The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Extended Edition)

Directed by: Peter Jackson

Written by: J.R.R. Tolkien (book); Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens (screenplay)









When it comes to telling a massive story, adding up to over nine hours (or more) total, your payoff better be huge.  "Return of the King" pays off for all the waiting and wandering of the characters and the audience.

All of the pieces that were set in motion in the first movie (several, several hours ago in film time) move toward their final resolution.  This is no easy task, considering the long list of major and semi-major characters that have been built up.  The "extended edition" I watched had even more scenes added to the climax and resolution.

As a quick side note: the "Mouth of Sauron" scene that was included in this version of the film was exactly as I imagined it when I read the book.  I was originally disappointed that it did not make the final cut in the theatrical version, but is well worth watching if you can get a copy of this cut.

The biggest complain I've heard about this movie is about all the fake-out ending moments - scenes where it seems like everything is wrapped-up and done and the screen fades away, only to fade-in a few moments later with another scene.  I'll admit, these scenes were not handled as well as they could have been, made  more complicated by the seemingly-final transitions.  As a counter-point, I'd say that if you were willing to sit through the entire series up to this point, you should understand that the film or the series is not going to end with a simple fade-out.  It's an epic, and it needs resolution.  We've journeyed with these characters so far, we need to find out what happens to them all, or the story will remain incomplete.

On the whole, "Return of the King" had the grandest scale of the series, giving it a greater sense of "epic" than the previous two.  ("Fellowship" was more of a simple quest. "Two Towers" did not gain any real scale until the final battle sequence.)  The massive battle sequence will be tough to match in future fantasy films, and should rightly be the standard to which all others are compared.

This film, and the rest of the series, are well worth watching.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Extended Edition)

Directed by: Peter Jackson

Written by: J.R.R. Tolkien (book); Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Stephen Sinclair (screenplay)









Being the second part of "The Lord of the Rings"...

When we left off, Frodo and Sam were headed off towards the dark land of Mordor while the rest of the fellowship had been battling orcs and heading to Gondor.  This film picks up almost exactly where the first part left off.

This nature of the story requires that the film follow two distinct stories: that of Frodo and Sam, and that of the rest of the group.  Although the balance is not perfect, the two stories alternate often enough to keep either story from slowing down the pace.

"The Two Towers" does not take great advantage of its sequel status to take on new ground.  Instead, it feels as if it begins and ends rather arbitrarily.  (Compared to, say, "The Empire Strikes Back," which takes advantage of previously established characters to trampoline into a more complex story.)

What does stand out about "The Two Towers" is the epic scene encompassing the battle of Helms Deep, which makes the entire movie worth watching from beginning to end.  The battles of the first movie were rather small in scale.  The Helms Deep sequence is large and loud and chaotic, as all great fantasy battles should be.

The only character who really grows or develops in this segment is Aragorn (Mortensen), and his arc is clear.  Most of the other folks are pretty static to the point of their development being nearly irrelevant.  This lack of development may be a part of why this movie does not stand out from the rest of the series.

You can't watch "The Two Towers" without seeing "The Fellowship of the Ring" first, or following it up with "The Return of the King."  It is more of an episode than a separate film.

I can't remember anything specific standing out in the "Extended Edition" which was not part of the original theatrical cut, so I'll refrain from commenting on anything like that.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Extended Edition)

Directed by: Peter Jackson

Written by: J.R.R. Tolkien (book); Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens (screenplay)









Being the first part of "The Lord of the Rings"...

Peter Jackson was ambitious enough to take on Tolkien's much-loved epic "The Lord of the Rings," and darned if he didn't get it right.  He was so ambitious, in fact, that he had to shorten the film for theatrical and release the "Extended Edition" later.

Middle-Earth comes to life in this first part of the trilogy.  We are quickly, but thoroughly, introduced to a brief history of the ring, and then set about on our journey.  The great design in the way Jackson presents "The Fellowship of the Ring" is that we are essentially bound to Frodo Baggins.  Both Frodo and the audience have little experience in the world of Middle-Earth, and so as he goes forth on his adventure, we go with him.  We learn and experience the world as he learns and experiences the world.  There are only a handful of scenes that do not center on Frodo.

For those looking for loyalty to the text of the book - word-for-word - you will not find it here.  But Jackson does a good job of axing out some of the unnecessary sequences, morphing some characters and sequences for cinematic effect, all while staying true to the spirit of Tolkien's book.  (My only regret is that Tom Bombadil never made an appearance, even as a passing reference, in any of the versions.)

There are a million summaries out on the internet, as well as the source book which, ideally, should always be read before viewing the film, so I will not waste your time with all that here.

I do want to make a quick comment on Howard Shore's amazing score.  After the casting (which I may touch on in a later post), I firmly believe that the background score is what made the film so memorable.  It is, when it needs to be, large and epic.  It is, when it needs to be, mysterious and dark.  It is, when it needs to be, folksy and simple.  The recurring musical motifs help to tie together this film to the others in the trilogy, while never stopping to become anthemic or cliche.

Lastly, the Blu-Ray transfer is pretty fantastic, and so I highly recommend it.