The Paths of the Dead

Lord of the Rings Trilogy Forum

Just wondering:

Did anyone else, when first reading the books, have to go back and re-read the part with the Paths of the Dead? I remember having to do that, as it confused me a little bit. I understand it now, but it took a couple reads...

--LOKIM

heh..the movie version was really incredible CG wise...absolutley awsome...

the greenish glow - was super!!! it gave them a sort of realistic/spiritualistic look. its one of my fave parts. i understood that part lol.

I was really worried about how the dead army would look... I wasn't particullarly fond of the dead marshes effects... But I was really impressed on how pete did the dead army. I love how he laughs and the surround sound gives me goosebumps every time. I also like how when Elrond says, "there are those who dwell in the mountain." the wind blows and you get a glimps of the king.

Morgal Vale is also awsome! I loved the blue lightning column... and the greenish glow of the dead city. *sigh* It was so cute how Pippin got all scared and looked up at gadalf and then gandalf put his hand on his shoulder. I love them all so much!

Which aspect of the Paths of the Dead did you have trouble understanding?

Over the land there lies a long shadow,
westward reaching wings of darkness.
The Tower trembles; to the tombs of kings
doom approaches. The Dead awaken;
for the hour is come for the oathbreakers;
at the Stone of Erech they shall stand again
and hear there a horn in the hills ringing.
Whose shall the horn be? Who shall call them
from the prey twilight, the forgotten people?
The heir of him to whom the oath they swore.
From the North shall he come, need shall drive him:
he shall pass the Door to the Paths of the Dead.

The Dunadan come from the North at Aragorns need. Aragorn holds the oathbreakers to the oath they made to the former King of Gondor to fight. So, Aragorn summons them, for he is the only one who can pass, and makes them fight so that he can set them free.

I wish the Dunadan were in the movie, but the se were awesome. I loved the whole look of it.

yeah that would have been cool, to see Aragorn with his people( the people he was associated with for most of his life)....

but back to the topic, Paths of the dead and the army was done way too well. PJ many may have complained bout your work but i can never complain about the army of the dead. they were WICKED

My favorite scenes from the movie have to be the ones of the army of the dead...................great special effects!!!

Yes the effects were awesome! I do wish they had shown that Aragorn was the one who did not fear them. If the Dunadan had been there, we would have seen that only his will help them together during their pass under the mountain. Legolas was not afraid because he was an elf.

I didn't get confused on the Paths of the Dead. I just wish they weren't that green looking. But that was my only real problem with them on screen XD

I liked the greenish tinge

Me too. The greenish tinge was what made them so creepy and spooky.

i still have nightmares...
they looked so dang cool...

I know, but I had always imagined they'd looked greyish, like ghosts or something.

I just really like how the team pulled them off... They look and sound great... I love the king's laughter *shiver* It gives me goosebumps every time!

I think that the CGI for the Path of the Dead, and when they go and wipe out the orcs... damn...

I cracked up when Gimli said to not release them of their oath because they would be good to use!!! Could you imagine... with them, all along, we could have won early on!! Too bad... many wonderful people died.

Anyway... the green color, to me, made them seem all that more dead. Awesome job...

what I wonder is why didn't they just make them go into Mordor and kill everyone? It's not like it's hard for them. Aragorn should have sent them to do that too before releasing them.

yes...the green they used made them look dead, yet still alive...it was like the same eerie green light they had around Minas Morgul...freaky green color...

Yes, I would have told the dead army... if you help us to destroy all of our enemies, and win this entire war, you will be released of your oath. Oh well... it was still good!

I love that color... it is awsome! I absolutly LOVED Minas Morgul. especially the blue lightning collumn (although that wasn't in the book right? I don't remember it)

oh that was in the book. it was the signal for the Witch king that the war was on, and he was to take his army to lay waste to gondor.

ah. I'll have to re-read it again... I haven't had much time lately, but I'll have to make some, although most of my free time will be spent in a theater while rotk is still running.

its a pretty cool part of the book too...cuz the hobbits are just sitting there, watching this massive host leave Minas Morgul...and the frightening thing is that in the book it says, "and this was but one of the Hosts Sauron set forth that day, and it was not the largest of these." or something similar to that.
wow...5 min. till the new year hear in hous...er...middle earth.

happy new year shadow! this is random... But I have the coolest birthday ever! September 22, Frodo and Bilbo's birthday!

awww...thats awsome...mines on June 22...like 3 months earlier...exactly.

sorry I don't know where that came from... wierd. I can't wait till friday... I am watching all three with three other people who have never seen them before... I am coming along to be their interpreter poor deprived people. hee hee

don't worry...i have a bunch of random friends so i'm used to it.
yes i'd say those people are deprived indeed.

they'll probably get tired or sitting for 10 hours... but I'll make them! muah ha ha!

haha...have fun then...

oh I will

because in the book aragorn's deal with them was to help him get to the boats so he could take over them. his deal had nothing in it about Mordor, and since he was a man of his word, he kept it.

Now I feel stupid. I never thought of that.

Quite true... Aragorn is a man of honor, of his word.

Maybe he did not trust the dead to travel to Mordor as well. They may get whiny on long trips.

Sherry... only you would come up with that!!!!

Maybe the dead would have said there was no way they would fight in Mordor.
Maybe they couldn't have done anything... it was all up to the ring bearer.

Quite true... but, maybe they could only do one battle for the King, and then they were to be released.

I don't think he wanted to push his luck by saying o.k. how about you fight for Gondor, THEN we go to Mordor and kick some butt there too. Let's face it, the dead are cranky.

Correct... but, the oath required them to come to the aid of the King in a great time of need.
They did... and they stopped the enemy at Minas Tirith. That was the deal... they held up their end of the oath and had to be released.
Maybe a lesser man would have said, you must see this all the way through to the end, and then I will release you from your oath... but Aragorn is not a man such as that. He is bound in honor and code.

"Dead are cranky" good one sherry!

Didn't quite like how Peter Jackson changed the role of the Dead in the movie...But, I've gotten used to his messing up the story from the books to the movies...


--LOKIM