Tolkien Comes Alive!

Rating: Null/10 (4 March 2002)

Director Peter Jackson remains pretty faithful to the text, feel, and character of the novel of the struggle for Middle Earth. Amazing detail and state of the art special effects make a world like none other seem to magically come alive before our very eyes. Filmed in New Zealand, the film boasts some incredible cinematography. The acting is good all around with Ian McKellan really standing out as Gandalf. The film also gives the great Christopher Lee a good-sized role as Sauramon letting him showcase his obvious talents and still impressive voice. The film hovers round the three hour mark, but it goes by fairly quickly. A truly creative look at the work of Tolkien. The anticipation for the next two installments surely should be great if they are made with the same amount of care, cost, and consideration employed in this gargantuan film undertaking. Most Impressive!!!