With THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, director Peter Jackson has achieved a meticulous and captivating adaptation of the first book of J.R.R. Tolkien's classic fantasy trilogy. The setting is Middle-earth, a mythological land populated by elves, dwarves, humans, and the gentle, diminutive hobbits upon whom the story centers. One hobbit, Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood), unexpectedly comes into possession of an ancient magical ring so powerful it invariably corrupts anyone who wears it. In order to prevent the ring's erstwhile owner, the dark lord Sauron, from reclaiming the ring and taking over Middle-earth, a motley band of comrades set out to destroy it in the fires of Mount Doom, where it was forged. Included in the group are Frodo and hobbits Sam (Sean Astin), Merry (Dominic Monoghan), and Pippin (Billy Boyd); the wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen); human warriors Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) and Boromir (Sean Bean); the dwarf Gimli (John Rhys-Davies); the elf Legolas (Orlando Bloom). Along the way, they wage battle with monsters, demons, and Sauron's evil minions, all brought to life by spectacular digital technology.

Jackson's grandiose production represents the first of three films that he wrote and directed, derived from Tolkien's beloved novels. Fourteen months in the making, at a cost of $270 million, all three installments were filmed at once in New Zealand where diverse landscapes lend themselves particularly well to the mystical realm of Middle-earth. The trilogy also includes THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE TWO TOWERS and THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING.

Theatrical Release Date: December 19, 2001

Other elves include Arwen (Liv Tyler), Galadriel (Cate Blanchett), and Eldrond (Hugo Weaving), but they are not part of the core band of nine who set out to destroy the ring at Mount Doom.

DVD Features:

Region 1
4-Disc Set

Discs One-Two:
Contains Extended Version of Feature (208 Mins)
Anamorphic Widescreen - 2.35
Audio:
Dolby Digital 5.1 EX - English
DTS Stereo 6.1 ES - English
Stereo Surround - English
Additional Release Material:
Audio Commentaries - 1. Peter Jackson - Director
2. Fran Walsh - Screenwriter, Phillipa Boyens - Screenwriter
3. Crew Members Including Howard Shore - Composer, Andrew Lesnie - Director of Photography
4. Cast Members Including Ian McKellan - Star, Elijah Wood - Star

Disc Three:
Additional Release Material:
Featurette - 1. Designing and Building Middle Earth
2. Book Adaptation
3. Workshop of Creatures and Miniatures
Additional Footage - 1. Behind the Scenes
2. Early Reels
3. Moving Storyboards
4. Wardrobe Department Tour
Text/Galleries:
Storyboards
Atlas - 1. Middle Earth
Art Gallery (With Artist Commentary)
Interactive Features:
Interactive Map - 1. New Zealand (Highlighting Scouting Process)

Disc Four:
Additional Release Material:
Featurettes - 1. Bringing Characters To Life
2. A Day in the Life of a Hobbit
3. Principal Photography
4. Scale: Creating the Illusion of Size
5. Sound Design Demonstration
Mulitple Angles - 1. Visual Effects
Text/Galleries:
Stills/Photos

Elijah Wood: American actor
Ian McKellen: British Actor/Screenwriter
Viggo Mortensen: American Actor
Cate Blanchett: Australian Actress
Liv Tyler: Model/Actress
Ian Holm: British Actor
Christopher Lee: British actor, DRACULA (1958)
Sean Astin: Actor, THE GOONIES/RUDY
Billy Boyd: Actor; "Peregrin Took" of THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING (2001)
Dominic Monaghan: Actor
Sean Bean: English actor, LORD OF THE RINGS
Orlando Bloom: Actor, LORD OF THE RINGS (2001)
John Rhys-Davies: British Actor
Hugo Weaving: Australian Actor/ Agent Smith in THE MATRIX
Marton Csokas: 

Peter Jackson: New Zealand-born director, LORD OF THE RINGS Trilogy

Barrie M. Osborne: Producer
Peter Jackson: New Zealand-born director, LORD OF THE RINGS Trilogy
Fran Walsh: Producer, LORD OF THE RINGS: FELLOWSHIP (2001)
Tim Sanders: Executive Film Producer, THE PRICE OF MILK (2001)

Peter Jackson: New Zealand-born director, LORD OF THE RINGS Trilogy
Fran Walsh: Producer, LORD OF THE RINGS: FELLOWSHIP (2001)
Philippa Boyens: Screenwriter, LORD OF THE FLIES (2001)

Howard Shore: 

"...The playful spookiness of Mr. Jackson's direction provides a lively, light touch..."
"...A faithful and visually spectacular adaptation of the first volume in Tolkien's trilogy....RINGS has moment of edge-of-the-seat excitement..."
"...FELLOWSHIP is the real deal, a movie epic that pops your eyes out, piles on thrills and fun, and yet stays intimately attuned to character..."
"...[The film] looks to please the book's legions of fans with its imaginatively scrupulous rendering of the tome's characters and worlds on the screen....McKellen delivers Gandalf with great relish and gusto..."
"...Jackson has captured something of the depth, breadth, and melancholy grandeur of Tolkien's vision. And that is magic, indeed..."
"...Jackson has translated the best-loved fantasy novel of our age into a commanding screen adventure, one with a sense of human terror and danger and grit under its nails..."
"...Well-made and well-cast....Masterfully paced and one of those rewarding movies that seems to get better as it progresses..."