Bored of the Rings

Rating: 4/10 (19 December 2001)

The greatly loved Tolkien novel has been adapted to the screen
with sweep by NZ director Peter Jackson, envisioning a Middle
Earth very true to the novel. No doubt, the converted will flock to see
the film, and most will enjoy it; the smattering of fans with wizard
and hobbit costumes indicates that it has a readymade acceptance by most. I can see the day when LOTR will have a
Rocky Horror cult following, costumes and all.
For those who think the book rather dense, and the movie rather
ordinary in cinematic terms, are probably missing the point. LOTR
is a film to be loved by those already in love with the saga. But as a
film seen in the context of others like it, this is frightfully tiresome.
One minor adventure follows another in quick succession,
developing slowly so that the action is undifferentiated, and
common.
The world of Middle Earth is modestly convincing, and Ian
McKellan all but steals the show for the first half. Once he
disappears, the film's charisma vanishes with him, and no
amount of amorphous threats of generic evil or armies of
nasty-looking ogres can keep things developing with much
interest.
LOTR fills a need in the same way Harry Potter does, as a
ready-made universe for escape, and there's nothing wrong with
that. If that place doesn't spark your interest (or you spend more
time there than you wanted), the film is liable to be of marginal
interest.
This kind of thing has been done well, in particular with the
splendid fantasy, The Neverending Story. Its story end message
was presented in detail, but elegantly. With LOTR, it's like being
given Cliff's Notes for an entertainment that shouldn't need them.