Why The Fellowship Of The Ring Is The Best Lord Of The Rings Film

This entry links to what was previously discussed about having the fellowship together for a significant period of time. In the The Two Towers and Return of the King, there is so much plot to get through that the characters often take a back seat in favour of the story. Added to this is the fact that a great number of new characters are introduced in The Two Towers (Theoden, Eomer and Gollum to name just three) that we lose sight of the original companions.

Fellowship's smaller scale and more linear narrative allows the audience time to get to know the characters and as a result they feel more authentic. We feel Aragon's reluctance at his regal birthright, Gandalf's concern for Frodo's plight as the ring bearer and Boromir's anguish at being torn between duty to his father and Gondor and his own understanding that the ring must be destroyed.

In The Empire Strikes Back, Luke is split from Han, Leia and the droids. This allows the characters room to breathe and for relationships to change and develop. In the Lord of the Rings trilogy, the original characters become less important and less defined as the films go in, with Gimli and Legolas in particular eventually turned into little more than comedy sidekicks.