One Down, Two To Go

Earlier this week I finished up the first of the three special extended versions of the Lord of the Rings movies. So far they are just as captivating and entertaining as they were the first time around. It's been so long since I first saw Fellowship that it's hard to pick out what's been added to the extended scenes, but the new scenes are clear enough. Don't know if it's heightened my enjoyment of the film or not, but it certainly hasn't hurt things at all.

As I watched Fellowship in bursts over a number of nights, I realized something remarkable. Usually when I see a film or television adaptation of a book I have read, I pick it a part. Noticing how the characters don't look or sound like they do in my head when I read the novel. Or how the places and scenes don't match the pictures I have created in my imagination. This never happened when I watch any of the Lord of the Rings films. Peter Jackson and his crew actually met my expectations and pre-conceived notions of who the characters were and what Middle Earth would look and sound like. That's amazing. I think it's one of the reasons I instantly loved these movies so much. It is like seeing my own imagination projected up on the screen for me to see with my own eyes.

I can't wait to watch the next two.