Now that you’ve seen the epic fan film, The Hunt for Gollum, you’re wondering, “What other Tolkein fan films are out there?” Well, surprisingly, despite the worldwide popularity of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, there aren’t tons of related fan films out there. It’s not all a barren wasteland, however—here’s some LOTR fan films that the fans swear by (or at, and occasionally even in):
SEE THE SIX FAN FILMS AND MORE AFTER THE JUMP!
The smartest LOTR fan film I’ve seen is the simple by the wacky kids over at howitshouldhaveended.com, who I’ve written about before. If you’ve read the books or sat through all 20,000 hours of Peter Jackson’s Super Extended Special Edition Platinum Director’s Cut of the movies, you’ll love their ‘let’s get to the point’ take on it.
Almost There And Back Again is about fans hiking all of New Zealand in costume (and in character); it aims for Spinal Tap-like humor and misses (plus it has never played right on my computer).
The Dork of the Rings turns the epic saga into a cautionary tale of credit abuse (well, sorta). Watch as “Frudo Buggins” possesses the One Ring of Circular Credit and has to close down Lord Mauron’s bank account.
The Lord of the Rings: The Sons of Elrond is a real rarity for LOTR fan flicks, in that it’s a serious, respectful, dramatic short by two brothers who want to become film composers; there’s no comedy here at all. It’s a pretty cool-looking, completely computer graphic-based flick that I reviewed ages ago, back when I wrote insanely long blog entries like this one.
• is an oddball silent film that follows, well, a little orc who stumbles across two well-known Hobbits one sunny afternoon. Created by Nina Kempf and Ed Martinez, this YouTube film is a little long, but it has its moments and the costumes look pretty good to my untrained eyes. See what you think and share your thoughts in the comments below.
Finally, one of the sickest, albeit funniest ideas related to LOTR is the Hobbit gangsta rap group, Lords of the Rhymes, which is completely NSFW. They recorded a few songs and made an OK DVD, but their masterpiece remains the low-rent video for their self-titled single. The cardboard props are a riot and Gollum beatboxing is breathtaking for all the wrong reasons, but I think it’s the rappers’ performances that sell me on this stuff.
Seriously—I mean, close your eyes and listen to them screaming, “Well, my name is Gimili, I’m a f—–’ dwarf! / I been slayin’ mother—-ers from the South to the North / That ain’t Mirkwood I’m choppin with my battle axe / I’m on an orc stampede like Shadowfax!” There’s a real sound of joy going on there, precisely because it’s so stupid. Be warned: This stuff is catchy; more than once, I’ve found had the chorus, “Elf booty got soul / Elf girls like to rock n’ roll,” stuck in my head. Pity me.
Know a sweet LOTR flick that I missed? Tell me about it in the comments below!
Don’t know if it really counts, but the Tolkien Sarcasm Page’s “Complete Original LOTR Film” is the earliest LOTR fanfilm I’m aware of.
http://www.flyingmoose.org/tolksarc/movie.htm – the YouTube version was really wonky last time I checked, but the QuickTime versions should work.
The next biggie, due later this year is Born of Hope – http://www.bornofhope.com/
Yep, I’m looking forward to that one, too. Some of the folks who worked on Gollum are involved in that one too. They’ve been working on it on and off for something like 4 years, so let’s hope Hope happens.
HUNT FOR GOLLUM is an awesome movie. It looks quite professional. Great story and actors. Gorgeous atmosphere.
I watched the BORN OF HOPE trailer. Looks also promising.
Born of Hope is based about 20 miles from me but I only came across it just after their main shooting sessions.