[archagon]

“a movie series that's as good as the source material”

Is it? I loved LOTR during my first watch, then many years later actually read the books and tried watching it again. Many of the changes that Jackson made in service of commercial, mass-market appeal were downright silly, if not cringe-worthy, to the point where I actually had to stop my rewatch after the first film.

The films don’t hold a candle to the books, though I appreciate that they got me into LOTR in the first place.

[bigstrat2003]

I definitely don't think the movies are as good as the book. They are quite good movies on their own merits, but they aren't the foundation of an entire genre the way the book is. The movies also have some really bizarre departures from the book which seriously undermine their quality as an adaptation, though that doesn't detract from their quality as movies unto themselves.