crewbie

Unpopular opinion, I know, that I don't believe this movie is one of the best ever! However, I'm a genuine fantasy fan, and this is disappointing. I read both the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings Trilogy as a teenager, but I won't read especially Lord of the Rings again due to the self-indulgent off-topic ramblings and extended descriptions of scenery. The movies definitely improve on the books, as the pictured scenery enhances rather than detracts from the enjoyment of the story.

When I watched this one years ago, not long after it came out, I gave it a 6, and on rewatching again yesterday, I had to downgrade, as I found more things frustrating. I suppose most find the light/dark, good/evil simplicity soothing, but for me that's a bit boring. Why are all the moppets to be saved blond? Where are all the people of color? Why can't the good guys actually employ strategy (beyond Death! Valor! And Head on!) and prepare for battle (the women and children are languishing in the outer reaches of the city as the hordes approached, no attempt at traps to slow down the enemy)?? Why have only the evil creatures, literally born yesterday, figured out the use of siege and incendiary weapons?

There is some good acting that is unfortunately overwhelmed by exaggerated acting, which I can only blame on the director. I can't remember if this was in the book, but it really bothered me this time that Sam calls a hobbit of a similar or younger age "Mr. Frodo," because the Shire was originally depicted as egalitarian. I felt like the connections between members of the fellowship were understood, not shown, and a lot of the relationships were not well done. The one exception is probably Gimli and Legolas, but they pretty much only interact with each other.

Yes, the epic battle of Minas Tirath was epic, but the lack of strategy was very frustrating, and I was also very confused about Gandalf taking charge at one point. The journey to Mt. Doom unfortunately became boring as it dragged on, and I lost interest in the Smeagol/Gollum interactions as they were no longer at odds. Still, the movie might've squeezed a 6 from me until the really drawn out ending that added nothing.

Fairly cheesy, but a decent meal at that. At the opening scene, I was afraid this might be really bad. However, as it went on to the main characters and plot, the show very much improved. There were some shaky moments and story lines in the beginning, but pretty good characters and acting mostly redeemed it.

In the end, it was pretty absorbing and entertaining and could almost have been really good. It was let down by bad sci-fi and plot holes (the pitfall of many time-themed sci-fi entertainments) which were never addressed, as well as some very predictable reveals. The end got rather creepy, which kind of intrigued me for a second season. If I see it drop, I'll probably give it a go.