The Lord of the Rings (1978)
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A group of diverse fantasy races forms a fellowship to destroy a powerful magical ring and defeat the Dark Lord Sauron.
The story
Set in the realm of Middle-earth, the film follows a fellowship of Hobbits, Men, an Elf, a Dwarf, and a Wizard. They are united by a common goal: to destroy a magical Ring created by the Dark Lord Sauron, who seeks to use it to conquer the land. The journey begins after the Ring is discovered by a Hobbit named Bilbo Baggins, who eventually passes it to his nephew Frodo. As the threat of Sauron's forces grows, the fellowship must navigate dangerous lands and overcome various obstacles to ensure the Ring does not fall into the wrong hands.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
The story begins in the Second Age of Middle-earth, where the One Ring is forged by Sauron and later hidden for centuries. It is eventually found by Bilbo Baggins and passed to Frodo. Accompanied by a fellowship including Aragorn, Boromir, Legolas, Gimli, and others, Frodo journeys toward Mordor to destroy the Ring in Mount Doom. Along the way, the group faces various perils: they are forced into the Mines of Moria where Gandalf falls into an abyss while fighting a Balrog. The fellowship is later split; while some are captured by Orcs, others continue toward the lands of Rohan and Gondor. Frodo and his companion Sam are stalked by the creature Gollum. The film concludes with a resolution of the immediate conflict at Helm's Deep and the ongoing quest to reach Mount Doom.
- First release year
- 1978
- Runtime (minutes)
- 133
- Production countries
- United Kingdom; United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Ralph Bakshi
- Writers
- Chris Conkling · screenplay; Peter S. Beagle · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Christopher Guard · Frodo; William Squire · Gandalf; Michael Scholes · Sam; John Hurt · Aragorn; Simon Chandler · Merry; Dominic Guard · Pippin; Michael Graham Cox · Boromir; Anthony Daniels · Legolas; David Buck · Gimli
- Genres
- animated; epic fantasy; adventure
- Themes
- sacrifice; corruption; heroism
- Tone and mood
- epic; dark
- Premise and plot tags
- fantasy; adventure; quest
- Source material / true-story basis
- The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
- Franchise connections
- The Lord of the Rings
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics and was met with hostility from some fans who felt it was incomplete, yet it was a financial success and has maintained a cult following.
- Awards and nominations
- Hugo Award · Best Dramatic Presentation · Nominated; Saturn Awards · Best Fantasy Film · Nominated; Golden Globe · Best Original Motion Picture Score · Nominated; Golden Gryphon · Giffoni Film Festival · Won
- Production trivia
- The film extensively uses rotoscoping, a technique where live-action scenes are traced onto animation cels.; The film was a major inspiration for Peter Jackson's later adaptation.; The film was originally intended to be titled 'The Lord of the Rings Part I'.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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