Sadly all the superlatives have been used up on lesser films.

Rating: 10/10 (28 December 2002)

There is not much one can say about this film that hasn't been said better and at greater length elsewhere - yes, we know that Gimli is not really a comic character and that some bits were cut and others moved around between characters, but if you're so much of a Tolkien weenie that you can't enjoy the film anyway you are in a very small minority.
For the rest of us - well, all the superlatives have already been exhausted on lesser films, so there are no words left to describe just how exceptional this film is. It will surely take its place with Kane and 2001 in cinema history: a brilliant story, brilliantly told, brilliantly acted, brilliantly edited and directed, and special effects which are the pinnacle of the art today.
The acid test, of course, is whether the film still impresses once the novelty of the special effects wears off, and when newer techniques render them outdated and creaky. I believe it will. I believe that in fifty years' time people will still watch this film, because it is a perfect example of movie theatre entertainment.