The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Release Date: 20 December, 2001


What's It About: A powerful ring that has the power to bend its wielder's will over the entire world has recently turned up in a small, quaint town in the hands of a Hobbit. Together with friends they must take the Ring to destroy it before it is found by the forces of evil.


The Good: Incredible scope and fidelity to the source material. The film is filled to the brim with small references, details and easter eggs that make the world of Middle Earth burst out from the screen. Peter Jackson went to great lengths to convert the books to film and didn't change a great deal out of the source material. The costuming, makeup and weapons are top notch and look completely real. The location shooting is fantastic as each location seems to come to life and look like a real place in the world.


The Bad: The film is very long and although well-paced, there is simply so much to cover that the giant running time is necessary to tell the story properly. There is also a huge amount of detail in the film, and viewers who aren't familiar with the books are going to miss some out. The film also takes no time to provide proper backstory to some of the characters and the things they say (sometimes referencing events that happened in the book that are never touched upon in the film), so it can be confusing to some people.


Best Performance: Ian McKellen as Gandalf the Grey. McKellen has a very strong acting career and his role as the wizard Gandalf is likely his defining role. Gandalf acts as the anchor of the Fellowship and its de facto leader, bringing and keeping the team together as they embark on their journey across Middle Earth. He is able to exert considerable range across his performance, from a shaken, crazy old man to a wise and powerful leader. He is the Fellowship's voice of reason and we find ourselves attaching to him the way a child latches onto a parent.


Should I Watch It: The Lord of the Rings film series put New Zealand on the map. Peter Jackson made a point of filming everything in his native country to showcase to the world what New Zealand looks like and all of the beauty it has to offer. As the world-setting film of the three, Fellowship has a tough order to fill the viewer in on all the backstory and get them started on the journey that will follow over two more films, and I believe it did so very well.


Post-Credits Scene: No


Similar Films: The other Lord of the Rings films (2001-2003), The Hobbit series (2012-2014), The Golden Compass (2007)


Trailer: