Get over your Tolkein sentiments. This is not Best Picture material.

Rating: 8/10 (10 March 2002)

All of us who love Tolkein were excited to see this film, but be honest. This is not Best Picture material. It is little more than The Mummy or The Mummy returns. Endless chase scenes and special effects. No real acting. No real character development. No real complex and engaging story line. The film never drew me in and made me part of the action nor endeared me to any of the characters. A good fantasy... a good movie of any genre, pulls you in, makes you feel like you could be there, allows you to feel empathy. The Wizard of Oz does this. Star Wars did this. Lord of the Rings does not.

My breath was taken away at how beautiful the Hobbit Shire was portrayed. It was outstanding, but the rest of the movie gave way to one horrible chase scene after another. Worse than a big screen video game because you couldn't interact with it and you couldn't turn it off.
I was also horrified that adults took their small children to see this. A little girl who was sitting behind me was terrified through the entire movie. Ugly, scary, drippy creatures... endless computer generation. Three hours of "I wish this would end" stress. No the kind of creative "what's going to happen next" scene creation. More like a slasher movie gone computerized.
I was keenly disappointed.