Attention all fans of Tolkien, Peter Jackson and Frodo the hobbit -you have less than three weeks left to see "The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy: The Exhibition" now on display at the Museum of Science Boston. The showcase is a must-see for any Lord of the Rings (LOTR) fan, or for that matter any film fanatic who loves getting a behind-the-scenes look at how movies are made. The LOTR exhibit features the costumes and weaponry used by the characters in the film, from the King Theodon's armor to orc monsters' masks, to the One Ring itself. The exhibition also includes numerous wallboards and video displays in which LOTR producer Peter Jackson and his production team explain how they created the extraordinary visual and special effects in the trilogy. Entering the LOTR exhibition truly feels like being teleported out of an average museum and landing in a fantastical world of Middle Earth. The walls are decorated with beautiful scene sketches, while alcoves contain informative plot descriptions and portraits of each character with the actual costumes and props they used in the movie. Die-hard LOTR fans will be in ecstasy after seeing the magical staff used by Gandalf the Grey (Ian McKellen) as well as the broken shards of Narsil, the sword that killed the evil Lord Sauron during the first war for Middle-Earth. Meanwhile, girls will be excited to stand just a few feet away from the actual costume that Orlando Bloom wore as the elf Legolas Greenleaf.

The specificity and effort put each item is extraordinary, as each costume and prop was handcrafted. No expense or detail was spared, from the authentic chain linked amor for the miniature hobbits to the engraved Elven writing on Arwen and Aragorn's' swords.

The exhibition shows how committed Jackson and his team were to making everything look authentic. Over 3,000 prosthetic ears were used during the production and over 2,000 latex feet were used just for the four main hobbits alone. In addition, over 10,000 prosthetic masks were created during the production for various orcs and uruk-hai. In addition, the full costume for the uruk-hai general Lurtz (Lawrence Makoare) took over 11 hours to apply. One humorous shot in the behind-the-scenes video shows Makoare actually sleeping while the make-up team was working on him.

The One Ring is housed in a pitch black room whose walls are only illuminated by projections of flames that simulate Mount Doom where Frodo (Elijah Wood) takes the ring the be destroyed. Suspended in a circular glass tube in the center of the room, the ring is surrounded by a shelf that translates the inscription written in Tolkien's invented Black Speech language on the inside the band: "One Ring to rule them all. One Ring to find them. One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them." This illuminated Black Speech inscription flashes over the walls of the room, while the characters' voices are heard saying the quotes from the movie about the ring. The supernatural sights and sounds of chamber allow one to suspend reality for a moment, and see the glowing ring of power as more than just a metal prop.

In the latter half of the exhibition, various video screens, panels and models described the various techniques to make the world Middle Earth so real-looking. For instance, a computer process called motion capture, or "mo-cap" was used to turn actor Andy Serkis into the virtual character of Gollum, the hobbit whose obsession with his "precious" Ring turned him into a monstrous creature.

Serkis wore a cat suit covered with reflector balls whose movements were digitally recorded by 24 cameras. The computer effects department then applied Serkis's movements in each scene to create Gollum. The exhibition also details many other techniques such as scaling interactive, which was used to turn Wood into the four-foot-two-inch hobbit Frodo.

The LOTR show also allows museum-goers to experience these visual techniques themselves. In a green screen booth, participants can swing a foam sword and shield and see their movements transformed on a green screen into a computerized soldier. Museum of Science officials are on hand to allow visitors to hold the amor worn by hobbits and even wield the sword of Anduril that Aragon uses in the final movie when he realizes he is the king. The interactive features favored most by the college-aged crowd was the Scaling Wall, where height determines to which race of Middle Earth one would belong.

The LOTR exhibition is an unforgettable journey that ads to ones appreciation for the films and Jackson's vision as a director. The extraordinary quantity of costumes, weaponry, amour, items, and screen sketches, etc. gathered for the exhibition truly feels like watching the trilogy all over again.