According to a Variety exclusive, Ghost in The Shell: Stand Alone Complex director Kenji Kamiyama and Joseph Chou (Blade Runner: Black Lotus producer) will be in charge of a Lord of The Rings anime film. The film was first announced in June 2021, and Variety reports that work is still ongoing.
“The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim” is set around the time of Helm Hammerhand’s rule, two centuries before before the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings”, where the Rohirrim were plagued by war against the Dunlendings.
Concept art for the film was released by the studio, depicting a battle involving the Haradrim, evidenced by the infamous war elephant as seen in Lord of Rings (2003). The connection between this faction and Rohan only takes place in the aforementioned movie, two centuries later. This leads me to believe that, although the film will act as a prequel to the LOTR trilogy, some of the events from the trilogy itself will be revisited in the anime film.
Lord of The Rings (2003), Battle between Rohan and Haradrim. Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures.
Anime has steadily become one of the most popular forms of media, with movies like Kimi no Nawa 君の名は (Your Name)and Kimetsu no Yaiba Mugen Ressha-hen 劇場版「鬼滅の刃」 無限列車編 (Demon Slayer: Mugen Train) grossing US$357 million and US$454 million total in box office revenue respectively.
The appeal of anime stems from several factors, from an almost life-like art style that immerses the audience, to the often extravagant effects and animation that transcend the limits of live-action, conveying emotions of intensity and heightening the sense of velocity.
This new look could serve Tolkien’s franchise well, as the action scenes in Lord of The Rings have sometimes been described as “anime”, especially when Legolas performs gravity and logic defying feats. An adaptation to the world of anime may not be as jarring as one might expect. If successful, this film may offer powerful visuals for the current generation.
Riding down a river shooting arrows, climbing a charging war elephant and running up a crumbling bridge are feats that could be described as “anime as heck”.
With that in mind, it should be mentioned that Blade Runner: Black Lotus, Kamiyama’s most recent work, was met with lukewarm reviews that praised action and setting, but criticized character model quality and story. Suffice to say, studio Sola Entertainment have a lot to learn from, as they are now in charge of the definitive fantasy story.
Do you think the movie is going to be good? Are you a fan of the Lord of The Rings Trilogy? What excites you the most about the proposed plot? Go wild with your thoughts down the comment box! Also, join our Discord and discuss all things gaming and entertainment with the All Maverick team and community!
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