Soviet TV version of Lord of the Rings rediscovered after 30 years

[Still Waters]

A Soviet television adaptation of The Lord of the Rings thought to have been lost to time was rediscovered and posted on YouTube last week, delighting Russian-language fans of JRR Tolkien.

The 1991 made-for-TV film, Khraniteli, based on Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring, is the only adaptation of his Lord of the Rings trilogy believed to have been made in the Soviet Union.

Aired 10 years before the release of the first instalment of Peter Jackson’s movie trilogy, the low-budget film appears ripped from another age: the costumes and sets are rudimentary, the green-screen effects are ludicrous, and many of the scenes look more like a theatre production than a feature-length film.

Few knew about its existence until Leningrad Television’s successor, 5TV, abruptly posted the film to YouTube last week, where it has gained almost 400,000 views within several days.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/05/soviet-tv-version-lord-of-the-rings-rediscovered-after-30-years

[Oniomancer]

Quote

 the low-budget film appears ripped from another age: the costumes and sets are rudimentary, the green-screen effects are ludicrous, and many of the scenes look more like a theatre production than a feature-length film.

In other words, just like the BBC of the same era.

[quiXilver]

1 hour ago, Oniomancer said:

In other words, just like the BBC of the same era.

Make it better, or just b****... easier to b****.