# New (at least to me) Tolkien Documentary DVD



## Barliman Butterbur (May 8, 2004)

*SPECIAL REPORT*

Hello Everyone,

Although I have stopped posting for all intents and purposes (I do lurk from time to time) as long as there is serious illness in the family, I found a DVD that I thought TTF members might be interested in, so I am making this special post.

The DVD is called “J.R.R. Tolkien: Master of the Rings — The Definitive Guide to the World of the Rings,” music by Rick Wakeman. Many of you probably know about it already.

It is a documentary put together by what appears to be a devoted band of American and British Tolkien devotees. It features the Tolkien artwork of the identical twin Hildebrandt brothers, which I find far more appealing in most respects than the work of Alan Lee (but that can be saved for another post, sure to get Alan Lee fans leaping into the fray). I have been a fan of these paintings ever since Ballantine Books first published them in Tolkien Calendars back in the 70s. (They are still available — not as well presented as they were in the calendars — in a book called “Greg and Tim Hildebrandt: The Tolkien Years” by Greg Hildebrandt Jr., published by Watson-Guptill Publications, 770 Broadway, NY, NY 10003).

Another feature of this DVD, perhaps even of more interest than the Hildebrandt paintings are the short snippets of movies of Tolkien himself in conversation, and reading short passages from LOTR. He really does speak at a machine-gun speed, and as if through a mouthful of pebbles. I was struck by the twinkle in his eyes, and his expressive face.

This DVD also comes with a little booklet illustrating some of the marvelous Hildebrandt Tolkien paintings that gave me my first concrete visuals of Middle-earth over 30 years ago.

The fun doesn’t stop there: there is also a CD of Rick Wakeman playing music inspired by Middle-earth, and another group or two which I thought even better.

In all, this documentary does not have major movie flash and glitter, but its personnel are very interesting, and provide solid information about Tolkien and LOTR. Someone also created a 3D moving map of Middle-earth which is crude by today’s standards. And in order to illustrate some of the scenes from LOTR they made (by today’s standards) some delightfully cheesy home-movies using dwarfs(!) as hobbits, all shot through a filter so it doesn’t (thank God) look too real. Two of the more interesting interviews are by two of Tolkien’s children, Priscilla and John (so strange: they look as old or roughly the same age as their father!).

Anyway, I serendipitously stumbled over the DVD in my local Blockbuster store, but you might be able to get it at www.eaglevisionusa.com or www.eaglevision-int.com.

Oh yes, and it’s “PJ-safe”! Not one mention of PJ, not one note of Howard Shore’s, not one mention of New Zealand — so purists can proceed in safety and comfort.

Namarië!

Lotho, over and out again... (I’ll be looking in as my situation allows. Mods, please don’t lock me out again!)


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## 33Peregrin (May 10, 2004)

I have seen that DVD, or atually it was a VHS... I got it from the library, and I had to wait for it for nearly three months! I thought it was really good, and watched it over and over again before I had to turn it back in to the library. I liked Tolkien speaking, and hearing from other Tolkien devotees. Sometimes, when I read some things that Tolkien read in that movie, I can hear him saying it in my head. Pretty cool. But yeah- I thought that it was very interesting.


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