Lord Of The Rings London Premiere

[Tuesday, December 11th, 2001]
Reuters have published the comments made by critics after the world premiere of the ambitious and much-hyped film epic "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring", where critics proclaimed the boy wizard a mere pretender to the true magic of Frodo and friends:

"Forget Harry Potter, this has the true ring of greatness," the Daily Mail newspaper declared.

Its film critic, Christopher Tookey, called the first film in director Peter Jackson's adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's trilogy "an awesome feat of imagination and daring."

"Critics who gave five-star ratings to Chris Columbus's competent but uninspired Harry Potter movie are going to have to find 10 if they are to do justice to 'Fellowship of the Ring,'" he said.

"Harry Potter, be prepared to fall on your broomstick," wrote Daily Express show business correspondent Mark Jagasia.

The Sun film critic said the fantasy plot was brought to life by effects and sets that put Potter's Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to shame.

"No matter how far-fetched the plot or the characters, all skepticism is blown away by the sheer scale and realism of the sets, make-up and special effects," the paper said. "For all its wonderful sets, Potter looks, by comparison, like it was filmed in a garden shed."

"It is as amazing as I thought it would be. I like action and there is lots of it," said 14-year-old schoolboy turned critic Richard Earl in The Times.

"The movie works. It has real passion," Newsweek declared. The film critic for Entertainment Weekly said, "I really got a sense of awe and grandeur." Variety said, "The effects are blended in extremely well with the fabric of the movie."

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