As far as expectations go, this one had a lot to live up to. We have been waiting patiently for the screen version of The Lord Of The Rings; though credit to Peter Jackson who filmed all three chapters and claims to be the biggest fan of Tolkien's book of the century. That is a lot of weight on this man's shoulder's. But this first glimpse, The Fellowship Of The Ring, is a creative ensemble piece. Somehow managing to give even the hardest of critics (big and small) a cinematic experience that deep down makes us want to see movies. Peter Jackson's adventure is worth the wait.
We all know the story by now. Basically, the ring of power is passed down to little Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood), a hobbit who's uncle (Ian Holm) found the ring sixty years earlier. Frodo's mission, inspired by the great Gandalf the Wizard (Ian McKellan, doing for this what Alec Guiness did for Star Wars), is to take the ring far and wide to where this ring is to be destroyed. We are, though, a long way off this actuality. Obstacles explode before our very eyes in the form of evil wizard Saramon (Christopher Lee), hundreds of Orcs, crumbling stairways, demons from the shadows, oh boy, the list goes on. All this is presented with no expense spared. Jackson's team make full use of the special effects on offer.
The Fellowship Of The Ring is the Star Wars of the new millenium, at least it could be. Critics have hailed it as a soon-to-be classic. And we can all see why. This is an impressive piece of cinema, bringing together the parts of celluloid that we all expect to see and love. This is by no means a perfect film. At times the pace slows down which is not to it's advantage, and the special effects feel over-used sometimes. Not that this matters. This movie has far too much going for it, and as the end credits unexpectedly paste across the screen we are, no matter how many times we looked at our watch during the film, eagerly awaiting the next one already.
The heart of the film is the fellowship. The performances are wonderful. And when comptuter imagery is not dominating we are blessed with touching acting (in particular Wood, McKellan and Mortensen). Even Liv Tyler who disappears before we can enjoy her, is so affective we long for her return. Technically I could go on, but the photography is immaculate, the camera takes us places we didn't think possible. And Howard Shore's subtle musical score is very fitting. The fellowship is strong with this one. In adventure, in story-telling, in film-making. |
