Here's my rant-list of gratuitous changes and plot-problems I spotted in Lord of the Rings: the Two Towers. I'd never been so upset and disappointed by a movie, and never even knew I had been so attached to Tolkien's books until I saw how it was being changed. This isn't a proper review; I won't waste any time praising special effects, costumes and sets. I've been looking at Lord of the Rings art for over a decade. I take grand visions of Middle Earth as a matter of course. And in this age, CGI can accomplish anything.

Script-writing and story-telling can't be handled by computers, but they can be screwed by humans who err. I had been extremely relieved upon first watching The Fellowship of the Ring. The movie had been done with care. Only after the first viewing did I actually put some faith in Peter Jackson and allow myself the same enthusiasm for the movie and its sequels that everyone else showed. But The Two Towers with its loose threads and mistakes pissed me off. It's been three days and its problems still weigh heavily on my mind.

I've read several reviews. None of them I've read cover half the following problems I had with the movie's storytelling. I'm doing this in two parts:

Plot Problems for the Non-Tolkien-Reader

Gandalf meeting Treebeard and Merry and Pippin first
Why is this a problem? It not only differs from the book, but they handled this shoddily. Gandalf only recalls his "old name," Gandalf, when meeting up with Legolas, Gimli and Aragorn later. So what does Peter Jackson think happens when Gandalf ran into Merry and Pippin earlier? Legolas, Gimli and Aragorn are the ones more likely to know Gandalf as Mithrandir, while Merry and Pippin would ONLY know Gandalf as Gandalf. Gandalf's "that's who I was?" speech with Legolas, Gimli and Aragorn does NOT make sense when the order of events has been screwed with for the movie.

The ents' ignorance of the damage around Isengard: This problem can be regarded as a plot problem stemming from the previous. It really makes you wonder what the hell happened with the first encounter with the White Wizard that is not shown. Here's what I think Peter Jackson was thinking, or not thinking, about how the encounter between Gandalf, Treebeard, Merry and Pippin must have run:

Treebeard: Hey look, White Wizard, I have a couple of shorties here who say they are not orc spies.
Merry, Pippin: Hey, look! That's not Saruman! It looks like Gandalf! Gandalf!
Gandalf: Treebeard! We're old friends. And because we're old friends and you trust my judgement enough to bring these two pesky hobbits to me, I'm not going to tell you about the damage Saruman has been wreaking to your friends around Isengard.
Treebeard: Thanks for not telling me, because I'm going to keep on pretending I know nothing about it, and am not interested in knowing anything about it, until Pippin tricks me into going near Isengard later.
Gandalf: Splendid. And now I should go and play my role elsewhere where I tell everyone who's good in Middle Earth to fight against the Evil forces. Please try not to notice how I've forgotten to tell you how important it is to fight Saruman and his forces, so that you and your Ent friends know nothing of the need. We're also going to pit a pathetic 2,000 Rohirrim later against a 10,000-strong army from Isengard later.
Merry, Pippin: Gandalf! Gandalf! We thought you were dead! You're wearing white! We thought you were Saruman, Gandalf!
Gandalf: Those hobbits you're carrying--their lips are moving, but strangely I can't hear them.
Treebeard: What should I do with them?
Gandalf: We used to be a Fellowship, but now I don't need them anymore. An elf, a dwarf and human are probably looking for them, but I shall meet them and tell them to quit looking. It matters not what you do with these buggers. I won't tell them what to do or tell you what to do. Feel free to tell them to go home, and for yourself to dawdle about Fangorn Forest.
Treebeard: Yes, a gathering of the Ents has been called. It has been called for no apparent reason, and at the gathering, we will decide to do nothing about this war.
Gandalf: Splendid. Carry on!

Theoden's son's death
In the beginning Theodred's death would serve as a possible explanation for Theoden's passivity and despair in the face of orcish invasion of Rohan. But Peter Jackson tries to show us later that this spell over Theoden was caused purely by a literal spell. And that the son's death is unknown to Theoden until the spell is broken. As a storytelling device with its particular timing, what purpose does this death then serve? (More on this in the Tolkien reader's section.)

Eowyn's "I fear a cage" speech
It's a head-scratcher because its place in this movie; nothing has been shown yet that calls for this speech. More below in the Tolkien reader's section.

Eomer's whereabouts
Gandalf presumably takes almost five days to find this guy to join the battle at Helm's Gate. Where would Eomer have gone? He'd been chasing and fighting Saruman's forces when Merry and Pippin made their escape, so that would make one assume, after all the arguments he's had with Theoden too, that he was well-aware of Saruman's treachery and military might. When these forces are emptied out of Isengard and marching to Helm's Gate, why wasn't Eomer aware if he's been on their tail all this while? Where does the movie want us to believe he is? Can he possibly not know of the massive armies advancing to Helm's Deep?

Two dozen ways to say "Rohan," including among the Rohirrim themselves. British and American pronunciation being thrown about randomly regardless of the race or origins of the person uttering "Rohan." After so much alleged coaching of the actors on the speaking of Quenya and the pronunciation of character names, it's funny that "Rohan" differed all over the place.



(Warning! Possible spoilers for a 50-year-old book follow.)

Problems and disappointments for the Long-time Tolkien-reader

Theoden's son
Gratuitous change to the timing of Theodred's death, and gratuitous ignorance and late mourning of that death on Theoden's part. Theoden had never much mourned Theodred in the book, his son dying 5 days before we first see Theoden; Theoden was always more upset over his stolen horse than his lost son. The change of this detail changes something that was interesting to something that is generic, not well-supported in story flow, and seems to be there only to call for a crying scene.


The character of Eowyn and the tragedy of her character utterly dropped and changed. Her tragic cold-lily-and-strong-as-steel character becomes a relatively superficial pretty and ordinary girl infatuated with Aragorn. "I fear a cage" speech makes no sense when the original situations in the book that inspired and illustrate the speech are not shown in the movie. No one was shown to have left Edoras for battle before this speech, aside from Eomer's exile (see below). Sadly, I'm the only person who's really really bitched about this, but mostly I suspect because Eowyn is the only true heroine in LotR for me, and I held her story and her character close to my heart for more than 10 years.

Gratuitous Eomer's exile. Haha! Yes, exile him, when Eomer does more good for the defence of Rohan outside of Edoras than in. In the book, Eomer's already been riding out frequently in defiance to his uncle's wishes that nothing be done at all! What does Theoden's order for Eomer's exile logically accomplish, especially if Eomer's taking his men with him? This also leads the other problem that's been covered above, under Eomer's whereabouts.

Treebeard's ignorance of the damage being to the forest around Isengard. Differs greatly from the book with no justification other than to keep the Ents doing nothing until they storm Isengard as part of the climax near the end, and showing nothing that happens in Volume 4 after that.

Treebeard's ignorance of the damage around Isengard, part II: Gandalf, being the catalyst for the Good side taking up arms against Evil would have told Treebeard of the troubles tn the south long ago. Treebeard DOES approach Gandalf for counsel--he brings Merry and Pippin to the White Wizard! What does the White wizard tell Treebeard? Apparently nothing. (See above.)

Gratuitous: Aragorn falling into the river, leading to TMA. Half an hour's worth of Too Much Arwen that could have been used on something else.

Why so much emphasis on the elvish passing into the West? Why do the elves of Rivendell have to leave NOW? The books themselves hardly pushed this point to the extent that Peter has done in this movie. So many plot additions and changes were made purely to illustrate this when screen time could have been used to include more of the original richness in the original third, fourth and even fifth volumes of LotR! It wouldn't be seen as a problem to run into the events of the fifth book. A HECK OF A LOT happens in it, and the rest of Volume 4 that was discarded. And in the first movie, they'd already did a "spill over" by covering Boromir's death. A Tolkien reader can't help but notice a lot of ill-used screen time. Too much Arwen. This can't be said enough.

Faramir
The story of Boromir, Faramir and Denethor has always been a GREAT family love-hate triangle in LotR. Boromir was the doted and favorite son of Denethor. Faramir, in the book, is the people's hero, for his greater ability, discipline, honor and selflessness. But he is unappreciated by his own father--is in fact hated by his own father. Faramir rises above this by being stronger in character... and they go ahead and make Faramir weak, unsympathetic and almost villainous in this movie. If I have to go by comments overheard after I stepped out of the theatre, a lot of people got the impression that he was another evil guy.

"We're not supposed to be here" (in Osgiliath)
No kidding. No Tolkien reader expected to be brought to this place in the movie. We wanted to see SHELOB's LAIR and Minas Ungol, thank you very much. Not enough can be said about the needless and useless detour the movie took from the book. It serves no purpose. Shelob would have been an excellent climax and cliffhanger.

This list long enough for you? I'll stop here and just be glad it's all finally off my chest. The only thing I can be thankful for is that this movie for me makes reading Tolkien's book better than the movie adaptation. And I look forward to reading Shadowfax's Secret Diary.