Review 10: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

The Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring is an amazing fantasy film and one of the greatest fantasy movies ever made.

Based on the first book, The Fellowship of the Ring of the three volume novel, The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien,
In the fictional world of Middle Earth, An ancient Ring thought lost for centuries has been found, and through a strange twist in fate has been given to a small Hobbit named Frodo (Elijah Wood).
When Gandalf the wizard (Ian McKellen) discovers the Ring is in fact the One Ring of the Dark Lord Sauron, Frodo must make an epic quest to the Cracks of Doom in order to destroy it! However he does not go alone. He is joined by Gandalf, Legolas the elf (Orlando Bloom), Gimli the Dwarf ( John Rhys Davies), Aragorn (Viggio Morstein), Boromir (Sean Bean) and his three Hobbit friends Merry (Dominic Monaghan), Pippin (Billy Boyd) and Samwise (Sean Astin). Through mountains, snow, darkness, forests, rivers and plains, facing evil and danger at every corner the Fellowship of the Ring must go. Their quest to destroy the One Ring is the only hope for the end of the Dark Lords reign!

Firstly I just want to say that this film (in fact this whole trilogy for that matter) is more than just a film, it's an experience. The film starts and you're immediately thrown into a completely different world unlike ours. A world filled with breathtaking country, forrest, mountains and extraordinary creatures like Hobbits, Elves, Dwarfs, Orcs, Trolls, Ents, Eagles and many other creatures.

In terms of storytelling, this film is a masterpiece. Whichever form you look at it, be it in literature or on film, The Lord of the Rings is very much a three-act play. The Fellowship of the Ring is the first act. We are introduced to the characters and then flung right into the adventure and the great thing is that the adventure is just as immersive as the world itself, you feel as if you are there with these characters on this adventure. The sense of scope, the ambition is just unparalleled. It presents a sense of awe and amazement that you just don't get from other films in this genre.

Writer/Director Peter Jackson's vision of Tolkien's Middle Earth is mind blowing.

Not only is it a wonderful fantasy but it also has so many themes and concepts such as Death, Immortality, good vs evil, race and social class to name a few.

Death and Immortality: Throughout the Trilogy, death is referred to as a gift (and doom) of man, whilst immortality is the gift given to the Elves. The Elves can never die of old age and are resistant to disease and illness. They can however be slain in battle or die by similar means: however, even when they die they only go to the Halls of Mandos in Aman and eventually can be "reincarnated" into life. As such they are bound to Middle Earth and as a result they wane in prominence and can grow weary of the world and wish to escape it. 

The fate of man is left uncertain. This leads to some form of fear for Men, who do not understand what truly happens at death and thus fear it as a result.

Throughout the trilogy there's a subplot involving a love story between Aragorn and Arwen. The two love each other but due to them being their time together is limited and will have consequences.

Good vs Evil: In both the book and the Trilogy, the determining factor between good and evil is in class rather than race, you have lower class creatures such as Hobbits and Dwarfs and then you have higher class creatures such as Elves and Wizards. Men also have some high class status - their is aristocracy with Kings like Elrond and characters who are sons of Kings like Boromir and Aragorn.

On the bad side their are species like Orcs, Trolls and the Urks who are Suaron's foot soldiers and capable of whipping out entire armies.

Power and Temptation: The theme of power in The Lord of the Rings centres around the corrupting influence of the One Ring. What lies at the heart of the story is the assertions made by Gandelf about the power and influence of the One Ring, and the corrupting influence it has on its bearers.

Gandalf rejects the Ring after Frodo offers it to him, and this view of the nature of the Ring is reinforced as Elrond, Galadriel and Aragorn in their turn, also reject the Ring.
Boromir, on the other hand, becomes murderously obsessed with the ring, even though he never possesses it. 

Fate and Free Will: Gandalf in one scene discusses the possibility that Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, and that Gollum has an important part to play, the clearest testament to the role of fate in The Lord of the Rings. Gandalf himself even says: "So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. Bilbo was meant to find the ring in which case you were also meant to have it."
Frodo's voluntary choice to bear the Ring to Mordor is seen to be an act central to the plot of the whole story. Also important is Frodo's willing offer of the Ring to Gandalf, Aragorn, and Galadriel, and their willing refusal of it.

Director Peter Jackson's directing is precise, the cinematography and scenery are breathtaking, the special effects are impossible, the action is astounding, the costumes, makeup and props are all gorgeous, the production design is fabulous, the score by Howard Shore is monumental, the sound effects are great and the ending was superb. 

The acting is outstanding, what's remarkable about this film (as well as the entire trilogy) is that there is no one protagonist, it's this ginormous ensemble of characters played by some exceptionally talented actors and boy does this film have an awesome cast: 

Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Austin, Liv Tyler, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davis, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, Ian Holm, Sean Bean, Christopher Lee, the list goes on. I was especially impressed by the castings of McKellen and Lee, not just because they're fabulous actors but because they just command this sense of authority and wisdom and (in Lee's case) power and intimidation.

 

The Lord of the Rings is a once in a lifetime experience, 5/5.

The Anonymous Critic.