Though I have watched The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring several times before, for the first time, I watched it after I completed reading the book the filmmakers based it upon (
The Fellowship of the Rings), which made it that much more enjoyable. I also watched the Special Extended DVD Edition, which adds an additional 30 minutes of material to the usual 178 minutes running time of the film (making it an almost three and a half hour movie).
It's considered a landmark film which I highly enjoy watching time and again over the years. It did very well at the box office. It garnered 13 Oscar nominations, winning four Oscars. The American Film Institute ranks it at No. 50 on its list of 100 greatest American films and as the second greatest fantasy film of all times.
Though it helped having a $93 million budget to work with, it helped even more that the director and leader of the project, Peter Jackson, being a lifelong fan of the books, poured his love for it into every aspect of the film. Many described him as basically an overgrown hobbit. He maintained good pacing throughout the film.
 |
| New Zealand scenery |
The all-star cast, led by Elijah Wood, also poured themselves into their roles. Some of them, like Christopher Lee, read the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy once every year, as do many fans of the series. Special mention for Andy Serkis who provided the voice and motion capture for the CGI character, Gollum.
They shot the film entirely in New Zealand - with it's visually stunning scenery, which helped to convey a sense of what Middle-Earth might have looked like.
The talented crew garnered the four Oscars for Best Cinematography, Best Makeup, Best Visual Effects, and Best Original Score.
Jackson planned this film as the first film of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. (I will write about the film trilogy later.)
 |
| Aragorn |
The film largely follows the plot of the book, which I discuss in my
post on it. Of course, in adapting the book to film, Jackson condenses the story, and makes minor changes for pacing and to focus on the story of Frodo and the ring. Sadly, Jackson decided to leave Tom Bombadil out. Jackson also added some twists to enhance the development of some of the characters. For example, Aragorn expresses self-doubt in the film so that he hesitates to claim his title as king, whereas in the book he awaits the appropriate time to make this claim.
If you haven't seen this film, I highly recommend it. If you have seen it, watch it again if its been awhile.
The Tolkien-Lewis Friendship
The Fellowship of the Rings (the book)
