New Zealanders are expressing outrage this afternoon after a visiting Danish politician described the popular Lord of the Rings trilogy as “dull” and “wholly uninspired.”
The Lord of the Rings was filmed in New Zealand between 1999 and 2003, and has been both a source of national pride and a major tourism draw ever since. But writing an opinion piece in Copenhagen newspaper the Berlingske Tidende, Marie Krarup, a member of the far-right Danish People’s Party, has said that, despite the hype surrounding the films, they’re “actually not very good.”
“I was traveling throughout New Zealand with our ambassador there” she wrote. “The kiwi people were very welcoming to us, but at one point on our journey they made us watch this film. It took nine and a half hours.”
“I couldn’t believe how long it was. Basically, this little dwarf creature has to take a ring to a giant volcano, and along the way he meets this wandering king who is perfect and can do nothing wrong. It was really terrible.”
Some are expressing anger over those comments, saying that Krarup has diminished the work of director Peter Jackson and displayed a lack of sensitivity toward New Zealand’s cultural heritage.
Head of the New Zealand Tourism Board Kevin Bowler said he was “concerned” by Krarup’s comments and worried that she might give other tourists “the wrong idea” about the films.
He said the NZTB was already working on making available a comprehensive PowerPoint presentation highlighting reasons the films were “actually pretty good”, including scenery, strong performances and “that bit where the blond elf surfs down the elephant.”
Prime Minister John Key was asked about Krarup’s comments while traveling in China today.
“Yeah, look, I think what she said was pretty silly” he said. “I personally enjoyed the films quite a lot.”
Asked why he liked them, Key replied “Big battles.”
Krarup continued to stand by her comments on TV One’s Breakfast program this morning, adding that she has no plans to see prequel The Hobbit and that Peter Jackson’s remake of King Kong was “pretty average.”