June 16, 2003

FotR EE Interactive Map
Niphredil

OK G, I must admit that I hadn’t actually paid that much attention to the interactive map until your post. After having a closer look at the map (I’ve only ever bothered to go through it a couple of times) I did notice that the geography between Hobbiton and Bree has been altered dramatically. The Old Forest and the Barrow Downs have been wiped from the map and the Brandywine seems to run closer to Bree than Hobbiton. Is this the change you were talking about, or are there more that I haven’t picked up? I’d love to know what they are. This was the only major flaw I could find.

I suppose that because Bombadil and Co were cut from the movie, they decided to cut the corresponding locations from the map. I agree with you that this is unnecessary, they could have left the map in tact. It would be nice to see the red line travel through the Old Forest and the Barrow Downs on its way to Bree. I remember reading an interview with Fran Walsh when she was being grilled by some diehard fans about Bombadil being cut and she said something along the lines of just because you don’t see it on the screen doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen, you can assume that in between the shots of the hobbits on the ferry and them arriving at Bree the hobbits have gone through the Old Forest, met Bombadil and the Barrow-wights etc. I thought this was a strange statement then and I still think so now, but I guess she was trying to pacify some of us rabid Tolkien fans at the time. I guess her argument doesn’t hold much sway now though seeing the locations aren’t even on the map. Or is it a case of just because they aren’t on the map doesn’t mean they are not there…