I had high expectations, and they were surpassed!

Rating: 10/10 (17 December 2003)

I have purposely not read any of the books, although I am a big fan of the genre, so I could enjoy the films without worrying about technicalities. I waited in line for 3 hours to get a good seat, and it was well worth the wait.
I won't give any of the story away, but it was incredible and visually stunning. The storyline is perfect, ends are tied and the 3+ hour length of the movie flies by so fast you won't even realize it. This will easily be the best film of the year. The LOTR trilogy has surpassed my old favorite trilogy, Star Wars.