#11 The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

In Summary

The journey of The Lord of the Rings to the cinema was almost as difficult as Frodo's to Mordor.

Various attempts had been mooted, involving Walt Disney, puppets, The Beatles, Al Pacino, and Mick Jagger, with only an animated film to show for it.

Until the advancement of computer-generated imagery, it was thought impossible to make The Lord of the Rings as a live-action film. Even with the benefit of technology, the scale, denseness and depth of lore made it difficult to envisage an adaptation that could come anywhere close to capturing the source material.

What is so successful about The Fellowship of the Ring is how seamless it makes the transition from book to screen while largely staying true to the source material. Although large sections of the book had to be cut in order to keep a manageable running time - sorry, Tom Bombadil - The Fellowship of the Ring brings Middle-Earth to life in an evocative and memorable fashion.

Middle-Earth not only feels a real place where various peoples live, but there is the same sense of history and mysticism that J.R.R. Tolkien laboured over during those years he spent writing the books.

Adding to that sense of place, The Fellowship of the Ring, brings the characters from the books to life through excellent casting and by taking the time to establish each member of the fellowship. There is a lot to be packed in, but the judicious balance between character and action Peter Jackson achieves sees the three hour screen-time float by.

A Memorable Quote

"One Ring to Rule Them All. One Ring to Find Them. One Ring to Bring Them All and In The Darkness Bind Them."

Things You May Not Know

• Christopher Lee - who plays Saruman - is the only member of the cast to have met J.R.R. Tolkien.
• Much of the difference in height between characters is achieved using set design and placement of cameras rather than CGI - e.g. John Rhys-Davies - who plays Gimli - is actually the tallest cast member.
• It took as long to film the entire The Lord of the Rings trilogy as it did Apocalypse Now.

One of the Greatest of All Time?
In my opinion, The Fellowship of the Ring is the best The Lord of the Rings film. While The Return of the King, is rated higher, The Fellowship of the Ring is not only a more enjoyable film to watch - not bogged down by expansive action set-pieces - but it feels the most The Lord of the Rings-ish of the three films.

The Fellowship of the Ring is the heart and foundation of The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.