The Lord of the Rings_ The War of the Rohirrim (2024) Movie Preview
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00:00 Many of the Lord of the Rings fans were taken by surprise when The War of the Rohirrim was
00:07 announced as an animated film.
00:08 Besides euphoria, there was also a big amount of skepticism regarding the movie, which takes
00:13 place about 260 years before Frodo's journey to Mount Doom.
00:16 As the name The War of the Rohirrim suggests, this time the focus is on a very specific
00:20 group of people, the inhabitants of Rohan, who already played a particular role in the
00:24 two towers.
00:25 The prideful horsemen have surely left a lasting impression on many, which makes the story
00:29 about their background all the more exciting.
00:32 One more reason for us to take a more in-depth look at all the current facts about the production
00:36 and the plot.
00:37 And while not all of you are anime fans, it seems that something very special is waiting
00:41 for us this time.
00:44 Ever since the Amazon series The Rings of Power, if not earlier, we have known about
00:47 the great significance of the ages in Tolkien's world.
00:50 While the First Age ends with the defeat of Margoth, the series is set in the Second Age,
00:54 which concludes with the apparent demise of Sauron.
00:57 The War of the Rohirrim is now set at a very particular time in the Third Age.
01:00 More precisely, in the year 2758, exactly 260 years before Gandalf sends Frodo on his
01:06 way with the Ring.
01:07 This is called the "Time of the Long Winter" because Rohan was completely snow-covered
01:11 for more than five months.
01:13 The makers of the movie obviously rely even more on references to the Norse mythology
01:17 here.
01:18 After all, Rohan was already strongly reminiscent of Viking culture in the old movies.
01:23 The new Lord of the Rings movie is about the big conflict between the Rohirrim and the
01:27 Dunlendings, so here's a quick summary of the meaning of these names.
01:30 The Rohirrim, also known as the Riders of Rohan, are a proud people of humans living
01:34 in the region of Rohan.
01:36 Their history dates back to the First Age of Middle-earth.
01:38 They originally descended from the Northmen, who eventually settled in the area that would
01:42 eventually become Rohan.
01:43 The Rohirrim are famous for their horsemanship and their deeply established horse culture.
01:48 Horses are of crucial importance to them, and the connection between people and horses
01:51 is a central part of their lives.
01:53 They breed and care for horses that are particularly suitable for war.
01:57 The society of the Rohirrim is divided into several kingdoms, with the King of Rohan being
02:01 the supreme ruler.
02:02 The capital of Rohan is Edoras, where the Golden Hall of Meduseld is situated, the king's
02:07 seat.
02:08 The Rohirrim are also known for their love of poetry and their people's ancient language.
02:13 The Dunlendings were originally a tribe of people who lived in the western parts of Rohan
02:17 before the Rohirrim moved into the region.
02:19 The Dunlendings enjoyed a long history and culture before they were displaced by the
02:23 Rohirrim.
02:24 This led to a strong enmity between the two peoples.
02:27 The Dunlendings lived mainly from livestock and agriculture and were widely known as herdsmen.
02:31 Their community was organized into tribes, and they had their own deities and customs.
02:35 The conflict between the Dunlendings and the Rohirrim lasted for centuries.
02:39 The Rohirrim eventually conquered the lands of the Dunlendings and forced them into the
02:42 mountains of Dunland.
02:44 This led to deep resentment and mistrust between the two peoples.
02:47 So it's not surprising that they sided with Saruman during the events of the Lord of the
02:50 Rings trilogy.
02:53 As with most stories from Middle-earth, the general storylines are already known from
02:57 Tolkien's books.
02:58 It remains to be seen whether the creators will fully stick to them and which details
03:01 will be added that have not been mentioned yet.
03:03 Roughly, the story of the War of the Rohirrim is about the following.
03:07 The film is set at a time when the realm of Rohan is again in an intense conflict with
03:11 the Dunlendings.
03:12 Helm Hammerhand is the ninth king of Rohan.
03:14 King Freyja, the leader of the Dunlendings, challenges Helm to marry his daughter Hera
03:18 to his son Wolf, an insult that ultimately leads to a disastrous war between the two
03:22 clans.
03:23 During this dramatic confrontation, a stronghold plays a pivotal role that fans of the Lord
03:28 of the Rings are sure to be very familiar with, Helm's Deep, the scene in an epic battle
03:32 in the Two Towers.
03:33 However, this film does not only put emphasis on the two kings.
03:37 The spotlight is also on their offspring.
03:39 On the one hand, there's the brave Princess Hera, who grows up in the midst of war and
03:42 becomes a fearless warrior.
03:44 On the other hand, there's Wolf, the heir to the throne of Dunland.
03:47 Muscular, armed with an axe, and with a scarred face, he is the main villain of the film.
03:52 The first scenes from the film were already presented at the film festival at Annecy,
03:56 France, this past June.
03:57 As a result, some details about the War of the Rohirrim are known already.
04:00 The movie delves deeper into the culture of the Horseman's People, which is mainly centered
04:04 on warfare.
04:05 Family power structures and conflicts are at the center of the plot, with honor and
04:09 loyalty seen as being more important than wealth and physical possessions.
04:12 In addition, the movie also promises to tell supernatural ghost stories, a theme that can
04:17 fully utilize the possibilities of animation.
04:20 Concept drawings published so far also show impressive depictions of Oliphants and Orcs
04:24 in the thick of battle.
04:25 The images released so far definitely make us eager for more and suggest a dark and serious
04:30 story.
04:31 In the finished film, we can presumably look forward to seeing spectacular scenes and a
04:35 more in-depth portrayal of Tolkien's world.
04:39 The female lead of the movie will be Hera.
04:41 She is the daughter of Helma Hammerhand.
04:43 She was not named in Tolkien's writings, so her character is entirely the work of the
04:47 film's authors.
04:48 By them, however, she is neither described as a warrior princess nor as a princess in
04:52 distress.
04:53 Her main task will be to show the audience Middle-earth from a woman's perspective.
04:57 The first comments about Hera describe her as vulnerable and wild, a somewhat boyish
05:01 character.
05:02 She has red hair and an untidy braid, wears leather armor and wields a sword.
05:06 Gaia Wise will provide the voice of the princess, who is the daughter of actress Emma Thompson.
05:11 Her father, Helm Hammerhand, was the ninth king of Rohan.
05:16 He got his name Hammerhand because of a legendary action that we will probably get to see in
05:20 the new movie.
05:21 Helm is, above all, a very ferocious warrior, dreaded by his enemies and regarded as invulnerable.
05:27 After all, his deeds have gone down in history.
05:29 It's not a coincidence that the fortress Helm's Deep is named after him.
05:33 The king is dubbed by Hollywood star Brian Cox.
05:35 He is experienced in the role of a patriarch, for example, as the head of the family in
05:39 the hit series Succession or as King Agamemnon in Troy.
05:44 The counterpart to Hera is Wolf.
05:46 The king's son travels through Dunland, always looking out for allies in the fight against
05:50 Rohan.
05:51 He is a tall, buff guy with long, ruffled hair, armed with an axe and covered in furs
05:56 and a torn cloak.
05:57 A scar above his eye makes him look like a true barbarian.
06:01 Wolf is voiced by Luke Pasqualino, who most of you will know from the Netflix series Shadow
06:05 and Bone.
06:06 Freyja, Wolf's father, will also have an important role in the story.
06:11 Not only is he powerful, but he is also rich, owning many lands by the Adorn, the river
06:16 that runs through Rohan.
06:17 He also claims to be of noble descent from Dunland, which will prove to be of great importance
06:22 later in the plot.
06:23 Freyja is dubbed by Sean Dooley, whose voice we know from the video game Elden Ring.
06:29 The last character worth knowing is Freyja Loth.
06:31 He is the nephew of Helm Hammerhand.
06:33 During the war, he mainly stays in the mountain fastness Dunharrow, which, similar to Helm's
06:38 Deep, is considered impregnable.
06:40 We don't know how he will enter in the events yet.
06:42 His voice will be provided by a Hollywood newcomer, namely Lawrence Ubong Williams.
06:48 For the movie The War of the Rohirrim, New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. Animation are
06:52 in charge of the production.
06:53 The project has already been in the making for almost two years and holds the promise
06:57 of winning the hearts of fans.
06:58 This is because the creative direction is in the hands of the highly respected anime
07:02 director Kenji Kamiyama, who is most associated with cult anime such as Ghost in the Shell
07:07 and Ultraman.
07:08 Kamiyama has also made a name for himself at Warner Bros. before, where he created the
07:12 thrilling anime series Blade Runner Black Lotus.
07:15 The first people to talk about the new Lord of the Rings movie are already stating that
07:18 the animation is very reminiscent of the anime from the 90s.
07:21 But don't worry, the magical spirit of the earlier Lord of the Rings films will probably
07:25 remain in this new work as well.
07:27 Peter Jackson's iconic visions served as a significant inspirational source for countless
07:31 scenes in the upcoming film.
07:33 According to the makers, the challenge was to convert the world and characters into an
07:37 animated style without losing the charm of the original films.
07:40 Daniel Faulkner, the art director of the movies, was instrumental in achieving this goal.
07:45 Together with the creative team, he immersed himself in the archives to find the familiar
07:49 models from the past films and further shape them.
07:52 Unfortunately, we haven't been able to watch a trailer or teaser yet, but there is still
07:55 some time until the movie's release anyway.
07:57 It was recently postponed from April to the end of next year.
08:00 Now, the Lord of the Rings The War of the Rohirrim is scheduled to hit theaters on December
08:04 13th, 2024.
08:05 What are your thoughts?
08:09 Is a Lord of the Rings anime a welcome change?
08:12 Or are you generally fed up with further projects in Tolkien's world?
08:15 And if you could wish for your own spinoff, what would it be about?
08:18 As always, we appreciate the thumbs up and exciting discussions below the video.
08:23 See you next time!
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