Excellent!

Rating: 10/10 (27 December 2001)

This movie is, in my opinion, the best of the year. It's filled with excitement, adventure, and suspense. And is great in its quieter moments too. Peter Jackson and company have crafted a great piece of film-making that may end up as a classic. It is based on the wonderful and imaginative books by British author J.R.R. Tolkien, who incorporated much of his childhood and own experiences into these books.
The books follow the adventure of a young hobbit who acquires the One Ring of Power. The Ring was forged by the evil Sauron, the Dark Lord of Mordor to enslave the world, but thanks to the might and strength of men, he was overthrown. But at the crucial moment in which the mortal King Isildur of Gondor was given the opportunity to destroy the accursed Ring, its power corrupted him and he turned away. The Ring tends to do this to its bearer. It corrupts all that come across it and betrays them. Once thought lost, the Ring winds up in the hands of hobbit, Frodo Baggins who acquires it from his cousin Bilbo. But after warning from the wise wizard Gandalf, he must set forth on an adventure to rid the land of Middle-Earth from this evil Ring, and destroy it in the land of the Enemy before the evil forces of Sauron get their hands on it. And so the Fellowship of the Ring is banded to aid the Ring-Bearer on his quest.
This is a faithful adaptation which I found a joy to watch. And as some may say it was too long and boring, I thought it wasn't long enough. I could have stayed in the theater for about another hour if it meant watching all of the great scenes from the book that were omitted from the film. I hope they actually shot some of these scenes because they are more for character development, and they wind up on a future DVD release of the film. This is a great film. It depicts the classic struggle of good versus evil at its most inventive. It is a must-see for any film-lover and definitely will be a contender this awards season.