Before you read this review I should point out that I have not explained the story in detail, and there may be references within that could be considered spoilers. I make no apologies for either of these issues. As great as these films are, in my opinion the books are greater. No-one should sit down to watch these movies without first having read J.R.R. Tolkien's masterpiece.
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"One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them."
Lord of the Rings is one of the most loved literary works in the history of the written word. The films were a monumental undertaking, not only did they require incredible dedication and perseverance to create, but also an extraordinary amount of bravery. To take a tale that is dear to so many hearts and build a film on your own interpretation of it is a risky proposition.
Yes, the film won 12 Oscars, but then Titanic brought in 11 and that was atrocious, awards alone do not make a film great. Fortunately Jackson's rendering of Tolkien's epic tale is deserving of all these plaudits and more.
Talking of Oscars I feel it is important to mention the fact that Lord of the Rings did not pick up awards for the acting roles. Again it is similar to Titanic in this respect, however while for Cameron's movie this was due to a lack of talent, Jackson's was due to a glut. There were simply too many actors turning in the performance of a lifetime for anyone to be able to choose between them. Personally I feel that Andy Serkis'
portrayal of Gollum was something extra special, but even as I type this my mind is arguing that maybe Sean Astin's interpretation of Frodo's loyal friend Sam was even better. Like I said, to choose between them would be nigh on impossible.
A true epic film needs an epic location, and Lord of the Rings does not disappoint in this. My vocabulary struggles to find the words to truly describe quite how evocative the New Zealand locations are. Some of the vistas are so incredible that you truly believe that they are not of this world. Of course some of the locations required for this tale are not to be found upon our planet, and these have been created through use of both computer graphics and models. I've heard people complain about the special effects used to create locations, especially the Mines of Moria and Minas Tirith. I could not disagree more. This isn't like George Lucas' modifications of the original Star Wars films where he has behaved like a boy given the keys to a candy shop. In the Lord of the Rings films the effects blend seamlessly with the actual landscape. You really believe that the fellowship is passing between the enormous statues of ancient kings and standing atop the ramparts of the White City. A perfect example being when Pippin lights the Beacon of Gondor, and we follow as the signal travels across the mountains to Rohan. For me that scene is charged with such pure emotion, and it is delivered from the landscape and the score alone - I'm getting goosebumps just from reliving the footage as I type this!
The film is studded with action and these sequences are extremely well choreographed. Not only are the likes of Aragorn, Boromir and Legolas accurately portrayed as the seasoned warriors they are, but Jackson has also manage to capture the fact that not all of the fellowship are so adept. The skill that has been used to create the roles of the peace loving Hobbits in battle is equally brilliant, and they correctly come across as individuals who have never before wielded a sword, let alone fought for their lives. Of particular note are the battle of Helms Deep and my personal favourite, the fight against the Cave Troll deep within the Mines of Moria.
Not only do the actors do an outstanding job in the fight scenes, but so do the CGI characters. The Cave Troll mentioned above is possibly the best computer generated creature I have ever seen, and the Oliephaunts that appear in both the second and third films are incredible. As well as the individually created creatures, the enormous armies on the sides of both good and evil are exceptional. In my opinion they are more convincing than the purely human armies used in films such as Braveheart. All too often the extras used fail to encapsulate the emotion required, more often than not some of them look bored. Lord of the Rings does not suffer from this, which makes the pre-battle tension all the more real.
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The extended trilogy is by far the definitive version of the story. Whilst it was argued that fans would need to purchase both versions because of the difference in bonus material provided, that on the theatrical is release significantly inferior. Without exception the extended editions follow Tolkien's original story more closely, the additional footage allowing us to experience the characters and their situations in greater depths. The theatrical versions left out several important scenes, which are accommodated in the extended editions.
We now see Galadriel bestowing her gifts to the Fellowship, which is significant as the story progresses, and the addition of the fall of Saruman fills an important gap. We also get to see the Mouth of Sauron appear at the Black Gate.
That said, the story does not follow Tolkien's writings to the letter. While in places they match word for word there are still some things that Jackson and his team have chosen to omit. For the most part I agree with the changes he has made. For example, in the book, it takes Frodo and Sam almost a year to leave the Shire at the beginning of their journey; this has always sat uneasily with me. The film sees them leave the shire immediately, much more fitting for a quest of such urgency. There is also the ridiculous encounter with Tom Bombadil and his yellow boots. Sensibly Jackson has chosen not to include this, and has the hobbits receive their blades from Strider rather than acquiring them in the burial mounds. Also, as mentioned above, we see Sarumon meet his end at Isengard rather than in the Shire. For me these changes enhance the story, they iron out the relatively few problems that I always had with the books. That said there are some things that I would have liked to have seen included.
For example, whilst the extended editions show friendship between Legolas and Gimli in more detail than the theatrical version there is still a large amount left unsaid, we do not see them agreeing to visit Fanghorn and the Glittering Caves for instance.
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The extended editions comprise of four discs per film. Each movie is spread across 2 discs, which also contain a staggering four separate commentary tracks; The Director and Writers: Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens The Design Team The Production/Post-Production Team The Cast
With the extended versions of the films running to a total of around 11 hours, this results in approximately two days of solid commentary! Clearly this sort of dedication is only for the die-hard fan. However there are some real gems to be found within.
The third and fourth discs are home to the special features. There is a huge amount, almost too much, but it is extremely gratifying to find that nothing seems to have been included just to make up time.
The third disc for each set goes into detail on Tolkien himself, whilst the fourth disc is concerned with the making of the film.
Both provide a wealth of information and entertainment, allowing us greater understanding of what both Tolkien and Jackson strived for in their acts of creation.
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In conclusion Jackson has created as good a version of Tolkien's world as I am able to imagine. I am capable of no greater praise than that.
Price: The best I've found is on Amazon.co.uk - just under £27 for the box-set.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
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Production Year: 2001 - Action/Adventure - Director: Dominic Sena - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:John Travolta, Hugh Jackman, Halle Berry, Don Cheadle, Sam Shepard, Vinnie Jones, Camryn Grimes, Zach Grenier
Production Year: 2002 - Action/Adventure - Director: Vincenzo Natali - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring:Lucy Liu, David Hewlett, Anne Marie Scheffler, Joseph Scoren, Matthew Sharp, Jeremy Northam
great review and super films!...i agree with you that they missed some things out of the books, which i would have like to see in the film...however i think they rated the importance of parts pretty well and added what they could...any longer and you'd be growing moss!
Wanchai05 16.11.2006 13:12
Great review and i agree totally. No DVDcollection is complete without these films.
Soho_Black 06.12.2005 12:15
Nice review of the films, but it could do with a little more on what the extras are comprised of and if they're any good individually, rather than on a disc by disc basis.
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