'Middle Earth' cheers Down Under premiere

New Zealand's capital has renamed itself Middle Earth for the opening week of the movie

WELLINGTON, New Zealand -- Lauded for bringing Hollywood to New Zealand, Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson has had to face one of the toughest tests for his epic movie -- his hometown audience.

Twenty thousand people who crowded into downtown Wellington for a street party on Wednesday cheered Jackson and the stars arriving for the New Zealand-Australia premiere of the first of the trilogy of movies, The Fellowship of the Ring.

For the opening week of the movie, New Zealand's capital has renamed itself Middle Earth after the film's fictional land of hobbits, elves, wizards and monsters.

"This is the screening that really counts, even for the Hobbits who are here," Jackson told several hundred people at a reception at Parliament hosted by Prime Minister Helen Clark.

The Fellowship of the Ring is opening in more than 10,000 theaters worldwide this week.

Wellington-based Jackson said he valued most the local response to his vision of late author J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy world of Middle Earth created in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, first published in 1954.

EXTRA INFORMATION • Gallery: 'The Lord of the Rings'  • Glossary: Ten things to know about 'Lord of the Rings'  • Timeline: 'Ring' leader -- J.R.R. Tolkien through time  • Message board: 'The Lord of the Rings'    MORE STORIES • Tolkien epic in glitzy premiere  • 'Lord of the Rings' faces Tolkien fans    RESOURCES • EW.com: Behind the scenes at 'The Lord of the Rings'    ON THE WEB • Official movie site: 'The Lord of the Rings'  • Houghton Mifflin: 'The Lord of the Rings'  • HarperCollins UK: J.R.R. Tolkien    PDF FILES • 'The Hobbit' - Chapter 1  • 'The Fellowship of the Ring' - Chapter 1  • 'The Silmarillion' - Chapter 1  * All excerpts courtesy of HarperCollins UK; must have Adobe Acrobat to view .pdf files

Renowned for his casual attire, Jackson wore black trousers and an open-necked burgundy shirt, as he had for the world premiere in London last week.

He signed autographs and shook hands with hundreds of people as they stood 10-deep at the barricades in front of the theater where the premiere screened.

'Coming home'

Young star Elijah Wood, who plays leading character Frodo Baggins, one of Tolkien's mythical hobbits, described the public reception in the capital as "fantastic."

After 276 days of shooting the three-part epic, Wood told The Associated Press that returning to Wellington for the final premiere felt like "coming home, being with everyone we've been working with."

The film trilogy, financed by U.S. group New Line Cinema, is budgeted to cost 707 million New Zealand dollars ($290 million).

Clark said the premiere was a big day of celebration for New Zealand, as it showcased both the scenery and the people as being able to make "the greatest movies."

Already Salon.com has named it "movie of the year," and Entertainment Weekly called it a "great picture, a triumphant picture, a joyfully conceived work of cinema."

"Rings" has four nominations for the new American Film Institute awards, including best picture, production design, special effects and musical score.

Jackson said he just wanted people to enjoy the movie.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.