I went to see it with my friends and through the entire film they asked "who is he?" "where is he going?" and "why are they going there?". only 2 of us had read the books and it wasn't a good experience but when i saw it again that was a better time.
I also went to see it with some other friends who hadn't read the books or seen the previous films. That was dire! I missed practically the whole film because I was having to explain every tiny detail. That's why this site is so great!! I am a complete LOTR Freak but none of my friends are that interested. And before you say it, yes I know they're criminally insane!!!