Let's not pretend that this one needs much in the way of introduction; Lord of the Rings is the story of some very small people who have to deal with some very evil jewellery, and it's possibly the biggest and certainly one of the most well-known cinematic sagas of our century. It is majestic and sweeping and, like most epics, filled with scenes that don't add much in the grand scheme of things besides that little bit of extra character or context. But the draw of the epic is in its bloat - rarely is this sort of movie quickly paced. We're there because we want the fat. That's where all the flavor is. And Lord of the Rings succeeds spectacularly on that front, especially in the extended editions which bring the whole shebang up to close to ten hours. At the longer running times, these feel less like adventures and more like tourism guides for Middle Earth. And really, that's more valuable anyways. If all you want are good guys winning out against bad guys then Hollywood's got you covered in spades, but if you want a whole world to explore? Well, you could do a whole lot worse than Lord of the Rings. And If we truly go to the movies to be transported to another place, to fall into a daze and find ourselves elsewhere, then this must surely be one of the pinnacles of the form.
Eric Day co-hosts the Murderville Podcast at www.welcometomurderville.com
Give it a listen. Five minutes. Maybe you'll dig it. Maybe you'll hate it. But at least you'll have tried something new.
