I finally got to the theater last week to see LOTR (the movie only just made it to Japan this month), and the three hours rushed by so quickly that I could actually feel the breeze on my face! The movie does a hop, skip, and jump through the book, and at times it seemed more like an Indy Jones movie -- zipping from one adventure to the next -- than the long, difficult quest the book portrays, but it was still well worth seeing.
On a note aside, both times I saw the movie I had to stop myself from snickering at what was intended to be a very serious moment. When Pippin accidently knocks the skeleton down the well in the Mines of Moria, alerting the orcs (and the Balrog) to the presence of the Fellowship, Gandalf turns with a scowl to scold Pippin, all the while holding open the book he had been reading. I couldn't help but think of the old Bugs Bunny/Yosemite Sam episode with "the nose-in-the-book penalty," and I half-expected Pippin to walk over and get what was coming to him.
I giggle too at what is supposed to not be comedy, during the Indiana Jones scene at the falling stairway. Aragorn and Frodo guiding in the falling ruin by "leaning" with it is a little much for me... and why on earth would Frodo be the LAST one helped across anyway? Penny1 saw the film with me again yesterday, and we (affectionately of course) laughed out loud about that, ALA Mystery Science Theater 3000.
Was it subtitled in Japanese then? (As opposed to being dubbed) The subtitles would not be necessary for you I suppose except for the parts where they are speaking elvish. Is the film well recieved over there? - Are the books popular?