Mathijs, Ernest

Lord of the Rings

Acknowledgements vii List of Illustrations ix Notes on Contributors xi Foreword: The Extraordinary Escape of The Lord of the Rings xvi Brian Silbey Popular Culture in Global Context: The Lord of the Rings Phenomenon 1(22) Ernest Mathijs SECTION 1: POLITICAL ECONOMY AND COMMERCIAL CONTEXTS More than Just Rings: Merchandise for Them All 23(20) Janet Wasko and Govind Shanadi 'On the Brink of a New Threshold of Opportunity': The Lord of the Rings and New Zealand Cultural Policy 43(18) Jennifer Lawn and Bronwyn Beatty Making Middle Earth Sound Real: The Lord of the Rings and the Cultural Politics of the BBC Radio Edition 61(10) Martin Barker Blockbusters and/as Events: Distributing and Launching The Lord of the Rings 71(17) Daniel Biltereyst and Philippe Meers Following the Money: The Lord of the Rings and the Culture of Box Office Figures 88(13) Warren Buckland and Christopher Long SECTION 2: PUBLIC RECEPTIONS 'Wellywood' and Peter Jackson: The Local Reception of The Lord of the Rings in Wellington, New Zealand 101(18) Davinia Thornley Reviews, Previews and Premieres: The Critical Reception of The Lord of the Rings in the United Kingdom 119(24) Ernest Mathijs 'Apocalypse Now in Middle Earth': 'Genre' in the Critical Reception of The Lord of the Rings in Germany 143(17) Susanne Eichner, Lothar Mikos and Michael Wedel Realising the Cult Blockbuster: The Lord of the Rings Fandom and Residual/Emergent Cult Status in 'the Mainstream' 160(12) Matt Hills The Lord of the Rings Online Blockbuster Fandom: Pleasure and Commerce 172(17) Kirsten Pullen 'This is What it Must Look Like': The Lord of the Rings Fandom and Media Literacy 189(17) Judith E. Rosenbaum Sacred Viewing: Emotional Responses to The Lord of the Rings 206(19) Anne Jerslev SECTION 3: ANCILLARY CONTEXTS Framing Tolkien: Trailers, High Concept and the Ring 225(13) Erik Hedling Bonus Material: The DVD Layering of The Lord of the Rings 238(16) Jonathan Gray Playing the Ring: Intermediality and Ludic Narratives in the Lord of the Rings Games 254(16) Jonathan Dovey and Helen W. Kennedy Cooperation versus Violence: An Ethnographical Analysis of the Return of the King Video Game 270(15) Mariano Longo Fixing a Heritage: Inscribing Middle Earth onto New Zealand 285(16) Stan Jones Musical Middle Earth 301(16) K J. Donnelly Tolkien Dirty 317(17) I.Q. Hunter Index 334