Last night I went to see The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring on the big screen for the first time in 24 years. When it first came out in December 2001, I saw it at the cinema three times in those first couple of months. I was completely enthralled. Nearly a quarter of a century later, I’m here to tell you that it’s still as good as it was back then… maybe even better.
A few things made this viewing different from those early trips:
- It was the extended edition, a glorious 228 minutes, compared to the measly 178‑minute theatrical cut. I did not, however, stay for the 20‑plus minutes of credits.
- There was a 15‑minute introduction from Peter Jackson, which was brilliant and added a surprising amount of context.
- The last time I watched it all the way through was on an American Airlines flight from Heathrow to Dallas. A reclining seat and a huge screen in front of me was a massive upgrade from that.
- Two decades of rewatches, behind‑the‑scenes features, and general LOTR lore‑absorption (not least from Sir Peter’s intro) really highlight what a colossal undertaking this trilogy was. The fact that it all holds together so beautifully feels like genuine movie magic.
But what really stood out to me this time was this: Boromir is the best character in the film. Hear me out.
Boromir is the only main character (and it is an ensemble, so there are many) who has genuine shades of grey. Aragorn: pure good. Frodo: pure good (tainted by the Ring, but not his fault). The other hobbits: pure good. Gandalf: basically Jesus (spoilers for The Two Towers). Legolas and Gimli: pure good, plus the enemies‑to‑lovers energy. But Boromir? He has moments of real darkness.
From his first lines with Aragorn in Rivendell, you know he’s headstrong and combative. At the Council of Elrond, he raises the most contentious points and gets all the best lines (“It is a gift”, “One does not simply walk into Mordor”, “Gondor has no king. Gondor needs no king.”).
The first time he picks up the Ring in the snow (“It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing”) you see exactly where his mind is going. Aragorn sees it too, hand drifting to the hilt of his sword, ready to defend Frodo if it comes to that.
And then there are his final scenes: first with Frodo, in his last desperate attempt to claim the Ring for Gondor, and then his frankly awesome death. His final words to Aragorn (“I would have followed you, my brother… my captain… my king”) hit even harder when you see how torn he’s been all along, between the temptation of the Ring, his duty to his people, and the greater good.
Through all of this, Sean Bean is phenomenal. There aren’t many actors who can convey that blend of nobility, vulnerability, and looming doom quite like he can. And, well… it is Sean Bean, so you have a pretty good idea how things are going to end for him.
There’s so much more I could say about the film: the flashes of Peter Jackson’s schlocky origins (Galadriel’s demon‑queen moment), the fact that Boromir’s death actually happens at the start of The Two Towers in the book, but for now, you’ll have to make do with this: the favourite son of the Steward of Gondor might just be the real hero of the trilogy.
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