This is what I love about this forum...I don't even have to leave it to find discussions on other interesting topics. lol
I simply ADORED this movie. For the most part, I don't remember anything I read of the first two books, so there was nothing to compare it to. As a Tolkien newb, I found it to be an excellent movie that left me full of wonder and awe...something I haven't experienced with a movie for many moons.
One thing this movie made me realize was how bitter a taste the Phantom Menace left in my mouth. Lucas is definitely losing it if someone with half a dozen movies to his resume can outdo him. I saw the trailers for Attack of the Clowns, too, and it was pretty weak. It's sad when you start rooting for the bad guys (when you're not supposed to
).
Q for the book readers: I don't know if anyone saw the animated Version; my girlfriend showed the Lord of the Rings to me after the movie. Some of the parts were eerily similar (e.g., the ringwraiths standing over the beds)...was the animation an influence on the movie or was Tolkien that accurate in the descriptions that two directors would see it the same way?