Lawrence.com

Many said they went simply for bragging rights.

They wanted to be able to tell their friends they were among the first to see whether Hollywood could do it again with J.R.R. Tolkien's literary masterpiece "Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers."

"I remember when my cousin first read the book to me when I was 10," Joel Bradshaw said. "That was 30 years ago."

Bradshaw and hundreds of other Lawrence residents turned out early Wednesday morning to see the first screening of the newest "Lord of the Rings" film.

The 12:01 a.m. screening was a sell-out.

"I bought my tickets early," Tracy Girten said. "We went to the first midnight screening for 'Lord of the Rings' and knew we could not miss this one."

Girten and her husband, Brian, arrived at the theater by 9 p.m. so they would not miss the film's opening.

"It's all about getting the best seat," Brian Girten said. "You want to sit by your friends, so that means someone has to get here ahead of time to make sure that will happen."

For some, the film was a little less than impressive.

"It was the fastest three hours of my life, but it lacked something the first one had," David Coachman said. "The first movie was something no one had seen before, the second just lacked some small thing that did not let it live up to the first."

But not everyone was disappointed.

"I thought the movie was good," Frank DaBoda said. "The battle scene at the end was great. This movie definitely had more action than the first."

¢ 6News video: 'Rings' fans pack theater ¢ Official Web site

The latest of the "Rings" trilogy chronicles the epic struggle for possession of the infamous "One Ring." If returned to its creator, the Dark Lord Sauron, The Ring will give him the power to enslave the world.

The final film installment of the trilogy, "The Return of the King," is expected out in late 2003.