Finrod's Song (2001 Russian Rock Opera adaptation of parts of the Silmarillion/Lay of Leithian)
For the past month and change I have been in a bit of a Tolkien phase. I say this casually, but this has encompassed not only rereading the Silmarillion in far deadlier earnest than I even managed in my youth, but also watching a number of obscure film and other Tolkien adaptations.
Now, no one has the rights from the estate to adapt the Silm. Luckily, some intrepid Russians don't care, and there exist not one but two rock opera versions of the Lay of Luthien. I wish to tell you about one of them: "Finrod", or "Finrod's Song".
There are a number of versions on youtube, here are my two favorites: the first has better audio, the second has far more staging and is slightly rearranged. They have English subtitles. If you just want to read a translation, here you go.
It's great and you should watch it.
There is something about the stories told in the Silmarillion that is enhanced by my inability to speak the language they’re presented in. Naturally, I think, I shouldn’t natively understand the meaning of the words Finrod and Sauron sing; naturally, reading along to various translations gives me a sense of poetry where a deeper meaning is right beyond my grasp. It just feels right.
This is a telling of part of the Lay of Leithian, just the bits where Finrod is involved. Beren meets Luthien and goes to Finrod for help to get a Silmaril; Finrod keeps his oath to help and loses his crown, a song battle, and then his life. Luthien saves Beren.
Incidentally, there’s no Morgoth. Some productions just give Sauron (who in this case would be Saur-goth? Mor-ron? You decide) the Silmarils and the iron crown so that Beren has something to steal at the end; some merely elide them altogether, which means that Beren doesn’t even get to complete his quest.
Thingol is a smug dick; in some versions he even conspires with Curufin and Celegorm and promises to marry Luthien off to one of them, not something he’d ever dream of in the Silmarillion. Melian has a banger song calling him out for his shit, at least.
Beren is a wild and bitter man, which feels right for the last survivor of his people. He tells Luthien he’s betrothed to death and all sorts of metal stuff like that. He shoves his ring in Finrod’s face with the expectation of betrayal.
The sons of Feanor have a cool song where they get to yell about their oath.
You had better already know the story before getting into this one. You had better already know what the Silmarils are, what Finrod’s history is, who Amarie is (the show draws on her to compare Finrod and Beren vis a vis love as a motivating force), who the Noldor are and what they have done, because this production has little interest in telling you.
In some ways, though, you don’t really need to know those things to taste the shape of what’s happening. Do you need it explained that when Sauron and Finrod sing somewhat obliquely about memory and slavery, power and creation and morality, that Finrod’s haunted by his complicity in the kinslaying at Alqualonde? Do you need it explained that when Finrod changes his clothes to a white robe and sings an aria entitled “The Truth”, that he’s sacrificing himself for Beren by killing a werewolf (not depicted)? Maybe you do… and maybe it doesn’t matter.
They look GREAT I LOVE THEM THEY'RE PERFECT LOOK AT MY BOYS AHAHAHA SO MUCH EYE MAKEUP don't you want to watch these guys sing.
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