> I don't even know if it'll make into the mini series either, because the
> special effects and sets would just be overwhelming. And you never know,
> some religious freaks may whine about the way the book created the world
> and stuff.

The Silmarillion is actually four discrete works, unpublished by Tolkien himself, but completed and tied together by his son after Tolkein's death. The four parts are:

1) The Ainulindalë. This is the "Genesis" story of Arda, Tolkein's name for Earth. It tells the story of the God Illuvatar and his creation of the Ainur (the "Valar" referred to in LOTR) who became the gods of Arda.

2) The Valaquenta. This is simply a description of the Valar and Valier, rather than a story. It reveals the roles and personalities of the earthly gods.

3) Quenta Silmarillion. This is the Silmarillion proper, and spans a time period of several thousand years. It describes the origins of Elves and Men, how Melkor (Morgoth, the master and teacher of Sauron) corrupted the elves to create Orcs. It also reveals the rebellion of Fëanor and the exile of the Elves to Middle Earth, the rise and fall of Gondolin, and other matters of the First Age.

4) Akallabêth. This is the story of the Second Age, the rise and fall of Numenor and the origins of the Kings of Men that led to Isildur and ultimately to Aragorn.

There is a fifth work, On The Rings Of Power And The Third Age, but this is more of a clarification of issues in LOTR such as how the Rings were made and some history of the Hobbits.

The Silmarillion could probably be broken into three movies (yes, another trilogy!) dealing with the main parts: Ainulindalë and Valaquenta would be a five-minute prologue to the first, which would then deal with the corruption of Melkor and the Rebellion of Fëanor. The second movie could deal with the main war in Beleriand in the time of Tuor and the Fall of Gondolin, as well as the romance of Beren and Luthien. The third movie would be the Akallabêth, telling the story of Numenor and the Kings, focusing on Ar-Pharazôn and his corruption by Sauron. You'd lose some of it, of course, but this would make for some awesome viewing! And I'd love to hear what Howard Shore would do with themes for Melkor, Fëanor, and Luthien, not to mention the "Great Music" in the Ainulindalë (the name actually means "Music of the Ainur") out of which the Earth was made!