3. The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring (2001)
Green-lit way back in 1997, Peter Jackson's adaptation of JRR Tolkien's seminal fantasy series was nothing short of a mammoth undertaking. As well as shooting what had been labelled as 'unfilmable' on numerous occasions, the production would film all three movies back-to-back over 16 months in the director's native New Zealand with a combined budget of $281m, as well as utilizing state-of-the-art visual effects to realize their vision for Middle Earth. I'd say it turned out quite well in the end. Finally released in December 2001, the first installment of the trilogy was an massive success, grossing $871.5m to universal critical acclaim. An immense technical achievement, the combination of practical and visual effects blended seamlessly to create a fully immersive world, with the unsung heroes of the movie undoubtedly being WETA Workshop who were responsible for most of the prosthetic and costume effects. The success of the movie reignited an interest in the fantasy genre, with each entry in the Lord of the Rings trilogy grossing more than its predecessor, a cinematic achievement that culminated in the Return of the King winning all eleven of the Academy Awards for which it was nominated. Many believed such an undertaking would never be duplicated in the movie business. At least for a few years, until they announced The Hobbit...