The impossible has been accomplished

Rating: 9/10 (22 January 2002)

It's always something. Either a movie is true to its original source material in such a way that only diehard fans of the original source can properly appreciate the film, or Hollywood trails off from the source material so much hoping to interest a wider audience, and the true fans are left either scratching their heads in puzzlement or screaming at the screen defiantly, and then they're impatiently escorted out of the theater. It can be argued that the Harry Potter series has also found a balance here, but let's be honest: that's for kids. When handled properly, Tolkien's work is not family fare. Prior to Peter Jackson's reach for Lord of the Rings, this balance has been a metaphorical holy grail for producers and directors alike. Perhaps saying such a balance is impossible is a bit of an exaggeration, but it's a rare and precious thing to see it accomplished with any level of competence.
By example I turn to the films based off mythical comic book characters which are often painful to watch for anyone with true appreciation of the source material. Hollywood has difficulty with the idea of costumed vigilanteism. It seems impossible not to be campy about it. So we get Mystery Men or the Batman TV series. Even the most successful attempts like the Superman or Batman films or the more recent X-Men movie barely hold a candle to the original works of such writers and artists as Bob Kane, Simon & Schuster, and Lee & Kirby.
As another example, not until Rob Reiner's delicately woven Stand By Me was any director able to even attempt a Stephen King novel with any measure of balance between source material and Hollywood fancy. Carrie was short-sighted and bland until the last twenty minutes. Stanley Kubrick's version of The Shining was self-absorbed, and had dated itself before it even left the theaters. The Dead Zone was too far out in left field. Firestarter was laughable. Cujo proved that the premise for that book, though great for a book, simply didn't make for an interesting film. Even King himself couldn't get it right when he directed Maximum Overdrive. Since Rob Reiner's version, other directors have had better success. Just as Reiner proved the balance could be found, so here does Peter Jackson.

Tolkien's life's work is not something that can be handled with the same flippancy Hollywood tends to give more modern authors. His writing is both intricate and cumbersome. His style is an acquired taste, and there is much to traverse within it to get it right. Many have tried since 1978, but none have fared well. I feared no one would ever succeed in bringing his words to life on the big screen. This film version of Lord of the Rings has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that it can be done. Everyone involved in its efforts should be given more than a handful of golden idols as reward. This task was gargantuan, and after watching this nearly flawless film, to my eyes they made it look like it was so simple a child could have done it.

Sir Ian McKellen breathed Gandalf alive and wore the grey robes as if he'd lived in them all his life. Had I been casting, I would have chosen Richard Harris, and I would have been a fool. Now I can see no one but McKellen in my mind's eye performing Gandalf. McKellen made the role his, and gave Tolkien's words the same reverence he would Shakespeare.

Whether one has read all the books of Tolkien or not, they will find this film a grand escape from reality. It's a roller coaster ride and a tranquil, almost euphoric experience all rolled up into one. It has been a long wait to find actors so talented, a director so determined and crew so skilled as to make this come to pass.
It was worth every decade.