During the Second Age of Middle-earth, thousands of years before The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, after Dark Lord Morgoth the Rings of Power follows rise of the Dark Lord Sauron and the plight of the inhabitants of Middle-earth.
Despite being a little plodding and overwrought at times it’s exceptionally well made, particularly when practical and visual effects are seamlessly sucking you in. However, there is the odd occasion when they falter along with the editing and logic taking you out of the action and drama. The costumes, props, locations and production overall are first rate.
The performances are on point, notably Morfydd Clark as a young Galadrie and Robert Aramayo as Elrond. However, the monsters, especially the Orcs, Ismael Cruz Córdova as Elf Arondir and Owain Arthur as Durin IV: the Prince of the Dwarven steal the show. When it’s fresh Middle-earth story building and in keeping with the feel of the films, you can buy Clark and Aramayo are younger versions of their characters especially as the production is intended to evoke the movies using similar production design; but as good as Maxim Baldry is as Isildur, he doesn’t feel like a younger version of Lord of the Rings Isildur. Daniel Weyman has plenty of screen presence as The Stranger who falls from the sky in a flaming meteor; giving a memorable performance; but his story is frustratingly drawn out. Also Charlie Vickers as Halbrand for the most part feels too similar to Aragon.
Although a little bumpy —mainly the editing, pacing and some characterisation, the cinematography, visuals and musical score are outstanding. With some fine performances along with a few surprises The Rings of Power is highly recommended.
Season 2 has more scope and is a little more dynamic. While it's great as a streaming show, given its cost, it still lacks a consistent cinematic look throughout. The Forest of the Dead and battle scenes are memorable, but at times, it feels a little repetitive, revisiting the same plot points and reiterating goals through the dialogue. That aside, there's some good acting from the supporting cast, including Orc Glûg (Robert Strange) and Sam Hazeldine as Adar, replacing Mawle. Markella Kavenagh's Harfoot character 'Nori,' Aramayo, Cruz Córdova, and Charles Edwards are particularly notable in this second season.
No comments:
Post a Comment