As someone who's never read LOTR (I honestly cannot tell you why), I must say I'm happy with all of the changes PJ and co. made. I think they all work rather well. Now, I'll admit that it's hard for me to judge, as like I said before, I have not read LOTR, but I wonder if people dis the changes simply because they're changes.

There is one change I'm not okay with, and that's having the elves in Helm's Deep. Hurts the narrative in my opinion. The other ones help, I think.

What I have read is the Hobbit, and I'd like to say that, so far, I'm liking the changes quite a bit.