Blibbetyblip

Chosen answer: More or less, yes. Different directors have had different visions for the films, and if a filmmaker intentionally makes changes in order to fit his ideas better, it's a bit harsh to class a difference as a "mistake", even a deliberate one.

Phixius ★

Chosen answer: This is from the Encyclopedia of Arda: At least three of the chapter titles from the book have made it into the film, as part of the dialogue. Look out for 'a long-expected party' (the title of chapter I 1), 'a short cut to mushrooms' (chapter I 4) and 'the bridge of Khazad-dûm (chapter II 5). Gandalf also uses the phrase 'riddles in the dark', which is the title of the chapter in The Hobbit that sees Bilbo acquire the Ring.

Zwn Annwn

Chosen answer: Yes. A mistake is a mistake regardless of the reason. It could, under those circumstances, possibly be considered under the "Deliberate Mistake" category, but it still counts as an error.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: Purely and simply, Aragorn gave his word. The Dead would be held to their oath, nothing more. They came to the aid of Gondor, thus fulfilling their oath. Aragorn had no real choice but to release them; if he tried to keep them past the terms of their oath, he'd just have had a lot of annoyed Dead warriors to deal with. He can't compel them to continue to fight and he gave his word to release them once they'd fought to defend Gondor, fulfilling their oath. With that done, at Pelargir in the books, at Minas Tirith in the films, their oath is done. Aragorn had no choice but to release them.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: The King of the Dead says, "That line was broken." Aragorn replies, "It has been remade." Their comments are referring to Aragorn's royal lineage that was believed to have died out. The reforged sword symboilizes Aragorn's return as king. There is a video clip of this scene on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfh9Ypgfp7Q.

raywest ★

Chosen answer: There doesn't seem to be anything in particular shown. You can see Saruman's reflection and those of the spires at the top of Orthanc; there don't appear to be any concrete images actually within the palantir itself.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: Sadly, there has been no release of scenes that did not feature on the extended or theatrical film. Some scenes that didn't make it into films can be glimpsed in the behind-the-scenes footage included with the DVDs or blu-ray.

Chosen answer: You're quite right in that, no, I doubt anybody seriously would have thought that Aragorn was going to die, but the scene functions as a way of showing the peril that the characters are facing, plus, as you say, it allowed Aragorn to report on the approaching enemy force, putting the main characters in the thick of the action rather than having a nameless scout character make the report. Plus it also allows them to reunite Aragorn with Brego the horse.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: Additional forces left Mordor via the Black Gate, marching to attack the elves in Lorien and the dwarven kingdom in the north. It would make a great deal of sense to send a group across the river at a crossing point to the north, then south towards Osgiliath to avoid the necessity of crossing the river under fire. With the main force attacking from across the river and the subsidiary force attacking from the north, Osgiliath would swiftly fall. Knowing that Mordor's armies are on the march, Faramir would be able to anticipate the likelihood of a northern attack.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: The Eye gradually changes throughout the films, getting noticeably larger and more dynamic - a sign of Sauron's growing power.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: In terms of the specifics, Gandalf may well be referring to the Undying Lands in order to boost Pippin's morale, but, no, non-Elves do not end up there without special dispensation. The younger races have their own destination after death, which Tolkien doesn't elaborate on to any great degree.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: No. Despite various attempts to read that as some tacit admission of wrong-doing on the part of the scriptwriters, it doesn't mean anything of the sort. What Sam means is that, if things were going right in the world, he and Frodo would be living a peaceful life in the Shire, not dodging Nazguls and arrows in the ruins of Osgiliath.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: It's a morale thing. Denethor's already nearly ruined the defence of the city by telling everybody to flee; were it to become known that Denethor was not only dead, but had taken Faramir with him, thus destroying the line of Stewards and leaving the city with no ruler, the morale of the troops would be destroyed. Gandalf can only do so much to rally the troops; the city still needs a leader, even an incapacitated one. As such, he needs to make sure that Faramir survives.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: No. Sauron's trying to psych Aragorn out, show him what he's up against. Appearing as the formidable warrior that he was before he lost the Ring is part of that.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: The latter; it's just his title.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: It was prophesied centuries earlier that no man could slay the Witch King. Since then, the Nazgul's power and martial ability have ensured that to be the case, however, it's also built up his arrogance and sense of invulnerability. As such, he fails to pay enough attention to his surroundings in battle, bragging to Eowyn about his supposed inability to be killed. This leaves him wide open for Merry, who he either simply didn't notice or never considered to be a threat, to take him down, then Eowyn to slay him. It's not so much that a man could not have slain him, more that a far-seeing elf looked into the Witch King's future and saw that it would not be a man who finally did.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: It's not just about numbers. Sure, the Orcs may outnumber the Rohirrim, but think of it from the point of view of the individual Orc. Bearing down on them, at high speed, are several thousand heavily armed and fired-up warriors, each of whom is riding a warhorse that weighs more than several orcs put together and gives their rider a serious height advantage. Psychologically speaking, the Rohirrim have a phenomenal advantage. Hardly a surprise that the Orcs would break under that sort of pressure.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: It's highly unlikely that that scene would ever see the light of day, as much of it was cannibalised to use in the fight between Aragorn and the Troll. Plus there would be substantial effects work required to present the scene in any decent way and it would be highly unlikely that the filmmakers would choose to do any more effects work at this point, just for a deleted scene. With three separate DVD releases of the film already in existence (theatrical, extended and the "special limited edition", which contains both the theatrical and extended cuts), it's highly unlikely that a fourth release would be under consideration any time in the near future.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: Probably a bit of both. Even with his utter loyalty to Frodo, Sam isn't immune to the lure of the Ring. It still affects him, even if only a little, enough to cause a brief hesitation. However, it's also fair to say that he realises what effect the Ring has on Frodo and hates to see that happen to him, which would also give him pause in returning the Ring to his master.

Tailkinker ★

Chosen answer: The Stewards see themselves as the rulers of Gondor, with some justification, as it has been many generations since a King sat on the throne. However, while they are in charge, they must still answer to tradition, and tradition states that the throne is held in trust for the King of Gondor, with the Stewards ruling from the lesser throne. If Denethor were to decide to sit in the King's chair, he would be effectively promoting himself to that rank, which would not go down well with the Gondorian population.

Tailkinker ★