Never has a story gained so much in translation to film

Rating: 10/10 (19 December 2001)

I was fortunate enough to catch the midnight show of THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING Tuesday night. I can almost guarantee Peter Jackson's name has already been engraved on this year's Oscar for Best Director. And I would be willing to bet that THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING will be named Best Picture. (It would seem Michael Mann picked an unfortunate year to release ALI.)
In Hollywood, it is hardly difficult to find an entertaining, big budget, multi-market-franchised blockbuster. However, it is almost impossible to find such a movie that is actually a good film, let alone a great one. THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING is nothing less than a great film, astonishingly faithful to the books. This story world is brought to life in grander fashion than any fan could dare to hope. Any time a beloved novel is brought to the big screen, fans wonder what will be lost in the translation (e.g. HARRY POTTER). With the LORD OF THE RINGS movies, I think what fans will be most surprised by is what is gained in translation, the vision Peter Jackson brings to the telling of the story. I would argue this is the best film adaptation of a novel since THE GODFATHER, and I don't make that comparison lightly.
If you've read the Lord of the Rings trilogy, you'd know it isn't really a trilogy but rather one story published in serial form, three volumes comprised of 2 books each.. So, the first of the three movies is not the full story. THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING is the first of 3 volumes. The worst thing about this film is that it does leave about 2/3 of the story unresolved. But because volume I is in and of itself a gripping tale, this is still likely to be the best 2 or 3 hours of movie-watching you spend all year. Your greatest frustration, like mine, will be that you have to wait a year for THE TWO TOWERS (volume II), and another year on top of that for RETURN OF THE KING (volume III).
If I thought it was bearable, I'd advise you all wait 2 years and watch all three movies back to back when the 3rd comes out in 2003. Instead, just get to a movie theater as soon as humanly possible and see the first installment of what is likely to be the most beloved cinematic experience since STAR WARS.