Review of 'The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim'
Set 200 years before the events of the “Lord of the Rings”, the animated “The War of the Rohirrim” is set in the kingdom of Rohan where King Helm Hammerhand (voiced by Brian Cox) rejects a marriage proposal from the Dunlending Lord Freca (voiced by Shaun Dooley). When Freca is killed in a one-on-one fight with Helm, Freca's son Wulf (voiced by Luca Pasqualino) seeks vengeance and power, building a massive army from various warrior groups, then first laying siege to Edoras, capital of Rohan, then the mountain fortress of Hornburg which would later be known as “Helm's Deep”. Helm's warrior and free-spirited daughter Héra (voiced by Gaia Wise) is kidnapped but escapes and discovers traitors within the Rohan ranks. It is her spirit that keeps the people going even when her father's spirit begins to lag and desperation sets in…
Though quite long at more than two hours and containing a large amount of detail (though not too many character names to remember, thankfully), “The War of the Rohirrim” will appeal to Lord of the Rings fans with reasonable animation and loads of action. As with most of these films/stories there are loads of battle sequences featuring humans and fantastic animals alike (particularly during the siege of Hornburg). The characterisation is excellent, with the passion of the Rohan embodied in Helms' daughter Héra who is our view to most of the film's events. She provides a refreshing viewpoint on events and a compassion for both her family and their people. The voice acting is amazing with Cox providing clear authority to Helm as he struggles to cope with the tragedy confronting his people.
The story is interesting, as well as terribly tragic, focusing on the dangers of ego and self-interest in the pursuit of power and vengeance. It is a bit testosterone-heavy (a bare-fisted fight between leaders to settle their differences – Really?) but this is common in most of these stories though there is an attempt with Héra to involve those that are not male in events and she plays a critical role here in how things turn out.
Set in Middle Earth, many of the settings in the film will be familiar to fans and allow them to quicky engage though those without this will still find it relatively easy to pick up. As a fan myself I found it interesting to see the background of the kingdom's that feature in later stories such as the origin of the name “Helm's Deep” (it makes sense now…).
Great to look at with plenty of fantastic battle action and believable characters (including a strong female lead), “The War of the Rohirrim” is quite long with copious amounts of detail so will likely only appeal to Middle Earth fans or those willing to invest the time.
Rating: “Really good but I have some issues”
Review Date: 2025-07-26
Directed by: Kenji Kamiyama
Studio: New Line Cinema
Year: 2024
Length: 134 minutes
Genre: Animation
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14824600/