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Overview
User Rating:
Directors:
Writers:
J.R.R. Tolkien (novel)
Romeo Muller (writer)
Release Date:
11 May 1980 (USA) more
Plot:
Two Hobbits struggle to destroy the Ring in Mount Doom while their friends desperately fight evil Lord Sauron's forces in a final battle. full summary | add synopsis
User Comments:
It's So Easy Not To Try more (45 total)
Cast
(Credited cast) | Orson Bean | ... | Frodo Baggins / King Bilbo Baggins (voice) |
 | Theodore Bikel | ... | Aragorn (voice) |
 | William Conrad | ... | Lord Denethor (voice) |
 | John Huston | ... | Gandalf (voice) |
 | Roddy McDowall | ... | Samwise Gamgee (voice) |
 | Brother Theodore | ... | Gollum / Smeagol (voice) (as Theodore) |
| Paul Frees | ... | Orc / Goblin / Uruk-Hai / Lord Elrond (voice) |
| Don Messick | ... | King Theoden / Easterling / The Mouth of Sauron (voice) |
| John Stephenson | ... | Gondorian Guard / Dwimmerlaik - The Witch-King of Angmar |
 | Casey Kasem | ... | Meriadoc 'Merry' Brandybuck (voice) |
| Sonny Melendrez | ... | Peregrin 'Pippin' Took (voice) |
| Nellie Bellflower | ... | Eowyn / Dernhelm |
| Glenn Yarbrough | ... | The Minstrel (voice) |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
98 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
USA:Not Rated | Canada:G (Manitoba/Quebec)
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Many Tolkien fans were disappointed when Ralph Bakshi's 1978 adaptation of "Lord of the Rings" covered only the first two books of Tolkien's trilogy. When it became clear that Bakshi would not produce a sequel, Rankin and Bass finished the story for him with this TV movie, disappointing fans even more due to its poor, rushed quality. This TV movie is considered by many fans to be vastly inferior to Bakshi's 1978 movie. more
Goofs:
Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): "Sauron" is mispronounced as "Sore-on" rather than "Sow-ron". more
Quotes:
Pippin:
Fine time to fall asleep!
Bilbo Baggins:
Who's asleep? Just resting my eyes.
more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Ringers: Lord of the Fans (2005) more
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (45 total)
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Related Links
| Full cast and crew | Company credits | External reviews |
| IMDb Animation section | IMDb USA section | Add this title to MyMovies |
Having recently seen this version for the first time in a number of years, I can see its faults, but many of the reviewers here are way too hard on it. Tolkien's masterful trilogy was unfilmable in live action before the advent of CGI, but fans were clamoring for film versions anyway, and then hated them when they arrived. Oy veh! While this Rankin/Bass version was not as good as their THE HOBBIT, I still found it to be quite entertaining on its own level, as long as you don't compare it to Peter Jackson's impeccable epics. The voice cast was great, and it was quite ambitious for Rankin/Bass, known chiefly for their animated Christmas specials.
This film's haters should listen to the lyrics of one of Glenn Yarbrough's---It Is So Easy Not To Try. Rankin/Bass tried, and Tolkien fans who have expressed outrage over this would have been angrier if no one had tried back then. Everyone here needs to take a chill pill.