At some point, the Lord of the Rings will be adapted again for the big screen. So why not think about how that might be done?
Two ideas to start us off, focused primarily on ways to do something new (in the context of audiences having already seen PJ's LOTR and TH trilogies). This is not a disciplined script-writing thread, however. It's simply a place to brainstorm about ideas for a new adaptation.
1. Beginning. Title card: The Lord of the Rings. Instead of a prologue describing the history of the Ring (we'll get there later in Bag End), we begin with a scene of a dark-cloaked rider on a black horse. He is riding his horse at a slow walk along dry, cracked ground. We follow behind him as he emerges from a dark gate, under the searing heat of the sun. We follow him through a montage of different landscapes. First a barren, rocky region, then a flat plain of tall grasses, then a wooded area, then along a river and around a lake with a town built upon it, and past a city on a hill at night, lit only by a few fires. Finally, we settle on one place. Seemingly, the destination of this journey. The moon's full, and it lights a dim path leading up the stony foothills of a tall and lonely mountain. The figure in the dark cloak, still on its horse, emerges from behind the camera, and gallops up the path. No music. Just the sound of a winter wind whistling, and the clop, clop, clop of the horse. The horse makes its way up and up, until it comes to a long, flat plain with a river coursing through it. There is a fog. But through it, the rider can make out a great gate, carved into the mountainside. It looms ahead of him. The silhouette of a small, armored and helmeted guard emerges from the fog, holding a spear.
"Who approaches?" the armored guard shouts, unafraid.
"I come to see your Lord," hisses the rider. And it's a voice to make the blood run cold.
The armored guard backs away into the fog, turns, and runs towards the gate.
Silence for about 10 seconds or so.
The gate slowly opens, and a small, broad, long-bearded and richly-dressed man walks along the path towards the rider, with a retinue behind him. Clearly, he is the Lord of this place. We see him walk forward in profile, watching him and his retinue from the middle distance. He halts about twenty feet from the rider, also in profile atop his horse.
Silence.
The bearded Lord breaks the silence. "Dain Ironfoot...At your service."
Silence.
Dain speaks up again. "Who are you, cloak-wearer? Why do you come to our gate under cover of darkness?"
An unsettling voice responds. It sounds distant, as if coming from deep underground. "I bring word from the Lord Sauron the Great to Lord Dain Ironfoot, King Under the Mountain."
"What word?" responds Dain, uneasily. "And what is your name?"
"The Lord Sauron wishes for your friendship. Rings he would give for it, such as he gave of old. In return, the Lord Sauron asks a small thing. News of halflings. What they are, and where they might be found. For Sauron knows that one of these was known to you on a time."
Dain's face is a mask, though his eyes betray him. He is troubled. His eyes challenge the messenger.
Rider: ‘‘This one you knew is a thief. He stole a ring that belongs to Lord Sauron. It is but a trifle that Sauron fancies, and an earnest of your good will. Find it, and three rings that the Dwarf-sires possessed of old shall be returned to you, and the realm of Moria shall be yours for ever. Find only news of the thief, whether he still lives and where, and you shall have great reward and lasting friendship from the Lord. Refuse, and things will not seem so well.’’
His voice ends with a hiss, and all in Dain Ironfoot's retinue shudder.
‘‘I must consider this message and what it means,’’ responds Dain.
‘‘Consider well, but not too long."
‘‘The time of my thought is my own to spend," Dain says proudly, but with an unmistakeable edge of fear in his voice.
‘‘For the present,’’ replies the dark rider, and gallops off into the darkness.
Cut to an exterior landscape shot of the Shire, and the "Fellowship of the Ring" title card. A long, slow tracking shot. The camera passes over the rolling hills, across the water, and over the hill. It settles onto the lane leading up to Bag End, and then passes over Bagshot row and settles in on a garden. A gardener is hard at work digging up potatoes. We stay with him for a bit, watching as he yanks them from the ground. The camera lingers on his face for a while, as he works. The camera then pulls up a bit and notices a small, old man, Bilbo Baggins, sitting on a chair, watching the gardener.
"I'm afraid, Sam, that we'll need more than what's in my garden. Half the Shire will be coming!" He waves a handful of envelopes in the air. As he says this, he looks down with a smile. The camera cuts to a closeup of Bilbo. He whispers to himself: "And they'll be demanding a lot more than potatoes after I've had my little joke..."
The camera closes in on his lap, and onto his open hand. On his palm sits a pale golden ring. He closes his hand into a fist, and walks into his house to prepare some tea.
There is an ominous knock at the door.
2. Main character: Sam is the main character. We even hear Gandalf tell Frodo about the origin of the Ring (after the test in the fire reveals the elvish script), and the need to leave the Shire, from Sam's perspective outside the window. It will not always be possible to view scenes from Sam's perspective, but he will definitely be perceived as the main character, with Frodo a close second. Sam is the "eyes of the audience," much as Bilbo was in the Hobbit. Frodo is far more of a cipher, though his character will still be very developed.
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