Aragorn and the Elves were not tall enough [Archive] - Wizards Community

Aragorn and the Elves were not tall enough [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
babysamurai
06-28-06, 09:09 AM It suddenly occurred to me while watching LotR the other day that they made a major blunder in the height of Aragorn and the Elves.

In the book, Aragorn is like 6 ½ feet tall, and the Elves crowning on 7 feet tall.

Now if they were able to make John Rhys Davies (sp?) seem extra squat as Gimli, couldn’t they have finagled a way to make Aragorn and the Elves appear taller, as per their descriptions in the book?
J.Augustus Rose II
06-28-06, 09:27 AM In what part of the books are you finding elves to be seven feet tall? I've looked all through the books and online resources and every reference to their height has stated that they are roughly equal in stature to men.
rogue_lettuce
06-28-06, 09:37 AM Can I shoot him in the face with a hammer yet?
hmmmm
06-28-06, 09:41 AM I have not looked for the height yet but the movie creators cut so many things from the book out why would making the actors height matter anymore. (They must not know people like this exist :P )
OravennasBrother
06-28-06, 09:46 AM It suddenly occurred to me while watching LotR the other day that they made a major blunder in the height of Aragorn and the Elves.

In the book, Aragorn is like 6 ½ feet tall, and the Elves crowning on 7 feet tall.

The phrase for today is "Artistic License"
Learn it, know it understand it.
Then you can answer your own question.
babysamurai
06-28-06, 09:54 AM Can I shoot him in the face with a hammer yet?

Please stop using that tired line.

Actually, in the books (especially Silmarillion), they are described as being above 7 feet tall.
J.Augustus Rose II
06-28-06, 09:55 AM Please stop using that tired line.

Actually, in the books (especially Silmarillion), they are described as being above 7 feet tall.

Where? I've found it no where (especially Silmarillion.) It all says that they are equal in stature to men. Where's your exact reference?
babysamurai
06-28-06, 09:57 AM Yes, but the men they speak of, being the Dunedain and Numernoreans, were also on the 6 1/2 feet to 7 foot scale.
J.Augustus Rose II
06-28-06, 10:00 AM Dude, I'm asking for the last time: give the exact point of reference you're getting this from because it goes against every single flipping reference out there. Including my copies of the books.
babysamurai
06-28-06, 10:12 AM Dude, I'm asking for the last time

Don't get saucy with me, Bearnaise.
J.Augustus Rose II
06-28-06, 10:16 AM Yeah, that's what I thought. :rolleyes:

I'd like to take this time to second the hammer-gun idea.
Silverthumb128
06-28-06, 10:16 AM Don't get saucy with me, Bearnaise.

lol. Puns. Can you actually answer his question, though?

And at what point does anyone actually believe Peter Jackson was aiming for accuracy? :D

PJ was a bigot against Dwarves, and was an Elf supremacist. "Toss me!" Oh, you'll get tossed, alright. Tossed right out of character for the sake of comic relief, because instead of witty dialogue, we can single out an entire race and make them look stupid because they're short. Good job. :mad:
Tobus Neth
06-28-06, 10:22 AM Can I shoot him in the face with a hammer yet?
Thats so funny,
babysamurai
06-28-06, 10:22 AM I'd like to take this time to second the hammer-gun idea.

Ooh - tension in the Big House!

You should curb that aggression, big-boy.

"Don't run away from your feelings!"
rogue_lettuce
06-28-06, 10:25 AM Thats so funny,
I did initially consider just asking if I can shoot him. But I then thought about it for a second, and considered that the hammer thing was more idiomatic. And personally I don't think the line's as tired as, say, complaining about how innaccurate the LotR films were...
babysamurai
06-28-06, 10:26 AM PJ was a bigot against Dwarves, and was an Elf supremacist. "Toss me!" Oh, you'll get tossed, alright. Tossed right out of character for the sake of comic relief, because instead of witty dialogue, we can single out an entire race and make them look stupid because they're short. Good job. :mad:

It's true - he made Legolas a Quasi-Deity, and Gimli comic relief.

...All that falling down...awful.
babysamurai
06-28-06, 10:28 AM I did initially consider just asking if I can shoot him. But I then thought about it for a second, and considered that the hammer thing was more idiomatic. And personally I don't think the line's as tired as, say, complaining about how innaccurate the LotR films were...

...Reaching?
Silverthumb128
06-28-06, 10:33 AM It's true - he made Legolas a Quasi-Deity, and Gimli comic relief.

...All that falling down...awful.

This is how it would sound at the game table:

DM(peter jackson): Hmm, ok. What characters are you guys playing?
PC1: I wanna be an Elf, poetic and sleek, and with a cool Bow!
DM: Interesting. PC2?
PC2: I'm gonna play a Dwarf. What I lack in subtlety, I more than make up for in tenacity!
DM: And you're short.
PC2: Well, yeah, that's true, but...
DM: You actually want to play as that? Geez, man, why don't you do what we're doing?
PC2: But I...
PC1: Hey, if I make him carry my stuff, can I have the Paragon template without paying the astro-LA?
DM: Gee (snicker) I dunno, make a Diplomacy check(thinking: DC 1).
PC2: Nooooooo....
Bob Loblaw
06-28-06, 10:33 AM If the elves in the books were equal in height to the men in the books, and in the movies they were rougly equal to the height of the men, where is the problem? Looks like everything is relatively fine.

Even if I'm wrong, how does this diminish your enjoyment of the films?
hmmmm
06-28-06, 10:35 AM That Gimli was way cooler than Legolas. Bar none. (I am talking about the books, not the movie.)
Another Gnome
06-28-06, 10:37 AM *waits for an announcement banning Tolkien-related topics* :waits:
babysamurai
06-28-06, 10:41 AM This is how it would sound at the game table:

DM(peter jackson): Hmm, ok. What characters are you guys playing?
PC1: I wanna be an Elf, poetic and sleek, and with a cool Bow!
DM: Interesting. PC2?
PC2: I'm gonna play a Dwarf. What I lack in subtlety, I more than make up for in tenacity!
DM: And you're short.
PC2: Well, yeah, that's true, but...
DM: You actually want to play as that? Geez, man, why don't you do what we're doing?
PC2: But I...
PC1: Hey, if I make him carry my stuff, can I have the Paragon template without paying the astro-LA?
DM: Gee (snicker) I dunno, make a Diplomacy check(thinking: DC 1).
PC2: Nooooooo....

Totally - in the book, it always seemed like Gimli and Legolas were roughly equals, with a friendly rivalry.

But ol' Pete made Elves the bomb, and made dwarves inept stunty Santa Clause's.

"Oh, I fell down again, ho ho ho!"
babysamurai
06-28-06, 10:44 AM *waits for an announcement banning Tolkien-related topics* :waits:

Now that's funny.

I still thoroughly enjoyed the film - I don't want anybody to get their panties in a bunch.

It was just a random observation.
OravennasBrother
06-28-06, 10:48 AM It's true - he made Legolas a Quasi-Deity, and Gimli comic relief.

...All that falling down...awful.
HE had to do something - even in three parts the movies were extremely long. NOw imagine taking your 8 year old niece because she want's to watch the show all her friends watched. You'll be thankful for anything to keep her from climbing the walls.
getgoldcardsoul
06-28-06, 10:58 AM Totally - in the book, it always seemed like Gimli and Legolas were roughly equals, with a friendly rivalry.

But ol' Pete made Elves the bomb, and made dwarves inept stunty Santa Clause's.

"Oh, I fell down again, ho ho ho!"I knew someone who tried to start (read: dominate) a conversation along the lines of "Elves are the far superior race" (completed with annoying know-it-all stress on the middle syllable) solely because of what she saw in the LotR movies/DvD extras. Thankfully, it was mostly ignored and the table moved on and we didn't have to hear the usual 10-minute-tyrade-per-subject from this person.

I like my gaming group :)
and am glad I don't game with her and her superiority complex anymore :D
babysamurai
06-28-06, 11:11 AM I knew someone who tried to start (read: dominate) a conversation along the lines of "Elves are the far superior race" (completed with annoying know-it-all stress on the middle syllable) solely because of what she saw in the LotR movies/DvD extras. Thankfully, it was mostly ignored and the table moved on and we didn't have to hear the usual 10-minute-tyrade-per-subject from this person.

I like my gaming group :)
and am glad I don't game with her and her superiority complex anymore :D

Yeah, and the dwarves were actually made/crafted first by Aule, but ol' Eru wouldn't let him release the dwarves before the Elves first set foot in ME, and were the first to gaze on the stars etc.
green_yawgmoth
06-28-06, 11:45 AM HE had to do something - even in three parts the movies were extremely long. NOw imagine taking your 8 year old niece because she want's to watch the show all her friends watched. You'll be thankful for anything to keep her from climbing the walls.
"wants" has no apostrophe in it. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v91/yawgmoth/smileys/eng101.gif

If you're taking an 8 year old to any movie, you make it clear to the child that under no circumstances does she speak during it, along with how long the movie is and what it's about so she knows whether or not she still wants to see it. If she can't handle sitting still for 2.5 hours, then guess who shouldn't go see the movie?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v91/yawgmoth/kittyjig.gif
Aeolus91
06-28-06, 11:58 AM That Eru is always delaying his release dates... wasn't that the overgod who is working on Fallout 3? :rolleyes:

Really though, it didn't bother me any. Also, Jackson's elves pwned. His dwarves sucked. Get over it. Although the one scene with Gimli and Legolas in a drinking contest was really funny. (btw I have never found the part in any of Tolkien's books where it is suggested that elves have an immunity to liquor... if anyone knows please shoot me a PM)
Rawr!
:dragon:
cloud1052
06-28-06, 12:15 PM it seems that this post got turned inside out. it went from how tall people are to eru and fallout 3 but anyway.

i see what you are saying they should be taller but you dont come across very tall people these days and its near impossible to find a slim and slender looking elf thats 7 ft. tall
hmmmm
06-28-06, 12:28 PM I still thoroughly enjoyed the film - I don't want anybody to get their panties in a bunch.
Who told you I wore panties :P
Rolof
06-28-06, 12:44 PM I enjoyed the movies, but still I have to admit that I was
somewhat annoyed by the scene where Legolas "surfs" on
a shield down some stairs. I couldn't help but think at the
time "wow, as if Elf fanboyism isn't bad enough already...".
Brandir
06-28-06, 02:20 PM People want the source of the height of various characters in LOTR? Here it is:

The Númenórean ranga was slightly longer than our yard, approximately thirty-eight inches ..... Thus two rangar was often called "man-high," which at thirty-eight inches gives an average height of six feet four inches ..... Elendil was said to be "more than man-high by nearly half a ranga;" but he was accounted the tallest of all the Númenóreans who escape the Downfall. The Eldar of the Elder Days were also very tall. Galadriel, "the tallest of all the women of the Eldar of whom tales tell," was said to be man-high, but it is noted "according to the measure of the Dúnedain and the men of old," indicating a height of about six feet four inches.
Éomer was said to have been tall, of like height with Aragorn; but he with other descendants of King Thengel were taller than the norm of Rohan, deriving this characteristic (together in some cases with darker hair) from Morwen, Thengel's wife, a lady of Gondor of high Númenórean descent.

One ranga is 38". so Elendil was about 7'9". Oh yes, Hobbits were 3' - 4'.

Oh yes, the source. Unfinished Tales Part Three Chapter 1 Disaster at the Gladden Fields.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
babysamurai 06-28-06, 09:09 AM	It suddenly occurred to me while watching LotR the other day that they made a major blunder in the height of Aragorn and the Elves. In the book, Aragorn is like 6 ½ feet tall, and the Elves crowning on 7 feet tall. Now if they were able to make John Rhys Davies (sp?) seem extra squat as Gimli, couldn’t they have finagled a way to make Aragorn and the Elves appear taller, as per their descriptions in the book?
J.Augustus Rose II 06-28-06, 09:27 AM	In what part of the books are you finding elves to be seven feet tall? I've looked all through the books and online resources and every reference to their height has stated that they are roughly equal in stature to men.
rogue_lettuce 06-28-06, 09:37 AM	Can I shoot him in the face with a hammer yet?
hmmmm 06-28-06, 09:41 AM	I have not looked for the height yet but the movie creators cut so many things from the book out why would making the actors height matter anymore. (They must not know people like this exist :P )
OravennasBrother 06-28-06, 09:46 AM	It suddenly occurred to me while watching LotR the other day that they made a major blunder in the height of Aragorn and the Elves. In the book, Aragorn is like 6 ½ feet tall, and the Elves crowning on 7 feet tall. The phrase for today is "Artistic License" Learn it, know it understand it. Then you can answer your own question.
babysamurai 06-28-06, 09:54 AM	Can I shoot him in the face with a hammer yet? Please stop using that tired line. Actually, in the books (especially Silmarillion), they are described as being above 7 feet tall.
J.Augustus Rose II 06-28-06, 09:55 AM	Please stop using that tired line. Actually, in the books (especially Silmarillion), they are described as being above 7 feet tall. Where? I've found it no where (especially Silmarillion.) It all says that they are equal in stature to men. Where's your exact reference?
babysamurai 06-28-06, 09:57 AM	Yes, but the men they speak of, being the Dunedain and Numernoreans, were also on the 6 1/2 feet to 7 foot scale.
J.Augustus Rose II 06-28-06, 10:00 AM	Dude, I'm asking for the last time: give the exact point of reference you're getting this from because it goes against every single flipping reference out there. Including my copies of the books.
babysamurai 06-28-06, 10:12 AM	Dude, I'm asking for the last time Don't get saucy with me, Bearnaise.
J.Augustus Rose II 06-28-06, 10:16 AM	Yeah, that's what I thought. :rolleyes: I'd like to take this time to second the hammer-gun idea.
Silverthumb128 06-28-06, 10:16 AM	Don't get saucy with me, Bearnaise. lol. Puns. Can you actually answer his question, though? And at what point does anyone actually believe Peter Jackson was aiming for accuracy? :D PJ was a bigot against Dwarves, and was an Elf supremacist. "Toss me!" Oh, you'll get tossed, alright. Tossed right out of character for the sake of comic relief, because instead of witty dialogue, we can single out an entire race and make them look stupid because they're short. Good job. :mad:
Tobus Neth 06-28-06, 10:22 AM	Can I shoot him in the face with a hammer yet? Thats so funny,
babysamurai 06-28-06, 10:22 AM	I'd like to take this time to second the hammer-gun idea. Ooh - tension in the Big House! You should curb that aggression, big-boy. "Don't run away from your feelings!"
rogue_lettuce 06-28-06, 10:25 AM	Thats so funny, I did initially consider just asking if I can shoot him. But I then thought about it for a second, and considered that the hammer thing was more idiomatic. And personally I don't think the line's as tired as, say, complaining about how innaccurate the LotR films were...
babysamurai 06-28-06, 10:26 AM	PJ was a bigot against Dwarves, and was an Elf supremacist. "Toss me!" Oh, you'll get tossed, alright. Tossed right out of character for the sake of comic relief, because instead of witty dialogue, we can single out an entire race and make them look stupid because they're short. Good job. :mad: It's true - he made Legolas a Quasi-Deity, and Gimli comic relief. ...All that falling down...awful.
babysamurai 06-28-06, 10:28 AM	I did initially consider just asking if I can shoot him. But I then thought about it for a second, and considered that the hammer thing was more idiomatic. And personally I don't think the line's as tired as, say, complaining about how innaccurate the LotR films were... ...Reaching?
Silverthumb128 06-28-06, 10:33 AM	It's true - he made Legolas a Quasi-Deity, and Gimli comic relief. ...All that falling down...awful. This is how it would sound at the game table: DM(peter jackson): Hmm, ok. What characters are you guys playing? PC1: I wanna be an Elf, poetic and sleek, and with a cool Bow! DM: Interesting. PC2? PC2: I'm gonna play a Dwarf. What I lack in subtlety, I more than make up for in tenacity! DM: And you're short. PC2: Well, yeah, that's true, but... DM: You actually want to play as that? Geez, man, why don't you do what we're doing? PC2: But I... PC1: Hey, if I make him carry my stuff, can I have the Paragon template without paying the astro-LA? DM: Gee (snicker) I dunno, make a Diplomacy check(thinking: DC 1). PC2: Nooooooo....
Bob Loblaw 06-28-06, 10:33 AM	If the elves in the books were equal in height to the men in the books, and in the movies they were rougly equal to the height of the men, where is the problem? Looks like everything is relatively fine. Even if I'm wrong, how does this diminish your enjoyment of the films?
hmmmm 06-28-06, 10:35 AM	That Gimli was way cooler than Legolas. Bar none. (I am talking about the books, not the movie.)
Another Gnome 06-28-06, 10:37 AM	waits for an announcement banning Tolkien-related topics :waits:
babysamurai 06-28-06, 10:41 AM	This is how it would sound at the game table: DM(peter jackson): Hmm, ok. What characters are you guys playing? PC1: I wanna be an Elf, poetic and sleek, and with a cool Bow! DM: Interesting. PC2? PC2: I'm gonna play a Dwarf. What I lack in subtlety, I more than make up for in tenacity! DM: And you're short. PC2: Well, yeah, that's true, but... DM: You actually want to play as that? Geez, man, why don't you do what we're doing? PC2: But I... PC1: Hey, if I make him carry my stuff, can I have the Paragon template without paying the astro-LA? DM: Gee (snicker) I dunno, make a Diplomacy check(thinking: DC 1). PC2: Nooooooo.... Totally - in the book, it always seemed like Gimli and Legolas were roughly equals, with a friendly rivalry. But ol' Pete made Elves the bomb, and made dwarves inept stunty Santa Clause's. "Oh, I fell down again, ho ho ho!"
babysamurai 06-28-06, 10:44 AM	waits for an announcement banning Tolkien-related topics :waits: Now that's funny. I still thoroughly enjoyed the film - I don't want anybody to get their panties in a bunch. It was just a random observation.
OravennasBrother 06-28-06, 10:48 AM	It's true - he made Legolas a Quasi-Deity, and Gimli comic relief. ...All that falling down...awful. HE had to do something - even in three parts the movies were extremely long. NOw imagine taking your 8 year old niece because she want's to watch the show all her friends watched. You'll be thankful for anything to keep her from climbing the walls.
getgoldcardsoul 06-28-06, 10:58 AM	Totally - in the book, it always seemed like Gimli and Legolas were roughly equals, with a friendly rivalry. But ol' Pete made Elves the bomb, and made dwarves inept stunty Santa Clause's. "Oh, I fell down again, ho ho ho!"I knew someone who tried to start (read: dominate) a conversation along the lines of "Elves are the far superior race" (completed with annoying know-it-all stress on the middle syllable) solely because of what she saw in the LotR movies/DvD extras. Thankfully, it was mostly ignored and the table moved on and we didn't have to hear the usual 10-minute-tyrade-per-subject from this person. I like my gaming group :) and am glad I don't game with her and her superiority complex anymore :D
babysamurai 06-28-06, 11:11 AM	I knew someone who tried to start (read: dominate) a conversation along the lines of "Elves are the far superior race" (completed with annoying know-it-all stress on the middle syllable) solely because of what she saw in the LotR movies/DvD extras. Thankfully, it was mostly ignored and the table moved on and we didn't have to hear the usual 10-minute-tyrade-per-subject from this person. I like my gaming group :) and am glad I don't game with her and her superiority complex anymore :D Yeah, and the dwarves were actually made/crafted first by Aule, but ol' Eru wouldn't let him release the dwarves before the Elves first set foot in ME, and were the first to gaze on the stars etc.
green_yawgmoth 06-28-06, 11:45 AM	HE had to do something - even in three parts the movies were extremely long. NOw imagine taking your 8 year old niece because she want's to watch the show all her friends watched. You'll be thankful for anything to keep her from climbing the walls. "wants" has no apostrophe in it. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v91/yawgmoth/smileys/eng101.gif If you're taking an 8 year old to any movie, you make it clear to the child that under no circumstances does she speak during it, along with how long the movie is and what it's about so she knows whether or not she still wants to see it. If she can't handle sitting still for 2.5 hours, then guess who shouldn't go see the movie? http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v91/yawgmoth/kittyjig.gif
Aeolus91 06-28-06, 11:58 AM	That Eru is always delaying his release dates... wasn't that the overgod who is working on Fallout 3? :rolleyes: Really though, it didn't bother me any. Also, Jackson's elves pwned. His dwarves sucked. Get over it. Although the one scene with Gimli and Legolas in a drinking contest was really funny. (btw I have never found the part in any of Tolkien's books where it is suggested that elves have an immunity to liquor... if anyone knows please shoot me a PM) Rawr! :dragon:
cloud1052 06-28-06, 12:15 PM	it seems that this post got turned inside out. it went from how tall people are to eru and fallout 3 but anyway. i see what you are saying they should be taller but you dont come across very tall people these days and its near impossible to find a slim and slender looking elf thats 7 ft. tall
hmmmm 06-28-06, 12:28 PM	I still thoroughly enjoyed the film - I don't want anybody to get their panties in a bunch. Who told you I wore panties :P
Rolof 06-28-06, 12:44 PM	I enjoyed the movies, but still I have to admit that I was somewhat annoyed by the scene where Legolas "surfs" on a shield down some stairs. I couldn't help but think at the time "wow, as if Elf fanboyism isn't bad enough already...".
Brandir 06-28-06, 02:20 PM	People want the source of the height of various characters in LOTR? Here it is: The Númenórean ranga was slightly longer than our yard, approximately thirty-eight inches ..... Thus two rangar was often called "man-high," which at thirty-eight inches gives an average height of six feet four inches ..... Elendil was said to be "more than man-high by nearly half a ranga;" but he was accounted the tallest of all the Númenóreans who escape the Downfall. The Eldar of the Elder Days were also very tall. Galadriel, "the tallest of all the women of the Eldar of whom tales tell," was said to be man-high, but it is noted "according to the measure of the Dúnedain and the men of old," indicating a height of about six feet four inches. Éomer was said to have been tall, of like height with Aragorn; but he with other descendants of King Thengel were taller than the norm of Rohan, deriving this characteristic (together in some cases with darker hair) from Morwen, Thengel's wife, a lady of Gondor of high Númenórean descent. One ranga is 38". so Elendil was about 7'9". Oh yes, Hobbits were 3' - 4'. Oh yes, the source. Unfinished Tales Part Three Chapter 1 Disaster at the Gladden Fields.