Gimli: Most reproached character in Middle-earth

© New Line Cinema

It’s a tough life in Middle-earth for Gimli the Dwarf…

This is something I’ve noticed whenever re-reading The Lord of the Rings. I find myself thinking that he is the most reproached individual out of all the characters. He often serves as the audience’s bridge to the story, speaking the reader’s mind when interacting with other characters. For that reason, he finds himself reprimanded, sometimes quite severely.

I really empathise with Gimli and his fruitless attempts to try and win an argument or a conversation. His statements and questions are constantly put down by the other characters he finds himself with.

Pareidolia in The Hobbit

Pareidolia: a psychological perception of seeing or hearing images and sounds that are non-existent.

Think of photographs of the man in the moon or the face on Mars. Shadows and light can play interesting tricks on the mind and create something that is not actually there. Our brains are hardwired to look for patterns and make out things which we cannot fully explain.

In a weirder post than usual, can we associate the concept of Pareidolia in scenes from The Hobbit trilogy?

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition – Review (Part III)

It’s finally done! It took me over 2.5 years to complete this review of The Fellowship of the Ring. Well, I say “review” but in truth, it’s more of an analysis and an appreciation of the film.

Here’s hoping the next series of posts on The Two Towers and The Return of the King won’t take as long (yes, I said the same thing when I posted Part II of this review 7 months ago.)

If you haven’t done so yet, check out Part I and Part II.

Enjoy!

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition – Review (Part II)

The reviewing continues …

Well, here it is. Almost two years later, here follows the continuation of the massive The Lord of the Rings review.

I’m ashamed to state it took me so long. But finally, here it is.

Mind you, this is only Part 2 of 3 of The Fellowship of the Ring, which I’m hoping won’t take as long to write. In the meantime, you’ve got much reading to do in this second part.

I hope you enjoy 🙂 …

Tolkien Week: Day 2

Questions Time!

I love Tolkien-related questionnaires. They’re always so difficult to respond and to pinpoint a specific character of text to like; but they’re fun and a great way to learn about yourself and your love for Middle-earth.

So, in honour of the second day of Tolkien Week, here’s a nice little set of questions put forward by fellow blogger, Hamlette on her blog.

The Gaffer’s Elite: Realms and Settlements

Ranking all things Middle-earth

Hullo friends!

It’s Friday today and that means another post from the Gaffer’s Elite! Now I had announced a “favourite characters” ranking last week, but in the meantime I thought there’s just one more post I need to do before getting to that.

Undoubtedly, one of the most appealing things about Middle-earth, and the reason why we keeping going back to these films and reading the books, is due to the vast variety of locations the stories take place in.

In 6 films, Peter Jackson and his creative team have visualised much of Tolkien’s fertile creativity and sublime imagination. Suffice to say, the combination of visual effects, set design and New Zealand’s natural breathtaking countryside, have given us a wealth of fantasy locales unlike any other.

So without further ado, here are some of my most cherished environments from the films…

‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ Extended Edition: Review

I know I said I’ll continue posting my ‘The Lord of the Rings’ review, but since that is taking rather longer to complete, I thought I’d write a couple of posts on news that is more pressing and currently ‘hot’.