The point being, when The Fellowship finally released during the 2001 holiday season, my level of confidence for Jackson's live-action adaptation was not initially high, and I remember walking into the theater with mild, ready-to-forgive expectations. At best, his bio-drama Heavenly Creatures with Kate Winslet earned him some repute in the U.S., but even this award-winning film mostly made the rounds within the arthouse and cinephile circles. After all, at the time when the film premiered, the New Zealand filmmaker was only known for his splatter comedies and The Frighteners with Michael J. Tolkien's fantasy books and of Peter Jackson's earlier films, I was just as keenly enthusiastic about seeing The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring brought to life on the silver screen as I was apprehensive Jackson could potentially muck up the whole thing.
