Without nagging time - lapse problems, a few sloppy matching shots,
central questions glossed (Gandalf's resurrection — without a reading of The Silmarillion, of course — is obscure at best), and a few story conveniences (Cate Blanchett's Galadriel makes a lame cameo, the abovementioned gauzy Arwen love scenes), the film would be something of a masterpiece (and even with its problems, it's among the best fantasies ever made).