Rating: 
Summary: Brilliant! It truly stands alone from the text.
Review: Having read the entire work years ago (as well as The Silmarillion) and several times since, I always dreamt that there could be a visual to compliment such fertile text. My fear was that any attempt made would be as hackneyed and disappointing as Ralph Bakshi's animated version from 1979.It's a double-edged sword putting a classic book like this to film. Fortunately, my worst fears were allayed with Peter Jackson's triumphant direction and screenplay. Not only has he given us a piece of work that stands as a masterpiece of classic and epic film, he has given us a film that can stand alone from the written work. All of the characters were truly made real. The actors playing their roles never once allow you to think that they are just there to cash a paycheck. The film is perfectly cast and I was truly immersed in middle-earth and loved it. The necessary changes in the screenplay from the book are numerous but truly only the nit-picky can gripe. The role of Glorfindel is replaced by Arwen and Tom Bombadil is completely missing but I didn't miss them. The pace of the story and the continuity of characters really leaves you breathless by the closing credits. It never felt like a 3-hour movie. It felt much shorter. For those of you who never read the books, I can only say that you have truly robbed yourself of a great work, however, I do know many, many people who have also not read it and still loved the film as much as I did. As I said, the film really stands alone from the book. My only regret is that I have to wait an entire year between Acts II (The Two Towers) and III (The Return of the King). The hype surrounding these films is well deserved and I am more than pleased to have a film to share with my children that compliments a book so perfectly. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Captures the Passion of Tolkien
Review: Having read the good professor's Lord of the Rings eight times, it was not without some trepidation that I first watched Peter Jackson's widescreen adaptation of it. I must confess I was impressed -- Mr. Jackson has managed to capture the passionate energy and soul of Tolkien's writing while nobly cutting passages that simply would not translate well to the screen. The result: a movie that stands very well on its own and invites viewers to delve into the books themselves to discover the deeper and greater world of which the film can only hint at. All in all, the film does a stupendous job in transforming the first book of the trilogy to the screen. V. well done!
Rating: 
Summary: Can you say "overhyped" boys and girls?
Review: Having read the Lord of the Rings trilogy when I was a teenager, I wasn't impressed with the story. I thought I would give the movie a try thinking that maybe there may be something, alas I was wrong. I cannot fathom which movie most of these reviewers were watching, but I didn't see that movie. No, the movie I saw was a poorly written, poorly acted, special effects mayhem bore. This movie is simply a carbon copy of the typical fare coming from Hollywood these days. Dazzle them with special effects and distract them from the really bad script. Or maybe, no one really cares about that. For those that love fantasy, I recommend what a previous reviewer said. Willow is an excellent choice. I also recommend Conan The Barbarian (if there are some in a cave that have not seen it) As for a great fantasy book series, nothing beats the Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever series by Stephen R. Donaldson. Run, do not walk to your local library or bookstore and read all 6 books. You will not regret it. Lord of the Dings can be safely skipped without serious consequences.
Rating:
Summary: A Most Enjoyable Epic
Review: Having read the Ring trilogy every summer for many years, I entered this movie with trepidation. I mean, how on earth could the movie possibly live up to the characters and images I had created in my head? As I finished the movie, I was amazed at how quickly 3 hours had passed. And more amazingly was how truly thrilled I was by this movie. I wasn't even bothered by the fact that I'll have to see 2 more movies to see how well the director tells the rest of the story. The fact that so much attention to detail has been spent is obvious. From the lived-in look of the hobbit homes to the costumes of the characters, you feel totally immersed in this film. The only problems with this movie are some of the facts/events that were left on the cutting floor (after all, they already had 3 hours up there!) The signifigance of the cloaks given to the Fellowship, as well as the food they carry with them were deleted from the movie, but appear to be included with the extended cut movie. Save your money and wait for this edition to come out! And it should be released just in time for a viewing and then off to the theatre to see the next chapter! Great job Mr. Jackson!
Rating:
Summary: Stunning...truly stunning..
Review: Having read the trilogy countless times (I share a birthday with Tolkien), I can honestly say that this film does the work justice. Of course things had to be omitted due to time/plot movement/money constraints, but this is the case when bringing any literary work to the big screen. I sat speechless through the entire three hours, unable to peel my eyes from the screen (mental note: large soft drinks are a bad idea for 3 hour movies). I would recommend this film to anyone, whether they have read the book or not. Peter Jackson has created the next "Holy Trilogy" (Star Wars is the first "Holy Trilogy"). May LOTR have as much success!
Rating:
Summary: The fastest three hours I ever spent!
Review: Having read the Trilogy five times in the past and maintaining that "The Lord of the Rings" is the greatest book of fiction ever written, I had pretty high expectations for this movie. Those expectations were surpassed! I felt as if I were meeting
all the characters after a very long absence....."Frodo, there you are!"...."Nice to meet you at last, Gandalf"....the casting was perfect. The action was riveting. The special effects were.....SPECIAL! Rivendell was as beautiful as I had pictured it, Moria as awesome and as menacing. It will be hard to wait patiently for the next installment....Frodo is going on with his quest and we're not there to cheer him on!
Rating:
Summary: Magical
Review: Having read the trilogy, It's absolutely the best production, from a book to the big screen I have ever seen. I really believed I was looking at middle earth. The casting was superb, and the acting was at another level. I can't wait for the other two. Thank you.
Rating:
Summary: "Thirty Extra Minutes Really Does Improve on Perfection!"
Review: Having reviewed this film earlier on Amazon, I wondered if an extra thirty minutes could actually improve on what is already one of the most spectacular films ever made. To my surprise, it really does! First, understand that some scenes are added, and some are merely extended. As far as the additional scenes go, the inclusion of Bilbo writing his story at the beginning of the epic lends a more 'comfortable' setting to the film, as do numerous, more intimate scenes of life in the Shire. My favorite supplemental scene is the brief, but touching 'Passing of the Elves' where a long, slow parade of the immortal ones pass forever into the Grey Havens in the West. Accompanied by a revised and more haunting musical score, this moment becomes unforgettable. Less memorable might the Marshes of Midgewater sequence, which adds little to the storyline. In general, the new footage seems to weave a more smooth transitional thread through the storyline, and makes us wonder why (other than time) such scenes were omitted in the first place. Such memorable moments as Gimili's request for a strand of Galadriel's hair, the equipping of the Fellowship by Galadriel, and Arwen's crestfallen countenance at the departure of Aragorn, develop characterizations more fully and wonderfully!! Finally, the fear the Elves displayed in allowing the Fellowship enter the City of Lorien is portrayed as it should’ve been in this extended version! Hooray for this edition! My only complaint is that unlike the earlier DVD release, this version of the movie could not be fit onto one DVD, and if you have to change disks manually, it might become a small nuisance. Nevertheless, the extended version is top-notch, right down to the wonderful 'middle-earthy' boxed arrangement, and the additional disks containing background material, interviews, and much much more make this a must-have set! In summary, the film is become much improved. This version should in no way be thought of as a mere gimmick. The supplementary material is appropriate, blended smoothly, and as stated, adds a depth to both character and plot development. In short, it really works!
Rating:
Summary: Almost As Good As It Was
Review: Having seen the movie at Melkor's Mighty Theatre of Middle Earth, I must say that it was almost completely identical to the series of events that truly took place. Though several of the scenes were altered, Arwen and I agree that the portrayals of the characters were accurate and even a little nicer (she doesn't want to admit it, but Arwen liked her new part in the movie. I certainly hope that they will do such a good job on me as well.) The movie was not lacking of drama, though it was a little shorter than I had hoped in parts. The balrog and Boromir at the end were the crowning touches; they were done exceedingly well and I was on the edge of my seat. (Of course, this was because the seats were originally made for balrogs, but whatever.)
All in all, The Fellowship of the Ring was more than I had hoped it would be. Tell Jackson if they don't give the movies an early release in Middle Earth, I've got a balrog caged beneath Gondor(I've got the Steward of the City to back me up in this!).
Rating: 
Summary: Very flawed but still a good action/FX film
Review: Having taken a 2 day break before seeing LOTR for the 2nd time, I'm now editing my original thoughts which expressed some problems I thought the film had. The film is split in two halves; everything before the Mines of Moria happens at an incredible pace and with such break-neck editing that I still can't remember a thing that happened or what was said. In other words, its a real mess. However, from the Mines of Moria onwards, the movie really takes off with the Moria sequence in particular being realised incredibly well. I think the main problem with the film is that I expect films to firstly deliver the character/relationship development and then follow up with the action that the people we have just got to know and like get involved in. The action IS all there in the second half of the film and it is all done extremely well. However, because the first half of the film absolutely does NOT deliver on the character development stuff, ultimately the whole thing suffers. I can think of no dialogue involving Frodo or Sam that gives me any idea about their personalities or their relationship until the very end of the film (the boat) and that's GOT to be the wrong way round, the film's over at that point! I suspect that PJ etc have gone way too far in trying to cram as much detail as possible from the book (places/names that noone will remember etc) into the first half at the cost of character development. LOTR is a very complex story and it HAD to be simplified hugely to make a good, or even understandable, FILM, they failed in this I think, I imagine because they were trying too hard to please fans of the book. Its understandable and even laudible but its a fatal mistake in any book-film translation, even when you have 3 hours to play with ... Anyway, a word about the actors. I think everyone did a fine job. I can barely bring myself to use the term 'actors' regarding Frodo and Sam's characters as they are given nothing to act out IMO, they really are one dimensional and are the most underdeveloped characters in the whole film, pretty amazing as I recall them being the leads in the book! An interesting contrast to that is the Ring itself; I almost feel like it should get a mention in the credits as it spends so much time on the screen! Best actors IMO are Gandalf, Boromir (especially) and Aragorn. I'd like to finish off by mentioning the much-derided 1978 Ralph Bakshi animation. Its not fashionable to express this I know but I have to say that I like it very much and I would even go so far as to say that PJ and co could have learned some very useful lessons by studying this. It has a better (tighter) script/screenplay, is scarier and much, much more emotionally involving than this latest attempt. It even gets a book and a half into a couple of hours. Animation or not, its probably a better film if you remove big blockbuster special effects from the equation ... Last word on this, its just my personal opinion of course but I reckon that Viggo modelled his Aragorn on the Bakshi animation (his voice at least), they're just too similar for it not to be the case (it might also account for why he's so good) :) Hope this all doesn't sound too negative. I've given the film 4 stars which I think is accurate. I'd very rarely give a film 5 stars but I think this would have romped home with a tighter and less confusing first half. I should also say that I was dying for this film to be released and while I won't say that I'm very disappointed with it, its true to say that it could have been a tremendous film with a bit more courage/thought in the screenplay/script/editing department. I should also say that I think the next two films will be much better as the hefty weight of character development is removed somewhat. If they keep it on course, I really do expect the next films to be awesome ...
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