BrutusBeefcake

I have never read any of the books (hope to be getting them for Christmas), and I have seen a few threads about things left out of the movies. In every single thread, it seems that Tom Bambadil comes up. I was just wondering, who is he and what significance does he have to the story? People seem to be pretty divided on him and I would just like to know why.
Thanks everyone!

Inverse

I won't say too much, so as not to spoil the book for you ....

Tom Bombadil is a character the hobbits meet after they leave the Shire but before they reach the village of Bree. His section of the book is only distantly related to the main story. That's the main reason Tom was cut out of the movie ... the movie would have been incredibly long if they included everything from the book, so Tom was the logical choice to go.

The other reason Tom Bombadil didn't appear in the movie is that his personality would be very hard to capture on film. You'll see why when you read the books.

Groucho

It's safe to say that Tom Bombadil would be laughed off the screen due to today's sullen "too hip" audiences. He would be the Jar-Jar Binks of the trilogy.

I do miss the Barrow Wights, though. That was one of my favorite parts of the book. (Again, it has little to do with the main story).

krunchyfrogg

Tom Bombadil works great in the book, nobody knows for sure who/what he is.

He would not have translated well into film, partially because there's no real explanation, and partially because his part would just slow down an already lengthy movie.

TheMadMonk

He is the one major Enigma of the Tolkien Universe. Nobody knows for sure whether he fits in the pantheon of Gods, Demi-Gods, Valar, or what (though there is heated debate).

He basically represents Nature. He was first. He simply is. Someone (in the book) mentioned giving him the ring for safekeeping, but it was decided against because things like that just don't concern him; he would be too likely to just forget about it or lose it. Actually, he is given the ring to examine, when the hobbits are at his house, and it has no power over him whatsoever.

RTFB! Hehe

einTier

I don't understand the big deal with cutting Tom Bombadil. Granted, he wasn't one of my favorite characters, but I did really like the Barrow-wights scene -- which doesn't make sense without Tom, and thus, has to be cut along with him.

Tom Bombadil shows up only in the first book, and only for a chapter or two. He gets the hobbits out of two fixes, but otherwise doesn't really drive the story forward -- he is very much just a side-tale to the main story line.

He does get mentioned a few other times, but more of a "I wish Tom were here" or "why couldn't we have left the ring with Tom, he's more powerful than Sauron" kind of thing.

He is an interesting character, but not one intergal to the story. There are other cuts made to the movie that I think matter much, much more.

al_bundy

I never understood what his role was except to add a sense of mysticism to the story. Have a deity type character who is down to earth.

Tyler_Durden

I don't particularly miss Bombadil in the movie(s), but I do feel proud that Tolkien probably based most of his character on the Finnish folk tale Kalevala (seen briefly at the beginning of the Tolkien documentary on the FOTR EE DVD). A major theme in this tale is the ability to affect the physical world with words, especially singing. Which is precisely what Tom Bombadil does.

Josh H

I didn't miss him either. He was ok in the book, though his chapters are among my least favorite, but as others said, he wouldn't translate will to the big screen.

MrX

I agree