dicksmothersjr 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.

rgcustomer 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.

ajaymittal 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.

torrentstorm 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!