a Tolkein Fan's dream (minor spoiler alert)

Rating: 9/10 (20 December 2001)

This adaptation of Tolkein's masterwork is deserving of all the accolades that it is receiving. The technical aspects of the movie rival anything that has come down the pike since Jurassic Park or Star Wars. It surpasses all of the special effects laden films of the last twenty years, because it goes beyond the technical proficiency and big budget effects by having a great story, perfect casting and incredible performances by everyone involved.
The die hard Tolkein fans (the ones who dress up and speak in Elvish), may be a little disappointed with the changes to the story, but the changes (and there were many) were necessary to go from the written word to the silver screen. The average Tolkein fan and those who have yet to read the book should be very pleased. The substitution of Glorfindel for Arwen was good to bring a stronger female role to the story. It also made the relationship of Aragorn and Arwen more explicit than the book. It was disappointing to see the part about the blindfolds left out of the story, and the Lothlorien section was abbreviated too much (very understandable considering the length of the movie). There should have been one earlier scene with Bill, the pony, so the brief scene at the Gates of Moria did not seem out of place. The battle scenes were expertly choreographed and looked better than last year's Gladiator. The expanded role of Saruman sets up the Two Towers very well. The last small complaint is there was one to many `oh no, he is about to die' scenes (key the slow music). Though many of these scenes were in the book, they could have been handled better. Hopefully, they will go back and tell the story of Smaegol in the next film, since they left it out of the back-story. It makes Gollum into the tragic figure that he is. It is understandable that the Tolkein Estate is opposed to the adaptation, because they probably saw that animated travesty many years ago. Hopefully, they will get a chance to see it and change their opinion. Peter Jackson should be lauded for his vision and his will to bring such a magnificent adaptation to the screen.