Ring of Fire
As a child I was given either a copy of "Lord of the Rings" or "The Hobbit" to read and despite trying a few times I could never get into it, this sort of fantasy quest story has never really been my thing. So when in 2001 Peter Jackson made "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" the first of a trilogy I was not overly that interested in seeing it and to compound matters ended up in the worst seats in a crowded cinema, front row and right at the side so having to watch staring up and at an angle. It was not a joyful viewing experience and to be honest I walked out of the cinema after it had finished bored out of my brains and vowing never to watch "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" again. But I did and whilst this sort of fantasy quest movie is still not my thing there is no denying that Peter Jackson and his team have crafted a modern epic which judging by the numerous rave reviews is a hit with fans of the book.
Now in fear of insulting those who are wild about "Lord of the Rings" you can sum up the first movie quite quickly by saving a powerful ring which a dark lord called Sauron wants hunts down hobbit Frodo Baggins as he along with a group of helpers try to get the ring out of The Shire to Mount Doom in Mordor. There is a heck of a lot more to it than just that as this multi-layered storyline tells us several things from the history to the ring's powers whilst introducing us to a collection of characters. But ironically this movie which is just minutes short of 3 hours is really very simple.
Now admittedly I am not and have never been and doubt ever will be a fan of "Lord of the Rings" so for me whilst "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" starts of promisingly enough by the end of the first hour it was struggling to keep me interested. But that is me and I cannot see how anyone who loved the books would not love what Peter Jackson has done because there is a lot of story in this first movie which embellishes such a simple storyline. And he has really brought that story to life with fantastic sets, great costumes, clever use of CGI and a lot of detail. In fact whilst from a storyline point of view "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" is not my thing it is hard not to be impressed by the artistry, creativity and attention to detail which flows from the picturesque Shire to the darkness of a cave.
And as with the attention to detail it is hard not to be impressed by the performances throughout be it Elijah Wood as Frodo to Ian McKellen as Gandalf. Every single actor no matter how big or small their part is seems to understand their character and so bring them to life which with some wonderful costume work does make it on one level very entertaining. In fact as I would imagine there were various scenes where actors were talking to imaginary people in order to deal with scenes which highlight the size difference the editing team also deserve praise for making it seem so seamless.
What this all boils down to is that "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" is not my sort of movie and it is hard to get excited by a movie which in truth was boring me before it finished. But it is impossible to deny what a fabulous looking movie Peter Jackson and his team have created and in a way I wish I was a fan of this sort of fantasy adventure so that I could be more enthralled and excited by it.
