When the trailer for The Lord of The Rings: The War of the Rohirrim first dropped, it seemed to divide cinema fans. Some saw it as a way to once again delve into the magical world created by J.R.R. Tolkien, while others seemed to worry whether the story would lend itself to the Anime style correctly. For me, it seemed like a marriage made in heaven.
The unique fantasy world created in the mind of Tokien, brought to the screen by the legendary anime filmmaker Kenji Kamiyama, who showed his creativity with the brilliant Blood: The Last Vampire film and delving deep into the Ghost in the Shell franchise.
Anime gives a filmmaker the license to bring fantasy alive on the screen in a way that no other art form can. So, I could wait to witness seeing Tolkien’s work brought to life in this style. If the project needed any more legitimacy, it was revealed that key members of Peter Jackson’s original Lord of the Rings team would be onboard, including screenwriter Phillipa Boyens. Although not directly involved with the everyday making of the film, Peter Jackson himself had ideas bounced off him and eventually took up the role of executive producer.
The War of the Rohirrim is set 183 years earlier than The Lord of the Rings and comes from one of Tolkien’s original appendices, the House of Eorl. It follows the events of what happens when an innocuous meeting of kings and leaders turns deadly when the King of Rohan, Helm Hammerhand (Brian Cox) realizes that the offer from a Dunlending lord, Freca (Shaun Dooley), of his son Wulf (Luke Pasqualino) to marry Hammerhand’s daughter, Hera (Gaia Wise) is a veiled attempt to take over the throne.
The resulting duel between Freca and Hammerhand results in Freca’s death, and the quarrel is further escalated when Wulf reveals that he is in love with Hera, and she spurns his advances. She is much more interested in exploring the world than settling down for marriage.
In an act of vengeance, Wulf declares that he will take Rohan by force, while Hera decides that she will become not only her people’s protector, but a protector for the whole of Middle Earth.
I found that my original thoughts about how Tolkien’s work could merge with anime to be spot on. Visually, this is one of the most spectacular films you will see this year. Any frame of the film looks like it should be hanging on an art gallery wall. The epic scale of the scenery and the creativity shown by the artists to bring some of these creatures to life, will leave you in awe. Although, looking good doesn’t make a great film.
Plot wise, the screenwriters have created a genuinely enthralling good versus evil storyline. However, there is a problem with the pacing. Early on, it feels like the film takes its time bringing the story to life. At about the halfway point, the film feels suddenly rushed and takes shortcuts by using exposition to do so. These parts of the film do not feel natural and seem to misuse Eowyn’s (Miranda Otto) voiceover. The result, audiences will often find themselves removed from the film as they try to take on board information being thrown at them as if they were sitting in a high school history class.
It was during one of these moments that I started to wonder whether this story would have been executed better as a series or film trilogy instead. There is absolutely no reason why these exposition dumps couldn’t have been fleshed out a little more, if that had been the case.
On the positive side, I was impressed with the way The War of the Rohirrim gives gentle nods to the Peter Jackson films without tripping itself up. Those familiar with the previous films in the franchise will prick their ears up as various cities, towns and people are mentioned. You should also keep an eye out for some familiar characters along the way.
Voice acting wise, Miranda Otto reveals herself to be an amazing voice actress. She guides the audience through this story so well, while Gaia Wise brings Hera to life in such a way, I found myself hoping that perhaps one day we might get to see more of her character in the franchise in future.
The Lord of The Rings: The War of the Rohirrim can be enjoyed by those that worship the original film franchise and new viewers alike. This is a great standalone story that has just enough respect for the original films to ground it in this amazing world. Be prepared for some amazing visuals and a sweeping storyline, but be warned, the lengthy expositions throughout can be a little tiresome.