Re-watch Central: LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING

Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring (2001)
Released by New Line Productions, a subsidiary of Warner Brothers and WingNut Films.
A star-studded affair including Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom, Christopher Lee and Cate Blanchett to name a few. Directed by Peter Jackson.
Format: dvd

About Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring:

In the Second Age, the Dark Lord Sauron attempts to conquer Middle-Earth using his One Ring. In battle against the Elves and Men, Prince Isildur cuts the Ring from Sauron's hand, destroying his physical form and vanquishing his army. However, Sauron's "life force" is bound to the Ring, allowing him to survive while the Ring remains. Isildur, corrupted by the Ring's power, refuses to destroy it. When Isildur is killed by Orcs, the Ring is lost in a river for 2,500 years. The Ring is found by Gollum, who possesses it for centuries until it is found by the Hobbit Bilbo Baggins.

Sixty years later, Bilbo leaves the Ring to his nephew, Frodo Baggins. Upon learning that the Ring belonged to Sauron, the Wizard Gandalf the Grey warns Frodo that Sauron's forces will come for him. Gandalf catches Frodo's gardener Samwise Gamgee "eavesdropping" underneath a window and sends him with Frodo to leave the Shire. Gandalf rides to Isengard to meet with the head of his order, Saruman the White, who reveals that Sauron's servants, the Nazgûl, have been sent to capture the Ring. Saruman reveals himself to be in service to Sauron, and imprisons Gandalf atop his tower. Saruman commands Sauron's Orcs to construct weapons of war and produce a new breed of Orc fighters: the Uruk-hai.

While travelling to Bree, Frodo and Sam are joined by Merry and Pippin, and are nearly captured by the Nazgûl. At the Inn of the Prancing Pony, Frodo meets the mysterious ranger Aragorn, who hides them from their pursuers and agrees to lead them to Rivendell. During the journey they are attacked by the Nazgûl. Aragorn fights off the creatures, but Frodo is wounded by their Morgul blade, which will turn him into a wraith. While chased by the Nazgûl, Frodo is saved by the Elf Arwen who uses her magic to summon a surge of water that sweeps away the pursuing Nazgûl. Arwen takes Frodo to Rivendell where he is healed by her father, Elrond. Gandalf escapes Saruman's tower with the aid of Gwaihir the eagle and travels to Rivendell. Elrond calls a council of the races still loyal to Middle-earth to decide what should be done with the Ring. It is revealed that the Ring can only be destroyed by throwing it into the fires of Mount Doom, where it was forged. Frodo volunteers to take the Ring, accompanied by Sam, Merry, Pippin, Gandalf, and Aragorn. They are joined by the Elf Legolas, the Dwarf Gimli, and Boromir, man of Gondor, to form the Fellowship of the Ring.

The Fellowship set out but are hindered by Saruman's magic. They travel through the dwarf Mines of Moria. Inside, they find that Orcs have overrun the mines and slain the Dwarves; they also realise that Gollum is following them, determined to reclaim the Ring. The Fellowship is attacked by Orcs and a Balrog, an ancient demon of fire and shadow. Gandalf confronts the Balrog, allowing the others to escape, but both Gandalf and the Balrog fall into an abyss. Mourning Gandalf's apparent death, the group flees to Lothlórien, where they are sheltered by its rulers, the Elves Galadriel and Celeborn. That night, Galadriel informs Frodo that it is his destiny to destroy the Ring. The Fellowship continue their journey. Meanwhile, Saruman assembles a force of Uruk-hai to hunt the Fellowship.

After arriving at Parth Galen, Boromir gives in to the Ring's corruption and tries to take it from Frodo, believing that it is the only way to save his realm. Frodo manages to escape by wearing the Ring and becoming invisible. Boromir realises what he has done, and attempts to find Frodo, who decides to continue his journey alone, heeding Galadriel's warning that the Ring will eventually corrupt the other members of the Fellowship. The Uruk-hai arrive and Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli attempt to hold them off while Frodo escapes. Merry and Pippin lead the Orcs away from Frodo and are nearly killed. Boromir tries to save them, but in the process is shot fatally by the Uruk-Hai leader, Lurtz. The Uruk-Hai capture Merry and Pippin. Aragorn slays Lurtz and tends to a dying Boromir, and promises him that the world of men will not fall. Boromir dies with Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas by his side.

Sam finds Frodo, who reluctantly lets Sam join him. Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli set out to rescue Merry and Pippin. As Frodo and Sam gaze out at the land before them, they grieve over the others. Frodo says that he is glad that Sam is with him and the two Hobbits set off towards Mordor.

Source: Info in the About Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring was taken from Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings:_The_Fellowship_of_the_Ring on 18/11/2012.

Movie Trailer of Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring:

My Thoughts:

When I re-watched this dvd last night I was fresh from having just watched Immortals (2011) and I could appreciate the distinct difference between a well-done animated software combination with live actors cinematography and one which is not. Lord Of The Rings (LotR) is obviously well-done. It wasn't dark all the time to hide imperfections. And it made a world of difference in the watching experience! I have to say that Peter Jackson did a pretty good job! I heard that he is a stickler to details. And it paid off. It made the difference between a 5 out of 5 movie and one which is a 3.5 out of 5.

Both films (LotR & Immortals) have numerous fight scenes. Both in a one-on-one kind and mass battles. One of my complaints in Immortals is that their fight scenes were not quite realistic, though I have to give it to the actor that the moves looked smooth. Still ridiculous. None of that ridiculous fight scenes can be found in the LotR. Even after a few re-watches, I could not find one. Maybe the director of Immortals should have hired the fight scene expert/coordinator in LotR.

I also have to give a nod to the actors for doing very well! None of them was like Kristen Stewart whose "sad face", "shocked moments" and "sad performance" all looked the same. I have to give it to her though, she is pretty, but she can't act. The actors and actresses in LotR were not only "lookers", but they can act! Sure, I have a few nitpicking issues, but, I can forgive those for the wonderful movie time I got out of this film. Suffice to say that I really enjoyed this film and there will be more re-watches in the future and looking forward to watching The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) in December!

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 cherries


Movie Trailer of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012):

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) movie release date: 13 December 2012 (UK)

Movie Review: IMMORTALS

Immortals (2011)
Released by Universal Studios and Relativity Media.
Starring Henry Cavill and Mickey Rourke in the lead roles as heroes and villains.
Format: dvd

About Immortals:

Before the dawn of man or beast, immortals waged war against each other in Heaven. The victors declared themselves gods while the vanquished were renamed the Titans and imprisoned beneath Mount Tartarus. The Epirus Bow, a weapon of immense power, was lost on Earth during the war. In 1228 B.C., the mortal king Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) of Heraklion searches for the bow, intending to use it to release the Titans to spite the gods for failing to save his family. Hyperion captures the virgin oracle Phaedra (Freida Pinto), believing that she can use her visions to find the Epirus Bow's resting place.

In a small village nearby, the inhabitants prepare to flee to Mount Tartarus to avoid Hyperion's army. One inhabitant named Theseus (Henry Cavill) is a skilled warrior trained by his mentor the old man (John Hurt). Theseus and his mother Aethra (Anne Day-Jones), considered undesirables because Theseus was born from Aethra being raped, are forced to stay behind by Athenian soldiers including Lysander (Joseph Morgan). Theseus ably battles multiple opponents until the Athenian officer Helios (Peter Stebbings) intervenes and discharges Lysander from the army for his actions. Lysander travels to Hyperion, offering his service and the village's location. Hyperion accepts, but maims Lysander for being a traitor. Hyperion's forces attack Theseus' village, murdering the villagers and Aethra, and taking Theseus captive.

The old man is revealed to be Zeus (Luke Evans) where he meets with his fellow gods Athena (Isabel Lucas), Poseidon (Kellan Lutz), Ares (Daniel Sharman), Apollo (Corey Sevier), and Heracles (Steve Byers). Zeus warns them not to interfere in mortal affairs as gods where Zeus believes that until the Titans are released, they must have faith in mankind to defeat Hyperion. Theseus is enslaved alongside the thief Stavros (Stephen Dorff). Phaedra, who is held captive nearby, sees a vision of Theseus. Phaedra organizes a riot, using the chaos to escape with Theseus, Stavros, and the other slaves. Theseus decides to pursue Hyperion and attempts to capture a boat, but he and his allies are overwhelmed by Hyperion's forces. Poseidon purposefully falls from Olympus into the ocean causing a tidal wave that wipes out Hyperion's men. Phaedra sees another vision of Theseus standing near a shrouded body. She determines that Theseus must return home to bury Aethra.

While laying Aethra to rest, Theseus discovers the Epirus Bow embedded in nearby rock. He frees the Epirus Bow, but is attacked by Hyperion's henchman the Minotaur (Robert Maillet). Theseus kills Minotaur and uses the Bow to save his allies from being executed before collapsing from poisoned scratches inflicted by Minotaur. Phaedra tends to Theseus and later falls in love with him, stripping her of the visions she deemed a curse. The group returns to Phaedra's temple while Hyperion and his forces are away at Mount Tartarus. At the temple, Stavros and Theseus are lured into an ambush and Theseus loses the Epirus Bow. Outnumbered by Hyperion's men, Ares directly intervenes to save Theseus and Athena provides the men with horses to reach Mount Tartarus. Zeus arrives and angrily kills Ares for disobeying his command. Zeus tells Theseus that he and his allies will receive no more aid from the gods and he must justify the faith Zeus has in him alone. Before leaving with Athena, Zeus tells Theseus to prove him right. The lost Epirus Bow is brought to Hyperion.

Theseus, Stavros, and Phaedra travel to Mount Tartarus. Theseus tries in vain to warn Hellenics' King Cassander (Stephen McHattie) of Hyperion's plans, but Cassander dismisses his talk of gods as myth, intending to negotiate peace with Hyperion. The following day, Hyperion uses the Bow to destroy Mount Tartarus' seemingly indestructible wall killing Helios. Theseus leads the Hellenic army to war against the Hyperion forces, killing Lysander. Hyperion ignores the battle and storms through to Mount Tartarus killing Cassander. Hyperion uses the Epirus Bow to breach the mountain and free the Titans before Stavros and Theseus can stop him. The force of the release knocks the mortals down. Stavros takes the Epirus Bow and kills a Titan, but is massacred by the other Titans. Zeus, Poseidon, Athena, Heracles and Apollo arrive and battle the Titans while Theseus fights Hyperion. Zeus destroys the Epirus Bow with the Warhammer of Ares. The gods prove more powerful than the Titans, but they are overwhelmed by the sheer number of Titans with all but Zeus and Poseidon being killed. Theseus kills Hyperion and Zeus collapses Mount Tartarus on the Titans before ascending to Olympus with Athena's body and Poseidon. The collapsing mountain wipes out Hyperion's men. The mortally wounded Theseus is also transported to Olympus for his sacrifice and given a place among the gods.

Several years later, Theseus' story has become legend and Phaedra has given birth to Theseus' son Acamas (Gage Munroe). Acamas is met by the old man who informs the child that in the future, he too will one day fight against evil. Acamas sees a vision of the sky filled with gods and Titans fighting with Theseus amongst the combatants.

Source: Info in the About Immortals was taken from Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immortals_%282011_film%29 on 17/11/2012.

Movie Trailer:



My Thoughts:

I like the premise of gods and humankind fighting for good versus evil. Hey, I am a fantasy geek! Anyway, so I bought this dvd. And of course because it was on sale at Asda's. The cinematography was quite good although a bit dark. I guess the darkness helps hides the imperfections. So I wasn't too fond of that. I could allow that some scenes might be in darker mode than others, but the entire movie in the dark?? Well, anyway, I still like the blending of magical elements with the actual live actors. Now the plot, Like I said I like the premise of gods and humans fighting for good, but, it was never properly explained why the rules are as they were. So what if somebody breaks the rules? What then? King Hyperion was evil so he has to be defeated, but I think he has the right of it to question the rules. If he wasn't evil, I would have rooted for him! To me things has to make sense. Not just it is so because the director says so. No, I don't buy that. It drops the rating of the movie a notch down.

This movie obviously has lots of fight scenes. One-on-one and mass battles, the works. I appreciate the acting abilities of the actors in making things look smooth and expert-like. What I don't appreciate is the logical-ness of the fight. Of course your opponent is going to point his blade to his own neck instead of towards the enemy?? WTF!! Yeah, the fight scene expert/coordinator of this movie needs to be shot!

Okey I have a few rants about this movie, but I can fast forward those bits which are annoying, so I still enjoyed this movie. I give it a rating of 3.5 out of 5 in entertainment value.

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 cherries