altariel | Raven and golden

So now that the RotK EE has arrived, been watched, re-watched, and semi-digested - some comments about the Faramir and Éowyn bits. Cut for spoilers, and also for large images. Screen caps are from Lisa's Image Library.

Some reviews I've read have voiced frustration that the 'wave dream' (which, in the book, belongs to Faramir) has been given instead to Éowyn, in a scene she has at the start of the EE with Aragorn. Myself, I like the repositioning of the dream very much: for me, it foreshadows the entry of Faramir into Éowyn's life. Even while she's talking to Aragorn (the man she thinks she loves), her One True Love is making his presence felt.

A reversal of shots illustrates the change of direction in Éowyn's life; firstly, Éowyn in Edoras, dreaming about the wave:

Secondly, Éowyn in the Houses of Healing, just before she sees Faramir.

One criticism I've read of this change in dreamer is that since the dream is about the Downfall of Númenor, it has no cultural relevance for Éowyn. However, Éowyn's maternal grandmother was Morwen of Lossarnach, who was from Gondor and descended from a Prince of Dol Amroth. So Éowyn has a good drop of Númenorean blood in her. I've no idea if the scriptwriters were paying this much attention to detail (as someone suggested to me, it's more likely they thought it was a cool line that they didn't want to lose), but it's nice to know that it works on another level.

I missed having Aragorn heal Faramir dreadfully. However, I think that the material that is there is very beautiful. The choral setting is lovely, and a nice touch that Liv Tyler is singing; a link is made between Arwen and Éowyn.

PJ uses a lot of hand imagery throughout the films, but here is a sequence of images that I particularly enjoyed.

Éowyn in Edoras trying to hold on to a reluctant Aragorn, as she tells Aragorn about the dream that is foreshadowing Faramir: