History YMMV / TheLordOfTheRings

** During the reference footage for the many running scenes, [[https://youtu.be/pe6ybP_V8oI?t=29 there is a bit where]] the badass woodsman Aragorn clumsily trips and falls flat on his face. They didn't even bother to edit that bit out.

* FightSceneFailure: Owing to the up-and-down animation quality and the untrained nature of the rotoscoped performances, a lot of fight scenes have the look of low-rent stage fighting. Blows lack any weight (because they're made by actors trying not to hurt each other), strikes are aimed primarily at the opponent's weapon, and both sides do little besides inexpert flailing.

** The Ring is a force of great power that is alluring to men, but cannot be controlled even if its power is harnessed and will twist you into a monster before it kills you. This is in no way a metaphor for nuclear power and weapons or radiation poisoning, the Ring's powers are completely literal.

* RetroactiveRecognition: With many people likely now coming to the film after seeing the Jackson films, the parts he took direct inspiration from really stand out. Most notably the "Proudfeet!" shot in the Shire, and scene of the hobbits hiding from a Nazgûl under a tree was duplicated almost shot for shot. He also elected to end the ''Two Towers'' film in the exact same spot this film does in both storylines rather than where the book ends.

--> '''Tokien''': I cordially dislike allegory in all its manifestations, and always have done since I grew old and wary enough to detect its presence.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: Early on in ''The Fellowship of the Ring'', Tolkien briefly stops the action to describe a fox's train of thought, which runs: "‘Hobbits!’ he thought. ‘Well, what next? I have heard of strange doings in this land, but I have seldom heard of a hobbit sleeping out of doors under a tree. Three of them! There’s something mighty queer behind this.’ He was quite right, but he never found out any more about it." This was likely a holdover from the early drafts of the story, which were more in the vein of ''the Hobbit'' explaining the narrative aside.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: As the TropeCodifier for all of modern western Fantasy, this is practically inevitable. After decades of imitation, inspiration, homage, subversion, and parody by dozens if not hundreds of authors, by the time someone gets to the real thing it can seem [[StandardFantasySetting unbelievably stereotypical.]] Of course, they ''weren't'' tired clichés when Tolkien wrote them; his setting was just so successful that everyone copied him! Creator/TerryPratchett probably said it best when he compared the influence of Tolkien on modern fantasy to Mount Fuji in pictures of Japan: It's always there. Sometimes it's big and up close, sometimes far and distant, but it's always visible (unless you either ''deliberately'' look away from it, or you are, in fact, standing on top of it).

* NarmCharm: In any other setting, Mount Doom being named as such should have made it the prime example of a lack of creativity on Sauron's part. Somehow in here, characters and readers alike say this name with absolute seriousness and terror. (Contrast the exoticism of the Elvish equivalent, Amon Amarth, which on its face is AGoodNameForARockBand - [[Music/AmonAmarth or a metal one]].)

** Tom Bombadil big time. Whether you enjoy his portion of the book or find it unnecessary is completely up in the air.

** Whether the books are better than the movies or vice versa.

* MagnificentBastard: See [[MagnificentBastard/TolkiensLegendarium here.]]

* MagnificentBastard: [[LargeAndInCharge Uglúk]] is the leader of Saruman's fighting Uruk-hai. A [[HiddenDepths surprisingly intelligent and savvy Uruk]] who is wholly loyal to Saruman, Uglúk leads his "lads" to surround the Fellowship and capture the Hobbits while also [[HeroKiller causing the death of Boromir]] whom Uglúk is indicated to have delivered the mortal blow to. Keeping control of a divided force of Orcs, Uglúk is able to keep ahead of the Rohirrim by his own tactics and seeks to deliver the Hobbits Merry and Pippin to his master in Isengard.

** Similarly, Legolas's hair color is often taken for granted to be blond, since his father the Elvenking in ''The Hobbit'' has explicitly "golden" hair, and most visual depictions have gone with this. But some readers argue he is actually brunet, pointing to a scene where he shoots a Ringwraith and his fell beast out of the air, where "his head was dark". However, this takes place at night.

* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: The book series only really took off when it was embraced by the American counterculture after the paperback editions were published there.

** The general picture of the fundamental worldbuilding throughout the setting's fictional history is of "the West", analogues of European peoples (including the mythological-derived creatures like elves and dwarves), facing the invading forces of "the East" and "the South" which are analogues of Asian and African peoples (plus orcs and trolls which are also derived from European mythlore) which, coupled with the [[ColorCodedForYourConvenience broad strokes symbolism]] of "white" and "light" standing for "good" and "black" and "darkness" standing for "evil", leads to accusations of racism or at least Eurocentrism.For his part Tolkien was averse to being associated with racism and discrimination, but also was upfront about his inspirations mainly revolving around European culture and history vis-a-vis the rest of the world.

** Éowyn settling down with Faramir does NOT equal to her either [[DieForOurShip "just settling for second best"]] or [[StayInTheKitchen becoming a boring housewife.]] Her and Faramir's relationship is a part of AnAesop of the book that peace, healing and nurturing are better than war and violence (especially when the war is over) with language evoking a CallToAgriculture. Éowyn befriends and eventually falls for a man who helps her realize that she was more of a DeathSeeker than anything else, so ultimately she chooses life over death, and falls for someone who even as a ForestRanger ordered his men never to kill without need. Also, becoming a ruling lady of a princedom is different from becoming a housewife: it's a very tough position. The fandom, and specially fangirls, insists that Eówyn was [[ChickiFication chickified]] and "reduced" to a TrophyWife or a HouseWife. Ironically for modern readers, shieldmaidens in actual Norse sagas hung up their weapons whenever they married ("maiden" refers to being an unmarried woman), so Éowyn is perfectly in line with her legendary forebears.

* SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct: Creator/AnthonyDaniels really shows off his range by playing Legolas with the dignity and respect you’d expect a noble and brave elf warrior would showcase. A far cry from his more well-known performance as the bumbling-yet-loveable [[Franchise/StarWars Threepio]], huh?

* JustHereForGodzilla: Some people, mostly ''Franchise/StarWars'' fans, watch this movie solely because it features Creator/AnthonyDaniels in his only major movie role that '''ISN’T''' C-3PO.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: As the TropeCodifier for all of modern western Fantasy, this is practically inevitable. After decades of imitation, inspiration, homage, subversion, and parody by dozens if not hundreds of authors, by the time someone gets to the real thing it can seem [[StandardFantasySetting unbelievably stereotypical.]] Of course, they ''weren't'' tired clichés when Tolkien wrote them; his setting was just so successful that everyone copied him!
** Creator/TerryPratchett probably said it best when he compared the influence of Tolkien on modern fantasy to Mount Fuji in pictures of Japan: It's always there. Sometimes it's big and up close, sometimes far and distant, but it's always visible (unless you either ''deliberately'' look away from it, or you are, in fact, standing on top of it).

** The Orcs, helped by the fact that Tolkien was worried about the implications of the AlwaysChaoticEvil trope (that he detested) and apparently intended for them to be ProudWarriorRaceGuys serving Sauron only because of his power over them. He had actually planned to have Frodo meet some helpful Orcs but hadn't figured out where to work their scene in. He would have introduced this part of them and expanded their role in future editions too, except...

** Although the narration points out that Haradrim/Southrons and Easterlings (whose homelands are broadly analogous to Africa and Asia) are working for Sauron due to coercion, deception, and/or a historical grudge stemming from Númenor's history of brutal imperialism, and that most of the foot soldiers would ''much'' rather be living peaceful lives at home, the textual descriptions of them as looking cruel, alien, or even troll-like to the good and fair people of the West (and Gollum) can still be acutely uncomfortable to read.

* SlowPacedBeginning: It takes around half of ''The Fellowship of the Ring'' to properly start the quest of the Ring.

** Creator/TerryPratchett probably said it best when he compared the influence of Tolkien on modern fantasy to Mount Fuji in Japan: It's always there. Sometimes it's big and up close, sometimes far and distant, but it's always visible (unless you either ''deliberately'' look away from it, or you are, in fact, standing on top of it).