The first film in the epic fantasy Lord of the Rings trilogy, Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring was released 15 years ago today, on 19th December, 2001.
It’s hard to believe that it has been 15 years since once of the best-loved and most successful double trilogies of all-time was kicked off with the first instalment, The Fellowship of the Ring. Adapted from J. R. R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings novels by Peter Jackson, this film sees the start of the epic quest that unites man, dwarf, wizard, elf and hobbit to form the famed titular Fellowship of the Ring, led by the hobbit, Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood). As the fellowship, they begin to fight their way across Middle Earth to return the One Ring into the fires of Mount Doom from which it was forged. With many adversaries standing in the path of the fellowship, alliances and people will be tested as they face the likes of orcs, Ringwraiths, and the lovably sinister Gollum who all seek to stop their epic quest.
Image via Warner Bros. Pictures
The film was, undoubtedly, a massive success with the collective talent of Sir Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom, Viggo Mortenson, Sean Bean, Christopher Lee, Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving and Liv Tyler all having starring roles. This stardom is probably a key contributing factor why Fellowship is the 49th highest-grossing film of all time with a total worldwide box-office around $871.5 million.
The film also did well in terms of accolades and awards after release. After being nominated for 13 Oscars, it won 4: Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects, Best Makeup and Best Original Score. Ian McKellan was also unlucky not to walk away with Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his portrayal of Gandalf the Grey.
Even 15 years later, the film still has cultural popularity with the immortal and iconic line: ‘One does not simply walk into Mordor.’ The Fellowship of the Ring consistently tops lists of fan-favourite films and it is among the highest grossing of all-time and with such an incredible cast, it isn’t hard to see why.
Re-live the wonder of Middle Earth and watch the trailer below.
