John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, or J,R.R. Tolkien, was one of the most influential figures in the history of modern fantasy fiction. Created out of a desire to give England its own mythology that wasn’t copied from other world cultures, and further built on in 1911 when he began writing The Silmarillon (which wouldn’t be finished until after his death), it was his two most popular books, 1937’s The Hobbit and its three volume long sequel in the 1950s, The Lord of the Rings, that made him a household name.
Telling the stories of two hobbits, small human-like creatures with hairy feet, named Bilbo and Frodo Baggins and their encounters with wizards, dragons, goblins, elves and dwarves, until their lives are forever changed by their discovery of the ultimate source of evil power, the One Ring, both of these stories have been the subject of numerous film adaptations, with the most famous examples being Peter Jackson’s unique approach to these stories.
This list will rank the ten feature film adaptations of Tolkien’s two books and writings in Middle Earth. Only feature length films will count, so 1966’s short film based on The Hobbit, along with all television shows have been left out, including The Rings of Power.
10. The Return of the King (1980)
Directed by: Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin Jr.
Written by: Romeo Muller
Starring: Orson Bean, John Huston, Roddy McDowell, Theodore Bickel, William Conrad , Casey Kasem, Sonny Melendrez, Paul Frees and Brother Theodore
Music by: Maury Laws
Rated: N/A
Over eight decades after Bilbo Baggins (Orson Bean) the hobbit, came back from his grand adventure with the dwarves, his nephew, Frodo (Also Orson Bean) recounts to him on the former’s 129th birthday, the final days of the War of the Ring four years previously. As Frodo and his loyal gardener, Samwise Gamgee (Roddy McDowell) make their final stretch towards Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring, Gandalf (John Huston), Aragorn (Theodore Bikel), the Prince of Gondor, and Frodo’s two cousins, Merry (Casey Kasem) and Pippin (Sonny Melendrez), must protect the city of Minas Tirith from the forces of Sauron, the Nazgûl and the orc armies…
While it was only intended to be a sequel to Rankin/Bass’s charming 1977 television adaptation of The Hobbit, The Return of the King ended up being an unofficial sequel to Ralph Bakshi’s The Lord of the Rings, after United Artists decided not to move forward with a sequel, despite being a box office success.
Although Rankin/Bass’s attempts to remain faithful to the dark tone of Rings is admirable, the heavily stylistic depictions of the characters, which worked with Hobbit as that was always meant to be a story for younger audiences, is too distracting, especially with the questionable designs of the Witch-King (John Stephenson) and the Nazgûl.
While watching this back to back with 1977’s Hobbit and 1978’s Rings, does surprisingly work as a passable animated trilogy of Tolkien’s two stories, The Return of the King, as it was originally intended as just a sequel to Hobbit, feels extremely confusing to anyone not familiar with the source material, with so much critical plot points either left out, or poorly executed, especially with how Frodo gets himself captured off screen at the beginning, with no apparent explanation of whether it was Shelob or not.
Overall, despite having great voice-acting and some interesting details that the Peter Jackson films didn’t have, such as Denethor (William Conrad) having a more interesting fall into madness and the orcs having more three-dimensional personalities, The Return of the King is a complete mess. That Where’s a Whip song however, absolute banger!
Rating: 2/5
9. The Lord of the Rings (1978)
Directed by: Ralph Bakshi
Written by: Chris Conkling and Peter S. Beagle
Starring: Christopher Guard, William Squire, Michael Scholes, John Hurt, Simon Chandler, Dominic Guard, Michael Graham Cox, Anthony Daniels, Peter Woodthrope, Norman Bird and David Buck
Music by: Leonard Rosenman
Rated: PG
Middle-Earth, a land populated by wizards, dwarves, elves, and small people known as hobbits, is thrown into danger by the threat of the Dark Lord, Sauron. When a young hobbit named Frodo Baggins (Christopher Guard) inherits a magic ring from his uncle Bilbo (Norman Bird), the wizard Gandalf (William Squire), reveals to him that it’s actually Sauron’s source of power, The One Ring. With the help of his friends, Sam (Michael Scholes), Merry (Simon Chandler) and Pippin (Dominic Guard), an elf named Legolas (Anthony Daniels), a Dwarf named Gimli (David Buck), a warrior of Gondor named Boromir (Michael Graham Cox) and a mysterious ranger named Aragorn (John Hurt), Frodo must set out on a quest to destroy the ring before Sauron can use it to regain his strength…
Ralph Bakshi’s passion for J.R.R. Tolkien’s masterpiece of fantasy fiction is admirable, given the length of the books and the fact that animation was not doing well during the 1970s in terms of mainstream distribution. Although this heavily flawed adaptation of The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers never got the chance to adapt the whole story due to United Artists losing faith in the project despite it doing well in the box office, the first ninety minutes in which the first book is adapted is still a mostly faithful retelling of the story and the voice acting is solid, with John Hurt’s powerful take on Aragorn being the only thing that actually surpasses the Peter Jackson films.
The animation however, is not Ralph’s best, even by 70’s standards as the overuse of rotoscoping and the odd visual style, does make the film feel like a poor Picasso art piece, rather than the epic landscapes of Middle-Earth. Don’t even get started on how badly The Two Towers segment is handled.
Overall, Ralph Bakshi’s The Lord of the Rings is an interesting precursor to how Middle-Earth would be depicted on film, despite its many, many flaws.
Rating: 3/5
8. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014)
Directed by: Peter Jackson
Written by: Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens and Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Luke Evans, Evangeline Tilly, Lee Pace, Benedict Cumberbatch, Ken Stott, James Nesbitt, Aidan Turner, Dean O’Gorman, Billy Connolly, Graham McTavish, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, Cate Blanchett, Ian Holm, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Manu Bennett and Orlando Bloom
Music by: Howard Shore
Rated: 12A (theatrical), 15 (Extended Edition)
The reign of the evil dragon, Smaug (Benedict Cumberbatch), is finally brought to an end by the brave human bowman, Bard (Luke Evans), but Lake-Town has ended up destroyed as a result. With the backing of King Thranduil (Lee Pace) of the Woodland Realm, Bard and the citizens of Lake-Town travel to Erebor to convince Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage), Balin (Ken Stott), Bofur (James Nesbitt) and the rest of the company of dwarves to share Smaug’s wealth. Thorin, however, has become corrupted by dragon sickness and Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) is forced to make a decision that could cost him all of his new friends. Meanwhile, Gandalf (Ian McKellen), having learnt the truth about the Necromancer (also Benedict Cumberbatch), rides as fast as he can towards Erebor, while Azog (Manu Bennett) and his forces get closer towards the mountain…
Although the first two entries of this much-despised prequel trilogy to the Lord of the Rings films are still mostly great despite their flaws, the last film in this trilogy, unfortunately, has a lot more problems to be considered a great film.
The production design and Howard Shore’s score are still fantasic as always and most of the acting from the likes of Martin Freeman and Ian McKellen, has still been the best elements of these films. However, huge problems with the narrative such as dropping established plot points from the first two films in order to rush the plot, the greater presense of the worst elements of those films, such as the increased presence of CGI orcs and the awful love-triangle between the dwarf Kili (Aidan Turner) , Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) and Legolas (Orlando Bloom) and some incredibly silly moments, makes those films less exciting to watch.
Although the battle itself is incredibly fun to watch, with the best moments coming from the extended edition such as an insane chariot chase and bloody orc deaths, it drags on for so long and even though Billy Connolly is a joy to have in the world of Middle-Earth, the last minute decison to turn him into a CGI creation is incredibly distracting.
Overall, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies is a disappointing ending to a flawed, but enjoyable trilogy that has its moments, but the missed opportunities prevent it from getting the gold.
Rating: 3/5
7. The Hobbit (1977)
Directed by: Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin Jr.
Written by: Romeo Muller
Starring: Orson Bean, Richard Boone, Hans Conried, John Huston, Otto Preminger, Cyril Ritchard and Brother Theodore
Music by: Maury Laws
Rated: N/A
Long ago, in the land of Middle-Earth, a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins (Orson Bean), is hired by the powerful wizard, Gandalf (John Huston), to join a company of travelling dwarves to reclaim their land and treasure from the evil dragon, Smaug (Richard Boone). As Bilbo and his new friends venture across the regions of Wilderland, surviving encounters with trolls, elves, spiders and a mysterious creature named Gollum (Brother Theodore), the easily rattled hobbit will soon find his courage on “The Greatest Adventure”…
The first feature length adaptation of J.R.R Tolkien’s Middle Earth books, has gained a cult following over the years, thanks to numerous recent parodies on South Park and Smiling Friends. However, aside from having a charming nature and an interesting atmosphere, The Hobbit is mostly average.
The animation style, being completely different when compared to John Howe and Alan Lee’s iconic style for the Peter Jackson films, combines the fantasy illustrations of Arthur Rackham with Eastern mythology, to create very unique takes on the likes of the elves, Gollum and Smaug the dragon. However, the wood elves and some of the dwarves look very awkward, with the former looking like gremlins with German accents.
Overall, despite having some great voice-acting, especially Orson Bean’s more upbeat Bilbo Baggins and John Huston’s powerful take on Gandalf and some great songs, The Hobbit is passable, but not much else.
Rating: 3/5
6. The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (2024)
Directed by: Kenji Kamiyama
Written by: Jeffrey Addiss, Will Matthews, Phoebe Gittins and Arty Papageorgiou
Starring: Brian Cox, Gaia Wise, Luke Pasqualino, Lorraine Ashbourne and Miranda Otto
Music by: Stephen Gallagher
Rated: 12A
One hundred and twenty-three years before Bilbo Baggins left on his adventure with Gandalf and the dwarves of Erebor, the Kingdom of Rohan, realm of the horse lords, suffers a major crisis. When King Helm Hammerhand (Brian Cox) of Edoras accidentally kills Freca (Shaun Dooley), chief of the Dunlendings during a duel, the latter’s vengeful son, Wulf (Luke Pasqualino), declares war. With the Rohirrim greatly overwhelmed by the Dunlendings, Helm and his beloved daughter, a headstrong shield maiden named Héra (Gaia Wise), find themselves stranded at the Hornberg tower, where they must find a way to save their people from certain death…
A decade after Peter Jackson left behind Middle-Earth for the seemingly final time with The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies in 2014, J.R.R Tolkien’s franchise of hobbits, wizards, elves and dwarves has found new life in newly published collections of writings of Professor Tolkien, several video games and a very controversial streaming series on Amazon, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, which, as of 2024, has just finished its second season.
However, recently, Warner Bros., New Line Cinema and Peter Jackson’s company, WingNut Films, have begun to bring the most popular version of Middle Earth, the one established in Peter Jackson’s six Hobbit and Lord of the Rings films, back in popular culture, with a film based on The Hunt for Gollum on the way for 2027. However, as the companies had to have quickly made another Lord of the Rings film by the end of 2024 to keep the rights to the franchise, a completely new approach has been done to keep costs down, with War of the Rohirrim being an anime adaptation of one of the Appendices chapters from the book version of The Return of the King, that told the story of the founding of the iconic fortress from The Two Towers, Helm’s Deep.
Although Middle-Earth has had its fair share of history in animated films such as Ralph Bakshi’s 1978 Lord of the Rings adaptation and the two Rankin/Bass Hobbit and Return of the King films, this is the first time that one has been set in the same universe of Jackson’s films, as well as the first film in the franchise to not feature Hobbits, elves or dwarves as main characters.
By being focused entirely on the history of Rohan, the human kingdom of the Horse Lords that played a major role in Two Towers and Return of the King, director Kenji Kamiyama tells a much more gritty and bleak story about the consequences of provoking war with enemy nations, even when done with good intentions. Both Helm Hammerhand and his daughter, Héra, make for fantastic new protagonists, even if more could have been done for the former’s iconic moments. As for Wulf, he may be one of the cruelest and most realistic antagonists of the franchise, as he is just an angry human commander rather than a Dark Lord, evil wizard or Orc commander, and his conclusion is a surprising one, but well deserved.
Overall, while the character animation does take some getting used to, the background and character animation are incredibly beautiful to look at, the likes of Brian Cox, Gaia Wise and the returning Miranda Otto as Éowyn serving as a narrator, all do solid voice acting, and it is a treat hearing those classic Howard Shore music soundtracks on the big screen again, to tell this untold story of Middle-Earth.
Rating: 3.5/5
5. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)
Directed by: Peter Jackson
Written by: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly, Lee Pace, Luke Evans, James Nesbitt, Ken Stott, Sylvester McCoy, Manu Bennett and Orlando Bloom
Music by: Howard Shore
Rated: 12A
Still on the run from the ruthless orc commander, Azog (Manu Bennett), Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage), Balin (Ken Scott), Bofur (James Nesbitt) and the rest of the company of dwarves, are forced to part ways with Gandalf (Ian McKellen), when the latter receives word to investigate the fortress of Dol Goldur and the Necromancer (Benedict Cumberbatch). As the company experiences further adventures in the dark forest of Mirkwood, the dungeons of the Wood-Elves and the corrupt human village of Lake-Town, the threat of the mighty dragon Smaug (also Benedict Cumberbatch) grows closer and closer…
The second film of Peter Jackson’s divisive film adaptations of The Hobbit, does start showing the flaws of changing the planned two film adaptation into three films. The cringworthy love triangle between the dwarf Kili (Aidan Turner), new elf character Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly), and the returning Legolas (Orlando Bloom), the over-reliance of orc attacks, the overlong climax, and most of the CGI redesigns of the orcs are what really started the downfall of this trilogy.
However, Peter Jackson and the crew at WingNut Films’s skill at world-building, with the new locations of Mirkwood and Lake-Town, the amazing production design of these locations and a lot of the new faces such as Lee Pace’s Thranduil, Luke Evans’s Bard and the incredible Benedict Cumberbatch as the sinister dragon Smaug and the chilling tone are still as great as ever and both Martin Freeman and Ian McKellen do the best they can do with their separate stories.
Overall, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug still has all the elements people love about the Middle-Earth films, even if the major problems start becoming more prominent.
Rating: 4/5
4. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
Directed by: Peter Jackson
Written by: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Ken Stott, James Nesbitt, Hugo Weaving, Ian Holm, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Lee, Barry Humphries, Sylvester McCoy, Manu Bennett, Elijah Wood and Andy Serkis
Music by: Howard Shore
Rated: 12A
Sixty years before Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) left on his epic adventure through Middle-Earth, his future guardian, Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), is convinced by Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen) to join Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) and a band of Dwarves on a quest to reclaim the kingdom of Erebor from the powerful dragon, Smaug. However throughout their encounters with goblins, trolls and even Gollum (Andy Serkis), Gandalf discovers rumours of a powerful Necromancer living in the fortress of Dol Goldur…
Putting aside the massive differences from the source material and the messed up production history involving New Zealand politics, the removal of Guillermo del Toro as director and the last minute decison to extend the planned two-film adaptation of Tolkien’s child-friendly prelude to The Lord of the Rings to three films, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey does manage to keep the spirit of the other film intact.
As with Peter Jackson’s first trilogy, the acting is top-notch with Martin Freeman perfectly capturing the spirit of Bilbo Baggins, Richard Armitage, Ken Scott, James Nesbitt and the rest of the actors playing the company of dwarves bring a sense of humour and gravity to the film with each one having their own personalities and the returning actors consisting of Ian McKellen, Hugo Weaving, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Lee and the outstanding Andy Serkis, even a majority of their characters don’t appear in the book, all once again bring their talents towards these iconic roles with the latter getting one of the best scenes of the entire franchise.
Although the more prominant use of CGI in the design of the orcs and goblins does feel distracting at times, the rest of the presentation still looks flawless, with the New Zealand cinematography, Dan Hennah’s outstanding production design of both old and new locations such as Hobbiton, Rivendell and Goblin Town and Howard Shore’s outstanding score, brings audiences back to the world of Middle-Earth with success.
Overall, the sequels may have a lot more problems and the CGI isn’t that great, but The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey does manage to capture the feeling of the original trilogy the best, thanks to its plot structure, size and Bilbo’s coming of age arc.
Rating: 5/5
3. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
Directed by: Peter Jackson
Written by: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Stephen Sinclair and Peter Jackson
Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortenson, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davis, Bernard Hill, Christopher Lee, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Brad Dourif, Karl Urban and Andy Serkis
Music by: Howard Shore
Rated: 12A
As the forces of Sauron and Saruman (Christopher Lee) plot to wipe out all humans in Middle-Earth, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Legolas (Orlando Bloom), Gimli (John Rhys-Davis) and the newly revived Gandalf the White (Ian McKellen), must save the kingdom of Rohan from the forces of Isengard. At the same time, Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) are forced to rely on the One Ring’s previous bearer, a small tormented creature named Gollum (Andy Serkis), to guide them into Mordor…
Despite having a less linear narrative than the first film, with three plot lines revolving around Frodo and Sam’s journey, Aragorn’s quest and the comic relief hobbits, Merry (Dominic Moughaun) and Pippin (Billy Boyd) encountering Treebeard (Also John Rhys-Davis) and the treelike Ents, all of these plots, although the latter one tends to drag a bit, all succeed in further developing the characters. This is shown with Frodo’s growing corruption to the Ring, Merry taking responsibility for his actions and Aragorn embracing his role as the future saviour of humankind. The population of the home of the Horse Lords, Edoras, such as the reluctant King Theoden (Bernard Hill), the slimy Grima Wormtongue (Brad Dorif) and the shield-maiden Ewoyn (Miranda Otto) help to establish both the frail, yet hopeful theme revolving humanity, while also giving the audience the chance to fully explore a human culture in a world populated by fantastical creatures.
Although the score is amazing and the setpieces such as the Battle of Helm’s Deep are stunning to look at, the biggest achievement in terms of visual effects comes in the form of Gollum. Being the first character in a live-action film to filmed in the revolutionary preformance capture system, Andy Serkis’s physical and emotional performance captures both the good and evil sides of the tormented creature, with the conversation sequence being one of the most intense psychological sequences put to film.
Overall, despite the Treebeard scenes sometimes dragging the film down, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is still masterful filmmaking in terms of worldbuilding and character development and helped audiences get excited enough for the epic conclusion.
Rating: 5/5
2. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Directed by: Peter Jackson
Written by: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens and Peter Jackson
Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davis, Bernard Hill, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Karl Urban, John Noble, Ian Holm, Sean Bean and Andy Serkis
Music by: Howard Shore
Rated: 12A
With the forces of Isengard defeated, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) and the armies of Rohan and Gondor prepare to face Sauron for the fate of Middle-Earth. Meanwhile, as Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) and Sam Gamgee (Sean Astin) move closer and closer towards Mordor, Gollum (Andy Serkis), now fully consumed by his evil side, plots to lead the two Hobbits into a fatal trap…
Although the last two films had their fair share of cool setpieces, a majority of scenes in those films were used for the worldbuilding of Middle-Earth and to establish characters. With the final film however, Peter Jackson goes all out in filming some of the best battle sequences ever put to film, with the infamous Battle of the Pelennor Fields being a marvel in terms of spectacle and cinematography.
The butt-numbing running time of over four hours can be tiring for some, it is thankfully not boring, as time is used to wrap up every character’s arc beautifully. Frodo, Sam, Aragorn, Gandalf (Ian McKellen), Gollum and the rest of the cast are characters that the audience has grown to love. In spite of the criticism of the numerous endings, they are essential in giving each of them the send-off they deserve.
Overall, with all these things said about it, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a triumphant conclusion to Tolkien’s story and being the first fantasy film to win the Oscar for Best Picture, a crowning victory for fans of the much underappreciated genre. “The Road goes ever on” indeed…
Rating: 5/5
1. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Directed by: Peter Jackson
Written by: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens and Peter Jackson
Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davis, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Ian Holm and Andy Serkis
Music by: Howard Shore
Rated: PG (theatrical), 12A (Extended Edition)
When the evil forces of the Dark Lord Sauron (Sala Baker), threaten Middle-Earth, a land populated by peaceful Hobbits, Wizards, Elves, Dwarves and Humans, a young Hobbit named Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) and his brave companions are entrusted to destroy the one thing that can give Sauron unlimited power, The One Ring. But evil forces such as the traitorous wizard Saruman (Christopher Lee), armies of Orcs, Goblins, Trolls and even the Ring itself with its seductive qualities, will do anything to stop them in their tracks.
From the opening speech that tells the audience the history of the Ring, right up to the powerful cliffhanger of Frodo and his best friend Samwise Gamgee (Sean Astin) leaving the group to destroy the Ring, Director Peter Jackson and his co-writers Fran Walsh and Phillipa Boyens, manage to bring J.R.R. Tolkien’s world of hobbits, elves and dwarves to life. The sweeping use of cinematography of New Zealand gives Middle-Earth a massive scope and Grant Major’s impressive production design of locations such as the countryside villages of Hobbiton, the beautiful nature-friendly Elf homes of Rivendell and Lothlorien and the dark forboding Mines of Moria, brings artists John Howe and Alan Lee’s visualisation of Tolkien’s world into a believable, yet fantastical reality.
The decision to only focus on Frodo’s quest, though purists may disagree, was a smart one as the story itself gives a lot of room in the development of the characters. Although Frodo himself is a good wide-eyed innocent forced into an unfriendly world, it’s the characters that surround him such as the wise, yet kind wizard Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen), Sam, the powerful elf-lords Elrond (Hugo Weaving) and Galadriel (Cate Blanchett), and the members of the Fellowship themselves such as Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), the destined saviour of the humans of Middle-Earth, the elf prince Legolas ( Orlando Bloom) and the Dwarf warrior Gimli (John Rhys-Davis) and the world building of Middle Earth itself that makes this film such a joy to watch.
Overall, despite some dated CGI in terms of how it blends in the amazing practical and model work, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring is an amazing experience that few films of this century have topped and is a great start to the greatest fantasy story of all time.
Rating: 5/5
Chaz’s Cinematic Odyssey 