ChapterZero

I finally saw the 2nd part of LOTR: The Two Towers. I’ve seen the first and the third, and wasn’t overly impressed, but on seeing this one, I have a better understanding for people who swear by LOTR. The best part of LOTR, in my opinion, isn’t the plot so much as it is the striving against incredible odds, the emotion laden monologues on that process of striving, and of course, the all out battle scenes. In this sense, The Two Towers outdoes the 1st and the 3rd movies.

Is it a coincidence that I saw a commercial for the forthcoming ‘The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe’ during LOTR? I think not, considering that the way the commercial was worded gave every impression that this is going to be another epic series like LOTR, and the fact that it will also be coming out in December as LOTR did. That gives me lots of time to plan an outing, and form expectations to be disappointed. Unlike LOTR, I actually read all of the Chronicles of Narnia— a long time back— and even saw the PBS’s airing of the BBC miniseries based on the books— again, a long time ago. As I recall, the books were incredibly good (but then I was a kid, so I might have a different opinion on a second reading), and also incredibly laden with Christian overtones, despite the presence of magic and such. It’ll be interesting to see what aspects of the original series makes it over into the movie. And I can’t wait for the inevitable kuro5hin.org slam by some overzealous fan.

Another set of books that I would love to see make it to the big screen is the The Dark is Rising series by Susan Cooper. I remember feeling the need to hide these books from my parents when I was reading them in middle school— there was such a strong, seemingly historically accurate representation of mythology, particularly Celtic, and a sense that this old magic had only moved into the shadows with the advent of Christianity, as opposed to having been proven false. I know my parents would have forbade me to read them; heck, my mom would probably have burned them. It’s incredible that my school library had them stocked. Actually, now I’m feeling the urge to go get them again.

Is this what it means to get old: to realize that you read some of the objectively best books in your experience such a long time ago that you’ve only the impression left that they were some of the greatest books you’ve ever read?