July 11, 2002

The Two Towers
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Marsh, the title of The Two Towers originally refered to the towers of Orthanc and Minas Morgul. These are the towers which are most central to the second book. Tolkien himself created book cover artwork reflecting this relationship, above the towers are a moon and a pentagram. Elsewhere there is also a moon and a white hand. The film changed this to be Orthanc and Barad Dur because most non-tolkienites new to the epic are not fully aware of the existence of Minas Morgul or its importance. Minas Morgul/Ithil sister city to Minas Tirth/Anor, does that mean it also had 7 surrounding walls? were they identical? (up to a point). Anyone think that Jackson should have taken Tad Nasmith onboard when he was making the film? I'm not attacking John Howe or Alan lee, both unsurpassed when engendering a scene with mood and feeling, but I feel Tad Nasmith has an eye for accuracy. His paintings are truly magnificent. Especially his imagining of Minas Tirth, which in my humble view is more impressive than what will be shown in the film. See you all later :)