While this is definitely not a good representation of the book, it does stand well on it's own. There is no reason a movie based on a book should be the same as the book. Compare Stanley Kubrick's The Shining with the screenplay Stephen King came up with. Kubrick's is better by far for a movie. Anyway, I like the animation and loved the music. This movie turned me on to Tolkien and so I hold it in high regard. It's definitely a must see.