The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

This is my 100th post! I didn't think I'd reach a hundred and thought I'd stop writing before I reached 50 posts. But I liked writing about movies, and I still do. Hopefully, I'll be able to keep this blog up and reach thousands of entries. For my 100th post, I wanted to watch a movie that I haven't seen before, one that I should have seen but didn't. There was only one movie that came to mind: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, the first installment of the LOTR franchise.

Lord of the Rings is a series of books written by J.R.R. Tolkien in the 1950s. In 2001, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring was released as a movie with a screenplay written by Peter Jackson, who also directed the film, Philippa Boyens and Fran Walsh. It featured an impressive, all-star ensemble including Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom, Liv Tyler, John Rhys-Davies, Sean Bean, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving and a whole lot more.

I know I'm way too late for this, but when I was a kid, I wasn't necessarily interested in it. At the time, I probably had this perception that liking Lord of the Rings and liking Harry Potter were two mutually exclusive things, and that watching Lord of the Rings would be betraying the Harry Potter series. That's my guess because I distinctly remember always saying I liked Harry Potter more whenever someone would ask me if I've seen LOTR. Everyone I knew loved LOTR and urged me to watch it, but my reply remained the same: I like Harry Potter more. I have seen bits of it, and while I found it intriguing I still remained on the fence - on one side of the fence.

If I could only use one word to describe it, it would have to be "epic". For starters, this one had a variety of filming locations, all equally breath-taking. It had exquisite cinematography, one that easily tops most of its contemporaries. The effects helped in that all the effects were carefully made and very well-implemented. The way the water, the fire, the creatures moved, everything was really intricate and it shows how much effort went in to the production of the movie. Even the make-up/whatever made the orcs look like orcs was also impressive. Also, though I don't normally care about costumes, even I noticed how fitting and appropriate the costumes were. It was one of the best aspects of the movie for me. Nothing too much, but definitely something worth remembering. They had one of the best productions, in practically all levels. I'm actually surprised this movie only had a budget of 93 million. I guessed that it had a 200 million budget just because of the locations, the cast, the overall cinematography. This movie was a treat for the eyes, and I really appreciated it. They didn't hold back in putting the necessary resources to make sure that every single scene would scream perfection and brilliance.

The battle scenes were also just amazing. It's honestly beyond words. All of the battle scenes were epic. They were exciting, fast-paced, and well-choreographed. The final battle was disgustingly great in every aspect. The heroes and villains mashed up really well to create a dynamic battle of the good and the bad. It was also when the characters really showcased who they were, their strengths, their weaknesses, their overall persona. While the characters grew and developed throughout the movie, I felt they all peaked in the last 30 minutes or so. I was rooting for everyone of the fellowship during that time and every single deatil, every single character, every single scene mattered.

I also liked the characterizations of the character. My favorite was Samwise Gamgee. I also liked Pippin Took. I think Iliked these two characters the most cause they provided the comic reliefs in the movie. It's a fantasy, war movie and movies like this tend to overcompensate with the drama. This movie however still had the laughs, the light enjoyment of a simple remark. I also liked how strong all the characters were. The members of the fellowship were courageous, strong and firm. They had a strong sense of character.

I feel like this review is all over the place, but that's because it was really overwhelming that it's hard to really digest the movie. The funny thing is, I've practically evaded watching the movie for whatever reason and now I am left almost speechless by it, left completely in shock of how much I enjoyed the movie and how much I got into it.. Taking this long to watch just the first movie of the trilogy was probably one of the dumbest things I've done. I do regret it. I still can't believe I let the chances pass to watch this amazing movie. LOTR was a beautifully crafted masterpiece that provided an unforgettable experience.

The ending was a little heartbreaking. Also, I didn't know what to make of it at first because the whole idea of the movie was getting the ring into Mordor and destroying it. None of it happened. The movie ended with Frodo and Sam standing at a distance, with the ring in Frodo's hands. I know the ending was really a start of another quest for the characters, a start for the second movie. I didn't mind that the movie ended that way. It's actually artistic. Peter Jackson had been consistently artistic throughout the movie, and I just took it all in.

I've only seen the first of the trilogy, but I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy the whole series. I like the cast, I like the director, I liked the screenplay. I like everything about the movie. Waiting this long was a mistake, but I'm ready to more than make up for it. It's an epic movie, too awesome for words. For thos ewho have seen it, I apologize for not seeing ths before. For those who haven't, don't end up like me. Do yourselves a favor and go watch it. You're in for a delicious treat.

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