Lord of the Rings

I finally did see the movie, on a snowy Sunday afternoon. The movie is long enough that the weather had changed by the time we got out!

Visually, a beautiful film (I definitely want to visit New Zealand). And since I haven't read the books in more years than I care to think about, I didn't have my usual problems that movie-of-book usually brings up. On the other hand, I just didn't picture orcs as being so... moist. (My orcs are much drier, more armor-plated, somehow.)

But what I finally realized was what most bothered me was how most characters are determined by race. You're an orc, and bad. You're a hobbit, and good. Yes, there are individuals with some choice (mostly humans, but there are some others, too), but on the whole, genetics are destiny. It felt far too close to the Brian Jacques books, where woodland animals are good/bad depending on species (mice good, rats bad, etc), and far indeed from other books I find wonderful. The author who comes to mind first is Guy Gavriel Kay, who manages to have characters who are both good and bad. Maybe it's just my limitations, but I can't imagine someone who thinks that whatever it is per is doing is awful for everyone. (even horrible dictators of recent history did things that they viewed as having ultimate good (for some definition of good), even if the acts themselves were nasty.)

I really did enjoy the movie, though. It didn't feel like 3 hours had gone by at all (though the sound track was rather louder than I was comfortable with...).

irony

is being asked to go to a conference of the national catholic educators association because it doesn't run over shabbat (unlike the other group's conferences i'm likely to be sent to), and realizing i can't because it's on passover (into the last days, days i don't work).