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Lord of the Rings:
Fellowship of the Ring
Click
picture to order this DVD (Widescreen edition)
If you
prefer, click the following link for the Fullscreen Edition.
The Film:
I must admit, I went into Lord of
the Rings with much more knowledge of this book series than I did for
Harry
Potter. I felt I'd be nudged for such knowledge during the
film by a movie companion, who I
worried might feel "lost" at more complicated moments of the
story. As it so turned out, this well-edited film has no such moments, and
to say that my friend bought the whole book trilogy this film is based on,
right after the film ended, is saying an awful lot. This film is truly a
treat, both for both fans
and yet-to-be-fans. The film's
successes begin with an excellently narrated
prologue, that explains the back story of the Lord of the Rings saga. Rings of
power were made for all kings in an ancient world; 9 for
the human kings, plus the Elvin leaders, Dwarves, and so on.
Unfortunately, these rings turned out to be a
ploy by the Dark Lord Sauron, who made a master-ring to
control them all. They discovered this plot, and the different worlds revolted, eventually severing the ring from the
ring bearer. Unfortunately, they were unsuccessful to destroy the ring
itself... This was eons ago in the
history of this land. As the prologue excellently narrates, history has
since become legend, and legend had become myth, until thousands of years
later, when the ring gets placed into the hands of the unassuming, innocent minded Frodo Baggins (Elijah
Wood). It is up
to him, a diminutive Hobbit, to destroy the ring once and for all, since
he alone has a mind innocent enough to not be corrupted by the power the
ring possesses. This is no easy task; the ring can
only be destroyed in the volcanic pit it was forged in. 8 warriors, kings, and sorcerers
--plus three of
his Hobbit friends-- volunteer to help him with this journey. This clan is
soon called: The Fellowship of the
Ring! Of course, it's quite a while
in this 3-hour film until this fellowship is even close to being formed.
The first hour is purely build-up to the story, as we
learn of Frodo as well as Bilbo Baggins (the elder, prior Hobbit-owner of the ring), and their trusted wizard friend, Gandalf. Fans of
shorter "action films" might've suggested that this hour was narrated, though that would
have been a mistake. It excellently shows the innocent Hobbits --Frodo in particular-- plus the sad fate of
whoever possesses the ring for too long, once seduced by the ring (a power
which nearly consumes kindly old Bilbo himself). This hour sets the mood
perfectly. The
resulting story is also a masterful achievement in FX. For
years, fantasy films were filled with mere stop-animation
puppetry, which often led to unintentional humor.
With modern technology, the vision of J.R.R. Tolkien
can finally be shown with the respect it deserves: from excellently crafted sets
like Bilbo's half-sized cottage, to the "dragon firecracker" two
hobbits light as a joke. As for villainy, the 9 ringwraiths --the
half-dead former kings who now are controlled by The Dark One-- are
perhaps the eeriest (and therefore, best) "ghost effects"
ever created. There's even an uncanny way that full-sized stars like
Elijah Wood truly look like "Hobbits" when next to other "humans." I was
also intrigued by the shadow world a person enters when wearing
the ring. After 2001 released holiday films like this, 2002 films like Spider-Man
and Star Wars Episode 2
had an even tougher act to follow. The
film would be worth very little, however, if not for a strong cast. This includes talented
cameos which will be elaborated in the sequels: Liv Tyler as Arwen the Elf, Cate
Blanchett as the beautiful yet mysterious Galadriel, and Viggo Mortensen
as the brave "strider" Aragorn. As for the lead roles, Elijah
Wood is a perfect Frodo
Baggins (this must be the type of diminutive-her story George Lucas and Ron Howard attempted, in their
1988 film, Willow), as is Orlando Bloom as Legolas the elf,
and particularly Ian
McKellan, whose role as the wizard Gandalf is pivotal. Just 2 minutes shy of a full 3
hours, it's surprising how much this film holds your attention. The only gripe
--however mild-- is
that the ending might seem a bit "open," to those who want all their plot
branches tied up in a little bow. To me, even if the 2002 and 2003 sequels
weren't already filmed(!), the
ending stands well by itself. If the sequels are at all are like this first installment,
however, I can't wait.
The
DVD: I think the biggest
"tease" here is that there are two versions of the DVD planned.
The one released later in 2002 includes half an hour of deleted footage, re-edited into an even
more thorough Lord of the Rings experience. On the other hand, this is the
version that was seen in theaters; a viewing option the extended edition
will not allow. So, for those who like the movie as-is, the regular,
two-disc set is just fine. For
starters, don't worry; the movie is on its own DVD, so there's no
disc-swapping in between the film itself. Disc two is all extras,
including the typical theatrical trailers, and best of all (until we see
it anyway, that is!): a 10 minute sneak peek of the sequel, The Two
Towers. Is this sneak peek worth it? Well, teasingly, half of it is
director Peter Jackson babbling on about it, though there are more than
enough sneak peeks from the film itself to warrant viewing this teaser. In
addition, there are documentaries galore. Three in all, they include
"Welcome to Middle Earth" (as originally shown as an in-store
special shown by Houghton Mifflin), "The Quest for the Ring" (as
shown on the FBC network), and "A Passage to Middle-earth" (the
Sci-Fi channel's special on the film). In addition, 15
"featurettes," originally only seen as downloadable
thumbnail-sized video on lordoftherings.net, are preserved on the disc in
full-screen clarity. These latter clips include the locales and cultures
of the film, plus interviews with Liv Tyler, Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen,
Viggo Mortensen, and many more. Of
course, no DVD of this film would be complete without Enya's "May It
Be" music video. It may have lost the Best Original Song Oscar to Monster's
Inc.'s "If I didn't have you," though it's still one
of the best movie songs of 2001. A sneak peek is also offered of the
extended edition of this film, though if you ask me this "inside
look" is more of a teaser than I'd prefer. A better inside look is
for the Electronic Arts video game for The Two Towers, which
really makes me want that game as soon as it's released. Of
course, this is one of those DVDs that really didn't have to go to the
trouble to make it a two-disc set; the film itself is more than worth the
purchase price. Others, however, might make a snide remark about the
marketing schemes behind selling the regular DVD set now, and the deleted
scene savvy "Extended Edition" later. The truth is, this is a
good film no matter what. Anyone who isn't among the type of "leave
your brain at the door" types of moviegoers, is bound to love it.
| All text, Title
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copyright 1999-2001; all rights reserved. Picture of DVD cover is used only for the purpose of review (and to make shopping for
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