The Lord of the Rings (1978 film)
1978 animated fantasy film by Ralph Bakshi / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Lord of the Rings is a 1978 British-American animated fantasy film directed by Ralph Bakshi from a screenplay by Chris Conkling and Peter S. Beagle. It is based on the novel of the same name by J. R. R. Tolkien, adapting from the volumes The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers.[6] Set in Middle-earth, the film follows a group of fantasy races—Hobbits, Men, an Elf, a Dwarf and a wizard—who form a fellowship to destroy a magical ring made by the Dark Lord Sauron, the main antagonist.
The Lord of the Rings | |
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Directed by | Ralph Bakshi |
Screenplay by | |
Based on | The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien |
Produced by | Saul Zaentz |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Timothy Galfas |
Edited by | Donald W. Ernst |
Music by | Leonard Rosenman[2] |
Production companies |
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Distributed by | United Artists |
Release dates |
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Running time | 133 minutes[3] |
Countries |
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Language | English |
Budget | $4 million[2] |
Box office | $32.6 million[3][5] |
Bakshi encountered Tolkien's writing early in his career. He had made several attempts to produce The Lord of the Rings as an animated film before producer Saul Zaentz and distributor United Artists provided funding. The film is notable for its extensive use of rotoscoping, a technique in which scenes are first shot in live-action, then traced onto animation cels. It uses a hybrid of traditional cel animation and rotoscoped live-action footage.[7]
The Lord of the Rings was released in the United States on November 15, 1978, and in the United Kingdom on July 5, 1979. Although the film received mixed reviews from critics, and hostility from disappointed viewers who felt that it was incomplete, it was a financial success; there was no official sequel to cover the remainder of the story. However, the film has retained a cult following and was a minor inspiration for New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson.