Customer Reviews

Master of the Rings - The Unauthorized Story Behind J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" [VHS]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

For people hoping to get more insight to Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" movies, this is not the disc to buy. However, if you want to learn more about the man who created the world of Middle-Earth, where he came from, and what came about as a result, this is a wonderfully informative documentary.

The film is arranged oddly, with the earlier segments being about the fandom that has surrounded Tolkien's work and the later segments being about Tolkien himself.

In the "fandom" section, two particularly good segments include a piece on a Live Action Roleplaying battle with people designated as humans, goblins, archers or swordsmen, and a bit with a musician who dedicated his third album to music inspired by Tolkien. These bits reminded me of the "Trekkies" documentary of a few years ago, where you find yourself thinking how bizarre these people are, while at the same time, experiencing just a touch of regret that you aren't there with them.

The second part of the film, the biographical part, gives a lot of insight into Tolkien himself, including an interview with a man who wrote Tolkien's biography, a visit to the church he worshipped at and stops at several of his homes and hangouts, including a club he belonged to with C.S. Lewis.

If you're interested in going beyond the story itself and learning where it came from and where it went as a result, this is a great film to watch.

This film seems to have gotten higher ratings from most reviewers than the similarly named "J.R.R. Tolkien: Master of the Rings," but yet I actually found it to be more enjoyable to watch than the other one myself. Maybe it's because I didn't spend my own hard-earned cash on this one (I borrowed a library copy), or maybe it's because my expectations were much lower in this case. Whatever the reason, that was my reaction.

Neither of these films does a stellar job of presenting the world of Middle-Earth, in my opinion, but somehow this one seemed to have more real emotion and enthusiasm behind it. The long sequence on fans renacting battles might be annoying to some, but I found it to be rather entertaining. I didn't learn anything about Middle-Earth from it, but it entertained me. I also enjoyed the scenes of Oxford and the views of houses where Tolkien lived. Those bits were quite interesting and even informative. Definitely my favorite parts.

My LEAST favorite parts, on the other hand, were the unnecessarily lengthy sequences on artists and musicians inspired by Tolkien's works. That sort of thing is worthy of noting in a film like this, but I don't find it to be interesting enough to warrant lavishing the amount of time on it that it was given here. If that portion had been about a third as long as it was, I might have given the film 3 stars instead of two.

My overall comment: this DVD is not a COMPLETE waste of time, and you might be entertained and/or amused by some parts of it. But it does not really do justice to its subject. It only scratches the surface and it spends too much time on peripheral matters. I am still waiting for someone to produce a really high quality documentary on JRRT and Middle-Earth.

As a longtime fan of J.R.R. Tolkien, I really liked "Master of the Rings". I just got the DVD version, and I love it. This is a nice film for any fan of Dr. Tolkien, as it explores the many ways that people around the world have been inspired by the world that he created. I wasn't expecting stuff from the movie(s), new or old, so I was not disappointed (the word "unauthorized" in the title makes that point clearly). Instead I got to see and hear about Tolkien as a person, as well as about how people have been inspired by his work. The art and music sections were a lot of fun, but my favorites have to be his biographer and then the people from Dagorhir. After seeing those parts, I checked out their website for more information, and then went back and viewed the Dagorhir battle scenes again and again.

...or you'll regret you spent the money. Instead, buy Carpenter's excellent biography. Or buy Artist and Illustrator. I'm a huge Tolkien fan and this movie was embarassing to watch. I agree with the recent review that the interview with Carpenter was the best (so read his book). It was also nice to see some of the Oxford environs (especially for those of us who aren't English), but the tour guides were total hacks.

I kept looking at the clock to see if it was over yet and forced myself to watch the whole thing. To review all the bad parts would involve me having to watch it again and honestly, I can't think of a good thing to say about it. This is one purhcase I deeply regret.

I was pleasantly surprised to find so much background information and how these awesome books have effected so many things that I love! This is a must see in my opinion for all fans from novice to tolkien historian!!!

as a teacher, when i mark a pupils work i am required to comment on the pupils strengths, weaknesses and how their work could be developed.
this dvd has very few strengths. the short interviews with tolkien's biographer and members of the tolkien society are informative. the brief section showing roger garland at work in his studio in launceston, cornwell is okay(if on holiday over here in the uk visit it). but that's about it!
the weaknesses in the dvd are too numerous to mention but some that stand out include:
dagorhir - a bunch of yanky civil servants running about chaotically screaming there heads off attempting live role play.
in the uk lrp usually consists of planned reinactments with players in full armour or detailed outfits using full-on weapons and swords. dagorhir run about with hankercheifs on their heads, carrying pillows as shields and hitting each other with foam swords - it was embarrasing to watch.
'rock idol' - bob catley's performnaces were also enough to make me cringe. when he sang with magnum, throughout the 80's their work was littered with tolkien influenced lyrics and artwork. however at the time they would never admit to it ripping off tolkien. now bob catley is clutching at straws singing in plastic trendy pubs in an attempt to continue his career and cash in on the success of peter jackson's film. bob a word of advice - you're 20 years too late! magnum should of tried this sort of thing in the 80's (remember rick wakeman or marillion ?)
the part of the dvd that really shows the production team were on a cheap budget and knew nothing about tolkien were the interviews with grahamn rogers on tolkien in oxford. the man either cannot remember a script or the production team just let him waffle on regardless. every other word is 'um'. (if you have the misfortune of watching this dvd count them it gets really annoying after a while). it's as if the production team did it all in one take and could not afford to do another run. this includes shots of the soundman and other camera men getting into view (i'm sure this was not intentional like some of these new quirky documentaries with odd camrea angles).
the final nail in the coffin for this guy was when he misquoted tolkien's start of the hobbit. "in the ground there lived a hobbit" BLASPHEMY! even my 6 year old son knows that the hobbit starts with the immortal line " in a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit ". the quote is as famous as the book itself. it is as famous as "romeo, romeo where for art thou romeo".
the dvd was a disappointment to say the least. i can see now why tolkien's estate would not authorise it's release.
to the production team: plenty of room for development. try watching the other dvd available with a similar title 'master of the rings - a definitive guide to the world of the rings' it is excellent and well worth the money.

Lord of the Ring's buff, and was looking for more scenes. Title of this video is very mis-leading. Thought maybe there would be a little animation, but forget it. Over one hour of very boring stuff, people talking mostly about nothing. Hope I can get some of my money back.

I believe to create an autobiography about a man such as Tolkien video creates a great picture and understanding of the concepts that that particular person or persons is trying to get across to its audience. This documentary revealed the aspects of Tolkien's life that were key to writing the amazing novels that were produced. I recommend this to anyone that is a fan or just curious. AMAZING!

I can't wait to see it... i already know what it was about cause i play Dagorhir and was at Ragnarock when it was filmed... I am ordering one to see my friends and I fighting... ha i am the tattooed skinny mohawked one that is runnin like mad all over.. heehee watch and enjoy the life of tolkien and all that he inspored... one of those inspirations dagorhir... check it out www.dagohir.com it tells you more there and the movie explains us as well.. enjoy and come join the fun... - TeRMiTe (of the aratari)