Pure Magic.

Rating: 10/10 (23 March 2004)

Fellowship of the Ring, is a movie that manages to capture our imagination, while involving us so deeply, that we are swept off of our feet, and transported to a place that only existed in our wildest fantasies. A place that is rich, lush and awe inspiring. A place that is inhabited by many wonderful folk, mystical creatures, and divine- simply godlike characters.
First of all, the movie is simply gorgeous to look at. From the opening credits, we are taken on a mystical journey through places that seem ripped out of a fairy tale. Every location, from the shire to the mines of moria, to amon hen, is so detailed and rich, that it can lead some too believe that these locations actually exist - all locations are so fantastic, yet have such an incredible historic undertone to them. The true passion of the entire crew lead by Peter Jackson explodes out of every scene and the detail and dedication that was put into the set design is unmatched, and will be near impossible to surpass. The vision of the crew, the artistic talent of renown tolkien artists John Howe, and Alan lee, and the incredibly fulfilling cinimatography make the fellowship of the ring the most beautiful film to ever light up the silver screen.
Unlike many of today's high budget films, fellowship manages to incorporate very interesting characters to go along with the spectacle of the ground breaking battle sequences. Being a fan of the novel, i was surprised, amazed, and utterly frothing at the mouth when i first saw the characters that i had read about, and loved for so long appear on screen. The casting was brilliant, and the writers and PJ were true to the characters, and made us believe that we were in for something very special. the plot seems simple enough, however their are many messages that this movie conveys.

Average movie goers may simply be enthralled by the spectacle, however the magic is in the characters, and in the emotion and meaning that the movie so perfectly conveys. It's not simply about the battle between good and evil.. it is about friendship, courage, and ultimate sacrifice. Sacrifice that becomes ever more apparent as the trilogy moves on.
As an ensemble, like mentioned above, the cast is brilliant. Ian Mckellen (Gandalf the Grey), and Sean Bean (Boromir), are the two that in my opinion, owned their characters. combined with the amazingly adapted screenplay, their characters brought their novel counterparts to life, and led us to believe that they were born to play these roles.
Fellowship of the ring is film-making at it's finest. It showcases that true passion and pure dedication lead to masterpieces, and is truly the cinematic epic of our time. It's more than a movie, it's simply magic.
10/10 - Theatrical 11/10 - Extended DVD - Seriously.