The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

What’s it about?

Frodo Baggins, a young Hobbit from the Shire, finds the all-powerful One Ring, which the Dark Lord Sauron needs to take over Middle-Earth. He sets out with eight companions including a wizard, a dwarf and an elf, on a journey to destroy the ring and save their world.

The facts

• Directed by Peter Jackson (Heavenly Creatures, The Hobbit Trilogy and King Kong.)
• Starring a range of well-known actors such as Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davies, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Sean Bean, Ian Holm, and Andy Serkis.
• English language
• Runtime: 178 minutes
• Adapted from novels written by J.R.R Tolkien
• Filmed entirely in Aotearoa New Zealand, throughout 150 different locations.
• It grossed over $887 million, became one of the highest-grossing films of its time, and earned numerous awards, including four Oscars for Best Cinematography, Makeup, Original Score, and Visual Effects.

Why did it get this rating?

This film was cross-rated by the Film and Video Labelling Body. You can find out more about cross-rating here.

Violence

The film is an epic fantasy adventure film that contains war violence, including hand to hand combat, stabbings, sword fighting, catapults and archery. Sometimes there is violence with some blood and there are scenes of characters being injured or killed. The groups fight against evil creatures such as orcs, Uruk Hai, trolls , a large squid like monster, and a large fire demon.

Some of the strongest moments of violence include:

• Two wizards fight and send each other flying into walls with powerful sorcery.
• There is a drawn-out scene where a character is shot repeatedly with arrows.
• An orc has his head decapitated, and we see a small splash of black blood.
• A villain sends people flying with a giant mace, no injuries are shown.

Frightening & Intense Scenes

Some scenes contain jump scares or frightening moments that may unsettle younger viewers.

These include:

• The main characters are hunted by the Nazgul, a group of soulless, black-robed ghost riders whose screams can be heard from far away. These hunters may frighten younger viewers.
• A characters face suddenly becomes wicked and creepy for a second (from the corruption the ring gave him).
• A good elven queen turns into a spirit with black eyes while chanting spooky words towards in a heavy bewitched tone, before returning to her natural self.
• The group of heroes are chased by a ginormous fiery devil.
• When a main character puts on a ring he is transported to an eerie, dark spirit world where he sees a flaming eye that speaks to him and frightens him.

When content stays with you:

We all have our boundaries, and it’s completely okay if something you’ve watched is weighing on your mind. If certain content lingers with you, consider having a chat with friends or whānau to debrief about what you’ve just seen. But if you’re still feeling affected, please reach out to any of the following helplines for support.

• 1737
• Safe to talk
• Lifeline
• Youthline

Further information

• Why are ratings and content warnings important for me and my whānau?
• Brain development – how it works, why it matters
• Can my child watch The Rings of Power? | Classification Office