Three days later I am still in awe of the Balrog!

Rating: Null/10 (23 December 2001)

Well, where do I start. I've studied the works of Tolkien for 15 years based on or around the Lord of the Rings. When I heard about a film adaptation, I was naturally curious about how the story was to be told and the characters portrayed. I was not let down by a poor re-telling of the story through a director's eyes but overwhelmed by a near-as-you-can-get adaptation that amazed.
Details that are omitted for the various reasons i.e. the clean-lifting of Bombadil from the story were tolerable, the omission of Galadriel's gifts to all except Frodo was a surprise, but not essential. I liked the way that the Nimrodel fought the riders, the white horses were expected and I was not disappointed.
The extension of Saruman's character was welcomed and excellently portrayed by Christopher Lee. As for the other characters, Aragorn was as majestic as imagined, Boromir was the conflicted character from the pages and Gandalf was magnificent. The elves were as stern and as kind as described by Samwise Gamgee in the book.
The scenery was fantastic, middle earth indeed was animated upon the screen.
The one scene that has burned itself onto my mind forever though, was in the Mines of Moria - Gandalf, Glamdring and his staff held high, so small against the massive Balrog. What a scene that was - worthy of the price of admission alone!
All in all, it will be a long wait until the Two Towers is released and the story continues. This epic story has had a strong beginning in film and I expect it to continue.