If there's a cinematic experience since 2000 that fully deserves the title "epic" then Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy is a contender for the top spot - on a logistal level alone few films in the history of the medium have attempted anything as grand and sweeping as this. Adapting such beloved books as J R R Tolkien's epic fantasy trilogy to the screen is never going to satisfy all its fans, but it's hard to imagine anyone pulling it off with more flair and invention than Jackson managed - irrespective of any nitpicking about subtle changes and tweaks from the source material, his trilogy is a thoroughly impressive work of cinema, rich in detail, full of atmosphere and at the same time delivering an undeniable mass appeal. Such a shame, then, that Jackson and his collaborators haven't been as successful in imitating this experience in their drawn out adaptation of Tolkien's The Hobbit.
