[HCIsland]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR> as long as anyoen stayed true to his epic, they were bound to produce a hit. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>I'm sorry, but I can't agree with this part. If this were true these films would have been made a long time ago. The animated LoTR stayed true to the story (in many ways much more than Jackson did) but was certainly anything but a hit. LoTR has largely been considered unfilmable and with good reason. These films represented a big risk on the part of the studios and were anything but a sure hit.<P>In fact, I would say it was Jackson's willingness to play somewhat with plot and character while staying true to the themes in the books that is a big part of the success of these films.<P>H.C.