Did Peter Jackson READ the books?!?

Rating: 2/10 (27 June 2002)

I realize some people will argue that there is no way to accurately translate a book into a movie exactly. There just isn't. Well, they might be right. I suppose I could agree with that. But not with this movie. He got nothing right at all!
Arwen - I realize Liv Tyler likes the character. I realize women are a bit under represented in the movies. So she took some other parts. AND MESSED THEM UP TOO! Since when does Glorfindel (or anyone for that matter) get into a fight with the ringwraiths in the first book? You know why? Morgul-knives. Black breath. It sucks when you fight a wraith, yet she came out okay.
Gandalf/Saruman - The whole reason they didn't fight in the books was because they weren't supposed to! That made the fight in the Two Towers that much more believable! In addition, if I was a wizard, and I wanted to fight someone, I think that I could scare him a little more by doing something other than spinning him around. If Gandalf had been to more amusement parks this wouldn't have 'hurt' him at all.
Goblins - Since when can they climb walls? Are they little spider-men?
The Balrog - Picture this. The entire Fellowship surrounded by goblins. They're gonna die. No way out. Right, left, front, back, and on top there are goblins. Then the Balrog comes. And they escape. THEY WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO EVEN BE NEAR THE GOBLINS!!
The council of Elrond - Since when did everyone get up and fight?
Galadriel - I realize he filmed this but cut it out. The gifts scene was important. Especially for Samwise.
Elvish boats look a lot like Craftsman boats.
Merry and Pippin - they were good characters. Right up to the point they waved bye to Frodo and Sam and got captured by the orcs ON PURPOSE! The whole point of that encounter was that NO ONE was sure where they went for some time. That's how Merry and Pippin got captured - they ran off looking for Frodo.
The Watcher by the Water - since when did Frodo guess the "riddle" of the doors?
Anyways, the whole point of this is to show that Jackson needlessly changed events and sequences around to fit his weird idea of how Middle-earth SHOULD work rather than how it already has. I'm sure Tolkien is rolling over in his grave as we speak. I'm not saying it's a bad movie on its own, it simply shouldn't be called LORD OF THE RINGS