Psychlowne

I never read the books, but I saw every one of the films in the theater. They are definitely great movies and high quality entertainment at that, but in terms of being the best movies of all time, there's no way anyone could say this were true after analyzing them.

There were way too many "flaws" in the series that kept them from perfection. I would probably put them in my Top 100, but because I haven't read the books, I don't have that nostalgic connection with the work. They aren't as important to me as they may be to someone else.

As far as adaptations go, I'd say it was a mircale that Peter Jackson did what he did with LOTR, considering he came from making cheesy horror flicks.

ianholm

No.

DavidH

The are some of the best movies I have seen --- but not THE best. I can't even say what is THE best movie I have seen.

Libby

Not the BEST since there are so many out there. Movies are never going to stop and their will always be remarkable filmaking throughout the generations that pass. It is well worthy of being on the top 100 list. Return of the King was probably the best film I have seen this year. That may change though

GMLSKIS

What he said !

n0fear88

ok definatley the best movies ive seen in the past 3 yrs or so all of them are in me top 10, or even top 5 movies of all time yay

Hokeyboy

1 and 3 are madly brilliant. 2 is... decent connnector material.

Top 100 films, for sure. Maybe FOTR (but in all probability, highly unlikely) even skirting my Top 50. Best I've ever seen? Not even close. They'd get hammered by everything Kurosawa did between 1950 and 1966...

Slortum?

MrX

no

I thought FOTR was great with TTT and ROTK being very good.

jrsl76

Not even close. They are very good epic films, save the ending of Return, but there are hundreds, if not more that are better. For example:

- Stanley Kubrick's entire oeuvre
- Almost all of Akira Kurosawa's entire oeuvre
- Many Martin Scorsese films, especially Mean Streets, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas and The Last Temptation of Christ
- Citiizen Kane
- Casablanca
- Many Hitchcock's - Psycho, Vertigo, Rear Window, etc.
- Carne's Children of Paradise
- etc.

Peter Jackson did a wonderful job, but what I've realized over my 20-something years is that usually you think a movie is great at a certain age and then with time and exploration, you discover the wealth of great movies from times past. This ends up causing a re-evaluation of the placement of a previous favorite. I mean when I was younger, Predator was one of my favorite movies. Now even though I still like it and it has a nostalgia, I obviously realize it is not one of the best movies ever made. That said, the LOTR trilogy is much stronger than Predator and I suspect the movies will keep a high position in many people's lists.

Shannon Nutt

Very honest quote...five years from now, we'll all be talking about something else.

marty888

Not even close .... skilled and amazing in ts technical aspects, well-acted - but that's it.

Troy Stiffler

Yes... I have about 100 movies that are on par with 'greatness' in my mind. The Lord of the Rings series is definately on there.

I have never called a movie my 'favorite', and never will.

dave955

No. For example, I would rank all of the following films as superior, and this list limits myself to one per director (except for 2 Hitchcocks). However, this is not meant to take anything away from the LOTR films. They are certainly very well-done and enjoyable.

Dekalog (1987)
Citizen Kane (1941)
Vertigo (1958)
Blade Runner (1982)
Sunrise (1927)
Apartment, The (1960)
À bout de souffle (1960)
Ostre sledované vlaky (1966)
Passion de Jeanne d'Arc, La (1928)
Rashomon (1950)
To Be or Not to Be (1942)
Notorious (1946)
Cet obscur objet du désir (1977)
Pulp Fiction (1994)
Lady Eve, The (1941)
Brief Encounter (1946)
Notti di Cabiria, Le (1957)
Platoon (1986)
Taxi Driver (1976)
Night of the Hunter, The (1955)

talemyn

I wonder what it is about this movie that makes it so hard for people to consider it to be closer to "the greatest" (I'm not claiming that I think it is, I'm just pondering). It has a beautifully scripted story, well-developed characters and relationships, an excellent balance of drama, romance, action, and comedy, and stunning audio and visual elements. What more are we asking of it in order for it to be considered better? Or, if applicable, what about it brings it down so that it can not be considered? Just curious . . .

Andalusia

Best movie? Nah. About the only thing I liked were the special effects.

Mondo Kane

Nope.

Even though FOTR appears to be my favorite of the bunch, they're still far from being the best films I've ever seen.

B.A.

No.

Caliking

these were definately the best movies i have ever seen. great direction, great story, great acting, the greatest effects ever, more detail than anything ever before...a masterpiece if you ask me!

that said...rushmore is my second favorite of all time.

Kerborus

Nope. God love these movies, but they have lots of holes and 'head scratching moments' (for example, after defeating a whole million orc march' at Minas Tirith they decide to step across the 'backyard' to Mordor to fight another army. All the while, Frodo climbed twelve steps. huh?)

That being said, among the best films in the last 5 years.

Geofferson

No.

Great movies, but not nearly the best all-time.

sundog

I'm sorry, but I just wanted to pull this line out of its context, struck me as funny.

And I vote no

I can't give a critical analysis, but its editing is one aspect that disqualifies Lord of the Rings from high, high regard. Great spectacle though.

Johnny Zhivago

Fantastic, fantastic films... Loved every minute of em'... Just terrific... and

But best of all time? Not even close...

2001: A Space Odyssey
Citizen Kane
Vertigo
Apocalypse Now
Sunset Blvd
Lawrence Of Arabia
A Clockwork Orange

Just to name a few... But I might place em' in my top 50 to 100 favorites. Maybe.

Best fantasy films ever? That's debatable.

Pants

Let's see...

1) Faithful to the source material for an adapted work. Check.

2) Talented cast. Check.

3) Well written screenplay. Check.

4) Creative set and costume design. Check.

5) Great score. Check.

6) Solid directing and good pacing. Check.

7) Doesn't fall apart at the end. Check.

8) Great visual effects/cinematography. Check.

9) Left the theater ready to see it again. Check.

Taking all this in to consideration, is it the best film ever? NO

Frankly I'm blown away that 25% of the people on here think LOTR is the best film EVER MADE. Weird

RyoHazuki

I'm kind of amazed that 33 people voted yes. 33.

RichC2

It's possible.

People tend to rule out matter of opinion in favor to "classics" that many people would, quite frankly, find boring.

I'm not one of 'em, don't think LotR series is the best I've seen, but I'm over it. Good for those who think it is.