Analysis Kate McGiveron

Analysis of ‘The Fellowship of The Ring’

The scene begins with a long shot showing the Hobbits to be very small in the centre of the screen. They are surrounded by dark space that is oppressive and makes the audience feel the Hobbits are trapped and vulnerable. It also suggests that the Hobbits are not alone and that something is going to fill the space that is much bigger and more powerful than they are. The following shot is another wide shot but it is at al lower angle and the Ring Wraith takes up the majority of the shot further showing that the hobbits are small and weak in comparison to the larger figure. The scene establishes the relationship between the Hobbits and the Ring Wraith showing that the Ring Wraith is in control and dominant.

The next shot is a low angle close up on Frodo’s face. This makes the audience literally feel closer to Frodo and makes us feel empathy towards him. The fact that the camera is only close to Frodo gives the impression that the character is more important than the other Hobbits and shows the significance of his role as the ‘Ring Bearer’. The way Frodo is looking up and the camera is at a slight low angle makes the audience recognise Frodo to be the hero character. The shot that follows contrasts this because it is a high angle extreme close up, giving the impression Frodo is weak and powerless. His eyes are the only things that are in focus and they take up a very small part of the screen. Here Peter Jackson was establishing how trapped Frodo is in this situation and there is nowhere for him to escape to.

The next series of shots are cut ins of extreme close up shots of the Ring Wraith and his horse. The initial cut in contains a very close up shot of the horse’s hoof and is a PoV shot from the point of Frodo.