Five star

ONE film to rule them all? This isn't the best film ever made - but it ain't far off.

Director Peter Jackson has crafted a masterpiece. He had no need to worry about the plot or the basic material, but working with one of the best-loved books of all time is a double-edged sword (or axe).

Bringing to life characters ingrained in the imagination of millions for decades is a near impossible task but Jackson achieves it.

The casting is faultless, the costumes are spot on and the performances are perfect, with Sean Bean's Boromir probably the most impressive.

The backdrops rightly overshadow the cast from the sleepy Shire to Caradhras the Cruel with the company often reduced to specks, crawling across a mind-bogglingly epic setting of which even John Ronald Reuel himself would approve.

Jackson resists the temptation to overdo the special effects with his gargantuan budget and hits the spot every time, whether it is convincingly shrinking Elijah Wood and Ian Holme or portraying the epic battle at the opening of the film - LOTR fans will already be salivating at what is in store for the great battle in the third book.

In the opening hour, the film feels rushed but it has to be to squeeze all of the Fellowship Of The Ring into a mere three hours.

Jackson has not stuck religiously to the original but changes little of substance and manages to satisfy all but the most ardent Tolkien "spotter."

And he throws in some nice touches for those who have read the book umpteen times by slipping in the titles of each chapter and details like Legolas the Elf strolling along in the snow while the less fleet-footed toil through it.

After three hours, the average cinema seating means anyone will have to shift their legs but there is no danger of dozing off.

Tolkien devotees will love it and those new to the story will hopefully run to the library in their hordes rather than face the prospect of a year-long wait to find out what happens after a cliffhanger ending to put The Italian Job to shame.

Easily the best film for a long, long time, this is a must-see.

MH