[Vardadurwen]

I have only seen the movie once so far and will obviously need to see it again to solidify my opinions about it; however these are my first impressions.<BR> <BR> I thought that PJ left way too much to the third movie. I mean, I don't really know how much differently he could done it, but I just felt that the first hour was just scene after scene crammed together. I swear, if you hadn't read the books you would be slightly lost.<P> I did enjoy the transformation of Smeagol into Gollum. It was very very interesting to see that. Kudos to the makeup artists on that one; actually on everything really. <P> I was glad that Pippin was allowed to shine in this movie and kind of redeem himself for being the fool throughout the first two movies. The entire scene where he is singing while Denethor eats and the soldiers ride in was one of the best sequences out of the entire three movies, I thought. It just...makes so much sense.<P> At the end, I think the connection between Eowyn and Faramir needed to be explained. I mean, one minute she's hubba hubba for Aragorn and then the next she's smiling with Faramir whilst Aragorn greets his bride! And...was Elrond supposed to be there? I thought he didn't show because he never really approved of the whole thing.<P> Okay, is anyone else irate over the fact that Gimli is given the role of comic relief? I mean, honestly! Especially when they're about to go into the Halls of the Dead - it's a solemn moment of decision, bravery and courage! But then...oh, there's Gimli the dwarf har har har. <P> Speaking of the Halls of the Dead...I would have liked to have seen a bit more of that! It's one of my favorite parts in the books, that description of the journey taken and you can actually taste the fear. I thought they didn't portray how frightening that experience actually would be.<P> And I thought the relationship between Legolas and Gimli could have been highlighted upon a bit more. I mean, it's true it was definitely expanded upon in TTT, but I would have liked to have seen a continuation of that; perhaps when they decide to go off and explore eachother's realms together at the end.<P> This posting shows too much of the negative things I thought about the movie and I suppose that's not fair. I really did enjoy it for the most part. I was especially glad that they included Eowyn's line "I am no man." I was scared that scene was going to be butchered somehow, but it worked out very well.<P> There were many moving moments aswell. When Merry and Pippin bid farewell at Rohan. When Frodo remembers his vial of light given to him and we hear Galadriel's voice - that's one of my favorite lines ("...our most beloved star..."). When Sam is talking about the Shire and Frodo can't remember any of it. When Pippin declares that "Eagles are coming!". When Gandalf says goodbye at the end - I mean, I just lost it; that whole scene was basically heartbreaking (although it was ruined for me by some extremely rude boys sitting next to me).<P> I thought Sean Astin's performance was amazing. His genuine expressions of heartfelt dedication to his master were heart-wrenching. He was another character who shone in the movie. I would say Best Supporting Actor worthy.<P> Another scene that was very well done was when Frodo is walking on the bridge instead of up the stairs. I thought that scene was very intense and properly displayed the kind of fear that Frodo and Sam would have felt. <P> Now that I've written all this, I desperately want to see it again. Perhaps I'll have to edit this post or create a new one after seeing it again. My opinions might change. We shall see. <P> And no one get me wrong, I did enjoy the film, all three of them. They are definitely epics. At this particular moment I would say FOTR is the best, then ROTK and TTT is definitely the weakest link. The books are far better, but the films capture some of the great themes contained in that timeless work.