Article Category: Articles from 2004

"Poet, photographer, painter and actor, Viggo Mortensen has always had a keen sense of his own worth. Now his role as Aragorn in the Lord of the Rings movies has given him the global recognition he craves. Gunnar Rehlin crosses swords with an uncompromising, and in some ways eccentric, actor."

Viggo Mortensen talks about his youth and how felt he was affected by it, and about the paths he followed before becoming an actor. He concludes, "We each have only a limited amount of time here. We have to do more with it—pay attention, explore, be open to all of life. Because we have only one chance, we have to make life seem longer than it really is."

It’s not often an actor buys his co-star. But then again, Viggo Mortensen isn’t your average actor. And come to think of it, the co-star isn’t some hot young filly—it’s a real horse. “I just fell in love with him [on the set of ‘Hidalgo’],” Mortensen says. “He doesn’t live with me [in Venice, Calif.]. […]

Article describes Viggo Mortensen's challenging first acting experiences. "When I started taking acting lessons in New York, it was interpretations like that of Renée Falconetti in The Passion of Joan of Arc that I had as my model. It is not surprising that I didn't break through." From there it covers other films, from The Indian Runner to Lord of the Rings.

In this extensive interview, Viggo analyses the development of Aragorn's character through the three Lord of the Rings films, and talks about the exhaustion, sadness and satisfaction that he and his fellow cast members felt at the end of the filming.

In-depth discussion with Viggo Mortensen about the complexity of Tolkien's books, Aragorn and other characters, exhaustion and other aspects of the filming of The Lord of the Rings.

Interview with Viggo Mortensen about the difficulties and rewards of filming The Lord of the Rings, and of his perception of the character of Aragorn. "Aragorn...makes an effort to understand other peoples, and other races. He uses his knowledge about the history and culture of Middle Earth to understand people better, and he doesn't act without thinking." Sounds a lot like Viggo to us.

Long, detailed, personal interview with Viggo Mortensen about the filming of The Lord of the Rings. Lots of wonderful quotes and anecdotes from Viggo and his co-workers. When asked what he is taking away from the marathon filming experience, Viggo answers, "How we treat everyone else and whether we try to be compassionate or merciful is what makes a difference, what makes a community, and, ultimately, what makes society. That's pretty obvious but a lot of people will just say, 'Oh, yeah, that's all very nice.' But what else is there? That's something that this story is trying to tell you; that everybody has to play their part and do what's right. This movie has just strengthened my perceptions and convictions about that."

This photo essay, featuring self portraits and other works by Viggo Mortensen, celebrates Mortensen's ability and willingness to "translate [his] dreams and hopes into thoughts, ideas and actions." The author goes on to say that "as an artist he takes the time to look carefully at the world around him. The moments he captures are based on lived experiences."