The crucial question about Peter Jackson's adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's trilogy seems to be: Is it just for Tolkien fans, or a "general audience"? I went to see it with my mum who's never read any of Tolkien's books; she liked The Fellowship of the Ring last year and liked the Two Towers even more, but then she has her own cinematic agenda (based largely on sets & costumes, plus she loves horses). As for the story, it was basically "good vs. evil" again; she noted that it's easy to tell one from another: the bad guys are hideously ugly, & the good guys aren't.
I read the…
