***Spoilers***

Rating: 10/10 (20 December 2001)

This movie rocks. There are so many differences from the book and yet the overall story is not harmed in any way. Some differences (other than the big ones we knew of: Arwen, Bombadil etc): Intro narrated by Galadriel depicting the history of the ring. Gandalf sends Frodo and Sam on their own telling them he'll meet them at the Prancing Pony. Pippin and Merry join the band while running away from Farmer Maggot. No Crickhollow, no Fatty Bolger. No singing at the Prancing Pony, instead Frodo trips and accidently slips the ring on. Arwen brings on the flood at the Ford, not Elrond. No mention is made of Gandalf having added the horses effect. Gandalf sends a butterfly to fetch Gwaihir; No Radagast. The council of Elrond is very concise, most of it having been shown in the Intro. Gimli suggests going through Moria, not Gandalf. Saruman commands the storm on Caradras. A lot more is shown of the Watcher in the lake than is described in the book. Frodo figures out the 'Mellon' password, not Gandalf. Gandalf tells Frodo that Gollum has been following them for three days. No blindfolding at Lothlorien. No Sam at the mirror of Galadriel, instead Frodo sees both visions. Galadriel's ring is not used in the script, although you do see it on her finger at the departure of the Fellowship. Saruman creating his army of Uruk-Hai is given quite a bit of screen time. The breaking of the fellowship is different. Frodo tells Aragorn that he will go into Mordor alone; Aragorn agrees. These are just some of the differences I can remember; as you can see, they do not impact the story very much. Goose bump sequences: The hobbits are fleeing the Back Rider and run right into him. Bilbo's reaction to seeing the ring once more. Galadriel's test at the mirror. Awesome, really scary. Ultra cool sequences: Anything with the Nazgul, especially Weathertop. Arwen and Frodo's ride to the ford. The balrog. This movie is just spectacular. I loved it. Biggest regret: Not enough of Tolkien's poetry, especially the prophecy from Boromir's dream.