The Lord of the Rings
The Fellowship of the Rings
In anticipation of the DVD release of The Two Towers quickly coming upon us on August 26th, I decided I better post my movie review for the first installment of the trilogy, The Fellowship of the Rings. This review was written 12 January 2002. I dubbed it the best movie of 2001. (I will weave my top ten lists and other reviews throughout my other blogs.) This is also a good time to plug the blog Return of the King. The creator lists facts, trivia, and literature of and from Tolkein's trilogy, The Hobbit, and The Silmarillion.
Peter Jackson’s idyllic story of good and evil reigns supreme over any film I’ve seen this year, and perhaps, rivals the best of film from any other year. I was overwhelmed time and again with the vast landscapes, incredibly inspiring script, and impressive performances from some of the best that Hollywood has to offer¾especially Wood, McKellen, Blanchett, and Tyler but not to leave out Holms, Astin, Lee, Bean, and Mortensen.
Jackson’s Middle Earth is breathtaking; it’s landscapes are rich, beautiful, and majestic and are as enchanting as Tolkien would expect them to be. In fact, Jackson uses the landscapes of this Middle Earth as a tool, as if it were a primary character.
The vastness of most every landscape rightly depicts humanity’s smallness. We are overwhelmed with how small the Fellowship of men are against these vast and monstrous valleys and mountainous terrains. Figuratively, these landscapes symbolize the very obstacles that the Fellowship face, especially in the scenes where they attempt to climb the rugged snowy peaks of the South Pass; traverse through the Mines of Morea; or even flee the seemingly ever-present Ringwraiths and Orcs.
The obstacles never diminish in this film. When one obstacle is conquered, another one rears its ugly head. These obstacles either come as a consequence of a decision or act, or by the enemy. These obstacles and hardships echo the inner struggle of the main character, Frodo. He wrestles with an ever-present and overwhelming doubt that he is not capable of his mission¾to take the ring back to the fiery pit of Mt. Doom. Even the epic-proportions of the Enchanted Forrest of the Elf Queen and the gates of the Kings bring to mind a sense of how overwhelming life and the expectations we place on ourselves are.
Maybe Jackson intended this. Maybe this is what Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring is all about¾ small people, insignificant people, stepping up, facing their obstacles, and doing extraordinary things for the good of humanity.
If so, then Rings is also about big people, people with enough courage and perseverance to tackle the hardest of obstacles; but somewhere in their journey of conquering the adversary, become imprisoned by their greatness, and or lust for power. These are the men who become subject to evil, if not becoming the very personification of evil, as is the case with Sarumon (played by Christopher Lee).
We like to pretend that we are big and all-powerful, that our race is better than any other race existing in our world. This perception is dangerous. It inevitably leads to one’s undoing, as depicted by many sub-plots running throughout this film. Rings is a perfect epic tale for our time.
This notion is made most clear when the representatives of Middle Earth meet in Rivendale to discuss what should be done with the ring. Ego’s flare, unchecked accusations fly, and the representatives lose control of their reason and turn to those tribal intuitions that have divided them for centuries. At this time, the ring looks as if it is on fire, as if the verbal attacks and fighting fuels its very existence.
Frodo is the only one to see this, and hear the words coming from it. It is at this time that he knows that he alone can take this ring to where it needs to go, not because he is the smallest but because he is not tainted with his own grandeur or importance. Frodo’s intentions are true to all the inhabitants of Middle Earth, just not to the survival of his own, the Hobbits.
Rings is also about people buoying one another’s spirit to continue forging ahead, to never give up. "Even the smallest of people can accomplish great things," said Galadriel to Frodo, after Frodo reveals to her his doubt about being able to continue on with his mission.
Gandolf echoes these words in the Mines of MoreaS (not verbatim) Each of us play a significant role in the outcome of life, whether that is for good or evil. You were meant to have this ring, Frodo. It is important that you continue this path and complete the mission intended for you. His wise and inspiring words have kept this film in the back of my mind; I’ve longed to return to the film time and again just to hear them.
Jackson’s script, adapted from Tolkien’s "The Fellowship of the Rings" is one of the best of the year. The wisdom and poetry of the lines are like a fire that one can warm their cold hands and feet by. Memorable. Remarkable.
When the Elf Queen Galadriel (played by Cate Blanchett) gives Frodo the Morning Star as a guide for him on his journey to Mordor, she says that it will be a light in times when there is no light. Similarly, Jackson’s script is this Morning Star.
The acting in Rings is nothing more than perfect. Each actor/actress delivered whole-hearted and memorable performances that equaled the beauty and significance of the script.
Ian McKellen’s Gandolf was especially memorable, exhibiting wisdom, physical strength, cosmic awareness, and humor without needing props that represent him, e.g."Look, I’m a wizard because I’m wearing a pointy hat." My wife even had to ask me, about half-way through the film, if Gandolf was indeed a wizard. To me, this is evidence of the depth McKellen gave Gandolf. McKellen’s Gandolf may be one of the most noticeable and memorable film personas since Darth Vador.
Liv Tyler’s Arwen is strong, sensitive, wise, brave, and beautiful. I read that the actors learned to speak Elvish. Tyler seems a natural at it. Her lines flowed beautifully. The language, created by Tolkien himself, sound like water flowing over smooth pepples in a brook. If angels speak, I’m sure they sound like this.
Likewise, Cate Blanchett’s Galadriel is memorable. Blanchett’s presence was as royal as her performance in Elizabeth, which she won the Academy Award for.
Elijah Wood, as Frodo, is incredible. His eyes alone expressed so much emotion that it was hard not to get caught up in his emotions with him. This works only because Wood’s performance and emotions are genuine.
Sean Astin, as Frodo’s friend Sam, also makes an impressive performance as the kind and innocent and oftentimes naïve and shy Hobbit. His lines are believable; his expressions, also, apt to tell us thousands of words about how he feels.
Christopher Lee’s character is one of the more stock characters of the film but Lee treats us with a performance (when we first encounter him on the steps of his tower) that lends depth to Saruman’s turning to the dark side—we at least question his allegiances right away. It’s not a performance in which the evil is suddenly turned on like a light switch.
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings is grand! It’s a classic. It is a masterful epic tale that surpasses anything I have seen before of its kind. To me, Star Wars looks like a High School film project compared to this, mainly because of the depth and strength of Jackson’s script and the solid and believable performances from every character.
Moreover, Rings inspired me, leaving impressions of small Hobbits, of a fellowship of men working together for the common good of all, and of wise words spoken by a wizard and an Elf Queen that are more timeless than Jackson himself could ever have hoped to imagine.
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