Review of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) by Jacob M — 10 Dec 2013

When little-known director at the time Peter Jackson decided to create an epic film adaptation of JRR Tolkien's timeless Lord of the Rings books, stakes were raised extremely high, especially when Ralph Bashki's animation version of the story was an epic disaster back in 1978 (though I never watched it) and when it was decided to film the trilogy back-to-back-to-back. Thankfully, when the first chapter of the film trilogy, The Fellowship of the Ring, was released in 2001, it was an epic smash, winning 4 Academy Awards, 13 total nominations including Best Picture, which is rare for a big blockbuster. Jackson's LOTR trilogy were game-changers in the fantasy genre, and The Fellowship of the Ring begins this great franchise off with a ginormous bang, leading up to an strong epic cliffhanger that definitely made audiences begging to see the sequels.

In the world of Middle-earth, hobbit Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) gains possession of a mysterious magical ring from his mysterious uncle Bilbo (Ian Holm). When it's revealed that the ring is the One Ring, a powerful ring formally owned by the fallen Lord Sauron, Frodo, along with a band of heroes, known as The Fellowship of the Ring, leads into an epic quest to the fires of Mount Doom to destroy the ring and defeat Sauron once and for all before he regains possession of it.

Joining the Fellowship includes Sean Astin as hobbit (and Frodo's personal friend) Sam,.

Dominic Monaghan and Billy Boyd as comical hobbits Merry and Pippin, Ian McKellen as wise wizard Gandalf the Grey, Viggo Mortenson as ranger Aragorn/Strider, Orlando Bloom as bow-shooting elf Legolas, John Rhys-Davies as the humorous dwarf Gimli, and Sean Bean as the suspicious human Boromir.

Also appearing in this epic masterpiece includes Hugo Weaving as wise elf Elrond, Liv Tyler as Aragon's elf lover Arwen, Cate Blanchett as beautiful elf princess Galadriel, Christopher Lee as the villainous wizard Saruman the White, and Andy Serkis as the mysterious creature Gollum.

Jackson created the world of Middle-earth on film via filming in the lovely New Zealand, and it's gorgeous. Had Jackson chosen to create this incredible fantasy world via green-screen or by Hollywood backlot, then the film definitely wouldn't have worked as great as it was. The cinematic shots of New Zealand landscapes are jaw-dropping and amazing to look at. Also the visuals for this film, created by Weta Workshop, are also amazing. Weta brilliantly manages to combine CGI and practical effects in the most astounding way possible, CGI for things like cave trolls and a demon called "The Shadow" and practical for Orcs and the Urukai. Whatever Jackson and Weta did, this is visual filmmaking at it's finest in the 21st Century.

Considering it's a fantasy epic, each scene presented in this film sounds like it could have happened in real-life. No there wouldn't be magical rings or hobbits or dwarves or elves, but the thought of a ruthless ruler returning to power and attempting to destroy the world is actually a scary thought. Jackson brilliantly combines fantasy elements and reality and, with the excellent Tolkien source material, creates a wonderful fantasy epic. I was also impressed with the action sequences as well, with my personal favorite being a sequence where Gandalf confronts "The Shadow" in a really dark and scary mine controlled by Orcs, hollering "YOU SHALL NOT PASS!". Other strong sequences are the opening battle scene during the origins of the ring scene, Gandalf's epic battle with Saruman, Arwen's fight against evil hooded figures, and the finale with the Fellowship in action against Saruman's created Orc army, the Urukai. In three hours, Jackson has created the ultimate fantasy experience without overdoing it on heavy action.

There's a huge heavy cast involved in Fellowship of the Ring, and each one involved did an amazing acting performance here. Elijah Wood is excellent as Frodo and shows dedication to one who wants to defeat evil. Other noteworthy performances include Viggo Mortenson as exiled heir Aragorn, who excels the most in the excellent action sequences, Ian McKellen as Gandalf, who's performance was Oscar-worthy in emotional depth and pure awesomeness, and veteran actor Christopher Lee as Saruman, the wizard assistant to Sauron.

And last, Howard Shore's score for this film is spectacular. There's loads of exciting themes here, from the fellowship, The Shire, the ring, Saruman, and even one for Sean Bean's Boromir character. The score definitely deserved it's Oscar win, due to how strong Shore's cues are and how emotional Shore puts into his work.

It could have been a disaster in the hands of an amateur, but with Peter Jackson at the helm, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings is that epic of a fantasy film, with perfect acting all around, stellar visuals, a great score, and Jackson's approach to the world of Middle-earth. The Lord of the Rings franchise is that rare book-to-movie franchise where there's detail and perfection in every way mentioned, and Peter Jackson is a modern genius filmmaker. The Fellowship of the Ring is an excellent beginning, and the franchise has only started.