60 LISTENER AUGUST 10 2019December 21, 2001. It might have
been the start of Peter Jackson’s
triumphant Lord of the Rings
trilogy, one that grossed nearly
US$3b, clean-swept the Oscars
with 11-wins-out-of-11 for Return
of the King, did wonders for New
Zealand tourism and brought
downtown Wellington to an
annual standstill as the film-mak-
er’s hometown rolled out the red
carpet on Courtenay Place.
But the debut of The Fellowship
of the Ring was also the begin-
ning of Jackson’s elevation to the
realm of superstar director – and
eventually knighthood. He was a
global movie-business force to be
reckoned with. The first Middle-
earth movie not only showed the
massive gamble that his studio
backers, New Line, had made
backing the trilogy would pay off.
It also showed Jackson’s prefer-
ence that he make films at home
and have Hollywood come to
him had worked out for the best,really, and not just for him.
The first Middle-earth
epics transformed the
Wellington production
and post-production
facilities that had begun
with his early films into an
industry in themselves,
working on films from
around the world as well
as Jackson’s King Kong
remake, his The Lovely
Bones adaptation and
his less remarkable The
Hobbit trilogy.
In recent times,
Jackson has turned
to directing smaller documen-
tary projects, which might be a
wise move. Mortal Engines, the
long-gestating fantasy flick he
co-wrote and produced, was one
of 2018’s biggest flops, while his
World War I doco They Shall Not
Grow Old, also out last year, won
him his best reviews since the
LOTR era. – Russell Baillie80 YEARS
Opening night – The Lord of the
Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Child justice
These covers speak for them-
selves – and there are many
more cover stories on this issue.