TTT teaser poster

[Niniel]

Of course you have all seen the TTT teaser poster that's at the bottom of this site. What do you think of it? I suppose the tow towers that are pictured are Barad-Dur and Orthanc, since the filmmakers in their wisdom have decided that those are the two towers that Tolkien meant. But since the one in the back is Orthanc, the big one in the front must be Barad-Dur. But WHY on earth are they showing Barad-Dur so enormously on the poster, since it doesn't feature in the book at all? Or have they made so much changes in the film that it doesn't look like the book any more?

[ReadWryt]

...I just cannot believe that the filmakers, in their wisdom, used that crappy model of Orthanc in the poster and lit it so wretchedly! I would advise anybody thinking of getting that poster to go to the official movie site and download the wallpaper, assess the look of the Lionel Trains H.O. scale Orthanc model they used for that poster and decide if they are really wanting the poster hanging anyplace where poeple might have to see it...

[Darth Saruman]

It is a very excellent poster. The model of Orthanc is very realistic.
I have it on my desktop right now. Also, the poster is meant to be more symbolic than realistic, to show movie fans what the Two Towers are.

[ReadWryt]

Really? Oh well, I guess it's a matter of personal taste. I just think that the way that the tower is lit from two sides, the balcony looks like it has Vasaline dripping over it from above, you can see straight through the windows on the other side of the model and the great glare on the opposite side of the building from the way Barad Dur is lit all detract from it's believability. It's sad too, because as a model it was photographed perfectly in the movie...very believable and realistic, if not wholy inaccurate...but in this photo it doesn't hold a candle to the great way it shows in the movie...*shrug*

In fact, it really looks like some pewter collectable from the Franklin Mint...

[ReadWryt]

Actually, for those who have not seen what we are talking about...I may as well upload it for your edification...

[Talimon]

Two things. One, the tower in front is Orthanc (in case there is any confusion here). Two, I firmly believe the tower in back is not Barad-Dur. This would be odd, considering that both the trailer and the preview plainly name the two towers. But by what we've seen of Barad-Dur in the movie, the one in the back looks nothing like it. This leads me to believe its either Cirith Ungol or Minas Morgul. I attribute this to either 1) The poster was drawn and approved by someone other then the scriptwriters, or 2) PJ is staying in line with Tolkiens own haziness on the subject, and is leaving it out in the open.

[Ithrynluin]

Originally posted by Talimon
Two things. One, the tower in front is Orthanc (in case there is any confusion here). Two, I firmly believe the tower in back is not Barad-Dur. This would be odd, considering that both the trailer and the preview plainly name the two towers. But by what we've seen of Barad-Dur in the movie, the one in the back looks nothing like it. This leads me to believe its either Cirith Ungol or Minas Morgul.

I agree.The tower in the back is nothing like Barad-dur (doesn't look convincing enough for the source of all evil and doesn't really fit the description in "The Breaking of the Fellowship")
But the poster itself is not that bad.

[ReadWryt]

...I duuno, those pinnacles look pretty cruel to me!
...rising black, blacker and darker than the vast shades amid which it stood, the cruel pinnacles and iron crown of the topmost tower of Barad-dûr...

..but then, it's hardly black. Here's what I've done...I've found a couple of shots of Barad Dur from the first film...I combined them in an image with a sharpened closeup of the tower in the distance from the poster. You take a look at the foundation of each and tell me what you think...I suspect that as you look at the bottom of the tower in the poster and the shots from the film you will come to the same conclusion I did...that they are indeed the same building.

[Ithrynluin]

Nice work,but I still fail to see them as the same buildings.
The tower from the poster seems to be somehow too "graceful" or too thin (I can't really put it into words:p ) to qualify for Barad-dur.

[ReadWryt]

Ah...this is a question of whether the movie makers are correctly portraying the look of the Tower. The BIG problem is that there really are not any complete descriptions of the structure to judge by, so what you are really saying is the the Barad Dur in the poster does not look like the Barad Dur in your mind when you read about it, which is actually to be expected...can't fault you or the film maker for that in this case at all. It's a matter or personal opinion at that point, and in the case of something so little described I would say that nobody's mental image is totally wrong so long as it at least matches the description from the book in my last post. Now the lack of almost ANY blackness in the tower in the poster, and the fact that the construction at the foundation, impossible for the Great Alliance to destroy, is the same in the shots from the movie and this poster demonstrate how a miniature, when photographed well, can look very realistic...but when not shot well comes off looking like some big white tower that should be black. I suspect that someone not really involved in the production beyond promoting the movie made the poster and they never really knew what was wrong with their portrayal...

[Talimon]

If your theory is correct, RW, then the actual tower of Barad-Dur must be incredibly tall. By the scale shown in the poster we haven't even seen the tower yet. I don't remember seeing any tower in the movie that litterally dwarfed those battlements, at least not by the amount the poster shows.

I'm not saying it's not Barad-Dur, but it doesn't look to me like the one we saw in the film. Either it's indeed not Barad-Dur or it's just an illustration by a different artist.

[ReadWryt]

That's because in the first film what you see the Nazgul issue forth from is the FOUNDATION of Barad Dur, the rest is still under contruction. I suppose what P.J. was trying to show is that Sauron was in the process of regrouping and reorganizing...

[Talimon]

I actually thought the shot showed the Nazgul leaving Minas Morgul, not Barad-Dur. Doesn't really matter, though.

[ReadWryt]

...then the tower in the poster is Minas Morgul, which is REALLY confusing. Naw, if you look at the footage it starts with Mount Doom in the background, draws back to show a Sub-Tower with contstruction going on then sweeps around and looks downward to show a long bridge at the entrance with Lava flowing into a moat...continues to follow the bridge and pan upward to show what is most probably, from examination of the base of the tower in the poster, the foundation of Barad Dur with lots of construction going on and pans up more to show the vast scale of the repairs being made, then cuts directly to the Nazgul exiting a building. Why show Barad Dur and cut to Minas Morgul in such a confusing manner? As much as I malign P.J. about a great many things, his directing skills are greater then to compose so confusing a chain of events...

[Talimon]

I made that assumption based on two things. One, Saruman tells Gandalf in the movie that "The Nine have left Minas Morgul.". Two, in the shot of Barad-Dur there are hundreds of orcs wielding torches crossing the bridge. In the shot of the Nazgul crossing the bridge it's completely empty.

Like I said, it really doesn't matter though in either case.

[ReadWryt]

You may be right. No matter how confusing the order of events might be, the building the Nazgul leave has that eerie green sheen to it like Ninas Morgul. I might be assuming quite a bit by believing that P.J. didn't assume that folks would understand they weren't the same structure. Either way, you are indeed correct...it's not really a big thing. I just wanted to make certain that I made it clear that I am completely aware I could, with decent odds, be wrong...:)

[Talimon]

I just wanted to make certain that I made it clear that I am completely aware I could, with decent odds, be wrong...

The world would deffinitely be a tiny bit more sane if more people thought like you. :)

[ReadWryt]

Bah! I just calls them like I sees them. The bloodpressure of a good many members would be more stable if I remembered to act that way more often actually...

[Enig]

It's the two main towers in the book. In the first book in TTT is Orthanc the tower that you meet, and in the second book it is Morgul.
I think it has to be this way. Somebody tell me what Cirith Ungol was again.

[Enig]

What?? This is from the lordoftherings.net site - lotr shop about the new poster:

NEW Lord of the Rings Two Towers Teaser Poster

Hot off the press! Here's the official teaser poster for The Two Towers, the second installment of The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. In this gorgeous poster, a fine mist covers the space between the two magnificent opposing towers: Saruman's Othanc Tower in Isengard, and Sauron's fortress at Barad-dur. This single sided poster is a full 27 x 40 and is suitable for framing. All posters are rolled, slipped into protective plastic sleeves, and shipped in heavy duty tubes. International orders are welcome on all Lord of the Rings posters.


I can`t believe that the tower in the background is barad-dûr!! Is it only me, or is the tower in the background white?

[ReadWryt]

I thought I had pretty much confirmed that it was Barad Dur with my photographic evidence...*Shrug* As I stated in an earlier post, it is too white...but that might just be a side effect of the fact that the picture was taken on one of those rarely mentioned Bright Clear Sunny Days in Mordor...

[LadyGaladriel]

in my FOTR edition JRR TOLKIEN states clearly that the next book is called Two Towers as it is about Orthanc and Minas Morgul

[Rúmil]

Just to quote the infamous Letters again, The Two Towers gets as near as possible to finding a title to cover the widely divergent Books 3 and 4; and can be left ambiguous – it might refer to Isengard and Barad-dûr, or to Minas Tirith and B; or Isengard and Cirith Ungol. (lett.#140)
So I have decided that in my mind the towers depicted are Orthanc and Minas Ithil the fair tower of the rising moon somehow chosen for the poster rather than its loathsome posterior avatar Minas Morgul so as not to depress the looker. Lesson is, even if PJ did ruin your life, don't let it show! :D

[4th Age Scribe]

I think it is excellent. The texture, color, and abstractness of its scale (in regard to the proximity of the towers). Much like one would imagine his vision would be if gazing into the Pallantir.

[4th Age Scribe]

One other thing, I belive the towers to be that of Orthanc and Barad-dur. Those were the only two fortresses in the war that were in cahoots, and communication with each other. Minas Tirith doesn't count, as they were enemies.

[ReadWryt]

It IS excelent...if you really like that "quite obviously small model photographed in way too much light and plainly hollow as evidenced by the light passing through the windows on the other side and looking as if it is crafted by someone with a cheesy doll house balcony stuck to it" thing...:)

[Darth Saruman]

Originally posted by ReadWryt
It IS excelent...if you really like that "quite obviously small model photographed in way too much light and plainly hollow as evidenced by the light passing through the windows on the other side and looking as if it is crafted by someone with a cheesy doll house balcony stuck to it" thing...:) I don't know...I'm trying to be subjective, but I still think that it looks great! The sunlight adds a realistic touch to the whole thing. The towers look detailed imo and I like the way that the army surrounds it.

[LotR_Girl]

I would make better posterer!:D

[ReadWryt]

The sunlight adds a realistic touch to the whole thing. The towers look detailed imo and I like the way that the army surrounds it.

Oh yeah...all that sunlight that they talk about pouring into Mordor in the books...very realistic.:eek: :p

[indexerkevin]

I was gonna point out what she did if no one else did. in JRRT's words:

The second part is called The Two Towers, since the events recounted in it are dominated by Orthanc, the citadel of Saruman, and the fortress of Minas Morgul, that guards the secret (I'm missing the rest of the quote from my read-2,000,000 times copy)


That's why the tower doesn't look like Barad Dur, since it isn't. It was actually once a thing of beauty and was the personal home of Isildur, Minas Ithil, now Minas Morgul; a great work of the men of Gondor at their peak. It is correctly shown gaurding a pass, which is Cirith Ungol.

[ReadWryt]

Why would Sauron rebuild it to look like it used to?

[indexerkevin]

Originally posted by ReadWryt
Why would Sauron rebuild it to look like it used to?

(Assuming you're referring to my post.) Sauron didn't need to rebuild Minas Ithil. The Ringwraiths captured and occupied it. It may have been modified to some extent after that, but it would have been basically the same as before.

I like the poster but if it is Minas Ithil/Morgul that isn't quite how I pictured it. I would have thought it would be higher up on the mountain ridge, nore like a huge spread-out buddhist temple that can also look down into Mordor since that was its purpose; to isolate evil things in Morder.

[ReadWryt]

Oh...nevermind. I thought we were talking about the towers on the poster, Orthanc and Barad Dur...

"Hot off the press! Here's the official teaser poster for The Two Towers, the second installment of The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. In this gorgeous poster, a fine mist covers the space between the two magnificent opposing towers: Saruman's Othanc Tower in Isengard, and Sauron's fortress at Barad-dur...." http://shop.newline.com/escalate/store/DetailPage?pls=newline&bc=newline&prod=014a8032738c&ipos=true&pls0affiliate_id=newline_affiliate&pls1source_id=LOTRPP

...the base of which is visible from these screenshots from the movie composited with the tower from the poster in this picture I poster earlier in the thread HERE (http://www.thetolkienforum.com/attachment.php?s=&postid=122060) . If you look at the base of the tower, that foundation which could not be destroyed in the last war against Sauron, you can see the same structure as that which was under construction in the first movie. Even so though, I think the fact that New Line is saying it's Barad Dur is sufficient...