The Lord of the Rings improves with age. Saturday was my third viewing and I find I enjoyed it even more than the previous two times.

The last time I saw a movie in a theater more than once was, I believe, Disney's Aladdin, because the boys wanted to go. I rarely encounter a movie that I want to pay to see over and over.

Thanks to our trip to the theaters, LotR is at number seven on the top ten; the prior week, it was eighth.

And I must admit, part of the pleasure of watching the film came from reading those silly "Very Secret Diaries." At certain crucial moments, I found myself thinking, "Uh oh...Sam will kill you if you try that!" hehehe!

The thing with the movie isn't that it's faithful to the book. It's faithful to an essence of the story. I could nitpick over thousands of little things, yet I love this movie because it loves its source. It's respectful of the nuances that rabid Tolkien fans expect while managing to create a tale that can be followed by those unfamiliar with the book.

Rob likes it because in the early scenes of Hobbiton, a flock of sheep grazes beside the road.

In two weeks, I'll be 40. I plan to treat myself to a day at a spa, getting my eyebrows ripped out, my back pounded by merciless Swedes and my toenails sandblasted. I will probably need a day off to recover from all that.