Part One Of Trilogy Establishes Characters

Rating: 9/10 (18 May 2004)

The books read by more people than any others, except for the Bible, finally come to the big screen. Little known Director Peter Jackson brings The Lord Of The Rings trilogy to life. In the first installment, The Fellowship Of The Ring, Jackson follows the book closely, excising what is not essential to telling the story as a whole, such as the Tom Bombadil character for instance. Purists and fantasy fanatics may disagree about these cuts, changes, and even additions to the story, but they are forgetting the monumental task of translating a herculean epic tale from books to film. What works in books is often times not what works on the screen. One can read pages and pages of descriptions of fields, forests, hills, and valleys; however, on screen, this would only take moments to pan on film. Likewise, interactions between characters and villains may take only a few paragraphs to read, but are visually more interesting for their action. They also present more choices for a director in filming. That being said, there are several action scenes, each which exceeds the one previous, that build to an exciting battle and escape conclusion in this film. In between the action and danger sequences, we meet and learn about the main characters that comprise the fellowship. Elijah Wood, as Frodo Baggins, possesses the right combination of innocence, vulnerability, courage, determination, and growing maturity. Sean Astin, as Samwise Gamgee, illustrates the hobbits' simplicity and unwavering loyalty to each other, along with Billy Boyd and Dominic Monaghan as Pippin and Merry respectively. Sean Bean, as Boromir, projects the dichotomy of good intentions vs. yielding to temptation admirably. John Rhys-Davies, as Gimli the dwarf, portrays an interesting combination of bravado, cautiousness, and humility. Orlando Bloom, as Legolas the elf, is even-tempered, level-headed, and a highly skilled archer. Viggo Mortensen, as Aragorn/Strider, is the picture of courage, heroic leadership, and loyalty. Sir Ian McKellen, as Gandalf the Grey, is perfect as a wizard/protector of the fellowship. Several other casting decisions are perfection: Christopher Lee as Saruman, Cate Blanchett as Galadriel, and Liv Tyler as Arwen. Hugo Weaving as Elrond and Ian Holm as Bilbo Baggins are good as well. Despite the great casting in the film, few of the characters are really developed extensively. Frodo, Gandalf, Aragorn, and Boromir are the exceptions. This film is more or less about first establishing the characters and the basic plot, which is the quest to destroy the ring. Every aspect about the film is amazing regarding its construction. The set decoration and art direction is successful in creating the several one of a kind worlds we enter. The costumes, character make-up (Oscar), crafts, and weaponry are richly detailed and extensive. The Oscar -winning, majestic score by Howard Shore is emotionally exhilarating. The Oscar-winning special effects are outstanding, even in this day and age. The cinematography (Oscar) is breathtaking at times, showcasing New Zealand scenery to great advantage. The screenplay moves the film along briskly, making it hard to believe how long it really is. This is truly a great beginning to a tale full of despair, epic scenarios, friendship, hope against all odds, parallels to the best and worst of humanity, philosophical ideas, religious comparisons, and sorrow. There may be moments of tedium for the uninitiated and disappointments for purists. There is also the fact that the film leaves off at a point where we know it is going to continue in the next part; it does not stand alone as a complete film, but it is still a grand achievement. ***1/2 of 4 stars.