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The Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring (Platinum Series Special Extended Edition Collector's Gift Set) Customer Reviews (76 - 78 of 102 Reviews)

Rings Is An Instant Classic
The Fellowship of the Ring is the first part of J.R.R. Tolkien's trilogy The Lord of the Rings is a masterful piece of movie entertainment. Director Peter Jackson has done an amazing job of transferring one of the most beloved pieces of 20th century literature to the silver screen. Although certain sacrifices are made in the transition, the real heart and soul of the book is evident. Utilizing the natural beauty of New Zealand and state of the art special effects, Mr. Jackson brings Middle Earth to full life. The film has tremendous visuals and the feel of a classic Hollywood epic. The cast is first rate led by Sir Ian McKellan who is magnificent as Gandalf. Elijah Wood gives his best performance to date as the central character in the film, Frodo Baggins and Viggo Mortensen is cool and steely as Strider. Sean Bean as the doomed Boromir and Orlando Bloom as the heroic elf Legolas give strong support as does Sean Astin as Frodo's sidekick Samwise Gamgee. Christopher Lee adds yet another evil part to his resume and he is perfect as the corrupt wizard Saruman. Cate Blanchett, Liv Tyler and Ian Holm have small but effective roles. There is the appropriate amount of suspense and tension in the film as the Fellowship struggle to destroy the ring. The only drawback to the film is that knowing it is only the first part of a trilogy, it really doesn't end. You don't have the usual resolution of the plot, but the film's excellence will leave you heavily anticipating part two.

MIDDLE-EARTH MAGIC
When this film made it's theatrical debut, it did not receive a glowing review in the pages of a local paper (Desert Post Weekly in Palm Springs) for which I write DVD reviews. In fact, it was ridiculed and mocked in theme and execution. However, the movie went on to be New Line's highest grossing box office hit ever. Not only that, it was on over 150 national critics' year-end top ten lists and received thirteen Oscar© nominations making it one of the most honored films in Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences history.

So what is it about this first part of J. R. R. Tolkein's trilogy that touched such a nerve with a global audience and deserves a second look on the home screen? The plot is a mythic, epic vision of good versus evil, "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" recounts the heroic quest of Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood), a peaceful hobbit entrusted with a terrible responsibility. Accompanied by an assamblage of elves, dwarves, hobbits, human warriors, and the god wizard Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen), Frodo must travel through Middle-earth to the land of Mordor in order to destroy the all-powerful One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom where it was forged. Relentlessly pursued by Dark Lord Sauron's dark riders, marauding orcs, cave trolls and goblins summoned by evil wizard Saruman the White (Christopher Lee), the Fellowship must resist the ring's unlimited powers to seduce and corrupt.

Whereas "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" is about gaining power through occult means, "The Lord of the Rings" is about resisting such powers -- and therein lies the higher moral imperative. Complex and sophisticated in its nuanced unfolding, Tolkein's tale delivers a more timeless examination of the very real temptations that pull at our every day human lives.
Tolkein's story harkens back to the Ring of Gyges in Plato's Republic as it was told by Glaucon to Socrates. Glaucon argues the poiunt that men are inherently unjust, restrained on their actions only by law and society. Glaucon's point is that unlimited power beclouds the difference between just and unjust. A glance at the front page of any recent newspaper seems to confirm Glaucon's position. Tolkein variation of Gyges ring has been called "...perhaps the most brilliant and richly rendered portrayal of power and corruptibility ever conceived."

Many readers, scholars and critics consider Tolkein's epic the best of original works of fiction in the last century because it "combines masterful storytelling and overwhelming imaginative scope with the biggest of Big Themes."

What writer, director, producer Peter Jackson accomplished is a major achievement. He not only honored the source material but managed to create the world in which Tolkein's characters live and breathe. In this age of cynicism, it is easy ridicule this old fashioned tale of good and evil, heroism and villainy, freedom and tyranny. The passing years have certainly not diminished the relevance of this potent metaphor of the responsibility of freedom.

The two disc set comes in both a widescreen and full screen version. Both transfers are superb. Disc Two is filled with special features that include a behind the scenews preview of "The Two Towers, three in-depth mini documentaries that reveal the production secrets, fifteen featurettes orginally created for lordoftherings.net which explore the locales and culture of Middle-earth, Enya's "May It Be" music video and a look at the Special Extended DVD Edition of "The Lord of the Rings" available in a four disc set on November 12 that includes the much longer director's cut and many more extras.

Whether you know the books or not...
This is a masterful adaptation of what has for a long time been probably my favourite book. While Peter Jackson wasn't quite true to the plot (which couldn't really be helped), he was in all ways true to the spirit and the themes of JRR Tolkien's masterpiece, which is what really matters.

The best Special effects I've ever seen (in that I wasn't sure I was seeing them if you get my drift!) combined with wonderful cinematography, casting, acting and soundtrack, make this an awesome movie in its own right.

The performance from Sir Ian MacKellan (Gandalf) was brilliant, he truly was Gandalf to the life. Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn), Sean Bean (Boromir), Elijah Wood (Frodo), Cate Blanchett (Galadriel) and Hugo Weaving (Elrond) stood out in much the same way, but even the actors I haven't mentioned were perfectly cast.
Perhaps the biggest star of all though was New Zealand. If Middle Earth exists in this world, New Zealand is it!

I'd like to give special mention to the Second Age battle sequence, which blew my mind from the beginning... the feeling of butterflies in ones stomach wasn't a thing I'd expect at the movies, an effect which is lost on the small screen.

After six viewings (four in cinemas, once on VHS, once on DVD) this movie is still amongst the best I've ever seen. Peter Jackson has made history... and I feel privileged to have witnessed it.

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