The Hobbit (1977)
Ultimately, one of the fundamental issues that doomed the live-action Hobbit adaptations very much from the start was Peter Jackson’s creative decision (or perhaps contractual ...
Category Archives: Middle-Earth Movies
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)
With a bit of distance now, it’s hard to revisit the Hobbit trilogy without wondering what exactly went wrong, and what might have been. Blame it on Peter Jackson, Philippa ...
The Lord of the Rings (1978)
This is where it all began. A case could be made that this late-1970s cult item deserves to be slotted a couple spots higher strictly based on the fact that it was regarded as ...
The Return of the King (1980)
Can we all just agree that the “Where There’s a Whip, There’s a Way” song slaps and move on? Full disclosure: This is probably the hardest call in our Tolkien movie ranking so ...
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Let’s start off with the positives, shall we? A lot was riding on the much-awaited introduction of the fearsome titular dragon (last seen hoarding dwarven treasure inside the ...
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
Peter Jackson’s much-anticipated return to Middle-earth didn’t exactly turn out to be the cinematic slam-dunk that most fans had envisioned. Nevertheless, after an unbearable ...
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (2024)
Looking back, every Middle-earth project announced since 2003 — from Amazon’s $1 billion fiasco to that Andy Serkis’ upcoming Gollum movie no one asked for — has felt like an ...
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
Here is where things start to get tricky. There’s a vocal contingent of fans who insist that this is the best of the lot, and upon re-watch, I’m almost tempted to concur. To ...
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Speaking of, it’s hard to think of a single line in cinema history that has us hooting and hollering at the screen quite like Theoden’s thunderous battle cry at the Pelennor ...
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
It’s a bit of a cop-out, but we have to give the nod to “The Fellowship of the Ring” for a number of obvious reasons: This is the mission statement and blueprint for ...