As soon as I heard about this movie, I marked its opening date on my calendar. I started reading Tolkien's words when I was eight. My introduction into his brain was with The Hobbit.

I will always love hobbits.


This movie is touted as kind of a history of the man and his best known works: The Hobbit and The Lord of the Ring. This is not explicitly stated, of course, but at the very end of the film, the very first line of The Hobbit is given to us and, yeah, I had goosebumps.

Those who know me know I get weirdly emotional over books and movies, so this should come as no surprise.

The movie wove the horrors of World War I with the delight of camaraderie among school boys. There is heartbreak. There is romance. The is art and poetry and mustard gas and death. There are ghosts, dark smoky images from Tolkien's mind, appearing as precursors of future inspiration.

And there was Tolkien quoting Chaucer. From memory. Which, I confess, gave me the swoons.

Set in the frame of a very ill John Ronald Reuel Tolkien searching the battlefields of WWI in search of his friend, we get flashbacks and relationships. We get blood and trenches. And a wonderful fellow named Sam . . .

I heartily recommend this movie to any and all fans of J.R.R. Tolkien. I am inspired to read a biography of him, now. Did he really quote Chaucer from memory?

I hope so. But even if he didn't, his delight and occupation with words speaks to the creative soul. If you have one, watch this movie. It's inspiring.

Okay, at least it was to me.