May 11, 2003

A Thought About Tom
G

I've just had a thought regarding the exclusion of Tom Bombadil from the Fellowship movie. I know that the debate regarding his and Goldberry's exclusion has long since evaporated but it occurs to me that Jackson's reasons for doing this may expand beyond pacing and time issues.

Is it not also possible that another reason for leaving Tom out was that in the back of his mind Jackson knew it could be just as controversial to leave him in? After all, although a reasonable description of these characters' appearances is provided by Tolkien, there has been a great deal of debate over the years as to whether Tolkien intended Tom to be a Maia, an Elf, One of the Valar or something else entirely. With this in mind it would have been obvious to Jackson that Tolkien enthusiasts may have been even more angered but what they perceived to be an inaccurate portrayal of Tom than by his abscense altogether.

Does anyone else think that this could have occured to Mr. Jackson and perhaps have influenced his decision? If you think I'm exaggerating then please remember that upon the release of the film there were those who were upset at Boromir's hair colour.

Also, could Glorfindel have suffered for similar reasons? If you think about it, would cinema-goers have understood that this mighty warrior was present at Rivendell but wasn't going with the fellowship? Any explanation of this would have taken up valuable screentime at the already truncated Council of Elrond.

Anyway, thanks for reading my opinions on these matters and I look forward to reading yours,
G.