I loved the first one. Jackson did a fantastic job bringing the story to life. The acting was superb -- huge kudos to the casting director. The effects were incredible, but subtle. They didn't get in the way of the characters or story. I got the 4 DVD set, which goes into detail of all the techniques they used to shrink the hobbits. And of course the sets and scenery were breathtaking.

Like with every book adaptation, people always complain about this was missing, or that was wrong, but remember: the book is still there. It's unchanged. If you want the book, read the book. The movie is "inspired by" the book and should be a good story on its own merit.

So I didn't really mind the love story. It didn't make a lot of sense but otherwise, there would have been little for the ladies. And Liv added a lot to the movie. (hubba hubba)

The second movie was also excellent, especially the battle scenes. I thought the bit with Strider getting carried off by a Warg was dumb though. Why waste screen time with this fluff?

Looking forward to #3. I'm concerned, though -- Jackson still has a lot of story to cover. Hopefully he doesn't leave out too much.