THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE WAR OF THE ROHIRRIM (2024)

183 years before Bilbo Baggins found the One Ring, the events of which we see in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), Middle-earth is relatively peaceful. The darkness over Mordor remains in shadows as the kingdoms keep to themselves. This individualism leads to internal strife, which turns to civil war. One of these wars is the central plot to The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. Based on a two-page synopsis in the appendix to J.R.R Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The War of the Rohirrim is the first movie set in this universe since the conclusion of The Hobbit trilogy (2012-14), and the first animated film since 1980’s The Return of the King adaptation from Rankin and Bass, the team behind classics such as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964).

While The War of the Rohirrim’s animation style differs from those we have seen before in adaptations of Tolkien’s work, the animated film from Warner Bros. is more concerned with rekindling the spirit of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001–03) than it is in setting itself apart as a fresh look into Tolkien’s rich fantasy world.   

The War of the Rohirrim begins in a peaceful time in Rohan. Freca (Shaun Dooley), a lord of Rohan, calls a meeting at Edoras with King Helm Hammerhand (Brian Cox). Freca’s son, Wulf (Luca Pasqualino), asks Helm’s only daughter, Hera (Gaia Wise), for her hand in marriage. Despite fond memories growing up together, Hera refuses. Freca, irate, challenges Helm. With one punch, Helm knocks Freca dead, leading Wulf on a path of vengeance against Helm, Hera, and Helm’s sons, Hama (Yazdan Qafouri) and Haleth (Benjamin Wainwright).

In Tolkien’s brief writings of Helm Hammerhand, of which the film follows fairly faithfully, Hera is known only as Helm’s daughter. The film, on the other hand, brings her front and centre, focusing on her story of bravery, loyalty, and selflessness. While Tolkien’s male-dominated list of characters has been analysed and scrutinised over the years, his strength in writing dynamic female characters, albeit a handful, was still impressive. With the screenplay from Jeffrey Addiss, Will Matthews, Phoebe Gittins, and Arty Papageorgiou and story from Addiss, Matthews, and Philippa Boyens, one of the writers of The Lord of the Rings series, Hera fits that mould of impressive Middle-earth heroines.

First and foremost, The War of the Rohirrim’s animation stands out as the film’s greatest strength. Directed by famed Japanese animator, Kenji Kamiyama, the film’s anime style blends well into the vast landscapes and brutal wars of The Lord of the Rings. The characters stand out on static backgrounds, the emotions on their faces driving the story forward. While American studios tend to be dominated with 3D computer animation that can be indecipherable between filmmakers, The War of the Rohirrim’s blend of hand-drawn characters with colourful 3D worlds feels very unique. For Kamiyama, the fully realised world of Jackson’s Lord of the Rings was a huge driving force for the animation of this film, which does give the animation team an upper hand when using the iconic films. However, their reliance on recreating the world of those films holds this one back from truly being its own.   

From the start, The War of the Rohirrim is hellbent on being a continuation of the cinematic world of The Lord of the Rings. It begins with a narration from Eowyn (Miranda Otto), a character very much like Hera, who had her own scene-stealing moments in The Return of the King (2003). Then, as the title card drops, the Rohan orchestration from Howard Shore plays. The score for The War of the Rohirrim is solid, to composer Stephen Gallagher’s credit, but it is overshadowed by Shore’s score, especially as it continually weaves it in.

While using the film as a continuation of the Academy Award-winning trilogy isn’t in and of itself necessarily a bad thing, it feels uncertain of its own qualities. The 1:1 locations in the animation highlight the strengths of Jackson’s trilogy while highlighting the animated film’s own misgivings. There’s even a character that highly resembles Samwise Gamgee despite not being a Hobbit. Reusing dialogue from the films also distracts from the script. Perhaps I have seen The Lord of the Rings one too many times, but every time they reuse a line word-for-word or try to recreate a moment from the film, I’m taken out of the experience. No speech will be as rousing as King Théoden’s speech on the Pelennor Fields to his men, so it is hard to even attempt.

And the film’s frequent callbacks to the story fans are already familiar with are tiring. It is something that I feel dragged down The Hobbit trilogy and The Rings of Power. Here, it is even more futile because the strengths of the story lie in the interpersonal conflicts of these characters, not the world-changing scales of a larger story. Though, the film’s reliance on larger connections does give us a cool cameo from Merry and Pippin themselves (Dominic Monaghan and Billy Boyd) as a pair of orcs.

The voice acting in the film is overall very well done. Brian Cox’s deep voice in another patriarchal role fits perfectly as Helm. The rest of the cast is relatively smaller actors and actresses, embodying their roles perfectly. The standouts here are Luca Pasqualino as the crazed, vengeful Wulf, Lorraine Ashbourne as Olwyn, Hera’s strong-willed maiden, and of course Gaia Wise as the heroic Hera. She is tough but loving, self-assured yet scared. The War of the Rohirrim is driven by her character, especially as the other characters do not get as much development over the story. It has to rely on her character’s dynamic changes and it does fit well.   

The sound design is also a massive achievement in the film. The clash of swords cut deep into our skin. The flash of arrows is quick and dangerous. And the deep boom from the horn of Helm Hammerhand is bellowing and frightening. It is done so well and carries the action scenes and the quieter scenes forward.

Still, The War of the Rohirrim is weighed down by the cinematic behemoth that is The Lord of the Rings. One of Kamiyama’s first forays into western media was his work for one of the episodes in season one of Star Wars: Visions (2021). His episode, titled “The Ninth Jedi”, followed Lah Kara, the daughter of a lightsaber maker, who is tasked with taking her father’s lightsabers safely to the Jedi while mysterious hunters are after them. The episode was one of the best of the season, painting a rich, frozen world that fit perfectly within the world of Star Wars while creating something new, beautifully animated and with intriguing characters. The War of the Rohirrim falters under the opposite: trying to recreate the world that Peter Jackson brought to life at the beginning of the 21st-century.   

Before the Oscar-winning trilogy came out, many thought it would be impossible to adapt Tolkien’s epic. Yet, they did it well. Tolkien’s incredible writing and world-building set the stage for the success of the crew. The collaboration and technical brilliance of so many people then made it possible. Jackson’s direction, the score by Shore, the cinematography by Andrew Lesnie, John Gilbert’s editing, immense productions designed by Grant Major, and excellent consultation from famed Tolkien illustrator, Alan Lee.

Yet, this may be something the studios have forgotten along the way. Films like The Lord of the Rings were not critically adored and financially valuable because of the nostalgia they brought. They were cherished for their unique, assured, and artistic creativity. With a world as vast as Tolkien’s, we could see so many adaptations taking different directions and styles. Especially with the skill of Kenji Kamiyama and many other animators, The War of the Rohirrim could have been something special. Instead, it’s a small glimpse into the world of Tolkien’s Middle-earth and not enough to take our minds off Jackson’s work. Maybe it’s time to binge the Extended Editions instead.

USA • NEW ZEALAND • JAPAN | 2024 | 134 MINUTES | 1.90:1 | COLOUR | ENGLISH

Cast & Crew

director: Kenji Kamiyama
writers: Jeffrey Addiss, Will Matthews, Phoebe Gittins & Arty Papageorgiou (story by Jeffrey Addiss, Will Matthews & Phillipa Boyens).
voices: Brian Cox, Gaia Wise, Miranda Otto, Luca Pasqualino, Lorraine Ashbourne, Shaun Dooley, Benjamin Wainwright, Yazdan Qafouri, Laurence Ubong Williams, Michael Wildman & Bilal Hasna.