Even better is the exceptional casting, utilising talented newcomers and
established thespians in equal measure. Elijah Wood has never been better
than playing the innocent Frodo, Ian McKellen is a note-perfect Gandalf,
Christopher Lee proves he can still scare as evil sorceror Saruman, Ian Holm
is a particular delight as Bilbo Baggins, Sean Bean gives a solid
performance as the tortured Boromir, newcomer Viggo Mortensen easily sets
himself up as a talent to watch and the rest of the cast are just as good.
However, even given a 3 hour running time, many characters are cruelly
underdeveloped here - such as the dwarf Gimli, Merry and Pipping the hobbits,
or Elf archer Legolas. As it stands now, these characters were merely
additional hands for the fight sequences. But there are two more films to go,
let's not forget...
And that's another "problem" with the film. Unlike many other trilogies (yes,
even
Star Wars),
"Lord Of The Rings" is a proper trio of films. Here you're more acutely
aware you're watching merely the first act of one BIG movie, and therefore the
sense of closure for the film is unsatisfying - although it does leave you
panting for more! One senses you won't fully appreciate any of the films
entirely until the credits roll for "The Return Of The King" in 2003.
That said, it means a lot of problems "Fellowship" does have can easily
be excused because of this three-film setup... which is a blessing. Since you
know you're buying into a 9-hour experience spread over 3 years, so you can
forgive any flaws the first film has.
The music and sound effects are also worthy of special mention. Howard Shore
("Se7en")
does an amazing job at evoking the epic nature of the film, together with the
dramatic human edge that characterizes the piece. His score is both huge and
booming, then tranquil and sweet in equal turn. The film's cohesion owes a lot
to his work, and it truly elevates the action scenes. The sound effects are
similarly a huge plus for the movie and add a great deal of weight and power
to the visuals - particularly the whinnying Black Rider horses...
Of course, for a $109m film the special effects are obviously fabulous. The
film actually has fewer standout effects-driven moments than you may be
expecting, but that's because much of the delight in the film is with more
traditional effects fare - such as hideous makeups for the army of Orks, the
naturally amazing scenery of New Zealand, and extensive sets.
But when full-blown CGI kicks in, it never disappoints. Jackson's WETA company
build upon the fantastic work they did in
"The Frighteners"
ten-fold - giving George Lucas' ILM a run for their money! In particular, an
opening battle sequence (though very short) is a nerve-jangling experience of
visual and audio prowess, as is an attack by the expertly-realised Cave Troll
and the encounter with the Balrog demon. However, the film's effects aren't a
huge quantum leap in photorealism as many were touting in mid-2001, but they
certainly are impressive, and thankfully not overused as in
"The Phantom Menace"
to create a phoney atmosphere.
So what's to hate? Well nothing, really. It takes a while for the actual
journey to start, there are a few lulls in the mid-section, a few moments when
the persistent encounters with various creatures becomes slightly tiresome
(did we really need the tentacled creature?), the Black Riders are somewhat
overused and there are a few other kinks that will probably be ironed out in
the next two installments - so are effectively nullified for now. But this
isn't a film you can hate. It shows more maturity than its genre's reputation
suggests, and whisks you away to Middle Earth for three hours. Enjoy it.
It will be 12 months until we see Middle Earth again... the journey's only
just begun...
As of April 2009, Blu-rays and DVDs reviewed by the editor are watched on a Panasonic TH-37PX80B
37" Plasma TV with a Sony BDP-1500 Blu-ray player and played through a Yamaha DSP-AX820 amplifier.
PC games reviewed by the editor are on:
Since Jan 2011: Intel Quad Core Dell XPS 8100, i7 CPU 860 @ 2.80Ghz, 8Gb RAM, nVidia GeForce GTS 240, Windows 7
Since Nov 2005: Intel Pentium D 830 3.0Ghz, 1Gb RAM, 128Mb nVidia GeForce 6700XL, Windows XP
Since Aug 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.66Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb GeForce4 MX440 graphics, Windows XP
Since May 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.6Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb ATI Radeon 9600TX graphics, Windows XP
Since Jun 2002: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, 64Mb ATI Radeon 8500LE
Since May 2000: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, Voodoo 3 3000 AGP
(not suitable for Under 8s)
