Not the jewel everyone is looking for

Rating: 1/10 (2 January 2002)

I am not a big fan of fantasy nor did I read the books but I wanted to go see what all the hype was about and it turned out to be just that: hype. As far as the movie goes, it wasn't really all that bad. However it wasn't all that good either. This was an average flick that would be really enjoyed by a kid, but hardly anyone else.
The fact that the film starts with nothing, ends with nothing and is geared (it seems to me) only to be an introduction to the next release is disingenuous to the public. This should've been stated! Even Star Wars films can all be watched as separate films; this one can not. This release has a feel of an average TV miniseries (like "The Mists of Avalon") and is about as exciting. Absolutely nothing spectacular. Those who read the books probably fill the blanks with their imagination but the rest of us see just boring continuation of contrived events. There was hardly any magic, hardly any cause for actions taken, hardly any explanation of why people are doing things they're doing. The "evil" character has no depth whatsoever.
I rated the movie *1* to try to offset the unfair rating this movie is getting. I think people see what they want to see instead of what is actually there. I don't think this movie will stand the test of time; in the long term, it will be another Willow.
Please stop giving this movie 10 simply because you liked the books. It is simply not fair to the great movies on the top 250 list! To say that LofR is better than the Godfather is a travesty. Can you honestly say that this movie is better than Citizen Kane (a movie that had a plot), Schindler's List, Star Wars, others? I think people really need to get a frame of reference on what a good movie is. Large birds and hobbits don't make a great film. All the reviews I read here are "look how close to the book this is" or "the book and movie agree", etc. YOU ARE NOT RATING THE BOOK! You're rating the MOVIE in comparison to OTHER MOVIES.
Those who like movies with substance should give this movie a 1 to offset the kids who obviously don't know any better.