It's certainly been interesting to see all the attacks on criticisms of this film, especially given the title of the thread.
I'm glad there's now a separate thread for the things people liked..
I remember going to see the original 'Star Wars' at the cinema in 1977. At the time I thought it was the greatest movie ever made - these days the best word that comes to mind is 'quaint'. I wonder how many people who raved about 'The Phantom Menace' last year will still feel the same way 25 years from now?
I felt Jackson's treatment of 'Lord of the Rings' certainly could have been done better (not by me though.
) but it could also have been a heck of a lot worse. Despite my own opinion of it, the movie has been enormously popular with the 'non-Tolkien' educated (as well as most Tolkien fans) public - and this is the most important factor. Much like 'Star Wars' did with science fiction in 1977, Jackson's 'Lord of the Rings' has made cinematic fantasy respectable to the general public. It's predecessors have all tried and failed to do this ('Conan', the 'D&D movie', innumerable others..) and we can now look forward to even better movies in the future now there's a much larger demand for it.
This definitely won't be the last remake of 'Lord of the Rings'. By the time the next one rolls around, computer animation may have advanced to the point where every non-humanoid role will be a lot more convincing than anything we can produce today. Final Fantasy - The Spirits Within, is an example of just how much can be achieved in this area, even now. I'll check back again in 25 years to see what you all think.

I remember going to see the original 'Star Wars' at the cinema in 1977. At the time I thought it was the greatest movie ever made - these days the best word that comes to mind is 'quaint'. I wonder how many people who raved about 'The Phantom Menace' last year will still feel the same way 25 years from now?
I felt Jackson's treatment of 'Lord of the Rings' certainly could have been done better (not by me though.

This definitely won't be the last remake of 'Lord of the Rings'. By the time the next one rolls around, computer animation may have advanced to the point where every non-humanoid role will be a lot more convincing than anything we can produce today. Final Fantasy - The Spirits Within, is an example of just how much can be achieved in this area, even now. I'll check back again in 25 years to see what you all think.
