27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Lousy rendition., February 3, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: The Lord of the Rings (Wood Box Edition): (wood box) (Audio CD)
Despite the fact that this is shown as being published in 2001, the copyright dates first from 1954. There is a reason that other versions have come out since this one: this one isn't good.
There are different readers for different characters, and some of the voices are really jarring. Frodo, to my ear, is completely wrong. In addition, it is poorly abridged. One of the most remarkable things about Middle Earth is how wonderfully imagined it is; all of the details are described so lovingly. Not in this version. Here, almost everything is dialog, so you are given little idea of what anything looks like. Some of the most cherished quotations (for me, at least) are mangled. In all, very disappointing. I remember hearing the BBC's dramatization years ago on radio and thinking it was wonderful job on very difficult material. I certainly wouldn't say that of this version.
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30 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Despite being panned; this is a great rendition, October 9, 2002
This review is from: The Lord of the Rings (Wood Box Edition): (wood box) (Audio CD)
I think it is worth buying. Your personal preference will affect how you like this version as opposed to the newer one done by the BBC. This is the first rendition I ever heard of the Lord of the Rings. I own both copies and I don't regret owning either one because each Version is good for different reasons.
The voices are different in this version. BBC sounded more like grown men. The voices sounded more elfish in this version. I think that it reminded me of the Ralph Bashki version of the Hobbit. I did feel that this was more concise and less was edited out. Gollum seemed less psycho and scary in this version. There was less music in this version and less of a romantic sideline. I liked that it didn't edit out the part of Tom Bombadil; as BBC's version did. I felt like more was cut out on the BBC version even though it was four cds longer. It was disappointing.
I know that one person found this edition hard to follow. I find all the audio I listen to has to be listened to repeatedly to understand the plot. I will admit that this is the kind of story that one has to listen to to understand all that was going on. With repeated listenings; one hears new things or notices new things. I actually found the narration and actors voices sounded clearer in this version than the later one.
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Charming, historically important Mind's Eye radio drama., February 16, 2003
This review is from: The Lord of the Rings (Wood Box Edition): (wood box) (Audio CD)
This full-cast abridgement of THE LORD OF THE RINGS is The Mind's Eye version produced for National Public Radio in 1979, several years before the much-superior BBC version with Ian Holm. The eleven-hour-plus dramatization deserves recognition as a sincere, pioneering attempt to bring J. R. R. Tolkien's epic fantasy to imaginative life for a young American audience in a way that the animated films of the period could not. The production was very well-received at the time and appreciated as a folk-culture event.
Radio drama has been a rarity in the United States since the early 1950's whereas it has always thrived in the United Kingdom. (There had been an early British radio broadcast of LotR of which Tolkien, who disliked dramatic forms in general, disapproved.) While the subsequent 1981 BBC masterwork is a lavish, technically dazzling production sporting internationally acclaimed actors, the humble Mind's Eye version, utilizing a small cast of local-theatre players, is a low-budget, no-frills affair. Most of the voices are wrong and pronunciation awkward, but everyone makes an enthusiastic effort, which is the main reason that the marathon show remains so endearing despite its uneven quality.
Scriptwriter Bernard Mayes had his task cut out for him, considering that it no doubt was a labor of love which had to be done quickly for little or no money. According to the conventions of the radio drama format, the adaptation emphasizes dialogue over description, and while the merest sketch of the novel, Mayes' script is generally an effective condensation, highlighted by the inclusion of the beloved Tom Bombadil episode. Scripter Mayes also plays Gandalf quite splendidly and his fine, robust performance make this version worth a listen for all but the most cringing of purists.
Gale Chugg (a notable cartoon voice) gives a spirited and straightforward account of the narration and doubles as a delightfully creepy Gollum. Other voices do not fare so well, but weaknesses among the supporting cast would mean little if the protagonists were not so drastically miscast. Samwise (Lou Bliss) is energetic and cheeky but sounds like a contemporary Noo Yawk street kid; while Frodo (James Arrington) starts out with an appropriate clear-speaking earnestness, only to become a monotonous, whining drone when crushed by the terrible burden of the evil One Ring. This means that THE RETURN OF THE KING, which places an inordinate burden of its own on these actors, is rendered a painfully draggy conclusion to the epic narrative.
The overall result would not seem so mediocre if so much better had not since come from Ian Holm, Martin Shaw, Rob Inglis and of course the Peter Jackson films. For all its gross imperfection, The Mind's Eye LORD OF THE RINGS maintains a nostalgic charm for listeners who can be forgiving of the primitive circumstances of the little production and focus on its historocity and ambitious, well-meaning intent.
Although Tolkien fans will want both, this version might be more appropriate for family listening than the more challenging BBC recording and would serve as an excellent way to introduce children to Tolkien's magic world.
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