'LORD OF THE RINGS' An epic's STORY

The trilogy shares parallels with another three-parter, the earlier 'Star Wars' set.
By BRETT MADSEN
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
IN THE LAST FEW YEARS OF the 20th century, the leaders of New Line Cinema had reason to be nervous. The company was pouring itself into a movie like none before. The film had little-known stars and was being directed by Peter Jackson, a New Zealander without a single mainstream picture to his name.
Jackson was bringing J.R.R. Tolkien's revered book series, "The Lord of the Rings," to the big screen, and New Line was backing him: three movies to Tolkien's three books of the story.
As the movie's release date in December 2001 edged closer, the sheer enormousness of the project hung over the crew's head. If the first part of the saga, "The Fellowship of the Ring," disappointed, then New Line would cease to exist as an independent entity. If successful, however, the studio could have the next "Star Wars" on its hands. Not a small goal.
Blockbusters might forever be likened to George Lucas' 1977 space western. Though designed as a fun, kid-friendly movie, "Star Wars" drew in adults worldwide. Its stunning special effects and thoroughly inventive take on classic adventure stories were unrivaled at the time. "Star Wars" became the biggest film in cinema for the day and turned into a massively successful trilogy.
"The Lord of the Rings" had that kind of potential. Tolkien's books sold some 100 million copies, perhaps more. And when the "Lord of the Rings" Web site was set up, assault followed. "The Fellowship" trailer received 1.7 million downloads in its first 24 hours. The site itself was hit 347 million times in three months.
Costly endeavor
The hefty difference between the galactic franchise and its hopeful successor was cost. "Star Wars" did not require an inordinate amount of money to make, rendering its triumph all the more massive. "The Lord of the Rings," by contrast, was an epic.
The film, even with its three sections shot together, cost $330 million -- before marketing and ads.
Jackson had created a city within the city of Wellington, New Zealand. The film at one point employed 2,400 people, who during several years would create about 48,000 pieces of military equipment, not including some 900 suits of armor and 100 hand-forged weapons.
Hair was applied painstakingly to every prosthetic hobbit foot, and one tree in "Hobbiton" had 250,000 silk leaves applied to it. No detail was overlooked.
New Line and its partners ended up shoveling about $540 million into the investment. In 1977 dollars, "Star Wars" didn't even make that much money.
The payoff
The gamble paid off, in proportions fitting to the story of the One Ring. "Fellowship," undeterred by a slightly disappointing opening, crushed December box office records in 2001 on its way to a gross of $860 million worldwide. The next installment, "The Two Towers," did even better in 2002. And the finale, "The Return of the King," is expected to wrap up as much as $1 billion in revenue.
Pieced together, the films will certainly constitute the single highest-grossing piece of cinema ever.
But to understand the true effect of "The Lord of the Rings," you have to get behind the numbers.
"The Return of the King" is expected to return home with the Oscar for Best Picture, and to add substantially to the 19 nominations the first two films received.
The three-hour, 43-minute special edition of "The Two Towers" is expected to become one of the best-selling DVDs ever.
"The Lord of the Rings" epic is a cultural phenomenon, and as almost every critic will agree, a superb slice of moviemaking.
Maybe "The Lord of the Rings" isn't a "Star Wars" for this age. Maybe "Star Wars" was "The Lord of the Rings" of its generation.
XBrett Madsen, 15, is home-schooled in Florida.