Rating: 
Summary: The Fellowship...
Review: I, personally, have not seen all of the bonus features on the DVD, but I have seen the extended version of the movie. It was very good, but still my least favorite in the series.
Rating: 
Summary: Read the Book!! The film is a travesty!
Review: This is perhaps my favourite book, and even though I didn't expect the film to be completely faithful to it, I was not prepared for this hideousness! All the nauseating hype beforehand, e.g. about the millions spent on recreating everything faithfully (I even remember the director being described as "a hobbit" - the hilarious Meet the Feebles tends to rebut that pretension!), served only to deepen my revulsion.
The book is full of beauty, depth, sadness, loss and grandeur, but it has been turned into just another Hollywood Blockbuster, with the violence amplified and glorified at the expense of all else (of course), with the egregious cod-Wagnerian soundtrack to boot. For example, the confrontation between Saruman and Gandalf never contained overt violence - Gandalf, having appraised the situation, did not resist physically. Events and characters merely mentioned in the book (e.g. orcs being spawned, Sauron) are spelled out, and lose their power in one's imagination for having been done so.
The characters are not developed in the film, and, in the case of the Elves, are unrecognisable. Elrond is reduced to a shallow, inhospitable, snippy irrelevance, instead of one of Middle Earth's wisest, with great depths of knowledge and insight. The word "Elf" ordinarily has a somewhat effeminate connotation in English, but not in Tolkien's tales; but the creators of this film do not understand - it's as if pointy ears are all that's necessary to portray one.
The sets are claustrophobic, with Lorien, Bree and Rivendell particular disappointments - Lorien was full of light in the book, a place "[without] sickness or deformity", but is a dark, cramped and twilit hiding place in the film. Bree is more like an imagined Victorian London than a rural outpost. Rivendell seems reduced to some sort of ornate tree house. And this is constant. The film just misses the point.
Maybe harking back to the book is not the way to review a film! But the story is such a large (and split) narrative, the film is almost incoherent without an understanding of the book.
The film tells of good and evil, but without showing the virtues of good, and while also failing to explain the evil. You are expected to support the heroes, as it is showed from their side, and because the villains are uglier and more brutal. No character in the film shows an understanding beyond the actions required in the narrative. The roles of females are increased - because it is the Hollywood formula - which says it all. It is an empty spectacle. Read the book.
Rating: 
Summary: A Perfect Masterpeice
Review: People who are thinking of buying the books by J.R.R. Tolkien or the movies based on his books directed by Peter Jackson, I urge you to do so. They are marvellous despite what other people say on this site. Please read or watch them with an open mind. I have read the odd 1 out of 5 stars review and they are obviously written by closed minded people with no sense of imagination. Please take no notice of what they say. Here is a fact that is unbelievable. They are the most read books in history apart from the Bible!!! That is surely enough indication of how great these books are, and the movies are almost as amazing. They are both incredible. This story is one of a kind. Peter Jackson is an amazing director, and an amzing person. He has done somthing that I believe only he could do. He has made three motion pictures of The Lord Of The Rings. A brief history of the author is in order i believe. In 1892 a man named John Ronald Reuel was born. 56 years later he had completed The Hobbit and The Lord Of The Rings. Many say these books are the greatest fantasy novels ever written. Others, say they were the key to the now opened door of amazing fantasy and fictional stories. Now back to the movies. The Lord Of The Rings The Fellowship Of The Ring motion picture is an amazing adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's book. The movie has everything. Hobbits, Wizards, Men, Elves, Dwarves and many other wonderful creatures. This edition is marvellously presented. It contains hours of enjoyable entertainment. I urge you to buy any Tolkien product especially this one. It has everything. This edition is an extended edition of the theatrical version and is even better. I never ever thought the movie could get any better but it does. I will not ruin it for you but it contains 30 minutes plus of additional footage that will keep you amazed for hours plus two more discs containing The Appendices which are amazing as well. All in all it is perfect, you will never ever...ever see anything like this in your life again, I promise.
Rating:
Summary: The BEST movies of our lifetime
Review: I have to admit that the 1st time I saw this movie I thought it was a 3 hour waste of my time and kicked my self for paying for the ticket and told everyone I knew how bad this movie was. Then when the 2nd movie came I watched it on DVD (with a good surround system) and I hated it too. But my girlfriend who had never seen the movies wanted to see em. I tryed to convence her that they sucked but she wanted to see em regardless. Seeing the 1st movie again I more easily recongnized the plot and something meraculous happened. It was like a light had been turned on and I understood why everyone loved these movies. Needless to say I watched the 1st two movies (the 3rd had not yet been released) over and over again and fell in love with them. When Gandolof said "You SHALL NOT PAASSSSSSS!!!" it brought me a new meaning of chill bumbs :D The music which accompanies the movies is powerful and brillant and I would recommend the soundtrack as well. For all the people that just thought these movies are boring...I believe they should give them another chance. When recently seeing the last movie I was teary eyed in the end and wished that it would never end. I can't recommend this or any of the other movies highly enough.
Rating:
Summary: Lord of the Rings
Review: This is the best movie in the universe!!!
Rating:
Summary: Bored of the Rings is more like it.
Review: Peter Jackson has successfully tapped into the spirit of Tolkien's books. This movie was every bit as tedious, pretentious and unimaginative as the books. I for one can't understand why the assorted elves, ogres or whatever would go to such great lengths to take over a dreary, soulless place like Middle Earth, where nobody has a sense of humor. There is no drama or suspense. The action is lame and there is not a single interesting character anywhere to be found. They are like chess pieces. For example, the wizard Saruman turns evil because... well he just does. The other villains and monsters are a joke. The Black Riders are supposed to be scary because... they wear black hoods and they scared a hobbit's dog very badly. OOOOOOH! Was I frightened or what? They stab another hobbit and run over an annoying old codger who probably deserved it. They are supposed to be powerful minions of evil, yet they move so slowly anyone can easily outrun them. They can't fight very well (one man with a torch routs them) and hobbits can escape them by hopping on a raft three feet from the riverbank! These are the awe-inspiring angels of death, but they are about as menacing as Team Rocket from the Pokemon Movie! The heroes range from bland to annoying. The score is as one-note as the actors' performances. And Peter Jackson's style of directing consists of using as much skycam as humanly possible and more slow-motion in this one film than Sam Peckinpah used in his entire career. Apparently, Jackson realized just how inept and unintentionally funny his "dramatic" scenes were. He shot them in slow motion. This of course makes it a VERY DRAMATIC SCENE! Actually, it makes it embarassing. This series will have an important place in movie history. The most overrated films ever. The fact that so many people have gone ga-ga over such a bad movie says more about New Line's marketing department than Peter Jackson's skills as a filmmaker.
Rating:
Summary: The most incredible movie ever made!!!!
Review: I thought I loved the first movie. And I did it was my favorite movie. It is just impossible to love any movie more than I loved the Fellowship, but The Two Towers was completely incredible! I absolutely loved the movie. The characters are uinforgettable and the leading men are really really really gorgeous... Legolas in particular, but anyway, everyone did a great job in that movie. Do yourself a favor if you haven't already and buy this movie!
Rating:
Summary: Fellowship's extended DVD worth its weight in gold
Review: It's difficult to review these films without lots of superlatives. If you are either a film lover, aspiring pro or a student interested in what makes a film tick, these DVDs are priceless. Many DVD sets have a director and perhaps a few pivotal cast members talking about their work on a film - this DVD takes the time to question the production designers and other "below the line" crew to ask them how they put LOTR together. The documentaries here are excellent: a brief biography of Tolkien himself, all sorts of goodies on the making of this production, storyboards and crude computer animation for scenes, showing how the special effects were designed in certain scenes - you can even watch the crude animation and the finished scenes side by side! I particularly enjoyed learning about the Tolkien illustrators (especially Alan Lee) whose work influenced Jackson, and were then coaxed into leading the production design teams. Costume designers and illustrators will no doubt love the diverse galleries and pictures that are also available on the DVD. You do get a sense of what an adventure the film was for the actors, especially the four younger men playing Frodo, Legolas, Merry and Pippin, who are all at the beginning of their careers (literally so for Bloom). Their exuberance is balanced by more seasoned actors like Mortensen and McKellan. Elijah Wood rolls his eyes describing how Sean Astin overprotected him - just as Samwise Gamgee would - particularly on a helicopter shoot. I found this unintentionally funny in a dark sort of way (TANGENT ALERT). Both Astin and Wood grew up in front of the cameras, but Astin is 10 years older, more likely to know of the "Twilight Zone: The Movie" helicopter accident which killed actor Vic Morrow (father to Jennifer Jason Leigh). (Weirdly, Bloom would win a role in "Black Hawk Down" around the time of "LOTR" playing Todd Blackburn, the young Army Ranger whose fall from a helicopter figured heavily in the Battle of Mogadishu. I guess Elijah didn't read *that* script.) Interestingly, Sean Astin, whose parents are John Astin and Patty Duke, used to study with Stella Adler, who promoted the Stansilaski method of acting, usually known as "the method". (I.e, the actor "becomes" his or her role, and Nic Cage has an excuse to eat cockroaches - yes, just read about his role in "Vampire's Kiss".) By the final reel of "King", he comes off as one of the strongest players, even outshining Wood. Sean, keep up with the air traffic control - especially if it helps your performance! As far as the acting is concerned, "Fellowship" is so full of moments and terrific scenes that it really does seem to get better upon multiple viewings. A standout example is that of Sean Bean as Boromir. It's easy to dismiss Boromir as a weak, would-be Judas (particularly if you've seen "Ronin" or "Goldeneye", rather than his excellent British TV work as "Sharpe") but after the initial shock of his choice fades, on second and third viewings, Bean is touching, a troubled yet courageous knight who finally redeems himself. Boromir is even easier to sympathize with if you view the extended "Two Towers" DVD, which sheds insight into his father -the steward of Gondor- and the dark expectations heaped upon Boromir, his first son and heir. It also helps bridge the relationship between Boromir and Faromir. All the "LOTR" films, but especially "The Fellowship of the Ring", seem more like historical drama than fantasy. The last piece to attempt this, the "Mists of Avalon" miniseries, does not come close in terms of depth and believability, despite being based on truthful historical trends (i.e. the passing of pagan Europe to Christianity and the ensuing turmoil). The scenery is also breathtaking: Jackson's aerial shots of the snowcapped Mountains of Moria, where one of the Fellowship sacrifices himself for his friends, are absolutely stunning. Strangely, a "pro" review snippily suggested German "mountain films" as a major influence on the cinematography and film! If you're a non-film geek, a suggestion that something is reminiscent of a "German mountain film" is usually a back-handed swipe, since those stories are often lumped together with Nazi cinema. Leni Riefenstahl initially distinguished herself as a "mountain film" actress and later directed "The Blue Light" before "Triumph of the Will". These films had their heyday during Germany's withering Weimar regime, and anticipated a lot of the same themes (purity of man and environment, social Darwinism) that were later developed in Nazi propaganda. Ergo, Peter Jackson films a beautiful, snowy vista, and it's automatically a "homage" to these films and thus suggestive of Nazism? This is downright insulting when you consider that this entire saga is about a fellowship of different races uniting and saving Middle Earth. Moreover, the love for nature is inherent to Tolkien's original text. Jackson has built on top of detailed, thoughtful words - creating a gorgeous, treacherous, seemingly real world. George Lucas's recent films have been just as beautiful visually - stunning, really - and yet they seem much more "fantastical", unreal, than what we see in the filmed LOTR. Moreover, not only do Jackson and company seem more passionate about the world they've created in these films, their characters are more passionate...fully-breathing, fully realized...as well. (And I say this despite being very excited about the third Star Wars prequel.) After the popularity dies down a bit, expect some academics, especially those with a Marxist bent, to find lots of faults with the film - especially considering its large budget. (Again with the "German mountain film" suggestion). Some academic critics seem to believe the last good fiction film was "Battleship Potemkin". Don't let these people ruin your enjoyment of intelligent, beautiful films.
If "Fellowship" has an Achilles' heel, it's that it must serve as exposition and explanation for the second two films, as well as parts of "The Hobbit". Despite that, it manages to be a feast for the eyes, ears, and brain.
Rating:
Summary: Magnificent....this is film history
Review: I love Tolkien books. But don't judge the films by the books. Sorry, it's apple's and oranges - the best of each crop. Who says you have to chose? Not me! I have seen this film so many times I could likely apply for Guinness Book of Records. Hey even my cat LOVES this film. Seriously, she will sit and watch this and The Two Tower hypnotised by the film! It's is NOT a kids film. Parents not paying attention - this is NOT Harry Potter. This is a very complicated story, with very high ideas that are way over a kid's head. There is violence, quite frightening, and you will spend all your time trying to explain it to small ones, so NO it's not a whole family film. I think Jackson created something everyone needs in this ME-Generation disconnected-from-the-masses computer people. People online connect, but they also are isolated. This film reminds us there are things more important than our immediate wishes. Like fellowship, love and the willingness to sacrifice yourself for the great good of people you care for. It is a theme we needed to be reminded, and it touches our hearts. Tolkien's world, vividly and beautifully created by director Jackson is a place where honour, good and evil are not just words, but are the forces that shape lives. Brilliant filmed, marvellously acted, it has propelled Viggo Mortensen rightly into the superstar spotlight his talent deserves. Aragorn is the role of a lifetime and he breathes such life into the character. As does wonderful newcomer Orlando Bloom as Legolas. The bond between Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli are friendships we all would wish to experience. Ian McKellan, Christopher Lee, John Rhys Davies are as always brilliant. But the hobbit bunch is great with Wood great as Frodo, but more surprisingly Sean Astin (son of Patty Duke and John Astin) as Sam, gives the film such heart. Also, the growth of the jokers Merry and Pippin is deft conceived and acted. If you are an Ring Addict and cannot get enough, buy the extended version. If you are not a nitpicker who wants all the details, then this is a perfect version for you. Me, sigh, I have both...and figure I will end up buying the Complete Collectors Edition when Jackson stuff all three into a single box. Most of the time, when they do these repackages, I get ticked begin suckered into buy each incarnation. NOT with this film.
Rating:
Summary: Whoa!
Review: This is the first of three in an exciting series of epic tales. Talented actors like Viggo Mortenson and Elijah Wood, along with other incredible actors, brought this movie up. Outstanding! Weta did a great job on all of the effects, and the director was excellent.
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