"For the time will soon come when hobbits will shape the fortunes of all"

Rating: 10/10 (6 July 2010)

Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy (2001-03) is one of the most ambitious cinematic undertakings of all time (perhaps second only to Sergei Bondarchuk's "War and Peace (1967)'), and played such an immense role in my adolescence that the two years I had to wait to experience its conclusion were as painful as they were gratifying. I'm about to take you on a trip down memory-lane, so bear with me. I first saw 'The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)' in late January 2002, long after everybody else I knew, owing to a family holiday that nevertheless allowed me to familiarise myself with Tolkien's primary Middle-Earth literature.
I greatly enjoyed the novels, and have certainly re-read them since, but this movie was something else. I was immediately transfixed by its magnificent locations, exciting characters, epic scope, and, above all else, its attention to detail. Jackson's prologue gracefully traverses 3000 years of Middle-Earth history, settling finally on the halflings of The Shire, a race of little-people so satisfied with their quaint lifestyles that the goings-on of men and elves are of little consequence to them. It's this balance of the epic and the intimate that makes these films so special. Every time I watch 'The Fellowship of the Ring,' I notice something different: the three frozen trolls of Bilbo's tale; the hobbits' hairy, shoeless feet; the glowing of Frodo's "Sting" blade whenever orcs are close.
Each of the film's characters remain true to Tolkien's original stories. Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) are self-doubting but courageous, as yet oblivious to the roles they will play in shaping Middle-Earth's history. Gandalf (Ian McKellen) projects incredible power and wisdom, but it is infused by the weariness of an old man, the mental ravages of millennia passed. Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) is a valiant wanderer, and the last surviving member of a shattered royal bloodline, an ancestry that seems to affirm his own downfall. Supporting stars Sean Bean, Cate Blanchett, Orlando Bloom, Billy Boyd, Ian Holm, Christopher Lee, Dominic Monaghan, John Rhys-Davies, Liv Tyler, and Hugo Weaving round out the cast, each contributing their own spark of personality into this magnificent world of fantastic creatures and terrific evil.
Peter Jackson has asserted that his favourite film is 'King Kong (1933),' a prime motivating factor in his decision to direct his own excellent remake in 2005. Both films capture the awe and wonderment of their respective fantasy-worlds, though 'The Lord of the Rings' is even deeper entrenched in a sort of historical mythology, fuelled by a Tolkien legendarium that seems to stretch far beyond even the film's epic scope. We're all inspired by something. I like to describe myself as an amateur filmmaker, a hobby I've maintained for the best part of ten years. I'd already picked up a video camera by the time I saw 'The Fellowship of the Ring' in January 2002, but my prolonged enthusiasm for film-making came from the realisation that movies could be this amazing.