Why Lord of the Rings is actually Rudy
Or, 'Why I Wish Sean Astin Was My Best Friend'.

I saw LOTR last night. Now, I know there are some diehard LOTR fans out there (like the guy we sat next to in the theater who had a complete LOTR themed meal to keep him company throughout the three-and-a-half-hour movie), so I don't mean to make light of LOTR obsession. I've seen all the movies now. I enjoyed them like any other movie. But alas, I found it to essentially be Rudy, but with much stranger looking characters, and with a bunch of random stuff that happened that I'm not sure was all the same movie, even though I never left the theater for the duration of the film. (ie: the Pyro King- what's up with that dude?)

I'm not quite sure I understand why it took three really long movies to tell the story of Rudy. Sure, they are nice movies. They look great. Again, I enjoyed them, the acting, the themes, the struggle, the victory, the long hair. But seriously, the same story could have been told with a lot less slow-motion and a few less of those drawn-out scenes of longing and contemplation. I'm all for longing and contemplating. But in under three hours.

So, why is my assessment that LOTR is actually just Rudy in much more elaborate disguises and with a lot more catapulted heads? Because in the end, the hero is none of the people equipped or trained to be the victor. The hero is the guy who has helped the 'hero' all along, even when no one believed in him. Sam (played by Sean Astin) is essentially Rudy himself, but with bigger feet.

The parallel is amazing. Rudy (also Sean Astin) works hard throughout the movie as the scrappy, but loyal underdog. Always there supporting the team starters, never in the spotlight, cheering everyone else on to the goal. He literally doesn't know what to do if he can't be a part of that team, even if all he ever gets to do is help everyone else.

Then Rudy/Sean/Sam gains a few pounds, sprouts giant feet, and does the same exact thing for Frodo. He is born to be the supporter, who actually turns out to be the hero in the end. He even physically picks Frodo up and carries him up the final hill, when our 'hero' is too weak to continue. Sam bails Frodo out of many sticky situations, including an actual sticky web-ish situation. Then, at the point when Sam thinks he has lost Frodo, he begs Frodo 'not to go where he can't follow.' He doesn't know what to do if he doesn't have Frodo to follow.

Quite honestly, that line killed me. Holy cow, I've felt that moment. But with somewhat smaller feet.

So, to sum up and conclude, if you want the long version of a great story, go rent the first two LOTR movies, then catch the last one in theaters. It's definitely worth your time. But if you want the short version and prefer football over bloody battles between trees, ghosts, and disgusting mutants, rent Rudy.

Either way, Sean Astin is my hero.

C.T.