On The Authenticity Of Movie Faramir

On the authenticity of movie Faramir

Faramir is one of my favorite characters in the Lord of the Rings. So, when I first saw The Two Towers, I remember being outraged when he appears to claim the Ring. In the books, he stands out for his steadfast determination not to do so, and for helping Frodo and Sam once he learns about the Quest. Jackson's Faramir seemed like a critical misunderstanding of Tolkien's.

More recently, I realized that this isn't the case. We can probably blame the cutting of some of Faramir's scenes for the fact that his character arc isn't as thoroughly sketched, but there are a few key lines that do, in fact, show us the truth. First, in a voice-over, Galadriel tells Elrond/the audience that "the young captain of Gondor has but to extend his hand, take the Ring for his own--and the world will fall."

When we reach the critical scene, and Faramir confronts Frodo about the Ring, he faces the temptation to claim it. And it is here, as in the book, that Faramir passes the test--not later in Osgiliath, where he decides to release Frodo and company (he passes a different test there). Faramir doesn't claim it for himself, as Boromir did ("It could be mine. It should be mine. Give it to me!). Instead, he says, "the Ring will go to Gondor."

...He says he's claiming it for Gondor, which makes sense: both he and his brother are devoted to protecting the kingdom and its people. However, I think Faramir is misleading himself here, because he doesn't truly believe that the Ring will save Gondor*. Boromir did--but both he and Faramir are basing that belief on Denethor's assertions.

This leads into the real struggle for Faramir's character: how his actions right now will affect his relationship with his father. The issue is much clearer in the flashback of Osgiliath. Denethor tasks Boromir with the journey to Rivendell (I will refrain from enumerating book/movie differences here--I'd like to, but I'll restrain myself), and when both his sons protest, he shuts them down. "I trust this mission only to your brother," he says. "The one who will not fail me." He implies that Faramir is worthless to him because he is less capable (he isn't), and less devoted to his father's wishes.

Denethor is partly correct: Faramir will not put his father's orders above his own moral standards, or before the well-being of Gondor. However, he deeply desires his father's regard. He struggles to choose between them until the danger of the Ring is made quite clear. In the movie, Sam angrily reveals that Boromir died because "he tried to take the Ring from Frodo, after swearing an oath to protect him; he tried to kill him! The Ring drove your brother mad!" Almost immediately after this, Frodo starts acting possessed, nearly gets nabbed by the Nazgûl, and almost kills Sam.

Faramir witnesses all of this. He hears how the Ring warped his noble, stalwart brother into a murderous traitor, and gets a bonus demonstration! After that, he (and we) can picture the Ring in the hands of Denethor. Considering Denethor's character, it's terrifying to imagine how his actions in the Return of the King would be compounded by the One Ring.

It's clear now that the Ring absolutely must not go to Gondor. After saving Frodo, Faramir makes what, for him, was the more difficult choice: to countermand his father's will. He lets the Ring go. When the consequences are highlighted--his father may demand his life in forfeit--he accepts them (with a little hesitation...though I think 'my father, who is ill-tempered and likely insane now, may literally kill me for not doing what he wanted' is grounds for queasiness from anyone). Once his goals are set and his mind is made up, he stands steadfast by his decisions.

Considering that, I see now that movie!Faramir is much more true to Tolkien's Faramir than I originally gave him credit for.

As for the fallout in The Return of the King, book!Denethor doesn't actually command a pointless, suicidal charge from Faramir and his soldiers. He does hit him with the customary disdain and comparisons to Boromir, with the latter now colored by bitterness and grief (which appears in another deleted/extended edition scene, I think).

It's tragic how Denethor and his sons struggle to understand and support each other, and to manage their weighty obligations. Denethor's inflexibility and pride (exacerbated by Gondor's dire circumstances) leads one son to his destruction, and alienates the other. Thanks to Faramir, Denethor never obtains the Ring, but Sauron finds another way to undermine him (the palantír). He destroys himself in the end, and nearly takes his remaining son with him.

If you're especially fond of Faramir, Boromir, or Denethor (or if you too want to whack him energetically with a staff), I suggest having a look at the analyses of the characters by Megan N. Fontenot. She talks about how the characters evolved as Tolkien wrote the Lord of the Rings. For example, it seems that at one point, Boromir (and Gandalf) were the only Fellowship members who weren't hobbits (good luck with that)!

*In an extra/extended edition scene, while Faramir regards him uneasily, Frodo assures Faramir that "the Ring will not save Gondor--it has only the power to destroy." At that point, he's still undecided about taking the Ring to Gondor. In the book, however, Faramir asserts that he "would not take [Isildur's Bane], if it lay by the highway. Not were Minas Tirith falling in ruin and I alone could save her, so, using the weapon of the Dark Lord for her good and my glory." When he learns that the weapon Frodo carries is the Ring, he is briefly tempted, but knowing and respecting the inherent peril, he rejects it.

Book!Faramir is more secure in his own identity and values, and less tormented than movie!Faramir by his father's annoyance that he isn't an obedient tool.

Fukushima Japan

Reminds me that random strangers we meet are more likely to be civil, and even helpful, than the vitriolic media culture leads us to fear

something absolutely lovely about especially the first half of fellowship is that the hobbits keep meeting random kind helpful strangers - the elves, bombadil, butterbur, aragorn (also farmer maggot and his wife, though they're not strangers) - until the book solidifies in you the feeling that these are not really instances of random luck, but rather the inherent nature of the world. kind people are everywhere, and no matter where you are, there is surely someone closer than you think that would offer help if you needed it. it's such a beautiful theme across all of LOTR, and it's very sweet to me that it starts from the very beginning of the journey, on such a 'small' (comparatively), everyday scale

I wish they had brought Celeborn in somewhere, but I can see where the story elements he would bring (resentment and distrust of outsiders, for example) might conflict with other key plot threads, such as the relationship the show builds between Durin IV and Elrond. The bigger issue, though, is that he doesn't fit into the character arc created for Galadriel.

In tRoP, the goal of finding Sauron and avenging her family is the compass of Galadriel 's life: she doesn't understand how to live without that purpose driving her. With no one to effectively counterbalance her, she's more vulnerable to Sauron's manipulations, and unwittingly facilitates his return.

In my opinion, tRoP Galadriel seems more like Gil-Galad's headstrong and impetuous niece than his father's cousin. However, if the show had included Celeborn alongside a wiser Galadriel, I would have loved to see the two of them opposing Sauron in Eregion.

Galadriel: Celebrimbor, this Annatar guy is using his charm and his knowledge to manipulate you.

Celeborn: I've seen enough two-faced strangers. Throw this one out the window.

"but Celeborn would add nothing to the plot and would be boring" "he's just galadriel's boring husband" "Celeborn would make Galadriel less interesting she should just marry-"

i am now begging you to please read a book

I was looking through the timeline for something else, and just-- you mean to tell me there's a ninety year gap between Celebrimbor going "wait shit we've been had", and the war actually starting? Somehow I've never noticed that, somehow I'd convinced myself the time was shorter

That actually changes a lot of how I've been imagining it! Like, ninety years is plenty of time to actually sit down together and plan things. The attack didn't come with barely the time to prepare enough to send a warning to allies and send the Rings away. Everyone must've seen it coming way off, enough to actually prepare armies, prepare their cities and strongholds, and their people, for sieges and battles. (I wonder how many civilians in Eregion took that as their chance to get somewhere away, or at least send their children away, while they had the time to do it somewhat on their own terms, choose what things to bring with them, etc. And how many thought that surely Eregion was strong enough to stand, surely it would be fine if they stayed here, in the home that was so dear to them. It might suck for a while, but it'd be fine, right? In the end, surely Eregion would survive, surely they wouldn't have to leave... right?)

And Sauron still wiped Eregion out like nothing! And then proceeded to drive the rest of the elves into a really tight corner, and come damn near to wiping them out, before the Númenorean army got there to help!

Like, that's... kinda scary to think about. Like not that Sauron isn't a serious threat anyway, but there is a difference between taking someone near completely by surprise with a swift attack and so wiping them out, and wiping someone out who knew you'd be attacking and had decades to prepare