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"THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING"
(2001) (Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen) (PG-13)

Alcohol/
Drugs
Blood/Gore Disrespectful/
Bad Attitude
Frightening/
Tense Scenes
Guns/
Weapons
*Mild Mild Extreme *Heavy Extreme
Imitative
Behavior
Jump
Scenes
Music
(Scary/Tense)
Music
(Inappropriate)
Profanity
Minor Mild Extreme None None
Sex/
Nudity
Smoking Tense Family
Scenes
Topics To
Talk About
Violence
None *Moderate None Moderate Extreme


QUICK TAKE:
Action/Fantasy: A disparate group of beings attempts to return a powerful ring to its place of creation and destroy it there before its evil, original owner gains possession of it.
PLOT:
In a world known as Middle Earth, a number of powerful rings were assigned to various beings thousands of years ago, with the dark lord Sauron forging one to control others and all life. When he was defeated by an alliance of men and elves, the ring passed on from one being to another over the passage of time, with all being influenced by its undeniable power.

The latest to possess it, Bilbo Baggins (IAN HOLM), a 111-year old hobbit, is reluctant to part with it as it's kept him perpetually young. Nevertheless, his old friend, Gandalf (IAN McKELLEN), a powerful but wise wizard, convinces him to pass it down it to his young heir, Frodo Baggins (ELIJAH WOOD), who's unaware of its background or potential for personal upheaval.

Familiar with the ring's power, its desire to rule, and its need to return to its original master, Gandalf realizes that Frodo's possession of it puts him in danger and thus tells him he must leave for his own good. Accompanied by his friends and fellow hobbits, Sam (SEAN ASTIN), Pippin (BILLY BOYD) and Merry (DOMINIC MONAGHAN), Frodo does just that, while Gandalf goes to visit Saruman (CHRISTOPHER LEE), another wizard.

It turns out Saruman's been corrupted by Sauron who's now been resurrected, and so Frodo and his friends find themselves on their own, pursued by evil beings on horseback intent on seizing the ring. It turns out, however, that they have friends in unlikely places as they meet Aragorn (VIGGO MORTENSEN), a human ranger, and Arwen (LIV TYLER), a beautiful elf, who collectively try to keep the hobbits out of harm's way.

Frodo is finally wounded, but is then saved and eventually reunited with Gandalf. They then attend a meeting where various beings -- Boromir (SEAN BEAN), a human, Legolas (ORLANDO BLOOM), an elf bowman, and Gimli (JOHN RHYS-DAVIES), a gruff dwarf - agree that the ring Frodo possesses must be destroyed. The problem is that the only way that can occur is by returning it to the fires of Mount Doom where it was forged.

From that point on, those various beings - the Fellowship of the Ring - set out across the lands on their mission and encounter others - such as the mystical Galadriel (CATE BLANCHETT) - along with all sorts of monstrous creatures who either want to harm them or gain possession of the ring.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?
If they're fans of the Tolkien novels, anyone in the cast or are into mythical fantasy creations, it's a good bet they probably will.
WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13
For epic battle sequences and some scary images.
CAST AS ROLE MODELS:
  • ELIJAH WOOD plays a young hobbit who finds his world turned upside down and then faces various difficulties, challenges and dangers after inheriting a powerful ring that others want. In doing so, he shows great courage in trying to put an end to that.
  • SEAN ASTIN plays his best friend who is sworn to protect him.
  • BILLY BOYD and DOMINIC MONAGHAN play somewhat mischievous hobbits who accompany them on their journey and adventures.
  • IAN McKELLEN plays an old and wise wizard who guides Frodo and the others on their journey.
  • IAN HOLM plays a 111-year-old hobbit who's reluctant to give up the powerful ring due to its affect over him.
  • VIGGO MORTENSEN plays a human ranger who risks life and limb in trying to guide and protect Frodo and the others.
  • ORLANDO BLOOM plays an elf bowman who's part of the Fellowship of the Ring and kills various beings that attack their party.
  • LIV TYLER plays another elf who assists Frodo.
  • CHRISTOPHER LEE plays a wizard who's gone over to the dark side and attempts to retrieve the ring via magic and evil doings.
  • SEAN BEAN plays another human who's part of the Fellowship and helps defend Frodo by battling the various attackers (although he's briefly corrupted by the ring).
  • JOHN RHYS-DAVIES plays a gruff dwarf who also helps Frodo and the others.
  • CATE BLANCHETT plays a mystical woman of the woods who's enticed by the ring's power.
  • CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

    HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE


    Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit?
    Then read OUR TAKE of this film.


    (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).


    OUR WORD TO PARENTS:
    The following is a brief summary of the content found in this action/adventure fantasy that's been rated PG-13. All sorts of fantasy-style violence occurs throughout the film, where various beings fight, injure or kill others via arrows, swords and the like. Despite the high body count, most of the lethal and injurious mayhem is blood free, while some non-lethal fighting does have mildly bloody results.

    Various instances of that - including encounters with monsters, monstrous beings and evil creatures intent on harming the heroes - and other scenes/material may be unsettling, suspenseful or downright frightening to some viewers, particularly younger kids if they're allowed to see it (although that depends, as usual, on their age, level of maturity and tolerance for such material that does get rather intense at times). On the flip side, some kids may want to imitate all of the fighting and/or action.

    Being a story of good vs. evil, various characters obviously have bad attitudes, while some also drink. Various characters also smoke pipes, but we're never quite sure of the content of what they're smoking (whether it's tobacco, some sort of narcotic or something else). Beyond that, most of the remaining categories have little or nothing in the way of major objectionable content.

    Nevertheless, and since many kids will probably want to see this film, we suggest that if you're still concerned about its appropriateness for anyone in your home, you should take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content.


    ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE
  • A comment is made about what certain characters smoke in their pipes being "weed," but we don't know if it's meant as what they're literally smoking, or if there are any drug references to that (although Saruman later comments on Gandalf's love of the weed slowing his mind or something along those lines).
  • Bilbo offers to get Gandalf some wine, but the wizard states that tea is just fine.
  • Various characters drink what's presumably ale at a celebration (with Sam saying he'd rather have another rather than ask a girl to dance).
  • Gandalf and Saruman have what looks like wine.
  • Sam and Frodo have pints of what's presumably ale in a tavern of sorts.
  • BLOOD/GORE
  • A character cuts off another character's armor encased hand (or part of it), with fingers dropping to the ground (but no blood).
  • Saruman and Gandalf battle each other via magic from their staffs that throw or knock each other around, to the floor or against walls (resulting in a few bloody cuts).
  • A character falls down a hill (with others) and nearly lands in a pile of what looks like excrement.
  • We briefly see a sword wound (no blood, but a little bit of a hole) in Frodo's chest.
  • Arwen has a scrape on her face.
  • A person accidentally cuts his fingertip with an old sword and there's a little bit of blood.
  • We see many skeletons and partially decomposed bodies in a mine, the result of them being murdered in the past.
  • Boromir has some blood on him after a fight.
  • We see a little bit of blood around arrows that have been shot into a man's torso. He also has some blood on his face.
  • Aragorn's mouth is a bit bloody after fighting a creature that pulled a bloody knife from itself (and that Aragorn eventually decapitated - we only briefly see the head).
  • DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE
  • For those opposed to magic, sorcery and the like, some of that occurs and/or is practiced by some characters.
  • The various evil beings all have extreme cases of bad attitudes for wanting complete power and/or doing harm to others to get it.
  • Pippin and Merry steal a firework from a wagon for some mischievous fun.
  • We learn that Saruman has gone bad.
  • FRIGHTENING SCENES
  • Scenes listed under "Violence" may also be unsettling, suspenseful or frightening to some viewers, particularly younger kids (but that all depends on their age, level of maturity and tolerance for such material), especially when such scenes are accompanied by suspenseful/ominous music.
  • The same holds true for the appearance and/or sight of the evil riders on horseback (dressed in black with hoods) and various other monstrous looking beings (with sharp teeth and menacing appearances).
  • A firework in the sky turns into a menacing looking dragon of sorts that swoops down on a crowd of hobbits, but then explodes in the sky like a regular firework.
  • We see a brief and partial shot of a character being tortured in some sort of medieval like device (we hear his screams and see his hands shaking in the air).
  • Frodo suddenly senses something and yells for Sam, Pippin and Merry to get off the road. They then hide under a tree's roots on an embankment as a menacing creature (a black rider) gets off its horse (that looks like it has nails sticking out of its hooves) and looms above them (as spiders and various insects crawl over them).
  • That black rider on horseback then encounters the four boys again at night in the woods and repeatedly circles them. As the boys then race to board a ferry, the rider comes closer and closer to catching Frodo as he runs down the dock.
  • The ring inadvertently lands on Frodo's finger and he disappears from a pub and appears in an odd and distorted realm (with nondescript figures) that might be unsettling for some younger viewers.
  • As Frodo and his friends apparently sleep, various dark riders creep into their room, raise their swords and then repeatedly impale the beds (but we see that they're doing so to decoys and not the hobbits themselves).
  • Frodo and his hobbit friends find themselves atop a small fort in the woods as various menacing creatures slowly approach them with their swords drawn. The three friends are then thrown aside as the creatures are after Frodo who tries to scoot away backwards from them while on the ground. He then puts on the ring to disappear and sees the partial true view of what these creatures look like (that again may be unsettling for some younger viewers, especially with some scream-like sounds accompanying the action).
  • One of the beings then drives a sword down into Frodo. Aragorn then shows up and fights off the creatures with his sword and sets a few of them on fire.
  • Saruman's monstrous workers uncover muddy beings from below the ground that look even more monstrous and menacing.
  • Arwen races on horseback ahead of the dark riders that are closing in on her as she tries to take Frodo across a river to safety.
  • We see a flashback to Saruman "holding" (via his magic) Gandalf over the edge of a very tall tower.
  • Bilbo briefly turns monstrous as he tries to go for his former ring that's now on a chain around Frodo's neck.
  • Various characters hide from a swarm of large birds that approaches and then briefly circles over them.
  • Saruman uses magic to cause boulders and a great deal of snow to fall down onto Frodo and his companions who are trying to traverse a snowy ledge high atop a mountain.
  • We see many skeletons and partially decomposed bodies in a mine, the result of them being murdered in the past.
  • A squid-like creature in a lake grabs Frodo with one of its tentacles and pulls him toward the waters. His companions that come to his aid, with various characters slicing the creature with their swords and Legolas shooting arrows into it. They eventually free Frodo and collectively race into a mine as the creature tries to come after them and causes the entrance to collapse.
  • Frodo and his companions prepare for an encounter with beings they hear approaching them from behind a closed door in a mine. Various characters then fire arrows through the door and hit some of the creatures as they burst through the door and we have a full-scale battle with swords and arrows being used against the creatures (impaling and in one instance, beheading them). A huge monster then comes in, with various characters attacking it (with arrows and swords) as it tries to smash them with its club while coming after Frodo. This goes on for a few minutes with the group eventually killing many of the smaller creatures as well as the huge monster (after it knocks Aragorn unconscious and appears to stab Frodo to death - but he's okay due to his chain mesh vest).
  • More creatures then come after the group (scaling down columns like insects) and surround them, but flee when some demonic force approaches. The group then tries to make their way toward a bridge to safety, but first must traverse an elevated and narrow staircase that begins to fall apart, eventually separating the group (with Frodo and Aragorn appearing to be in mortal danger as their remnant of the staircase begins to sway). During this, various characters throw spears or shoot arrows at them as they try to make their way (Legolas fires arrows back at them, hitting some of them and causing them to fall over the precipice).
  • Gandalf then faces off with the demonic force (that now looks like a huge devil with fire burning on its body) and then finds himself hanging by his fingertips from the edge of a broken bridge.
  • Galadriel briefly turns monstrous when desirous of Frodo's ring.
  • Under the influence of the ring, Boromir briefly comes after Frodo, tackling him to the ground in an effort to take the ring (Frodo then makes himself invisible and escapes).
  • Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas fight various evil creatures, striking many of them with their swords, axes and arrows (most of the wounds, however, are blood free), while Pippin and Merry try to distract others by having the creatures chase them. This goes on for several minutes, with one evil creature then firing several arrows (temporally spaced apart) into a major character, eventually resulting in his death.
  • Sam races after Frodo into a body of water and appears to drown (as his motionless body sinks below the surface), but Frodo reaches in and saves him.
  • GUNS/WEAPONS
  • Swords/Bows and Arrows/Battle axes/Spears/Clubs: Used to fight, wound and/or kill various creatures. See "Violence" for details.
  • IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR
  • Some kids could be enticed to imitate all of the fighting and action that occurs in the film.
  • JUMP SCENES
  • Gandalf suddenly puts his hand on Frodo's shoulder.
  • A huge monster suddenly appears on the screen.
  • MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE)
  • An extreme amount of ominous, suspenseful and dramatic music plays during the film.
  • MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE)
  • None.
  • PROFANITY
  • None.
  • SEX/NUDITY
  • None.
  • SMOKING
  • While we're never sure of the chemical content of what they're smoking (see "Alcohol//Drugs"), Gandalf smokes a pipe many times, while Bilbo, Aragorn, Sam, Gimli and others also smoke them.
  • TENSE FAMILY SCENES
  • None.
  • TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT
  • The adaptation of the novel into movie form.
  • Sorcery and other related magic that occurs in the film.
  • The battle of good vs. evil (particularly in relation to the events of 9/11/2001).
  • VIOLENCE
  • In the prologue, we see a battle where men and elves clash with Sauron's soldiers. During the large-scale encounter, arrows and swords are used to hit and injure or kill many people, but there's little bloodshed. Sauron then shows up and knocks others aside with some large object (possibly killing them). Another character then cuts off Sauron's armor encased hand (or part of it as fingers come off), causing Sauron to disintegrate.
  • We see a body floating down a river with three arrows in its back.
  • Gandalf grabs Pippin and Merry by their ears after they misbehave.
  • We see a brief and partial shot of a character being tortured in some sort of medieval like device (we hear his screams and see his hands shaking in the air).
  • A character strikes someone with a sword, but we don't see the impact.
  • Hearing someone outside, Gandalf pokes someone with his staff and then pulls what turns out to be Sam through the window and pins him down on a table.
  • Saruman and Gandalf battle each other via magic from their staffs that throw or knock each other around, to the floor or against walls (resulting in a few bloody cuts), but never make physical contact with either man.
  • Pippin and Merry tackle Frodo and Sam and then all four of them end up tumbling down a steep hill.
  • Aragorn throws Frodo to the floor (when mad at him for not being more careful).
  • As Frodo and his friends apparently sleep, various dark riders creep into their room, raise their swords and then repeatedly impale the beds (but we see that they're doing so to decoys and not the hobbits themselves).
  • Frodo and his hobbit friends find themselves atop a small fort in the woods as various menacing creatures slowly approach them with their swords drawn. The three friends are then thrown aside as the creatures are after Frodo who tries to scoot away backwards from them while on the ground.
  • One of the beings then drives a sword down into Frodo. Aragorn then shows up and fights off the creatures with his sword and sets a few of them on fire.
  • Arwen causes a flood to race down a river and sweep away various dark riders and their horses.
  • A person accidentally cuts his fingertip with an old sword and there's a little bit of blood.
  • Gimli tries to destroy the ring by smashing it, but is knocked aside while doing so.
  • Pippin and Merry somewhat playfully attack Boromir (kicking him and tackling him to the ground) after sparring with swords.
  • Saruman uses magic to cause boulders and a great deal of snow to fall down onto Frodo and his companions who are trying to traverse a snowy ledge high atop a mountain.
  • We see many skeletons and partially decomposed bodies in a mine, the result of them being murdered in the past.
  • A squid-like creature in a lake grabs Frodo with one of its tentacles and pulls him toward the waters. His companions that come to his aid, with various characters slicing the creature with their swords and Legolas shooting arrows into it. They eventually free Frodo and collectively race into a mine as the creature tries to come after them and causes the entrance to collapse.
  • Frodo and his companions prepare for an encounter with beings they hear approaching them from behind a closed door in a mine. Various characters then fire arrows through the door and hit some of the creatures as they burst through the door and we have a full-scale battle with swords and arrows being used against the creatures (impaling and in one instance, beheading them). A huge monster then comes in, with various characters attacking it (with arrows and swords) as it tries to smash them with its club and a chain while coming after Frodo. This goes on for a few minutes with the group eventually killing many of the smaller creatures and the huge monster (with many arrows after it knocks Aragorn unconscious and appears to stab Frodo to death - but he's okay due to his chain mesh vest).
  • More creatures then come after the group (scaling down columns like insects) and surround them, but flee when some demonic force approaches. The group then tries to make their way toward a bridge to safety, but first must traverse an elevated and narrow staircase that begins to fall apart, eventually separating the group (with Frodo and Aragorn appearing to be in mortal danger as their remnant of the staircase begins to sway). During this, various characters throw spears or shoot arrows at them as they try to make their way (Legolas fires arrows back at them, hitting some of them and causing them to fall over the precipice).
  • A character falls to his presumed death (but we don't see the impact).
  • Characters aim their arrows on Frodo and his companions.
  • Frodo sees a vision of characters attacking some of his companions and one whipping a captured hobbit.
  • Under the influence of the ring, Boromir briefly comes after Frodo, tackling him to the ground in an effort to take the ring (Frodo then makes himself invisible and escapes).
  • Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas fight various evil creatures, striking many of them with their swords, axes and arrows (most of the wounds, however, are blood free). This goes on for several minutes, with one evil creature then firing several arrows (temporally spaced apart) into a major character, eventually resulting in his later death.
  • Aragorn fights a creature, stabbing it several times, with the creature hitting and head-butting him. Aragorn then throws a knife into the creature and then severs both its arm and head, killing it.



  • Reviewed December 3, 2001 / Posted December 19, 2001

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