Fellowship squeezes into 3 hours...a tight fit

Rating: 9/10 (28 December 2001)

Just a few years ago, an hour and a half was considered too long for a feature film. But now, three hours just isn't enough. Having watched Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," I am amazed that he fit as much of the story into his film as he did.
While staying mostly true to the books (remember, it still has to play like a movie) he managed to tell the story of Frodo Baggins and his journey with a "Fellowship" of nine, who attempt to carry the "Ring of Doom" (something like a symbol of oppression and the "ultimate weapon" rolled into one) to the fires where it was created in order to destroy it, in a fast paced, roller-coaster-ride that exchanges Professor Tolkien's slow, laconic style for a seat-of-the-pants dead run.
Fans of the book can see the tiniest details of their beloved Middle Earth fly by at 80mph yet the uninitiated will enjoy the rip-roaring adventure.
To anyone who has read the epic trilogy, it will miss a few favourite details here and there: "This isn't MY Lord of the Rings.
That's not the way I imagined it..." My favourite chapter of the book was broken up with a gratuitous action scene that looked like something from "Raiders of the Lost Ark." Darn! But Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings gets enough of it right that the rest doesn't matter. After all, it is worth the price of admission to see the Mirrormere lake, or The Watcher, or Rivendell, Sauron or even the Balrog for that matter.
The downside? There are two: The first is that three hours is just not enough time to tell the story AND develop character. I've heard rhumor that Jackson shot every scene in the book. If that's true, I'd like to be the first to scream "DIRECTOR'S CUT (Please!)" The second downside? You've read it everywhere, but I still have to complain: I have to wait for another year for the next installment. Now THAT's a tragedy.
Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" ROCKS!...and if you can find it on an IMAX screen, see it there!