> ... I do have many *good* things to say about the film, which I'll post later.

Later...

Things That Were Excellent:

* Legolas + bow & arrows = one baaad mutha. Watching him whip out arrow after arrow and shoot down charging orcs at practically point-blank range was possibly the most thrilling part of any battle scene.

* The costuming. I can't think of a single character that didn't "look right". I especially liked the look of Boromir's outfit during the council of Elrond; the fabrics looked luxurious and conveyed his high-born heritage without being the least bit gaudy.

* The casting. Like Sam said, Ian McKellen played Gandalf as perfectly as one could wish, with charisma, affability and wry humor. Ian Holm's Bilbo was the best of the hobbit characters, and Viggo Mortensen, Sean Bean and John Rhys-Davies were all excellent in their respective roles.

* The buildings and monuments. The giant statues near the Emen Whatever (sorry, can't recall the name) looked both awe-inspiring and structurally possible. The intricate stonework of Rivendell was beautiful. Other structures were similarly well-done.

* The combat scene in Balin's Tomb. I'll say more about this later, under "Things that were altered from the book."

* The visualization of the wraith-world that becomes visible to Frodo when he puts on the ring. A very good special effect.

Things That Were Good:

* The Ring-Wraiths. Their piercing cries were fearsome, and although at times they seemed a bit too slow and deliberate, one could argue that that was in character. As a warrior, a Nazgul shouldn't be like a black-robed Li Mu Bai.

* The Eye of Sauron. Familiarity with the story was probably the only reason it didn't have a frightening effect on me. Also, they pronounced "Sauron" correctly (so buck up, Darien!).

* Sauron in combat. I never thought of Sauron as the kind of evil overlord to come out and join the battle personally; he seems like the sort to send out minions to carry out his dark plots. But if Peter Jackson wanted to show Sauron doing something physically impressive, this was definitely the way to do it. My jaw hung open as he swatted away groups of four and five warriors with each swing of his mace. I would have soiled my pants if I'd been out there in the battle.

* The approach of the Balrog. It was a great idea to show the fiery light emanating from between those rows of columns long before we saw the Balrog itself.

Things That Were Altered From The Book:

* Omission of the Old Forest section. This was fine with me. It seemed proper in a movie to focus on the Black Riders all the way up to Rivendell.

* Bree. In the book, Bree is a warm, welcoming refuge, and Tolkien takes that setting and generates fear by making its safe appearance betray the hobbits. When you can insinuate danger and treachery behind a familiar, comforting facade, the paranoia and uncertain dread it generates is a specially delicious sort of scare. In the movie, Jackson forgoes all that by making Bree appear rough and dangerous, full of shadowy characters. It works as he intended, but I prefer Tolkien's approach. Having the ring fall directly onto Frodo's finger was a nice touch, though, and it heightened the audience's sense of the ring as a sentient, malevolent thing.

* In the movie it is Frodo's idea, not Gandalf's, to simply speak the Elvish word for "friend" to open the doors to Moria. This was fine with me, especially since I felt that Elijah Wood needed all the lines he could get to flesh out Frodo's character.

* The fight in Balin's Tomb. That cave troll must have gotten more screen time than even Saruman or the Nazgul, and you'd think that that would irk me, but in fact I thought it was a great addition to the book. As well as I can remember, in the book all you ever see of the cave troll is its foot, which the hobbits stab, causing it to retreat; the rest of the fight is with the orcs. In the movie, the cave troll is Yo' Daddy. The whole fight with that monster was exhilarating.

* The Mirror of Galadriel. Sam was absent, which was fine with me. Evil Mecha-Galadriel™ was actually okay with me too, but here as in other places where dialogue was taken directly from the book, I thought that an audience unfamiliar with the text would have a tough time following what Cate Blanchett was saying. The words weren't distinct enough, and it wasn't obvious that she was talking about what *would* inevitably happen if she took the One Ring with good intentions, as opposed to some sort of havoc she intended to wreak right then and there.

* Aragorn sends Frodo on his way. As the Scotsman pointed out, this was among the more egregious changes. Not only did it not make much sense, it diminished the bravery of Frodo's act. He intended to leave his friends behind and strike out alone, a small defenseless hobbit against the power of Mordor. It was an impulsive, ill-advised and selfless thing to do, and not even Aragorn in his wisdom would have allowed it in the book. I can't think of a single good reason for this change; I'd like to hear Peter Jackson explain why he thought it was a good idea.

That's enough fodder for now, I guess, though the above lists aren't comprehensive.

Iss