A Change in Character: Faramir

J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" has a wonderful story, full of interesting characters with interesting personalities and backgrounds, all of who are affected in some way by the power of the One Ring. Some, such as Boromir, cannot withstand the temptation to take the Ring for his own, while others, such as Aragorn, never think twice about using the Ring, and want it destroyed. When Peter Jackson created his movies based off of the novel "Lord of the Rings", he changed some of the characters to be more susceptible to the Ring's power than Tolkien intended them to be. One such character, Faramir son of Denethor, meets the Ringbearer, Frodo, in Ithilien and has ample ability to take the Ring for his own, but, in Tolkien's novel, he never even considers it, while Peter Jackson has Faramir take Frodo all the way to Gondor before seeing the error of his ways and letting the Ringbearer, and the Ring, go.

Tolkien's Faramir realizes the evil of the ring, and the inability for any Man to have power over it, or to use it for good, and he soon lets it go. When first meeting Frodo in a place where strangers are not tolerated, Faramir naturally suspects the Ringbearer of some evil, although he does not know what evil. However, after talking with Frodo for a while, Faramir realizes that no evil intentions exist in the hobbit. Only by a slip of Frodo's companion, Sam, does Faramir even find out that the hobbits have possession of "this thing". For a split second, Faramir nearly becomes corrupted by the Ring's evil, but it soon passes when he comes to his senses. He tells the hobbits that he had always said "I would not take this thing if it lay by the highway", because he has always known a little about "Isildur's Bane" as the One Ring is known as in Gondor; enough to know its evil. So, Faramir from the novel would never have taken the Ring from Frodo, even to keep it safe, because he knows that the hearts of Men corrupt easily.

Peter Jackson decides to depict this character much differently, by giving him an evil heart at first, then allowing him to have a change of heart and become "good". A moviegoer's first impression of Faramir becomes that of an evil Man who cares only for power. They see throughout the movie "The Two Towers" the bad side of this character that Jackson made up. One seeing this movie that knows nothing of the book will think badly of Faramir, and may even hate him, even after he has a "change of heart". Even though Faramir did take Frodo and Sam captive to Osgiliath, in the end he sees that the Ring is controlling Frodo at times, and he can see the burden that the hobbit took upon himself to bear. It also helps Faramir make his choice to set them free when Sam tells the Captain of Gondor how his brother, Boromir, died because he tried to take the ring from Frodo. When Faramir realizes that his decision to take them there did no good, he tells Frodo "I think at last you and I understand one another�". Then, and only then does Peter Jackson allow Faramir to let them go.

Because the novel of "Lord of the Rings" has such a long story, one may forgive Peter Jackson for taking some things out of it. But why he felt the need to change a character entirely does not wholly make sense. For this reason, one must learn to like the novel as a different thing than the movies, or one will find they will hate one or the other. In the end, the way the movies worked made them good, even if they were not very accurate. One must forgive Jackson for changing the character, even though he did not have to. The movies, though roughly based on the books, ended up being wonderful in their own special way.

A Change in Character: Eowyn

The movies "The Lord of the Rings" are based off of a book, and not vice versa. Because the novel is long, one who wished to make movies based off of it would find it difficult, if not impossible, to put everything from the book into the movies, making it understandable that Peter Jackson would cut things out of the movies that took place in the book. However, necessity rarely arises to change certain parts of a characters' personality entirely, as Jackson does with many characters; such as the character Eowyn daughter of Eomund, because in a way, did not receive enough credit for her character, and in a way she received too much.

Eowyns' character in the "Lord of the Rings" novel has a fiery personality that does not show as much in the movies, in many ways, such as the fact that she can be credited with more bravery in the book and more pity in the movies. Book Eowyn has much pride, and "desires no man's pity". When she first meets Aragorn, she finds him brave and honorable, and therefore desirable, and for that reason she falls in love with him. She may love him partially because of his personality, but mostly she loves him because he is "high and puissant and she wishe[s] to be lifted above all the mean things that crawl on the earth". But sadly for her, he shatters her pride by only giving her "understanding and pity". This effect does not show in the movies; the viewer only sees her as an innocent, almost modest woman that only wants love. But, in reality, she at first wishes only to be queen, and does not care as much for love. In this way, she gets too much credit, because she has too much pride that Jackson leaves out.

In another way, Eowyn does not get enough credit, especially at the part where she slays the Witchking in "The Return of the King". In the movie, she kills the Lord of the Ringwraiths, of course. But she does not act nearly as brave in the movie as she really is in Tolkien's vision. When watching the movies of "The Lord of the Rings", a viewer might do what the character of Eowyn greatly despises and does not want; they might pity her. After all, her character has much sadness and has a sad background, having to "wait upon an old man who should have loved her as a father" after her own father died. He was "cut down by Orcs", and afterwards her mother "succumbed to grief". The only people she had in the world were her brother, her uncle, and her cousin. When the latter died, she had only two people left. One might call this reason to pit Eowyn, but she would not say that. She would rather die a "brave death in battle" than to have pity of others. This does not show in the movies, and she may not get the respect she deserves from a viewer ignorant of her true personality.

One watching "The Lord of the Rings" movies might not get the impression of the character Eowyn that Tolkien preferred. This someone who has knowledge about "Lord of the Rings" might call one of the weaknesses of the movies; one of the things that makes them not as good as they could have been. But, if one became more open-minded, and did not compare the movies to the novel, one would see that the way Jackson portrayed this character fit perfectly into the way Jackson portrayed the entire story. Everything that happened in the movies fit together nicely, even if they did not have as rich of a plot as Tolkien's novel did. In the end, both versions of the story "Lord of the Rings" are enjoyable, even though Tolkienites will always consider the original the best, as it deserves to be considered.

Lord of the Rings and everything related to it belongs to it's respective owners. In no way to I claim to own it.