Of course, this is the greatest trilogy in the history of cinema. Peter Jackson’s adaptation of The Lord of the Rings achieved unprecedented success in the early 2000s, while JRR Tolkien’s novel was deemed unadaptable by Hollywood.
That is why it cannot be said that the New Zealand director achieved a real success with this triptych, because three films were actually shot at the same time – an extremely rare fact, moreover, for a saga that has not yet been released at the box office.
The gamble still paid off, as the trilogy brought in over $3 billion at the box office (on a budget of barely $275 million) and several billion additional dollars in sales of DVDs and other spinoffs.
A trilogy of all entries
The Lord of the Rings saga was also a critical triumph, as evidenced by the 17 Oscars won by the trilogy (including eleven for the third part, a historical record!). This success also allowed fantasy, a previously niche genre, to reach a wider audience.
The Lord of the Rings takes place in a wonderful world. A hobbit named Frodo Baggins inherits a ring that belonged to the wizard Sauron. The latter, defeated several millennia ago, wants to get his hands on the object in order to regain his power and spread his influence throughout Middle-earth.
Accompanied by the wizard Gandalf, his faithful Sam Gag, and six other companions, Frodo embarks on a great journey through the evil lands of Mordor to destroy the ring in the volcano where it was forged.
But we must act quickly, for the forces of evil continue to rise, and the coming battle will be decisive for the future of free peoples…
The story was told out of order
Peter Jackson’s film tour de force must remain true to Tolkien’s books while still entertaining for the general public.
It should also be remembered that The Lord of the Rings does not mark the beginning of the plot initiated by the children’s novel The Hobbit (which would also be adapted into Peter Jackson’s trilogy a few years after The Lord of the Rings films).
In addition to these two trilogies, a prequel series was released on Premier Video in 2022. Titled The Rings of Power, the series takes place several millennia before The Lord of the Rings, but is unrelated to the Peter Jackson films. Despite the huge budget, this production did not have the same success as the film trilogies.
Note that the Lord of the Rings saga has no shortage of upcoming projects. In addition to the animated film War of the Rohirrim (in theaters December 11), several films are also in the works, including a feature film about The Hunt for Gollum (co-written by Peter Jackson and directed by Gollum himself. Andy Serkis).
You can watch The Lord of the Rings trilogy now on Prime Video.
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Source: Allocine
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
