LOTR Footage At Cannes

Capitalizing on the phenomenal success of its hype Web site, New Line yesterday paraded Jackson and all of the key cast members out for the press after screening 26 minutes of thrilling footage that had even hardened cynics cheering.
Not surprisingly, the actors, most of whom spent 15 months of their lives working on the three films all at once, were also bubbling afterwards.

"I was completely blown away," a chain-smoking Liv Tyler -- who plays the romantic Elf Arwen in all three movies -- said of the scenes, which were screened to gasping and clapping. "I was scared, actually, and I screamed like two times.

"And I was so impressed with the cave Troll. What I particularly really loved about it was that even it (the Troll), which was completely computer driven, had emotions somehow. It had a spirit. That is one of the great things about this piece. Everything matters. Everything has emotions. Everything has a strong character, even if they're enhanced digitally."

The cave Troll is at the climax of a 14-minute scene set in the mines of Moria where the nine heroes of the piece have to fight nasty Orcs, and finally the monster, to escape alive and continue their mission of honour. Other scenes shown included the reunion of the Wizard Gandalf (played by Ian McKellan) and the Hobbit Bilbo Baggins (Ian Holm).

"It was exhausting to watch it, actually," English actor Orlando Bloom, who plays the heroic Elf Legolas in the films, said of the preview footage. "It's because there were so many heightened moments in that 26 minutes. And it was only like a tiny taste of what is to come!"