show of it.
Tolkien stated in one of his letters that Eru intervened at the end of the 3rd age, causing Gollum to trip and fall into Mt. Doom
Tbh i prefer the book Version for the sheer Slapstick Energy of it all. But i also Loved gimli dragging Legolas to Go Sightseeing in the caves of Helms deep because - SCREW THIS WAR, THERES SHINY ROCKS TO LOOK AT
I prefer the interpretation that Illuvatar didn't literally push Gollum into the fire, but rather subtly orchestrated the events that would lead to that eventuality. He so rarely intervenes directly, and this just doesn't seem like something that would warrant him to do so. If Illuvatar really wanted, he could have just destroyed Sauron and the Ring altogether at any time.
I think it was essentially the ring itself, and Frodo's curse upon Gollum should he betray Frodo. Gollum swore by the ring to serve his master, and Frodo told him the ring would keep him to his word, because it is treacherous, and created to dominate the wills of others. Later, Frodo said (prophesied?) that if Gollum touched him again he'd be cast into the fire, and that's exactly what happens.
Andy Serkis’s portrayal of and voice for Gollum/Sméagol and the character design is so iconic that when you go back and look at the various designs and voices the character has had in the pre-Peter Jackson adaptations, it’s pretty jarring. I know not everyone might agree but I think the visual design of Gollum in Ralph Bakshi’s animated version from 1978 might have been a big inspiration for the version we all know and love.
Unpopular opinion: Andy Serkis’ Gollum sounds just like Jar Jar Binks and makes TTT and RotK borderline unwatchable.
@@FaithCrisisSurvivor IMO he sounds like Gurgi from "The Black Cauldron", but I doubt Andy Serkis knew about it since it's so obscure for a Disney movie.
There are several visual references to Bakshi's LOTR in Jackson's films, especially in Fellowship.
Gollum is described as having dark skin in the books.
Cheers to Sauron's bard brigade for their groovey disco number "Where There's a Whip There's a Way". If Sauron had only had more bards, he might have won.
I personally like the Rankin Bass movies. Not as good as the Peter Jackson, but feels a bit closer to Tolkein's work, where the dialogue and narrative can be VERY flowery and poetic, mirroring epic poems. It can be a bit grading at times to read through when they're like just walking or looking around a house. But when it reaches the more climactic moments, it works really well.
A fun example of a Non Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings project is that in between the release of Fellowship of the Ring and Two Towers, a game based on Fellowship of the Ring was released, except it was based on the book and not the film. I'm like 90% sure that it was done on purpose to confuse fans of the movie (I know that's why we owned it). Funny enough, a game based on Jackson's Two Towers was released a month later and it was way better.
I liked that game
Flandrew has a great video on that one
I bought that game, too. Took like 400 hits to kill any creature you fought...just a slog.
Rule with the LOTR games is, if its based on the book licence (like Gollum), its probably not very good. The movie games were rocky too, but genuinely, are of better quality. Compare War of the Ring to Battle For Middle Earth
@@DeadManSinging1 I rather like War of the Ring. Has it's charm being based on the Battle Realms engine. I also appreciate as Mordor, you can get ALL NINE Black Riders out. Which is cool to pull off.
I was seven when that movie the hobbit came out on TV and we immediately started playing. The hobbit had never heard of the Lord of the rings cause we were seven. It is amazing. I still watch it today I have a VHS of it and a DVD of it. Loving memories of it. And it’s cooler now that I have a sword to go with it.
The rank and bass, animated hobbit movie is an excellent introduction to sword and sorcery for children. But it is good enough for an adult to watch with them and it’s still enjoying..
As an adult introducing them to his children, yes. Yes, it was.
16:45-16:47
That's the look parents and their kids gave when they entered the infamous "Willy Wonka" Chocolate Experience
in Glasgow, Scotland.
I loved the Rankin Bass Hobbit growing up. I watched the spider scene on loop.
Same here! To this day, if I'm going on a long walk or a hike, the "Where there's a whip, there's a way" song keeps me going. 👍
I really like the animated Rankin Bass Hobbit film. I watch every year after I reread the Hobbit. It’s not perfect like you said, it is rushed as hell and Beorn and the Arkenstone were cut which is a shame, but I still enjoy it. I really love Gollum’s portrayal in it and I personally don’t mind the songs.
I think the songs are really well done and have an ancient haunting quality to them
I thought it did a good job at having the Hobbits atmosphere
The songs are incredible, Fifteen Birds in Five Fir Trees goes hard asf
Ah, the cursed Finnish Lord of the Rings adaptation. What I really like about it, is that it had quite an ensemble cast in Finnish standards. A lot of the actors are well-known even today and they sort of represent the classically theatre trained actors. Bilbo's actor is even internationally known for his role as Ahti in the video games Control and Alan Wake 2. And in true Finnish fashion, you get a glimpse of Gollum's balls in episode 7.
How do you know it was him ?
@@huntersangster Recognized his face since I had previously seen clips of him from early 90s and then checked on IMDb. :D
My dad had a VHS copy of the Rankin/Bass Hobbit and my mom absolutely would not allow me to watch it. I always thought it was because it was either too scary or too “adult”, (wink wink), but looking back, I think it was because she didn’t want me to become too nerdy. Well JOKES ON HER!
I don't know if this has been said before but the 1978 Lord of the Rings wasn't intended to be an animated film! It was originally going to be live action but stuff happened as they were filming and they ended up going with animation, rotoscope-ing most of the stuff they had already filmed and color grading what they couldn't rotoscope, adding in fully original animation in other places
In the books, Gollum dances on the brink of the crack of doom and then falls in (as shown in the R-B version). I believe that Tolkien states in his letters that no mortal would have been capable of destroying the ring. An act of God was necessary. An act of God that was made possible by Bilbo and Frodo's earlier acts of mercy towards Gollum.
I remember reading this, but in a sense. "God" doesn't exist in Middle-earth! or I'm sure He does but no one knows about Him? So in the books the ring is destroyed partially by an act of kindness on the Hobbits part, and partially by an act of revenge by the ring itself as Gollum broke a promise that he swore on the ring. In a sense, it was meant to be destroyed.
In the movies... perhaps the ring was hoping (if such an object can hope) that Frodo would jump in and save it... but Frodo after looking down at the floating ring, chose to take Sam's hand instead. so ... Frodo chose Samwise over the lure of the ring? only then did the ring sink into the lava. It was actually a pretty clever decision by Peter Jackson.
@@ebonypegasus9864 Eru Iluvatar certainly exists (see the Silmarillion), but is not discussed much, if at all in the other books. In Lord of the Rings, we do hear of the Valar Elbereth Gilthoniel (to use the Elvish name that Frodo used to drive back the attack of the Nazgul on Weathertop - she is Varda in the Silmarillion).
@@markpolo97 I know who Iluvatar is but was more referring to the real God, not a fantasy one. You had said "an act of God" not "an act of Iluvatar" or "an act of the Valar" so I felt a bit confused? Having said all that I still do understand what you mean. You meant "Divine intervention".
Personally, I like both the books version and the movies version of how the ring is destroyed. they both have value. Gandalf even said "There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides that of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, in which case you were also meant to have it." so he knew something divine was going on.
I think fate is part of the canon in Lord of the Rings. So maybe Gollum was destined to fall.
Now I'm going to have that damn "Where there's whip" song stuck in my head! Seriously though, its excellent to see you back. Been watching since your review of the Phantom Menace game 10 goddamn years ago! I was in middle school then, and now I'm here as a full-blown adult getting a job at Intel, and yet I've never stopped watching your stuff. Great job staying entertaining, man. I bought Persona 5 because of your review, so there's over a hundred hours of my life changed because of your stuff haha
Wow, thanks! It's been a long ride; one I hope to keep going! Congrats on your intel job. Hope it goes well!
As a swedish person i feel absolutely embarrassed at SVT's lack of respect for the source material and their viewers.
I remember thinking i hated Tolkien's work just because my only impression was this soulless low budget adaptation with a narrator who couldn't sound more bored if he tried.
It looks like 90% of the budget was spent on renting that horse!
Which is so sad, since the music Bo Hansson made is absolutely wonderful
You know, I actually like the Rankin/Bass adaptations of The Hobbit and The Return of the King. There is just something about the animation that reminds me of those fantasy illustrations you see in classic children's storybooks. I can't really explain it, but it just does for some reason.
Honestly i hate when people criticize things when they didn't live through that era. When The Lord Of The Rings animated film came out, it became kind of an underground cult film, because it was so different, and back then animation didnt have computers, and it was at the time when Disney had pretty much lost it's magic from the previous era. So Lord Of The Rings was sure, full of faults, but Gandalf spinning around was 100% in character for Gandalf if you follow how he is, he often dramatizes while telling stories, so that spin was not 'laughable' to most people who watch it. It was about magic, and about some power greater than some Hobbit village had ever encountered. The scene I remember many people who lived through that time remember, and tell me about wsa the scene when they first hide from the black rider, the bugs crawling out of the ground all over them, while they are trying to stay quite was what left such a strong memory for everyone I know who watched it back then as we kid, etc.
The problem with judging a film like thatso many years later is that you have no idea what films it was competing with, including animated features, and you are judging it after having watched a film like Peter Jackson's Lord Of The Ring, so many of the best original ideas that were in Ralph Bakshi's film, so you having watched Jackson's film later, you are not even aware that some of the impact that that film was stollen from Bakshi's film, and you can't possible watch Bakshi's film after and give it a fair critic, because you are attributed all those good ideas to Jackson rather then Bakshis film. I see this all the time. If you perhaps had seen Bakshi's film first, then watched Peter Jackson's I might have some respect for you opinion, but watching them not in the order they were created is a recipe for incredible cognitive bias, and much of it will be unconscious...
People think the Soviet Union collapsed as a result of internal and geopolitical failures. It actually committed suicide out of shame for creating Khraniteli.
Haha; yeah, that was painful to sit through.
It's extremely bad 😂 I was trying to watch it. But couldn't finish 😂
@@nastjafisunova7258 Я как человек свободно говорящий на русском, смотрел его с семьёй когда этот фильм нашли, это было ужасно Смешно!
Oh, but I wouldn't say it was too bad. My impression is that it was intended for live theaters, which would explain part of the way the hobbits looked and acted - the viewers in the last row must be able to see also.
I also came to the opinion that the look and dress of the hobbits was a deliberate decision. They were intended to look peasantish. Which they were, canon. Looking at the elves, wardrobe was capable of making more stylish dress.
But I was a bit surprised that nobody came jumping in to the hobbits' sleeping-room in the middle of the night, shouting _noro lim, Asfaloth_ .
cheers! / CS
Crazily enough, the 1977 Rankin-Bass version of The Hobbit was my introduction to Middle Earth. For perspective, I was born in the latter half of the 90s, which makes it all the more baffling that I got introduced to Tolkein's stories that way, and not through Jackson's trilogy.
According to christopher tolkien, he said his father would have hated jackson's adaptation.
Damn, that kinda hurts to hear. I kinda don't want to believe that. I mean, surely the man himself must've been somewhat impressed with it. Considering the only adaptation he ever saw, was that god awful Snyder one. In comparison, the Jackson version would've blown his mind.
Did he say why that would be?
@@BJGvideospretty sure he would have hated the glorifying of the battle scenes.
I like to believe Christopher was more protective of his father’s legacy, and Tolkien himself would be in awe of how much love was put into the production and music even if he had reservations about some changes.
Maybe he would have appreciated the visual (New Zeland), but it terms of the story, no : pratically all characters have a different personnality, some events really diminish Frodo espacially (Book version : Frodo standing up to Nagul at the Weathertops and at the Bruinen, he never distrust Sam over Gollum, standing up to Shelob he gains instantly Faramir's respect by being educated and assertive etc), also battles take way too much space compared to the Books etc. These are great movies, and a beautiful introduction to the Legendarium, but there are not Tolkienians at all.
Adolf Born was actually a well known and respected artis and illustrator, with a distinct, fairy tale esque style.
Thank god Disney didn't get their dirty hands on it
Just give it time
Good thing they didn’t get it in its nasty little pocketses
In Tolkiens will he actually stated that Disney could never adapt any of his works.
I loved the Rankin/Bass version of The Hobbit as a kid and that Gollum continues to be my favorite version. Serkis was brilliant of course, but that animated version is so creepy and menacing that I can't help but love it.
Thanks for clarifying the “slag” term. I’m American so I’ve never heard that saying before. Learn something new everyday🙂
Haha, yeah, there's a few words here that would take a whole new meaning if they became a thing stateside. Always find it funny when Americans find out that trump is British slang for fart.
I always thought "slag" meant something similar to "dross"? It's definitely a term from mining and geology: There's volcanic slag (scoria), and the useless stuff that remains behind in a furnace when metal is refined from ore and purified... slag being the impurities that stay behind and have to be skimmed off the molten metal or scraped out of the furnace afterwards.
British slag is all about impurities too....
One more thing about Rankin/Bass Return of the King: The whole sequence where Sam and Frodo dress up as orcs (where there's a whip there's a way) inspired Jackson because if I'm not mistaken, it's not in the books. But it's in Jacksons movie.
Yes it is in the books when they escape from Cirith Ungol, The Return of the King, LoTR Book 6, Ch 1, The Tower of Cirith Ungol
@@simonshepherd8357 you are right, it's in the book. I just checked. But it's book 6 chapter 2, The Land of Shadow.
@@ailon92 And the sequence in the book includes the line, "Where there's a whip, there's a will," which the film slightly changed to get the first line of the iconic song.
Swede here, just wanted to tell you that your pronunciation of "sagan om ringen" was pretty much spot on, if a little forced
The reason why Frodo is so resilient to evil is because he doesn't fight or kill. Because if you kill the ring would have a much easier time corrupting you!
Well, Sagan om ringen (1971) was basically a brief voice-narrated synopsis of The Lord of the Rings presented in a video of non-speaking live actors superimposed over hand-drawn backgrounds, inspired by a music album inspired by the novel, financed by a Swedish government (taxpayer) funded budget of about one millionth of Peter Jackson's budget, so it might compare favorably with Peter Jackson's movie trilogy in terms of quality per dollar (or kroner). 😏
Plus extra points for authenticity in being the only Lord of the Rings movie that correctly included Glorfindel's part in the story. 😛
Love the new content more styled around film history. I’m a huge LOTR fan and it’s refreshing to learn stuff about it that I never knew. A lot of work went into this vid and it shows
As a Finn, it's nice that people form other parts of the world talk about our little low budget LOTR miniseries. Haven't seen it yet so that's on my watching list.
Worth watching at least for Frodo's Prancing Pony number. Never thought I'd see a LOTR adaptation with a violin solo.
I remember watching it as a kid from tv. It was great.
I also watched some of it as a kid and hated it. I was a fantasy nerd and a hard-core Tolkien fan and the tv series felt like a travesty. The dull, depressing atmosphere, the awful jazz score, the overacting... ugh. Not a fond memory.
It used to be available on TH-cam for years, watched it for shit n' giggles.
Finnish is the closest language to Tolkien's Elvish. So it is very fitting to hear the characters speak it.
I worked at a place that sold movies called Suncoast. Warner Brothers released The Hobbit, Lord Of The Rings and Return Of The King on DVD. I was looking forward to Lord Of The Rings because I'm a huge Ralph Bakshi fan. I remembered it's release date , 9/11/01. My girlfriend and I bought them before the store closed for the day at noon.
It was the 1977 TV special "The Hobbit" that turned me on to high fantasy. The most memorable part of it for me was Richard Boone's voice acting as the voice of Smaug.
I never knew about the Finnish version, and I’m so glad I found out now. It looks exactly like what I’d expect from Finland and that song is brilliant.
Yeah, the Finnish version is worth a look at least. It's an interesting take and Frodo's song and dance number is so good! Best skip the Gollum twerking scene though. I can't believe I just typed that.
@@Suspect_Green the Finnish version/their theatre stage play had an actual soundtrack released and most of it is online. Some of those songs are weirdly fitting, like Durinin aika (Age of Durin). Sounds like something a Dwarf would sing with a hammer in his hand while being nostalgic and melancholic. Some of the songs are... weird in execution, even though they all come straight from the book.
It is a TV-adaptation of a live stage theatre play. Which explains the reasonable acting, cheap music and *cough* "symbolic" props.
@@Suspect_Green I like Hobitit a lot. (Several of the Trivia and Goof items on the IMDb pages for its individual episodes were my contributions -- which is also true of Rings of Power Season 1, as it happens.) I used to have a recurring dream that there was another movie version of Lord of the Rings that I had never seen. Since learning that Hobitit exists and watching it, I've never had that dream again -- Hobitit fulfilled that unconscious desire. Also, the first time I saw Hobitit I didn't realize it was available with English subtitles, so I watched it without them. I was amazed at how much of the story I was able to follow from having read the book and watched the other movies.
The Rankin Bass version of Return of the King wouldn't have shown Shelob since in the books, the encounter with her was in Two Towers. The Jackson version changed that
Ahhh; I didn't realize that. My bad! I always assumed Shelob was in the RotK book, as Bakshi's film covers the two towers too and he didn't include Shelob in his movie either.
@@Suspect_Green no worries! Keep up the good work. Glad to see you back
@@Suspect_Green The Two Towers book covers up to Pippin and Gandalf riding off to Gondor and Frodo's unconscious body being carried off by the orcs leaving Sam alone with the ring.
@@Suspect_Green Interestingly, Boromir also dies at the start of the Two Towers, and not the end of Fellowship
2:15
"Wasn't really kid-friendly enough for the Disney brand"?!
All of the animated Disney films
(the majority of which are G-rated
for some reason) that either
featured or implied death to certain characters:
*"ARE WE A JOKE TO YOU?!"*
Yeah, Disney definitely has its dark elements. Bambi no doubt scarred children for life (always reminded of the Animaniacs episode where Skippy balls his eyes out at it).
@@Suspect_Green
Heck, I'm still surprised that
none of their past Disney animated
films (from 1937 onwards)
were re-rated to a "PG" in today's society.
Can't forget when Clayton snapped his own neck after hanging himself on vines while trying to murder Tarzan, all the while Tarzan tried to prevent it from happening just moments before. Yup. A very kid-friendly Disney movie history moment.
@@Suspect_Green *"Bumbie's mom!"* 😭😭😭
@@Xilivian
Don't forget about Ursula from *"The Little Mermaid"* who got stabbed by Eric with the broken bowsprit of a shipwreck, which might have been inspired from
the ending of Universal's *"JAWS: The Revenge"* (In the original Theatrical Ending - which was seen in old TV airings on AMC - Papa Jaws just gets stabbed to death by the bowsprit, before they changed it to having him get stabbed & then blow up for some reason in the International release, which had been used for all home video releases).
The Russian Hobbit scene with Gollum’s riddle game has me waiting for Gollum to ask Bilbo if he ever drank Bailey’s from a shoe.
Hobbit 77 is better than than the newer Hobbit movies. I love the cartoon Lord of the rings movies but not as much as the PJ trilogy obviously.
Once again another fantastic video and actually it’s given me an idea for a video you could do as a subsequent sequel to this one: All adaptations of The Chronicles of Narnia. To this date, there has been 4 attempts to adapt this fantasy franchise (a lost television adaptation from the 1960s, the 1979 animated film of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, then the BBC adapting four of the books into a 3 season television series. And of course, the films by Disney and Fox from 2005-2010). And with a fifth adaptation now in the works by Greta Gerwig (Director of Barbie) for Netflix, I thought this might be a subject that’s right up your alley Suspect.
Yeah, I think this could be a good idea to do for several franchises, looking at ALL the adaptations it got (including the lesser known ones). If this video does well, a Chronicles of Narnia one could be good to do when Gerwig's version comes out.
@@Suspect_Green thanks 👍🏻
@@Suspect_GreenCan't wait to see it! 😁
Great video! You did a fantastic job. Also, I laughed so hard at the part where you were cursing the darkness.
No one:
No, really, no one:
Animated Aragorn: "We SHALL see!"
Great job !!
Thanks for putting these all together...
But without these movies we wouldn't have, "Where there's a whip, there's a way"!
These aren't forgotten just because you hadn't seen them previously. Some of us remember them well.
imagine buying the rights to the Hobbit so that you could make a 12-minute storyboard "movie" with different characters and a different plot.
As a Czech person, I saw the art style of the first, horrible version of the Hobbit and thought, wait a minute, I recognise the style. The artist, Adolf Born, illustrated Czech children's books and cartoons. For example, he illustrated cartoons about Mach and Šebestová, approximately 9-year-old kids who have a magic phone. Here is the only episode that I truly remember, where the kids shrink themselves to microscopic proportions and fight germs in their classmate's throat: th-cam.com/video/MKi6GPiC_pc/w-d-xo.htmlsi=64JY9osg-HvlTfu2 As you can tell, I saw it as a kid and am still weirded out.
You can already hear that link, don't you
10:04-10:11
R.I.P.
The main antagonists of Mel Brooks'
*"Robin Hood: Men in Tights",*
Roger Rees as "Mervin,
the Sheriff of Rottingham"
(1944-2015)
and
Richard Lewis as "Prince John"
(1947-2024)
16:56 Gandalf be smokin' that Dope Shire Weed.
Frobo!
Fun fact: Slag was also the original name of one of the Dinobots in Transformers. It was changed to Slug for obvious reasons
Ahh, somebody else commented mentioning Slag and Transformers, didn't know what they meant, now that makes sense. Thanks! :)
@@Suspect_Green Yes, but it literally took them decades to finally redo it, even after various Transformers cartoons were using slag as a substitute swear word. They even acknowledge it in Transformers Animated, where the Triceratops Dinobot was renamed Snarl and Scrapper remarks "Well I was gonna call him Slag but I was worried he'd take it as an insult." and in the IDW comics they called him Slag for half the run until 2014 where the name change happened, with the in-universe reason being Arcee tells him that his name is offensive.
Oh hey, thanks for checking out my translation of Sagan om ringen! It took me a few months, so I'm glad to see it getting some exposure. If nothing else, I think it's worth checking out for the music alone - it's quite good imo.
🎶 "...What funny little birds, they have no wings, oh, what shall we do with the funny little things....
"🎶 (too many years in my brain rent free)
16:42 The face of Gandalf having PTSD when he thinks of Pippin doing something stupid
I just found your stuff again after about 10 years. When we were teens, me and my friends used to laugh our ass off at your Two Towers review video and we still reference many of your jokes from that video. They have become some classic inside jokes for us. I got the same old laughs out of this video and immediately subscribed. So glad you are still doing you!
0:12 It’s funny when it turns out Meet the Feebles is canon to the Muppets when it was referenced in Muppet Mayham
I am so glad you brought up the trippiest S & M anthem ever committed to animated film: 🎵 Where there's a whip (whuppish) There is a way 🎶
Dude, that is the ONLY THING I remember from any of The Lord of The Rings adaptations. (And I saw it back in '85!)
_Where there's a whip there's a will, my slugs_
LOTR Part Three (book VI) pp 255-256
Tolkien's american authorised version, Ballantine Books
The lord of the lash, indeed.
That song has such a catchy beat that it amazes me.
I almost wish I had a whip in my hand...
cheers! / CS
Great to see you back, Ross! I missed you. I've been watching you for years. Since the Star Wars ten things video from I want to say 2013. Certainly simpler times with the series. Your videos always cheer me up. I can't wait to see this one.
By the way, are you excited or are you also like me cautiously optimistic about Legends Pokémon Z-A?
Thanks! And Legends ZA I'm intrigued by. But this is Game Freak we're talking about. It's not gonna be a super AAA polished experience. Still, Legends Arceus was the best Pokemon game of recent memory (albeit hampered by performance issues and never-ending reams of text getting in the way of the good stuff). Hope it's good.
@@Suspect_Green
No problem. I couldn't agree more. Here's hoping it will surprise us since it's getting an extra year of development and they're trying to get it right instead of rushing it out like it feels like has been the case too often with Switch released Pokémon games.
The reason for gollum falling on his own in the animated return of the king is because he falls on his own in the book. In the book gollum takes the ring, dances and trips.
Al Pacino as Frodo?
"Say hello to my little friend!"😁
I love Ralph Bakshi. His movies have moments of straight up surreal transcendence! I really wish his LOTR was given a proper budget and better! (or at least finished!)
I thought Wizards was brilliant!
LOL don't forget VeggieTales: Lord of the Beans
That technically came after the Jackson films
When I watched the Lost In Adaptation video for Die Hard, Dominic Noble’s summary of how Nothing Lasts Forever became the movie that we all know and love reminded me strongly of the start of your review of Die Hard, and now it feels like everything has come full circle with you telling the story of the first ever Lord Of The Rings adaptation in a way which I find very reminiscent of Dominic Noble’s video on the subject, with you even reacting to Smaug’s name change with the exact same words.
Yeah, Dominic Noble is British too right? Me and him probably had the same reaction upon hearing slag, haha. I can't believe they thought that was a good idea.
30:40 "never stops laughing" even when the guy's face isn't moving.
Comparing the 77 animated Hobbit film to a modern live action movie. Peak TH-cam bro right here.
12:30 this version of The Hobbit I like the lot. One of the reasons is the eagles talk. I was really looking forward to the live action Hobbit having talking eagles.
The 1977 "The Hobbit" has a special place in my heart. I like to sing that "Greatest Adventure" song when a friend is going to the airport/starting a new job/etc.
As a Finn, I'm obliged to say sorry for that "Hobitit". I don't know how they got some of the best actors of the time in Finland for *that* one... Like Gollum, who was played by Kari Väänänen!
Also note that Väänänen played not only Gollum but also Aragorn.
@@JukkaSarkijarvi Yes, but I mentioned Gollum specifically as Unusual Suspect mentioned that one scene.
I think it has some charm with all the shittiness of it all. I love how Väänänen says "Aarre!" as Golum, it's the only way I pronounce it whenever like playing RE4 or something. Torille vai Hobittilaan?
But that song was ace! 😊
Dude Im crying with laughter xD You're very naturally funny and combining that with these hot messes of adaptations is absolute gold Im crying xD
Al Pacino Frodo when confronted by the Nazguls:
"SAY HELLO TO MA LITTLE FRIEND!"
Bakshi's version was the one that introduced me to Tolkien so it will always have a special place 😁
Loved this video man. The editing and commentary was so funny!
Thanks! Appreciate it! :)
Let's be honest. Stretching the hobbit into three movies sounds way better than shortening it in over twelve minutes.
4:09 a true disturber of the peace
I had the records of the Rankin Bass The Hobbit and The Return of The King, which I listened to alot when I was a child. I can never forget those songs or Bilbo's strange speech patterns. Thanks for reminding me, again.