Rating: 
Summary: ********** Finally! Perfect Visual Adaptation of The Trilogy
Review: As a long-time Tolkien Fan and a person who has read The Trilogy three times, I must say I was absolutely astounded and captivated by the new Tolkien movie, "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring."I am very proud of the Producers, Directors, Actors, et al ! It seemed as-if everyone had read the trilogy and understood their parts, not just memorized lines form a script. The scenes were amazing! Hobbiton has been brought to life in a way I really did not believe could be accomplished on film. The Shire lives and breathes and will inspire thousands of people to read Tolkien's works. This film series brings the world of Tolkien to the big screen and into people's homes like never before. This is wonderful! I had to sneak the books home and hide them under the bed & pretend to be reading something-else, so my Mom wouldn't catch me. Now, teenagers can just sneak out for a night of Magick and Adventure. I was a bit disappointed with the portrayal of the male elves--they seemed to be a bit too "human" and less ethereal (and wise) than they are portrayed in the books. However, over-all, I believe this movie portrays the characters in the Trilogy better than most people can imagine. Luckily, the film is more fast-paced than the Trilogy, and most of the important scenes are retained. However, I still believe reading the Trilogy is crucial to understanding the film (and who wants to wait an entire year for the next chapter, so to speak?). This film will bring a whole new generation to the world of Tolkien (and, Hopefully, a new generation of Book-Lovers). I am so impressed with this film, that I have nothing negative to say, whatsoever.....and this coming from someone who's Wife quoted Tolkien on our Wedding Invitations !
Rating: 
Summary: A Visually Impressive Movie. A Plot Deprived movie
Review: VIEWER BEWARE: This movie is three hours long. Not three hours of enjoyable movie viewing, but three hours of CRAP! Do not believe the good reviews, or see the movie because of the trailers, like I did! The good scenes, are there, but for three minutes at a time, for about ummm, 15 minutes total. So, there are 2 hours and 45 minutes of boring movie I had to sit through. Also, the visual effects are good. Jurassic Park 3 and Godzilla kind of good though, because the plot isn't THERE! There are impressive scenes of Mount Doom (?) and of the general landscape, and mildly decent battle scenes. I felt like yelling "GOTH ALIVE!" when I saw some of the characters though. Imagine the kid in all black working at Blockbuster or Kmart, take their personality and dress, and you have a Lord of the Rings character. The Elves and Rangers fit this personality profile the most though. The music is overly pretentious at times, and doesn't fit several scenes. The plot is atrocious. Numerous people and towns are mentioned with mystery and dread, yet are never seen. Some scenes are ridiculous, where characters are introduced as, (ex. not accurate) Agnathas,son of Herodotus...which comes across very awkardly in a movie theater. I imagine in the book, it comes across better. I've read the Foundation Trilogy and Dune, so I can probably guess Lord of the Rings follows those lines. Perhaps, one of it's faults is the movie follows the book too much. Big special effects scenes are telegraphed two years in advance. Even when they're not supposed to. For example: ***SPOILER*** On the way over the mountains, a bad wizard is blocking the path through. So, the dwarf (or someone)suggests an alternate way through: The Mines of Moraia. The dwarf claims this is the home of one of his friends (or relatives or something) yet reacts to the mines with dread on the mountain???!!?? What?!?!? He didn't know the mines were inhabited with monsters!!!! As you might guess, there were plenty of monsters there. And no, don't see the movie because of that big troll scene. It's at the end of this boring movie. You might as well be chasing a tiny carrot on a stick. **end spoiler** For a PG-13 movie, however, there are some inEXCUSABLE references to drugs and sex. And I'm 19 year old man, and no member of a prudish church in the south. ( I'm a catholic who hasn't been to mass since ummm... Titanic came out:) ) In one scene, a character is smoking, and he has the nerve to come out and say, (not accurate) "This is the finest weed in all..." Not to mention, numerous references to the boys hunting mushrooms in the forest, with a desire only surpassed by a heroin junkie looking for his next fix. Then there's the broken carrot scene... I don't believe this would have been tasteful in an R-rated movie. In fact, it's plain tacky. Like this entire movie. (...)
Rating:
Summary: Great Movie
Review: I can't even begin to tell how wonderful this movie was. Usually when I go into a movie thinking it is good, the movie never matches my expectations. Not this movie. This movie was fantastic. All the characters were entertaining to watch. I didn't feel like I was sitting through a 3 hour movie. The scenery was beautiful. I am going to have to see it mulitply times to be satisfied. The only thing that [bums me out] is the fact that I am going to have to wait a year to see the next istallment!
Rating:
Summary: The best Fantasy movie ever made
Review: This is it, folks. Jackson has worked a miracle, cast of spell of movie magic that has never been seen on film before. The film is a treat for the eyes and senses, a perfect blend of cinematography, acting, special effects, and that certain something that is hard to pin down. Yes, it remains faithful to the books, but adds Jackson's own warped perspective to make it something unique that i think Tolkien would be proud of.
I never would have believed the 3 hours you sit [down] would fly by, but by the end i was ready to sit down and watch the 10:30 showing all over again. I didn't want the magic to end, and i didn't want to leave Middle Earth. Needless to say, i will be back in the theater before the week is out.
And as a side note, i have been a D&D player for many years, and for all those who share that hobby, it is evident from this film where the game took so many of its elements. Even better, for those who want to know what heart-pounding combat looks like, take note of the battle with the cave troll; it's fantastic...
Rating:
Summary: I wanted more
Review: Its the morning after the night before and I still have the Middle earth ringing in my ears and in my minds eye. I left the theatre wanting more after 3 hours I felt like shouting next film please. Its dark and its foreboding and its brilliant, other than a few points its everything I had imagined Middle Earth to be. Its so nice to see fight scenes like they should be and with no martial arts! thrown in for effect.
The castings are spot on and was impressed by all the performances, yes the passage to Bree was short but the book spent time painting the characters and the land during this time and in the film it was there to see.
The only complaint I have is that I will now have to wait a year for the next installment
Rating:
Summary: LIKE NO OTHER MOVIE, I'VE EVER SEEN
Review: Cinematic high art! Captivating and mysterious, the tale has begun, and there's been no tale like it in the history of moviedom. I assumed that LOTR:FOTR would be a movie you could compare to all the other fantasy movies of the past, but alas, that is not the case. There are no other films to compare it to, because it is a unique and uplifting film with no equal to speak of.Rating this movie is not possible. You can't rate a movie with no equivalent to compare it to. Citizen Kane, The Wizard of OZ, Casablanca, The Godfather, Pulp Fiction. They are all movies that changed the art of movie making, and they left their audience with a real sense of wonderment. A grand achievement of their creators, and LOTR:FOTR is no different. Movie history, has been accomplished.
Rating:
Summary: One film to Rule them all?
Review: Lord of the Rings has been one of the most widely anticipated motion pictures in years - could Peter Jackson make a film that for decades was considered 'unfilmable'? In every sense of the word - yes. This film isn't just good, it is a true classic, full of incredible imagery and special effects, highly emotive acting and best of all based on one of the most famous fantasy epics of last century. There is just so much in the film, that its more than generous running time (at just under 3 hours) is put to full use. By the end, you will feel exhausted but in the best sense - having experienced almost every emotion any film can create. Pointless saying more - go and see it today, on the big screen - to miss this is missing what cinema is all about - pure escapism at its absolute best. Peter Jackson, thank you - for making one of the best films I've ever seen.
Rating:
Summary: I'm now a fan for life
Review: LOTR trilogy was always a hot topic at my high school, but I never took the time to read the books. When I saw the first trailer, I went out & got it from the library. I read the first 3/4 of the book in 4hrs. I was enthralled.
The movie was amazing! I've never been so wrapped up in ANY movie. I could feel their feelings, see what they saw, etc. I was truely *wowed* After the movie was over, I was drained from being so invovled.
This is by far the best movie I have EVER seen! I highly recommend watching the movie, but read the book first. It makes it more interesting (in my opinion)
Rating:
Summary: Best film of the century!!!!!!
Review: This movie is the best film!! It's the greatest fantasy film since Willow! The scenery is breathtaking, the special effects are stunning, acting is beautiful, very high in suspense, drama, and action!! This film is what a great movie should be. Anyone with any taste should see this work of art, although it may not follow the book 100%(althugh it's pretty close), but hey, what movie-from-book conversion is?
Rating:
Summary: A movie can never match a book, but a good job none-the-less
Review: The opening minutes did an excellent job of covering a lot of material and preparing the viewer. Unfortunately, due to the time constraints of a movie, the flight from Hobbiton to Rivendell was changed significantly and lost a lot of richness in the process. 17 years were condensed into seemingly a day, but the story did need to be selectively shortened and I doubt I could have done much better. I feel that they did an excellent job of expanding on important parts of the story (Saruman) and eliminating parts that don't play into the main storyline (Tom Bombadil). I suspect a viewer without prior knowledge of the Hobbit or the Lord of the Rings may misunderstand Bilbo as his character isn't very developed. Finally, the screenplay was very effective at revealing aspects of the story that are only hinted to in the Fellowship of the Ring. I found that roots Elrond's mistrust of men is better explained by the movie than in the book. Maybe the other movies will offer similarly revelations. I can't wait.
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