definately worth seeing. I was pleasantly surprised that the characters, not the special effects, were the stars of the movie. Too many big budget, big effects movies come out that are all hype and no heart. As for the changes, I think they worked to make it a better movie and I didn't miss the parts left out (this might be because after 3 hours I really had to use the restroom; another hour or so and I would have been in painS). One of the few big movies that I'm planning on reseeing in the theatre.