Whether the characters were talking about elevensies, how to cook rabbits or why salted pork is a delicacy, it seems somewhat odd that an epic gives screen time to eating. While Peter Jackson is finding the appropriate
wheelbarrow to haul his Oscars home with, the characters of \Return of the King"" are still in theaters crushing lambas bread and tipping back mugs of ale.
Somewhere between the titanic clash of armies, the portrait of the
corruption of power and the stunningly detailed world, the hobbits talked
about potatoes. Why did the ""Lord of the Rings"" movies take time from the
breathtaking battles and human heroes to show the shorter ones eating?
J.R.R. Tolkien has a built-in hierarchy of holistic disposition in his works
that came across on the big screen. The various races of the ""Lord of the
Rings"" had their types of food and varying qualities, depending on their
degree of purity. Where Tolkien made Middle Earth a patchwork of rivals and allies, Jackson followed with victuals for the groups.
At the top of the hierarchy, elves and Ents were given food that was
practically supernatural. The Ents' drinks had immediate effects on Merry
and Pippin and explained why the tree herders were enormous creatures. The Ents became more human than plant when it was shown that they too enjoy a good drink.
The elves were portrayed as ethereal creatures and their food reflected
that. The lambas bread received an explanation that made it the perfect
meal. It was filling, light and durable. Also, throughout the films, the
elven bread represented a standard of wholesomeness in food. The heroes enjoyed the bread where the villains would reject it.
In the middle of the hierarchy, the men, hobbits and dwarves consumed common food that was good enough to get them through their journeys. The hobbits always created some necessary tension because they liked food to a disruptive degree. Usually their consumption bordered on annoying, but they always took their pleasures from it.
A good example of a failing middle figure was Denethor. His lonely feast in
""Return of the King"" illustrated how his eating habits reflected his
boorishness. When he ripped into his food without poise, it was apparent
that his position was bereft of the usual dignity of men. Hobbits, men and dwarves ate meat, but it was always cooked or preserved.
The lower races, mainly orcs and Urak-Hai, were portrayed eating fresh meat. Their extremely carnivorous ways came out in ""The Two Towers"" and was reinforced by other villains. The Nazgul's beast was told to ""feast on [Theoden's] flesh"" and Shelob was said to play with her food.
The central villain, Gollum, showed how food figured into the descent of a
character. As Smeagol, he caught fish with a hook and probably cooked them.
As Gollum, he snatched them directly from the water and simply tore into
them. His transformation was especially effective because it exemplified how food in ""Lord of the Rings"" either made or unraveled the humanity of the characters.
