Born of Hope (2009) Online

Having thoroughly enjoyed the short but sweet story from The Hunt for Gollum, I was delighted to experience another LOTR fan film - but this time from a different Director and ultimately from a different perspective.

Although perhaps in less style, this film packs a fuller storyline with greater substance than its independent predecessor. The romance is multi-layered; the action is smooth; the costumes and settings are fantastic; and the set is beautifully crafted to create the perfect homestead ambiance.

The characters are surprisingly well defined, for such a relatively short feature, and this is complemented well by two outstanding acting performances in particular - Christopher Dane (Arathorn) and Kate Madison (Elgarain).

Other than the above, I loved the script and was also surprised by a subtly professional music score.

All in all, the success of Born of Hope should encourage other independent film-makers to take hold of their own production reins and create individualistic, original and just plain enjoyable fan films.

I've been following the production of Born of Hope for over two years, and it was well worth the wait. It's an excellent film period, but it is especially impressive given that it is a fan film made on a low budget. The effects aren't top-notch (though better than those in many fan films), but you can really tell that the team responsible for this cared about every aspect of the film.

For me, the beauty is in the details - just little things that only real fans of the books will notice, but add so much more to the film. There was a brief moment with Halbarad and young Aragorn that contributed little to the story but still managed to give me chills. It's the little moments like this that make this film truly remarkable.

They did an excellent job of scouting locations, especially for Taurdal - it really captured how I've always envisioned the Dunedain villages. The story isn't flawless, but they did very well provided how little they had to go off of. You feel for every one of the characters, and even though I knew how it would end, I was nearly in tears. It was beautifully written and beautifully performed.

In all, I definitely recommend this film. It represents everything that I love about fan films. It's loyal to the original material and captures the feel of Middle-earth, but it's also a beautiful story in its own right. It's an excellent companion to the trilogy, and I will be watching it many more times.

Wow. This fan-made film was obviously made with love for the material and a passion that clearly shines through. There are many little details and moments that Tolkien fans will love (and made my heart soar once or twice). It's so nice to see that attention to the detail of Middle-earth's history. It is brilliant for the small budget that was available to the filmmakers, and it dovetails quite nicely with the Jackson movies. I must say that I enjoyed it even more than The Hunt for Gollum (which was also very good). This production had the benefit of not using characters established in the Jackson films, which makes everything much more believable in that universe. And it was much better than most of the drivel produced for television. Kudos to all involved in it! A real labor of love and a remarkable effort.

This is a film made truly for die-hard Tolkien fans. While meticulously consistent with the story lines established by the author, fans solely of the film will likely be rather bored with it. This exceptionally well-crafted, fan-made, micro-budgeted film, while it takes great pains to share visual continuity with Jackson's films (and does so remarkably well, despite the tiny budget) is long on dialogue and short on action, creating a tone which is more consistent with Tolkien's "histories" (ie, The Children of Hurin, Lost Tales) than to his novels (The LOTR Trilogy, The Hobbit). If you fall into the former category of fans, you'll undoubtedly be pleased by its overall faithfulness to Tolkienian lore, the excellent casting, above-average acting, true-to-Jackson costuming and surprising cinematography and scoring. But if your only experience of The Lord Of The Rings is the films and you're not a fantasy reader, you'll probably think the Orcs look lame and be really bored by it.

It is professional grade quality! Acting, editing, script, costumes, sets,music, make-up--it's all in the professional category. The only complaint I have is that I can't have the DVD in high def. It belongs very proudly on my shelf next to the LotR movies. It's clear that you all have futures in the moving making industry if you want them. You stayed close to the vision of Tolkien, and for that reason alone, I'm very grateful. That it is free to us is one of the greatest mathoms ever given, but I would gladly have paid to see this at the theater. Perhaps maybe one day.

Kate and crew...great work! You should be very proud. I'll be watching this often.

and Aragorn had not yet come of age... and the Hobbits had not yet made Gandalf's acquaintance... and Sauron had begun searching for the Ring of Power thinking it was in the hands of humankind... and Elron, King of the Elves, had begun to foresee danger in the near future for Isildor's heirs... Sauron had begun to rally the orcs to conduct raids looking for the Ring. Aragorn had not yet been born. Arathorn, his father, had not yet wed, but the small band of human settlers, trying to stay ahead of orc raiders, were under the protection of the rangers led by him, a mighty warrior and expert leader.

So begins this story, marvelously portrayed, in Born of Hope. For a movie made entirely with private funding, it is truly extraordinary. There is little I can add to the excellent reviews posted by others. I have seen other fantasy movies, made with low budgets, from productions in Czech Republic, Italy, and other places, with more buying power, I must add, that do not portray this much care and beauty in a film of such a complex nature. I was surprised to see how they made it even look "expensive", a la Lord of the Rings, which added to the overall enjoyment of the same.

Of course, one cannot expect any impressive special effects, or big armies, or fancy castles or architecture. The battle featured with the troll wasn't too gripping or exciting, but perhaps that was the best to be had, so one cannot really find fault with that. Arathorn was an impressive fighter! I could not help notice how they carefully prepared those battle sequences. I think Peter Jackson would be proud, and with good reason.

Despite its short duration, the movie feels much longer, and every minute was worth it. So get dressed, invite your sweetheart or friend, drive to the theatre and get some popcorn. Be prepared to relive Lord of the Rings all over again, only this time, pre-Fellowship of the Ring!

Overall Born of Hope is a good movie. It was character driven, accurate and enjoyable. You forget the budget is small once you get taken in by the tale. In no way is it a rip-off of of Jackson's trilogy because it is a historic story from the same land and people......Middle Earth; as well as written by the same visionary author.....J.R.R Tolkien. Since the film isn't plot driven it can seem as if it's not going to twist and climax; however, the story goes on for generations and this film is only an hour long......It does end well. I would like to see more films from the Tolkien books before I'm an old man and was quite pleased to find this one. Give it a try if you have some shred of imagination and don't get bogged down by a lack of shinny things.

I'd heard of this film but delayed getting round to watching it . Don't get me wrong I was totally blown away by Jackson's LOTR trilogy when they came out , especially when I wasn't expecting much more than rather average entertainment but we are talking about a film trilogy that came out ten years ago and in the mean time Jackson lost his magic touch . Let's be honest whatever the technical merits of THE HOBBIT it's a cynical marketing franchise that doesn't have to be a trilogy and when watching last year's release I was constantly reminded of how the plot was composed of characters walking along Middle Earth for ten minutes , getting captured , escaping , walking along Middle Earth for ten minutes , getting captured , escaping , walking along ... and you're left with the feeling you're merely watching out takes from the first trilogy and one wonders if this cynicism might actually damage the reputation of the original series . If Jackson can't capture the magic of the first trilogy then what hope for a bunch of enthusiastic amateurs ?

I'll give these enthusiastic amateurs great credit . This is a definite labour of love and from the outset the production team capture the look , the feel and most importantly of all the breath taking beauty of the series from 2001-2003 , so much so that I had to constantly remind myself this wasn't produced by New Line Cinema with Jackson at the helm such was the authenticity of the costumes , make ups and perhaps most of all the music which wasn't by Howard Shore . What I also liked was the distinct lack of CGI . Okay there is a scene with a CGI monster which isn't too impressive but at least the Orcs are extras in make up . Compare this with the constant use of it in THE HOBBIT where the audience have to endure umpteen set pieces of CGI sequences that look like they're taken from a not very good video game . Jackson might learn a lesson here that big massive spectacle doesn't equal good cinema especially if the sequence is created on computer software

I've got to be honest and say I've never read Tolkein apart from the first chapter of The Two Towers ( I think Jackson improved upon The Departure Of Boromir ) and really couldn't care less about continuity and the history of Middle Earth . Likewise I have no interest in how BORN OF HOPE fits in to the continuity of the Tolkein universe but the story is lacking somewhat and is a rather simplistic tale of how a village in Midddle Earth defends itself against Orc incursions . That said quest stories as seen in the original Ring trilogy aren't known for their multi-layered complex storytelling but THE HOBBIT hardly has a story requiring one three hour film never mind a three film trilogy . I also noticed the acting here is a little bit " off " compared to that seen in LOTR to be honest the acting of the original franchise was one of the best things about it and certainly Oscar worthy from the entire ensemble cast

In all this is a very impressive film made by people who care about their subject . It might be because I was expecting a sad bunch of anoraks seen in the infamous " lightening strike " youtube video that my low expectations for this amateur film exceeded what I expected by a long shot . It's certainly not perfect but you have to ask yourself if a bunch of non professional film makers can make something of this quality why is Peter Jackson and his colleagues with their multi million budgets aren't capable of making something much better ?

First off, I doubted of this movie, essentially because of some posts in the website; This is obviously the work of a fan of the movies which I happen to dislike strongly. But the team behind this simple tale actually reached the spot with the theme and the feeling of a Middle Earth recreation.

I believe strongly that the whole Tolkien universe is resumed in the very last words of the Quenta Silmarillion. And that is my reason to dislike the way the writers of the movie trilogy decided to finish the whole ordeal.

As of Born of Hope itself. there are two lines that I thought had to be there, both of them are...the first one is between the parents of Gilraen and the second is in the very end, the difference between a good effort and an admirable work as they resume the whole experience.

While the battle scenes I felt were not as good as the one in The Hunt for Gollum. They deliver correctly, and the characters got great pieces of dialog.

Technically Born of Hope is flawless for what it is. But a technically efficient experience shall never be enough for a true LOTR project. Thankfully the people behind the film came up with an adequate script. I hope they find this review useful in future efforts.

After the mix of reviews the Hobbit movies received (which I enjoyed even if in some places they are terribly lore-breaking) I discovered the two movies made by the actorsatwork team: this one and the Hunt for Gollum. As a long time Tolkien fan (10+ years) and well versed in all of his works, I want to say that both movies were a joy for me to watch.

The care and dedication by which they were made is visible and I terribly love how the movies succeed in maintaining the atmosphere of Middle Earth the LOTR trilogy gave us in the first place.

Concerning Born of Hope: Was there place for improvements? There always is, no matter which franchise we're talking about, but director Kate Madison and her team made a wonderful job with the limited resources they had. The characters are well casted and well written and I enjoyed the original characters immensely, mainly Elgarain whom I consider canon and is now one of my favorite Tolkien characters alongside Beleg Cuthalion, Erendis, Luthien or Elendil let's say.

I would have liked more character development scenes, the little things that charm the audience towards liking a character... like Elgarain and Gilraen interacting more, or Evonyn having a bigger role and a few more lines, or a quiet family scene with little Aragorn, the sons of Elrond and Gilraen and Arathorn. But I am perfectly happy with the movie as it is.

I've seen complaints about the camera work or the decors that I would like to completely dismiss. Last time I checked, this is not a Hollywood funded movie, but one made by fans for fans. The small mistakes are easy to pass over and for someone who truly loves Tolkien's work and wants to see the two movies with an open mind, the way to do this is easy.

My opinion? Give it a chance, you won't regret it. Were they available to buy on solid DVD I would do it in a heartbeat. (Also what wouldn't I give for a Weta-statue of Arathorn or Elgarain in the likeliness of the LOTR ones) I have downloaded the soundtracks of both movies from the site of the team and I listen to them as often as I listen to the Howard Shore ones. The two movies as a whole are the perfect add-in to the original trilogy.

Why "the movie the fans always needed"? Because there is as much potential for fan-work as both PJ trilogies give us.

This is one of the most impressive fan-made movies I've ever seen - in fact, IT IS the best fan-made film I've ever seen... I'm deeply impressed.

The story and acting drew me in quickly -- sure there is action but this is a tidy little story with very good acting. I quite like the costumes and sets/settings. The cinematography and directing really surprised me as well.

No I did not expect to enjoy the film as well as I did... I'll watch this one again.

I was not expecting anything spectacular. How can you when it is only a fan-made independent film? But 'The Hunt for Gollum' was a lot better. Unlike the latter, 'Born of Hope' has an abysmally poor plot. While yes, the plot is at least in existence it does not really go anywhere, so you are not particularly interested in what is going to happen.

The acting was alright, even if it was hard to believe. The narrator was awful though. She ruined it for me.

The effects were good enough, and the costumes and the setting was commendable considering that the film was done on a shoe-string budget.

This is worth a watch, only if you're a fan of The Lord of the Rings. If not, you won't really enjoy it. Having said that, I am a fan and I was bored by it.

I think that considering it's a low-budget film made by without big-name backing it"s not bad at all. Most of the acting is what you'd expect from this sort of thing, with somewhat wooden performances. The fighting scenes are actually rather good, and manage to convey a higher number of combatants than there actually are, without using computer-generated imagery. The Troll is rather pathetic, but I won"t hold it against them...

All in all, I have one major complaint - Beth Aynsley. She can't bloody act, she is very far from being beautiful (and yes, she is supposed to be) and she is the main reason I gave this film 6 stars. I truly cannot comprehend why the director (who BTW acts much better than Aynsley, in addition to being the producer and the director) chose her for the part...

A very bad movie. its a bad copy of lord of the rings and nothing more. very shallow, with actors that not even exercise the way of playing war with a sword, costume that are ironing, shine hairs like they just wash them with shampoo.

The music is Copy from LOTR(but one ..bad version), the story is telling from a girl that is max 20. and her voice is awful to listen! The only good thing is the scenario, but it don't save anything from this 2 hrs of wasting time.

The picture is not very clear, it is zoom in coz they don't have big plans to show. Looks almost like they shout in a studio and not in the open area!!

And the Orcs are moving like from a zombie movie...

I watched The Hunt for Gollum and then Born of Hope back to back.

In each case, I was amazed by the technical quality of the work, particularly in light of the low budgets. The actors, costumes, sets, props, cinematography, and to some extent music, were all far better than I expected.

And in each case, I felt that the film dragged on too long. In this case, being a feature-length film, it really should have been a short. This is what turns a 7/10 into a 6.

While I do give Born of Hope the same score of 6/10 that I gave to The Hunt for Gollum, I do think Born of Hope is slightly better. By taking on a different time period, with different characters, they allow themselves a greater freedom to work, and avoid awkwardly contradicting the established Jackson films. (If there is a contradiction, it isn't of the sort that is going to jump out at most people).

The Born of Hope story is more interesting. Who wouldn't want to know Aragorn's origins? Unfortunately, Sauron's hunt for a ring that has no particular known power isn't exactly moving. And the relationship with the female warrior didn't really add any depth.

Anyway, as with the other film, I'm looking forward to what this team attempts in the future.

This should have been good. The costumes were there. The scenery was there. The people were there. The basis for the story was there to tell of a gap in the Hobbit world of elves, men, and other creatures.

Everything was there but the originality in the script.

This is as forced and predictable as one can imagine. It looks like it was written by people with serious issues and hatred, and it shows.

Too bad, because a lot of people spent a lot of time and money on this. The atmosphere could have been there.

What really suffers here is the lack of inspiration in the story. It looks so forced and so full of the usual Hollywood hate and propaganda that one can't help but be embarrassed for everyone involved.

Three words that best describe this are as follows and I quote.

Stink.

Stank.

Stunk.