Best of the three by far. Absolutely beautiful photography, lovely story, and I like that he put Arwen on the horse in the river, even though that wasn't in the book.

Good Stories overall, Good Characters, Good costumes, Good scenery, Good Special effect, not a classic movie yet

Needs Tom Bombadil!!!!

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I love what Peter Jackson has done. He's taken an epic book series, and turned it into 3 absolutly fantastic movies! He can take made up characters and creatures and turn them into real living walking things! Only Tolkien could create a walking, talking tree, or a place like the dead marshes. This first movie really gives us a look inside Tolkiens imagination. You really get to see what went on in his mind as he was creating these epic characters. I mean, Aragorn, Elrond, Legolas, it's all there. Then he went through the process of creating races. Like Elves who can walk on snow instead of sinking. Wizards, who fight each other with staffs. A huge eye that can see everything. Orcs and Uruk-hai. Everything. It's just incredible! Peter, then had to do the work of creating Tolkiens book and making it come to life. Elijah ,Sean A, Billy and Dom, all had to go through, putting the feet on and the ears. Orlando, Liv and all the other hundreds of extra elves went through hours of makeup- costumes,ears and contacs. Peter has done a fantastic job! This movie captures the beginning of an amazing journey through not only middle earth, but time as well. Very well done, and the next 2 get even better!

Not as bad as I thought it would be. I tried it once when it first came out but couldn't sit through it. Then, I watched it on TV and liked it. I now have it on DVD. Peter Jackson did a nice job on directing the film. I haven't read Tolkien's books, but I plan to someday. It's one of the best fantasy films if you give it a try.

What a waste of time. I've never seen so many weird people in one movie theatre at once.

Excellent movie. I was a little disappointed on my first viewing, but after giving it a second chance I realized how great it is. I'm not sure which LOTR movies is my favorite, but the LOTR Trilogy are the best movies of the twenty-first century.

Good, faithful to the spirit of the book. Several great performances, and fine cinematography. I actually prefer the extended version on video.

I cannot begin to express my utmost disappointment that Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship, did not win an Academy Award for Best Picture. Don't get me wrong a Beautiful Mind is a fantastic film, but when you look at the battle sequences in TFOTR and the amazing computer generated characters with such detail and smooth movements not to mention the honesty of the book to the film keeping characters, storyline and themes in place you can't really fault this film.

Peter Jackson really knows his stuff. No matter what situation it is, he captures it perfectly. IT is so refreshing that a movie of this caliber has become such a phenomenon.

Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring is an admirable and successful attempt to bring the first book of the Tolkien trilogy to the big screen, staying true to the book though not an exact representation. The biggest problem is that the original story is simply too long and complex for three movies. To solve this problem, director Peter Jackson should have filmed in at least a series of four, maybe five installments (though I am sure that there were substantial cost considerations). Also, it would have been better to have a tighter closure to the film, making it a more self-standing story. Notwithstanding these reservations, the film itself is a masterpiece of modern cinema, utilizing nearly spot on casting, excellent cinematography, lush and imaginative settings, mesmerizing music, and state of the art special effects. As other comments have noted, Hugo Weaving as the high elf Elrond didn't quite fit my expectations, Sean Astin as Samwise Gamgee did not fit for me at all, and Viggo Mortensen struck me as smaller and less latently regal as I envisioned, though Mortensen began to come through as the movie progressed. I also agree with another comment that Liv Tyler would have been better cast as Eowyn rather than Arwen (but this is a minor detail). While the original story was altered by the screenwriters to give Arwen a larger role, this was most likely done to make the movie more applicable to contemporary audiences (ie they injected more estrogen). Moreover, the screenwriters made Frodo (played by Elijah Wood) more animated. In the book, Frodo was often more of a stick figure being manipulated by the powers surrounding him. Finally, the screenwriters properly edited out some scenes (eg Tom Bombadil) which seem awkward enough in the original story and would have obviously confused those unfamiliar with Tolkien in the movie. The bottom line is that Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring raises the bar and sets the new standard for big production films that must be seen on the big screen to be appreciated. Moreover, while it is helpful to have read the original story prior to viewing the film (as always), the movie does an excellent job at avoiding this crutch.

An epic sure to live on! I don't understand how anyone could criticize this movie. Superb acting, scenery, sets, special effect...It or one of the other two LOTR films deserves to win an Oscar-hands down. Peter Jackson is a genius.

First let me say that I have been reading Sci Fi and Fantasy for 35 years but this movie was BORING...it was WAY to long with to many bloated scenes

I never thought Peter Jackson would be this succesful in bringing this book to the big screen

I was impressed at how faithful the movie was to the book. I noticed that some parts of the book were left out only to learn that they were left on the editing room floor. After giving it a second thought I realized that it was better this way. Seeing how idiots like axlrod2003 can't stay focused for two seconds. If people lke him were forced to endure the extra footage it would surely drive them to suicide.

I thought the movie was going to be boring, but it was GREAT! Legolas is so so so so so so so HOOOOTTTTT!!!!

Simply put, Just a great movie.

great movie, i liked how they incorporated christian concepts into the movie with out preaching.

Great movie. I am a Tolkien. What I love about the book was how detailed it was, how complex. Could the mopvies capture that, no. So why try. Or why, for that matter try and hold true. Instead Peter Jackson held true in a different way. He held true to the themes, and the story itself. The emotions, the places, what made Middle Earth. And the book is confusing, watching the movie can really help clarify it too. The sets and the music and the characters looked to me correct. And unlike that horrendous animated film (true to the book in it's own way) the prounounciations are correct. The animated film messed up the names, had Celeborn pronounced Seleborn, and wouldn't even dare put the amount of elvish and such that was in these movies. Good job there. They seemed toc are about keeping the characters looking the way they should, so to speak. They put little details in, some which made sense only to the fans. peter Jackson did a good job. In general (especially in the first one) he did a good job of knowing what to take out, and what to leave it, making the difficult choices. All in all he suceeded at keeping the balance.

EXCELLENT MOVIE! I can't stand fantasy/sci fi movies - but Lord of the Rings is the exception. I was hounded to see it for the longest time but refused because I thought it would suck - I finally watched it to shut him up and I couldn't be happier that I did. I'm a die-hard Lord of the Rings fan now! And if you like the Fellowship - you'll love the Two Towers!

Best movie of the year. It deserved a better showing in the Academy Awards. (Maybe they're waiting 'til the third film. We can only hope.)

A near perfect rendering of the book.

I'm a big fan of Tolkien. I have read most of his books. Even though they changed some things from the book, this movie was amazing. One of the best movies I have ever seen.

I absolutely LOVE LOTR!!!! I know they could have made the movie a lot more like the book, but no one, not even YOU are perfect! This is the best group of book I have ever read and it leaves Harry Potter in the dust by SO far!! Lord Of The Rings is the best movie/book series ever written and I really wish J.R.R would have kept writing them, I know they'd have been more and more amazing each time he wrote a new book.

If I could give decimal ratings, it would be more than a 4.5, but less than a 5. This is a great movie, and sometimes was sad, but had lots of action. I have not read any of the books though.

Yes, yes, I admit these movies are very well done... though there are plenty of things I would've done quite differently as an immense fan of the book and a devout movie watcher/critic. I read the book very shortly before the first film came out, and was completely swept away. Therefore I had my fears of the movie taking away from my experience of the book. The movie stands up well in its own right, but, as hard as I try, I just can't shake off my convictions and reservations as - yes, go ahead and sue me - a book purist.

Superlative piece of art.

I love the Lord of the rings! While, as stated many other itmes on these pages, the movies did not stick completely to the books, it was excelent. I loved every aspect of the enitre movie and love the two towers as well. I can't wait for the third enstallment to come out this christmas. Peter jackson did an excelent job portraying the true heart of the story and all of the actors did excellent as well. I got the FOTR movie for christams and now the film is worn out if that tells you anything about how good it is!

They could have butchered this film, but I am relieved to find that Peter Jackson found competant actors to bring this story to life. There are two great things about this movie. One is Ian McKellan's Gandalf, who is absolutely brilliant and was shafted for best supporting actor. The other great thing about the movie was the suspense and fear it created. In short they did "evil" right. Kudos to all those involved. I loved every second.

Brilliant!

one of the best movies ever (my opinion) even though it did stray a bit fro the book

THE ADAPTATION FROM BOOK TO FILM ON THE SERIES APPEARS TO BE A SUCCESS. THE FIRST FILM WHICH CENTERED ON MOSTLY A FEW CHARACTERS WAS BETTER ACCEPTED BY ME PERSONALLY THAN THE SECOND WHICH INTRODUCED US TO MANY MORE CREATURES AND PERSONALITIES. IT IS MY DESIRE TO SEE ART IMITATE LIFE AND SO ONE MUST WONDER WAS THERE NOT A BROWN SKINNED HUMAN, ELF, DWARF, OR HOBBIT IN THE WHOLE OF MIDDLE EARTH, AND THOUGH JR TOLKIEN DIDN'T MENTION IF I REMEMBER IN READING ANY PIGMENTATION BESIDES THAT ATRIBUTED TO THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE IMAGINARY RACES. ONE MUST WONDER HOW A FILM OF SUCH EPIC PORPORTIONS THAT MUST TOUCH SO MANY IMAGINATIONS WOULD BE MADE WITHOUT AN AFRO-AMERICAN ACTOR IN OBVIOUS SITE, OR MAYBE IT'S SURON, THE RULLER OF MORDOR.

Way overated, over long, and boring, but admire keeping the story the same.

See it in the theater, if possible. The cinematography is spectacular!

Hi my name is Sarah Kimball and I am a student at Tufts University. I am writing an article about online reviewers and sites and I was wondering if anyone wanted to let me know about themselves, how they started writing reviews, why the do it, how useful they are etc. Email me at sarah.kimball@tufts.edu and i guess we'll see how easy it is to contact other reviewers! :)

Almost as good as the book!

This movie is the best of all the movies on this list. It was absolutely spell-binding and had me glued to my seat. As someone who read the book, I must say it was even better than I imagined. I cannot wait for the next one coming out in December.

A masterpiece. Sure, they strayed off the book a little (Glorfindel, anyone?), but overall it was brilliant. Definitely one of the best modern movies in history, with excellent scenery (from my home country :)) great effects and characters (the casting was perfect) and a great story. Here's looking forward to the next two.

I enjoyed this movie very much, but I can't give it five stars. First of all, if I really love a movie I'll keep thinking about it for hours, and this one was out of my mind within minutes. Also, I thought several scenes should have been either cut altogether or at least trimmed--the main one being the scene with the squid-like creature. It didn't even look real, and this is in a movie where the special effects were spared no expense. Another thing is the "sort of" ending. It stopped in a very strange part of the story, and it had a lot of people griping about it including me. It still rates four stars because of the incredible (mostly) effects, the actors, the sets, and the incredible cinematography.

Stupendous classic the moment it hits the screen. Gorgeous to look at, wonderfully wrought with such loving care and reverence for the literary legend.

This is the best movie of the century. I love it..everything about it is good. It should have won an oscar..Peter Jackson aswell. Well, better luck next time. By the way: this is a terrific movie..if you haven't seen it yet..then do it. =)

Finally, after waiting much longer than I'd intended, I saw "Fellowship of the Ring" and was thoroughly impressed. I first read the trilogy many years ago and have read it numerous times since. I doubted that any movie could come even close to the magic and power of the books; however, Peter Jackson has succeeded in being very true to Tolkien's creation. Most of the changes were simply omissions, and surely no one could have expected every part of the book could be included in a 3-hour movie. Although not all of the cast lives up to my own vision of the characters, I thought they were excellent and created their own very genuine versions of the characters they played. I agree with several of the points made by JayS but definitely disagree with the conclusion he makes in "Update". I have read and appreciated the trilogy for a very long time but was not annoyed by the movie at all -- in fact, I enjoyed it thoroughly and can hardly wait for the release of The Two Towers.

The Lord of the Rings; The Fellowship of the Ring is definetly the best movie ever made! I wish i could give it a higher rating but I can't! If there was a 1,000,000 I would definetly rate it with that! Anyone who doesn't like it doesn't understand it needs to go to a mental hospital!

It was OK. I didn't read the books, and I didn't see it in the theater. I watched it at home. I thought it was too long. What the movie accomplished could easily have been done in 2 hours. I found myself looking around the room instead of at the TV 'cause I was getting bored. Don't get me wrong, there were some exciting parts where I was sitting at the edge of my seat, but over all, it was a little on the slow side.

The best movie in the world.

This movie is a masterpiece, plain and simple. Very beautiful scenery and effects, and a well thought-out and well acted storyline. I also like how the movie doesn't have an actual chapter ending just like the book. The main ending will come at the end of the third one. It's kind of different from Star Wars where they would have an actual chapter ending at the end of each movie. It is also very detailed when it comes to every character(appearance and background), history, the world of role playing (or realm of RP. However you put it), and of course the book itself.. If you haven't seen it, GO SEE IT!!!!

The best movie IN THE WORLD.

Apparently, I'm one of the few who thinks differently than the rest about this movie. I hated it. I'm beginning to come to the realization that I hate fantasy, sci-fi type movies that last for hours. I did not appreciate Star Wars, Harry Potter, or this. I read the Harry Patter books, and liked them fine. I'm considering reading these, althought the movie is a huge deterrent. I vow, from this day foward, never to sit through another movie like this.

This movie was marvelous. I have always been a fan of Tolkien and fantasy as a genre. When they announced that someone was making The Fellowship of the Ring into a movie I was half over-joyed and half wary of what they may do to the story. But after seeing the movie I'm extremely impressed and cannot wait until the next installment comes out this December. The acting was wonderful, the characters were exactly as they should be and the sets and special effects...they were just amazing. This movie is a beautiful movie in so many ways. Go see it, that's all I can say...just go see it.

This movie was excellent! It had great graphics a wonderful plot and the actors were positivly superb!