'Willow' Is A Watered-Down Version Of 'The Lord Of The Rings'
A Baby Is Sent Down A River, Just Like The One Ring
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George Lucas and screenwriter Bob Dolman replaced the One Ring with a baby, perhaps hoping no one would recognize the paralleled plot device. It might have worked, but putting the child on the river was a mistake, as it mirrors Smeagol finding the Ring in a similar body of water.
Perhaps Lucas and Dolman deserve a little creative credit, though, as Willow finding the child eliminates the need for a Smeagol character to turn into Gollum, which would have taken up an inordinate amount of screen time.
A Dwarf Finds The Baby And Becomes Its Protector
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The baby floats down the river to a village inhabited by Nelwyn. The Nelwyn are a group of dwarves, not to be confused with Tolkien's diminutive miners, the Naugrim. There, she's discovered by a farmer/conjurer named Willow (Warwick Davis). Willow takes her in and quickly falls in love with her, essentially adopting her as his own.
However, trouble follows and a Nockmaar hound attacks the village. The beast was sent by the evil queen Bavmorda (Jean Marsh), and was clearly seeking the child.
The Nockmaar hound is a clear stand in for the Nazgul, and Bavmorda resembles the dark lord, Sauron.
A Wizard Sends The Dwarf And The Child On An Epic Journey
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In response to the hound attack, the village's wizard, the High Aldwin (Billy Barty), chooses to send Willow and a few companions to return the baby to the humans. Willow is unsatisfied with his lot in life, and agrees to embark on this journey. He and his small friends leave the little farming community to start their adventure.
Aldwin mirrors both Elrond and Gandalf, while Willow adopts the Frodo archetype. The small town also bears a striking resemblance to the Shire.
Willow Is Accompanied By Other Dwarves
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Willow's friend Meegosh (David Steinberg) is one of his companions, and they're joined by two other dwarves there to provide comic relief, much like Merry and Pippin. Eventually, Meegosh ends up as Willow's sole associate, and he becomes his Samwise Gamgee.
They Meet A Handsome Rogue Who Joins Their Party
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At a crossroads they meet a capable loner, Madmartigan (Val Kilmer), a carbon copy of the Tolkienian Ranger, Aragorn. Madmartigan joins them, and here the dwarf party splits, which happens earlier in this movie than the Hobbits going their separate ways in The Lord of the Rings. Once again, the filmmakers narrowly dodge excessive similarities between the two stories.
Madmartigan introduces Willow to his friend, a general named Airk Thaughbaer (Gavan O'Herlihy), who they fight beside later.
Their Group Then Attracts More Companions, Forming A Sort Of Fellowship
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Willow's cadre grows again when Franjean (Rick Overton) and Rool (Kevin Polak), two Brownies (a mischievous race of warriors), are instructed to aid him in his quest given to him by the Fairy Queen Cherlindrea (Maria Holvoe). This entire scene resembles the Fellowship meeting Galadriel for the first time.
At this point Meegosh is sent home, perhaps to keep audiences from seeing his obvious parallel with Samwise Gamgee. The remaining companions seek out and add the sorceress Raziel (Patricia Hayes) to their group.
Airk Thaughbaer Is A Combination Of Faramir And Eomer
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Airk is a substitute for both Faramir and Eomer, since both men lead forces against the overarching villain's army. Airk also dies at the hands of the enemy, much like Faramir. Madmartigan assists in the siege, like Aragorn does, with the final battle being more akin to the retaking of Gondor than the attack on Mordor itself. Nothing in Willow comes close to matching the scale of the siege on Mordor in The Lord of the Rings.
After Successfully Saving The Kingdom, The Dwarf Is Rewarded With A Book
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Willow's desire to become a sorcerer is finally fulfilled when he's rewarded with a book of magic at the end of his heroic journey. The book is not titled There and Back Again, but it sure is reminiscent of Frodo sitting down with the tome at the end of The Lord of the Rings. Willow returns home to his quiet farming village with his book, instead of sailing off into the sunset like Frodo.
Some Of 'Willow' Was Actually Shot In New Zealand, Like 'The Lord Of The Rings'
Both Willow and The Lord of the Rings films were shot in Tongariro National Park. Jackson's battle scenes were so epic the park required restoration work after shooting, even though the crew were especially careful and conscientious about the surrounding ecosystem. At least Willow can claim superiority when it comes to being environmentally friendly.
While The Lord of the Rings trilogy was shot entirely in New Zealand, at over 150 locations, Willow was done largely in the UK. Of course, the UK has always offered breathtaking vistas like those captured in Game of Thrones, but Willow didn't take advantage of those the way Jackson took advantage of such sublime settings in New Zealand.
'Willow' Is Essentially A Condensed 'Lord Of The Rings'
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Different characters in Willow are just amalgamations of certain individuals from The Lord of the Rings, and events are compacted into a confused "retelling" of Tolkien's story. Bavmorda is even defeated by inadvertently lunging into a spell, much like Gollum accidentally falling into the fires of Mount Doom. For someone who had an eye for the long game, it's head-scratching that George Lucas felt he had to cram all of this into one film.
Then again, had he broken it into three separate films, each might have looked exactly like the three distinct installments of The Lord of the Rings, which wouldn't be a problem if he just called it what it was. At the end of the day, it seems Lucas tried to build another original franchise, but unlike Star Wars, he used an existing framework and it showed.
