[Azaelia of Willowbottom]

I agree with others that, in FOTR, at least, Boromir was a major improvement. Reading the books, I just didn't feel much sympathy for him. To my thirteen-year-old mind, he was evil because he tried to take the ring from Frodo. Obviously, I dismissed him way too easily. It was evident in the movie that he wasn't corrupt himself, but had been controlled by the Ring...and then turned around and became the hero. The film really helped me to see him for who he was: just a guy trying to do the right thing. The time spent on developing his character in the movie, while not much more happened than in the book, really brought him into focus for me...

Regardless of what else happened in the TTTEE, I loved the scene between Faramir and Boromir. We don't see them interact at all in the books, unless you count Faramir coming upon Boromir's funeral boat. It was great to see their relationship as brothers come in onscreen.

And in general, I think especially on the first read-through, LOTR is a little overwhelming: so many characters all at once. It's a lot to take in. Upon multiple readings, we gain a good sense of each character...but I liked that in the movie, each character gets his or her turn in the spotlight, at least to some extent. All the various relationships get their share of screentime, and I'm not talking about just the romance. We see great friendships and families as well. Sometimes the movie gives a better sense of them than the book does, especially the relationships between siblings like Eowyn and Eomer (or, as I mentioned before, Faramir and Boromir).

In the book, it's obvious, of course, that they cared for each other...but reading a couple fleeting sentences in the expanse of the book is different from actually seeing the relationships in the spotlight onscreen.