[Formendacil]

I went to opening night for all three of these movies, I think. I went into the first as a worried 14-year-old, terribly afraid it was going to butcher my favourite books. I emerged relieved that the books hadn't been butchered, but still spent the rest of my teen years as the insufferable fan that didn't like the movies.

"Didn't like" was probably too strong at the time, since I pushed for getting the Extended Editions and watched every single extra feature on them--and every commentary track. But in the black-and-white world of teenaged fandom, things are either Perfect or Not and the movies were imperfect.

Three bloated The Hobbit movies and an impending Amazon series later... I still think these movies have their faults, but the good far outweighs the bad. They were clearly a labour of love, unlike the later labours of lucre, and are a worthy gateway into Tolkien's world. They have not imposed nearly as much on my mental picture of Middle-earth as I feared they would.

And although I didn't come to the Downs as a Movies Fan, I probably did only find my way here BECAUSE of the movies--I heard about the Downs in person from someone with a sister here (if I once knew her username, it has long since receded from memory--but I think she might have been inactive ere I ever joined). Without the public visibility of Tolkien fandom that resulted from the movies, that may not have happened. Certainly, many of my fellows here who DID join because of the movies would not have been part of my life.

So, here's to the Jackson adaptation--I'll raise a half-pint.*



*It comes in pints?! I'm getting one.