Adventure on a Huge Scale

Rating: 9/10 (12 January 2015)

The film that birthed a huge franchise, and for me this is easily the best. For me, the magic of something reduces the more you see it, and so future films just don't wow you in quite the same way. The slow building and exposition elements here are justified since it is our first taste of this world on screen.
This applies to all the Lord of the Rings films, as they all have the same strong suits. The music is flawless. The film looks amazing, it's an absolute treat to watch. The world is perfectly realised and believable. Many of the characters are charismatic and fun, and all are performed well, by a very talented cast.
Being the opening, this was the best suited of the three to be a film structurally. It's paced far better than any other, and keeps you moving through with evenly distributed character introductions, talky bits and big set pieces. I felt the early moments of this film featuring the Hobbits and the Nazgul were unique in tone for the franchise, and were filled with genuine menace. This film is also better humored than the other two, that are a bit more drawn out and harrowing.
All in all this is one of the best blockbusters there has ever been, and perhaps one of the last truly impressive spectacle films if we keep moving towards CGI dependence which is much less work but also much less impressive.
Nine out of Ten.