Stunning visuals, muddled dialogue

Rating: 5/10 (4 January 2002)

OK, here's my impression -- from someone who has never read the books.
The visuals in this film were stunning, especially the landscape shots. The CGI was great (although all CGI is looking distinctly fake to me these days) -- this film is sure to win some awards for visual effects and sound effects editing. Too bad they don't make 'em like they used to in the early 80's though, amazing how false & plastic an over-usage of computer graphics makes a movie appear.
As for the story and the dialogue -- well, I'd like to know what went on in the film. Maybe 30% of what was said was intelligible at all. I don't think it's my ears, because the person I attended the film with had the same problem. Nor do I think it had to do with the speaker system in the theater. Rather, it was a combination of loud special effects, swelling music and hastily-recited lines. At first it was frustrating because I really wanted to know what the characters were saying, but after the first 30 minutes of the film I just gave up and watched it as a long (long, looonnnggg) exercise in special effects and sound. Fight scene after fight scene for what, a ring? I don't mean to question Tolkien (g-d forbid), but why not just toss the frikkin thing down a deep well somewhere?
Sorry, but I have to be able to hear the dialogue in the first place to get interested and stay interested in a film -- and I don't think it's too much to ask that the characters speak so they can be understood.
5/10