The best JRR Tolkien adaptations tend to resemble long walks in miserable weather. (To be clear, this is a good thing.) But this weird yet watchable animated foray into Middle-earth history – fast-tracked so that New Line Cinema could hang onto the film rights to Tolkien’s work – feels more like ice skating on a well-tended rink.

Warner Bros. Animation’s new Lord of the Rings anime film is everything that’s disappointing about IP cash grabs.

Ted Danson appeared in almost all 12 seasons of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” as one of Larry David’s nemeses. Playing a pretentious and smug version of himself, the “Cheers” star became a fan-favorite on the show, most recently appearing in the series finale. But Danson was initially quite skeptical of the unscripted HBO sitcom — and only …