What Made This Lord Of The Rings Scene So Terrifying

Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy is full of big moments, interesting characters, and a story that stands the test of time. A big reason for Peter Jackson's success with Lord of the Rings is his ability to bring moments from the book and expand them into some of the most memorable scenes in the trilogy. The Ringwraith Scene in The Fellowship of the Ring might be the most terrifying scene in the entire LOTR franchise. Frodo and the other Hobbits showcase incredible performances, and Peter Jackson's team created a scene of pure terror and anxiety that holds up nearly 25 years later.

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SOURCES

[Thoralmir]

Seeing the centipedes, spiders, and worms fleeing their burrows shows how much even the creepy crawlies can't stand the presence of the Ringwraiths.

[himbourbanist]

I love that Jackson took influence from Bakshi for this scene because it plays out SO WELL cinematically. It's a tense scene in the book but both the animated Bakshi film and especially Jackson's adaptation elevate it, it plays out so well

[jeremy]

The lack of music is really what sells it for me. It's just sound effects. The score is amazing in these films, but taking it away really added to this moment 😊

[mitwhitgaming]

I still remember, when my friend first introduced me to LotR and Aragorn mentioned that the 9 Nazgul used to be the 9 Kings of men, I said, "wait, does this mean there are 3 elf versions of those things running around!?"
He just gave me a horrified look and said, "no, but that would be terrifying!"

[gregorius.dentang]

When Bilbo almost turns to the dark side upon seeing the ring carried by Frodo is terrifying too

[ProductBasement]

Any scene where Frodo has to yell at someone for being careless is a scary scene. Elijah Woods' eyes show terror in a way that terrifies me, and one of the most terrifying tropes in any movie is when a character looks at something innocuous with sheer terror. What do they see that I don't?

[steprockmedia]

It was the worms and insects that nailed the terror.
They're a creepy sight, but even they are trying to flee.

[timgoodwin]

Also, in the wide shot when the hobbits are hiding, the wraith is not seen entering the frame - only appears from behind the tree.

[KEVMAN]

I love that Jackson made so many scenes reminiscent of the Bakshi version.

[RedundantDan]

This is an awesome breakdown of this scene and the setup required to pull off!

One scary detail of that scene is that when the shot settles on the hiding hobbits, you can see both sides of the tree but the rider simply EMERGES from one side of the tree without passing it first. It's an uncanny valley affect that makes everything feel even more off kilter and terrifying.

[colincopland]

The image of the Black Riders bursting out of the fog can make an evening jog even more apprehensive…

In the book, the Nazgûl are almost upstaged by the Barrow-wights.

[tss]

It's worth mentioning that this was the very first scene shot during principal photography.

[AndrewDederer]

One reason Jackson doesn't pass around credit on this scene to Bakshi, is that they are both working from a well-known painting. Both directors started at both the same source and the same interpretation. So it's not too surprising that there finals scenes are similar, but distinct.

[jesselinn]

Galadriel’s transformation and monologue in Lorien still creeps me out.

[haydenlane]

Bakshi’s take on the Nazgûl really focuses on them being undead. The way he gets off the horse and moves seems very zombie or Frankenstein like. Peter Jackson’s comes off more menacing and foreboding like this is LotR’s answer to Darth Vader

[idreamofgenie]

Absolutely terrifying scene--thanks for breaking it down for us. One scene from FOTR that literally gave me a nightmare when I read the book was the creature in the pool outside the Gate to Moria. What chilled me the most about it was that the creature *only* went after Frodo, out of all nine of them. Was the creature a servant of Sauron seeking the Ringbearer? Or was it just a coincidence? I love how Tolkien never tells us. The same scene in Peter Jackson's movie didn't work as well for me.

[Karl.Jayce-DE]

It was one of the most terrifying scenes when i first watched the movie in my childhood.. pure horror 😍

[Axel]

Bilbo's Gollum moment made leap at least a couple of metres in the pictures.

[JackAcid]

Thank you for this! I've been telling people for years that the Bakshi version is very good, and certain scenes, such as the Nazgul scenes, are absolutely superb and very creepy.

[Richard_Nickerson]

4:44
How do you not mention the fact that the horse & Nazgûl literally appear out of nowhere?
We can see some space between the tree & the right of the shot, but the horse does not pass through this space. It's moving from right to left, but it is never in the rightmost space.
The horse & Nazgûl simply appear from behind the tree. It makes its appearance so much creepier & more intense.