Poster by Tom Miatke
By Thomas Puhr
Whereas contemporary adaptations of literary epics tend to sag in their first installments – becoming feature-length expositions – The Fellowship of the Ring confidently immerses viewers into Tolkien’s Middle Earth via painterly compositions, gracefully choreographed set pieces, and committed performances. The latter quality proves crucial; none of the actors – especially Wood, Astin, and Mortensen – are allowed the safety net of self-aware winks to the camera. The risk of such an approach is sentimentality (to which Jackson often succumbs), but I’ll take that over ironic posturing any day. Revisiting the film some twenty years later, I’m most struck – and charmed – by this earnestness.
