Good movie, but let's be real...

Rating: 8/10 (21 December 2001)

Lord Of The Rings was one of the better movies I've seen this year, but many fans who've been waiting their whole lives for a decent theatrical treatment are acting as though they've died and gone to heaven. And they are screaming the gospel from the hilltops.
This level of hype, mostly created by endlessly yearning fans of the books, might hurt the movie more than help it, raising people's expectations unreasonably, much as happened with The Phantom Menace, and creating a negative backlash.
LOTRs is an all around good movie which speaks more to its intended audience than to the masses. It has a few minor flaws (repetitive panning of the scenery, awkward pacing) and many stunning visuals. It joins a select few movies that turn myth into magic (Excalibur and Crouching Tiger are the only ones that comes to mind).
But this is not a movie for everyone. It's too intense for children, too divorced from reality for the pragmatic, too strange for a date movie, and too long for smokers.
Fans of D&D and Everquest will find this film right down their alley. Others should consider whether a three hour movie about sorcerers, hobbits, elves, goblins, orcs, and magical rings appeals to them. If the thought makes them cringe, the movie will likely have the same effect.