The Lord of the Rings:
The War of the Rohirrim
review by Bobby Blakey
Before Peter Jackson brought the world of Middle Earth to life in his The Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies, both Rankin/Bass and Ralph Bakshi brought the famed stories to animated life. Now fans can head back into the fantastical world in the prequel animated feature The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim from Star Wars: Visions and Blade Runner: Black Lotus director Kenji Kamiyama at the helm.
This new anime feature has an awesome voice cast including Brian Cox as Helm Hammerhand, the mighty King of Rohan; Gaia Wise as his daughter Héra, and Luke Pasqualino as Wulf as well as Lorraine Ashbourne, Yazdan Qafouri, Benjamin Wainwright, Laurence Ubong Williams, Shaun Dooley, Michael Wildman, Jude Akuwudike, Bilal Hasna, Janine Duvitski and Miranda Otto, who delivered an unforgettable, award-winning performance in “The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy, who reprises her role as Éowyn, Shieldmaiden of Rohan, who serves as the tale’s narrator.
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim follows 183 years before the events chronicled in the original trilogy of films and tells the fate of the House of Helm Hammerhand, the legendary King of Rohan. A sudden attack by Wulf, a clever and ruthless Dunlending lord seeking vengeance for the death of his father, forces Helm and his people to make a daring last stand in the ancient stronghold of the Hornburg— a mighty fortress that will later come to be known as Helm’s Deep. Finding herself in an increasingly desperate situation, Héra, the daughter of Helm, must summon the will to lead the resistance against a deadly enemy intent on their total destruction.
I must admit that even though I recognize the significance of the Jackson films, I
am not the biggest Lord of the Rings fan and have never read the books. So headed into this film and knowing that it is based on the appendices in the novels I didn’t have any basis for what I was getting, but thought it looked fantastic. This world seems perfect for the anime world and also allows them to get bigger with some of the action and creatures they bring to life, and they did just that.
I loved that despite being able to build a world that could be and do anything, they kept it pretty grounded within reason to the genre. I found myself compelled from the beginning of the film wondering how much it would be weaving into the later stories or if it would just keep staying in its own path. I really like the small nuances to remind you that we are the world of middle earth and those stories, while still very much being its own thing. It went all in, but it didn’t feel necessary to try to do anything more than fans expect and I think it helps it to fuse well with the films as a part of that story. Its structure3 could also be its own journey and lead in to more animated features that I would surely welcome.
I will say that the pacing is slow at times and introduces so many characters that you could easily get lost if not for their well-structured approach. The film is laced with some beautiful sweeping landscapes and visuals. The character designs are awesome and scream the world of Lord of the Rings giving fans a new way to experience this story they love so much. Filled with great voice work, bright vibrant & violent animation, and a story that keeps you invested until the vary I really enjoyed this film and think it is one that not only does the subject matter justice, but fans will enjoy it.
Decide for yourself and check out The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim in theaters now.