Starring Brian Cox, Gaia Wise, Luke Pasqualino, and Miranda Otto

Directed by Kenji Kamiyama

New Line

The legendary king of Rohan and his family defend their kingdom against an army of Dunlendings.

When I heard this announced not only did I think that I didn’t need a new Lord of the Rings movie (the Hobbit trilogy was really very bad) but I also didn’t really have an interest in an animated movie on top of that.

Don’t get me wrong, I love animation and I love The Lord of the Rings. I just couldn’t see what this would add to the stories I had already experienced. For context, I’ve liked The Rings of Power – I think it’s a really interesting take on the world and the lore available to them and gets the terrible long defeat of the elves pretty much spot on. I also really love Morfydd Clark as the recalcitrant and proud Galadriel.

So I went into this never a hater but definitely as someone who wasn’t really convinced that there was a point to a story like this told in the way it’s been told.

With all that in mind, I have to say I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this. Philippa Boyens led the writing team with Will Matthews, Phoebe Gittins and Jeffery Addiss holding the pen on the screenplay itself.

The team have delivered a nuanced and interesting take on the Rohirrim, giving Helm Hammerhand (Brian Cox) a set of suitably epic set pieces together with a proper journey but the star of the film is Hèra, played brilliantly by Gaia Wise.

Stylistically this is absolutely a Japanese animation. I was reminded of Princess Mononoke, Altus’ Metaphor Refantazio, Akira and Ghost in the Shell, which is apposite since the director, Kenji Kamiyama worked on two of those four.

As a result it has a very particular style that works pretty well – at least for me – with sumptuous backgrounds and hand drawn landscapes (particularly the opening pan across the White Mountains that separate Gondor and Rohan).

There are plenty of familiar beats for those who love the movies; Howard Shore’s music makes a spinetingling appearance as well.

The action is really good – brutal, in your face and every bit the bone jarring battles you’d want.

The film gets especial praise from me for its one on one fights with swords, spears and bucklers. The use of bucklers is so good I remarked on it to my companion on the way out – exact moves from medieval manuscripts right down to throat punches with the rim, twisting the buckler to capture a blade and even the way it was held. Top marks for excellent choreography and authenticity.

The most interesting part of the movie though revolves around a maiden, mother, crone relationship that is slid into the story with no announcement, no fanfare but is still the heart of everything that happens.

Hèra just wants to be the person she wants to be yet everyone around her is trying to choose her fate, not least her childhood best friend and eventual implacable enemy Wulf. The film sticks pretty close to Tolkien’s pretty sparse overview while expanding the story and also taking inspiration from Monolith’s Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor video game. Without going into spoiler territory, Wulf is the kind of man we see all too often now – one who cannot take no for an answer and can, in one breath, issue proclamations of love while in the next call the same person an ugly slut. He is an insecure and grieving man for whom a toxic sense of self damages everyone around him. In that sense he is more than one note but his motivations are extremely clear and his choices, driven partly by grief and partly by insecurity unfortunately make a lot of sense.

Hèra and her shield maiden and the unnamed crone who end up forming the little trinity who lead the story are excellent and it’s a rare female role model who gets the chance to just be herself, who fights for and succeeds in forging her own destiny – a destiny that’s set on her own terms.

So, yes, I can see certain (male) haters of The Rings of Power also disliking this intensely, they’ll talk about changing canon, about the lack of need to have Hèra in the movie and other nonsense. Let’s not worry about them at all. Let’s remember that this is a story that really tells of a world that would have inspired Eowyn and that should give us all a little hope that people can see their foolishness and learn and support and fight for what is good.

Verdict: War of the Rohirrim is much better than I was expecting. Much better than it deserves to be in many ways and its choices to focus on Hèra are both smart, uplifting and hugely enjoyable.

The choice of animation style, even the structure of the story, make this cross cultural without losing what I love of The Lord of the Rings.

Go see it and let studios know that we want more animation for adults, more stories that give us a sense of hope and more adult role models for women who aren’t destined to fall in love with a man.

And, of course, more excellent sword fighting where I don’t have to bite my tongue for the nonsense on screen.

8/10 women doing interesting things

Stewart Hotston