Lord of the Rings (Fellowship of the Ring) has emerged after the holiday season in Australia as the most popular movie in Australian cinema history, outclassing Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, which soared into first place late in 2001. In the US, the Fellowship of the Ring also ranked No. 1 at the box office, with Harry Potter dropping to 9th place.

Harry Potter opened in Australia in November 2001, with takings of $12.1 million in its first week - a new box office record. Four weeks later, after the school holidays were nearly over, Fellowship of the Ring earned $14.1 million in its first week. It should easily overtake Harry Potter's total of $32 million in the next few months.

I saw the Fellowship of the Ring over the New Year break at Fox Studios in Sydney, in a comfortable armchair seat in the Cinemaxx section. A comfortable chair is a must, I can tell you, as the movie is almost three hours long. After this movie, you're going to need to stretch your legs (and anything else that no longer works).

The Lord of the Rings is indeed an international production. The movie was shot in New Zealand, and featured many international cast members, plus a crew of internationals, mainly New Zealanders and Australians. For the first time ever, the movie was shot and transferred directly to digital format, allowing the producers to control the colour cast of the film all the way through the editing and application of the special effects.

Serious Tolkien fans will probably be disappointed at the Irish jigs and overall Irish "feel" of the Hobbit village. Sydney Morning Herald writer John Ezard is probably correct when he reasons that the Irish lilt sells well to the US cinema audience. Certainly it worked with the James Cameron movie, Titanic. If you're interested in how the movie compares with the book(s), read John Ezard's article - "through Tolkien's eyes".

Peter Jackson, a New Zealander, directed Lord of the Rings, and was fundamental in the film being produced and filmed at all. I have been following Peter's work since he made Bad Taste in 1987, a sci-fi/horror cult production that Peter wrote, directed, produced and starred in. He is not only a great director - he is a talented and genuinely funny writer.

Peter's favourite movie genre is schlock Horror, with lots of entrails and bizarre sendup scenes, but lately he has branched off into comedy, and with the Lord of the Rings, fantasy. His first full length movie, Bad Taste, became a cult classic after being launched at Cannes, and was produced for just NZ$200,000, including the alien wardrobe, props and special effects.

If you like Peter Jackson's work, and would like to know a bit more about him, visit the official Peter Jackson Fan Club site, the unofficial Peter Jackson Online, or the fan site "Your Mother ate my dog!" Below are some links to the Internet Movie Database, where you can check out the listings for Peter Jackson's movies.

Bad Taste - 1987 | Meet the Feebles - 1989 | Braindead - 1992 | Heavenly Creatues - 1994 | Jack Brown Genius - 1994 | The Frighteners - 1996 | Forgotten Silver - 1996 | Lord of the Rings - 2001

Robert Redford's Online Sundance Film Festival

For the second year, the Sundance Film Festival is running an online film festival. There are four sections; the Audience Award, for the top-rating film in the Animation and Live Action areas, based on online viewer responses. For productions that inspire future possibilities for Web entertainment, there is The New Forms section. And lastly, there is the Short Film Showcase, featuring five entries from the Festival, which is new this year.

Visit the Sundance Online Film Festival, or the Sundance Online Film Festival Resource Center, where you may watch and rate your favorite films and animations.