Close, but no cigar

Rating: 7/10 (23 December 2001)

I can only hope this movie will drop down the ranks of the IMDb top 250. Good movies (like L.A. Confidential, Fight Club) do show up, but get pushed lower by mediocre offerings like The Fellowship of the Ring. During the movie I found myself checking my watch to see how much more of this I had to endure. As Roger Ebert wrote, it goes on and on and on. It starts all good and well. Having read the book, the recognition is instant. The special effects to create the different heights of all the creatures will win the Oscar I'm sure. But therein lies the problem. All effort (and money) seems to have gone into the special effects, and the storyline suffers. You would expect a book so engrossing to result in a better screenplay. All that seems to happen is fighting, running, hiding and then some more of the same. Miss Walsh can do a lot better, as she proved with Heavenly Creatures and The Frighteners. As for the actors, things fare better. Ian McKellen is magnificent as Gandalf and Christopher Lee is convincing as Saruman. Cate Blanchett blows away Liv Tyler, but then again Liv does not have much story to work with. The only other that stood out for me was Orlando Bloom, as Legolas. For some reason he draws your attention while all the other fellows seem like also-ran's.
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