A beautiful film that never drags once

Rating: 10/10 (29 January 2006)

I have never been a fan of Tolkein's works. Whenever I've tried to read them, I've become bored and have stopped bothering. It's taken me a while to get around to watching The Lord of the Rings, but I am very glad that I have now seen it. In fact, it actually made me read the books and I prefer the movies to the books.
One of the things that I enjoyed so much about this movie is the absolutely *stunning* cinematography. Filming in New Zealand was a brilliant move and I am so glad that this was filmed "on location" instead of in the studio. I realize that a good deal of this movie is CGI, but it flows beautifully and there aren't any particular moments where you say, "AHA! Green screen! Right there!"
I truly enjoyed the performances given by the lead actors. Especially Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn. His performance is authentic and he obviously strove to not only play, but *become* his character. Orlando Bloom is wonderful as Legolas and this is easily one of my favorite performances from him. Although in all technicality Legolas is a supporting character, he is an individual supporting character. In the fellowship, there are no other elves for him to be supporting, so in that aspect he is a very individual character, even if he is not the lead. Elijah Wood is good as well -- he does a wonderful job of capturing the simplicity of Frodo and his depressed emotional state. And more credit to Mortensen as well as Liv Tyler with their emotion charged love scenes. A rare thing in Hollywood, these scenes are more sensual then sexual -- a welcome relief from the modern Hollywood blockbuster that just screams sex.
Many people aren't particularly wowed by Peter Jackson's directing ability. But I have to say that I think he did a wonderful job. Despite the 178 minutes running time, the movie never drags once. Jackson did a good job of getting as much as he possibly could out of his actors and that is easily the film's biggest asset. This is an amazing film and everyone should see it.