Grim, epic, and powerful

Rating: 10/10 (20 December 2001)

As my friends and I were waiting in line, we argued about whether
this movie or The Phantom Menace had been more anticipated,
finally noting that no one had camped out for The Lord of the
Rings. Someone commented, however, that since the Stars Wars
movie had been such a big disappointment, the fulfillment to
anticipation ratio would probably be much higher with LotR.
And they were so right.
I think this may well be the best fantasy movie I've ever seen. The
special effects are excellent -- very little of the distractingly obvious
CG that detracted from The Phantom Menace -- and the sense of
immersion in the world is very strong. What I was not prepared for
was how frightening the film was. I mean, okay, ultimate evil and
all that. But it frightened me more than any horror movie I
remember seeing. The grim despair of Middle Earth in time of war
was absolutely overwhelming, and I understood why the artist who
did the LotR poster on my wall used only browns, greys, and wan
pastels. In addition, the acting was excellent -- Ian McKellan's
Gandalf being especially memorable. Cate Blanchett's Galadriel
was also surprisingly disturbing -- the sense of power she
radiates is a considerable accomplishment both in terms of acting
and in the appropriate use of special effects.
If this film has any flaw, I think it might be insufficient emotional
variation. It is almost unremittingly dark, suspenseful, and scary,
and neither the characters nor the audience get to rest and recover
often. I know there were a few cheerful stops on the journey that
didn't make it into the film, and I have to wonder if that wasn't a
mistake. The stop in Galadriel's forest, which I remember being a
relief in the book, was too creepy to provide the kind of comfort I
was craving at that point. Only the Shire and Rivendell provided
bright spots in the narrative.
While I think retaining the grimness of the books is important, I
also think exhausting the audience is a bad idea. Although Merry
and Pippin provided a little bit of comic relief, a few more scenes in
which the audience can relax might be a good idea, if only to keep
them from becoming desensitized.