Future Mrs. Vasicek and I saw this movie over the weekend, and it was fantastic. Ten out of ten. It really hit home for me, not only as a Tolkien fan, but as a writer too.
A few of the critics are panning this movie, but pay no attention to them. They’re probably just upset that they didn’t receive any bribes to give it a positive review. That seems to be the pattern these days: glowing reviews from the critics, but a terrible audience score. With this one, it’s the exact reverse.
I’m not sure which part I liked the most, since there was so much to enjoy, but I really liked how the movie went in and out of Tolkien’s experiences in World War I, and used that to tie everything together. It was a really different world before that war, and the generation that fought it also accomplished a lot of remarkable stuff. You can also really see how it influenced his stories.
I also really liked how for most of his life—indeed, perhaps for all of it—Tolkien was a really unassuming guy. He didn’t know that he was going to write the seminal fantasy epic of the modern era. For years, he just made stuff up for himself, and only shared it with his closest friends.
The friendship he developed with his prep school buddies was one of the best parts, definitely. And the romance between him and Edith was also really well done. I also liked how his benefactor, the Catholic priest, wasn’t portrayed as a straight up bad guy, as Hollywood so often portrays religious people these days. They had their clashes, but you did get the sense that he genuinely wanted the best for Tolkien all throughout it.
So yeah, fantastic movie! Screw the critics and go see it for yourself!
