Written by: Kevin Berge
I know I said this on The Two Towers, but really... I feel bad for Merry, Pippin, Legolas, Gimli, Eowyn, even The Witch-King all getting no space on a poster on which Arwen is featured. (Image Courtesy of: new.hollywoodgothique.com)
Quick Take: Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King completes the trilogy in spectacular fashion with multiple action climaxes and emotional moments as the acting rises to the occasion and the effects become even more grand. Every character gets their moment to shine if the conclusions to their stories are a bit long winded.
***There are a quite a few expectations of the reader coming into this review. This is a spoiler heavy review, so it should only be read by those who have seen The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Extended Edition. Also, if you have not, you also check out my reviews for The Fellowship and The Two Towers first.***
I have often wrestled with the question: what is your favorite book of all time? There are so many great books, and I seek to constantly read more. What I can always admit is that the first novel that always comes to mind is J.R.R. Tolkien's The Return of the King even more so than considered the series as one book, Lord of the Rings.
A similar notion is true of films. I cannot say for certain that Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is my favorite movie of all time, but it is certainly always the first answer that comes to mind. The whole series is excellent, but this is the climax, the point with the greatest stakes, most emotion, and the ultimate success.
What makes this movie stand out even from its predecessors is the dramatic and emotional height of the story. There is no more time for rest at this point. The action has grown to such a high that a massive majority of the film is entrenched in the midst of war.
While much of the film is still about the characters, they grow and develop through their actions in battle. Even Frodo and Sam get into some major combat in this final chapter. Characters die while others rise to higher heights than could possibly have been expected.
The threat in this film is more tangible and innumerable than ever before. Instead of facing an army built for conquest, they face every race under Sauron's control, and that means a collection of warriors that far outnumbers all the men in the world who now are also left alone as the elves have completely left Middle Earth and no one else would come to help.
With these kind of stakes, this is the movie that epitomizes what fantasy is all about. Using a variety of beings and some hints of magic in a created world, fantasy can capture the imagination by creating stakes that are truly grand and unmistakable, and there may not be a more grand war than the one waged in this final movie.
I have often wrestled with the question: what is your favorite book of all time? There are so many great books, and I seek to constantly read more. What I can always admit is that the first novel that always comes to mind is J.R.R. Tolkien's The Return of the King even more so than considered the series as one book, Lord of the Rings.
A similar notion is true of films. I cannot say for certain that Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is my favorite movie of all time, but it is certainly always the first answer that comes to mind. The whole series is excellent, but this is the climax, the point with the greatest stakes, most emotion, and the ultimate success.
What makes this movie stand out even from its predecessors is the dramatic and emotional height of the story. There is no more time for rest at this point. The action has grown to such a high that a massive majority of the film is entrenched in the midst of war.
While much of the film is still about the characters, they grow and develop through their actions in battle. Even Frodo and Sam get into some major combat in this final chapter. Characters die while others rise to higher heights than could possibly have been expected.
The threat in this film is more tangible and innumerable than ever before. Instead of facing an army built for conquest, they face every race under Sauron's control, and that means a collection of warriors that far outnumbers all the men in the world who now are also left alone as the elves have completely left Middle Earth and no one else would come to help.
With these kind of stakes, this is the movie that epitomizes what fantasy is all about. Using a variety of beings and some hints of magic in a created world, fantasy can capture the imagination by creating stakes that are truly grand and unmistakable, and there may not be a more grand war than the one waged in this final movie.
Does calling this a romance a ship or just obvious despite Tolkien never seemingly meaning for it be? (Image Courtesy of: tumblr.com)
The actors in this final film all understand these highest of high stakes and are also helped by stories that allow them each to shine. Besides the addition of the Steward of Gondor, Denethor, played with quiet insanity by John Noble, the characters at the head of the story are all ones already set up and have ample time to develop.
Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli all begin and end roughly in the same place that they were in the past two films, but Mortensen, Bloom, and Rhys-Davies all have some moments in shine as they rally the final battles. Rhys-Davies is hurt a bit by still playing the goofball to the end which is a role that doesn't fit as well this late in the game.
Sam and Frodo spent much of the second film just walking, but they are front and center here with fantastic results. In fact, the best performances in the film come from Andy Serkis as Gollum who is truly unbridled and Sean Astin who plays Sam with such unwavering devotion and honesty that he's hard to not root for. Elijah Wood is also excellent as he wavers on the edge of his humanity (or the Hobbit equivalent).
Merry and Pippin finally get their chances to shine with both trying to find their way to help, and Monaghan and especially Boyd (who was sadled with a one note character in the first two films) make the most of the chance. Of the secondary characters, Eowyn has the greatest story, being allowed to finally fight and do so impressively even killing the Witch-King of Angmar, which Miranda Otto plays out admirably.
The direction by Peter Jackson is as strong as ever with the varied and wild action shining as well as being able to capture the small detail that show how each character is being affected by all that is going on around them. The only issue with this film that I'd level at Peter Jackson is that the effects he uses are not all consistent quality with a few noticeable green screen moments.
The writing again captures and emulates the books extremely well with the use of editing to truly capture some of the book's best moments in new light. It is quite affecting to hear the character's tones change and parallel others particularly in the battle for Gondor.
Perhaps the film's greatest moment is Pippin singing "The Edge of Night" to Denethor as his soldiers including Faramir ride right into a flurry of arrows and their death. Other great moments include the lighting of the beacon for Rohan, Denethor looking down on the army of Sauron at his gates and suddenly feeling betrayed by the army he never called for, and the parallel speeches about death by Gandalf and Theoden.
Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli all begin and end roughly in the same place that they were in the past two films, but Mortensen, Bloom, and Rhys-Davies all have some moments in shine as they rally the final battles. Rhys-Davies is hurt a bit by still playing the goofball to the end which is a role that doesn't fit as well this late in the game.
Sam and Frodo spent much of the second film just walking, but they are front and center here with fantastic results. In fact, the best performances in the film come from Andy Serkis as Gollum who is truly unbridled and Sean Astin who plays Sam with such unwavering devotion and honesty that he's hard to not root for. Elijah Wood is also excellent as he wavers on the edge of his humanity (or the Hobbit equivalent).
Merry and Pippin finally get their chances to shine with both trying to find their way to help, and Monaghan and especially Boyd (who was sadled with a one note character in the first two films) make the most of the chance. Of the secondary characters, Eowyn has the greatest story, being allowed to finally fight and do so impressively even killing the Witch-King of Angmar, which Miranda Otto plays out admirably.
The direction by Peter Jackson is as strong as ever with the varied and wild action shining as well as being able to capture the small detail that show how each character is being affected by all that is going on around them. The only issue with this film that I'd level at Peter Jackson is that the effects he uses are not all consistent quality with a few noticeable green screen moments.
The writing again captures and emulates the books extremely well with the use of editing to truly capture some of the book's best moments in new light. It is quite affecting to hear the character's tones change and parallel others particularly in the battle for Gondor.
Perhaps the film's greatest moment is Pippin singing "The Edge of Night" to Denethor as his soldiers including Faramir ride right into a flurry of arrows and their death. Other great moments include the lighting of the beacon for Rohan, Denethor looking down on the army of Sauron at his gates and suddenly feeling betrayed by the army he never called for, and the parallel speeches about death by Gandalf and Theoden.
Nice of Tolkien to pair up his most BA character and his most caring character together even if it had no build whatsoever. Oh and obviously those descriptions are from left to right. (Image Courtesy of: pinterest.com)
The action set pieces on this film truly are on another level. There are fellbeasts, giant winged creatures, one of which gets decapitated by Eowyn. The Haradrin ride mumakil, elephants, into battle, many of whom are slain by arrows and smash large hosts of men (Legolas runs up one and kills everyone on it in an impressive scene).
The whole war is multi-staged with a variety of tactics employed that are clearly established and developed. The orcs catapult human heads into the streets of Minas Tirith to frighten the soliders into retreat. The Rohirrim dominate the early parts of the battle when they appear as their horses allow them to mow down Orcs, but they are overwhelmed when the Haradrin appear on even larger mounts.
The orcs even show they know how to form ranks even though it doesn't do them much good. The battle at the gate of Mordor is less tactical but has quite a few great moments with fights against overwhelming numbers and some nasty creatures. Plus Sam gets to fight off a giant spider with just Sting and the Light of Elendil.
While fantasy is a regularly used genre in literature and becoming more popular in movies, there had never been scenes like this certainly not this well shot and written, and there haven't been any since. These are the kind of films that are made for watching on a theater screen.
Ultimately though, it is not those massive creatures and huge moments that define this ultimate chapter but the emotional highs of the film. Frodo and Sam turn on each other, but they ultimately come together to overcome Gollum and send him careening into the heart of Mordor with the ring. Aragorn takes his crown and his duty finally. Merry and Pippin manage to succeed in changing the course of events just a bit more.
The conclusion of the film is not perfect. This epilogue to the story wraps up everyone which takes a bit more time than necessary. That said, all of the scenes are well done with several being extremely powerful including everyone bowing to the hobbits and Bilbo resting on Frodo's shoulder as they prepare to leave Middle Earth with the last remaining elves.
Once more, Howard Shore deserves a ton of credit for a score that truly captured the heart of the film. The music was at the center of many of the best scenes in the movie. As I said, Pippin's song is the central emotional element of the film's most affecting scene. Plus the soundtrack includes Annie Lenox's "Into The West" which might be the series' best song.
Ultimately, The Return of the King works on a variety of levels. It is deep, engrossing, and action packed. The characters each get their time to shine with fantastic acting throughout. There's hardly a wasted scene even in the Extended Edition until the conclusion which does linger a bit though is not unwelcome.
The whole war is multi-staged with a variety of tactics employed that are clearly established and developed. The orcs catapult human heads into the streets of Minas Tirith to frighten the soliders into retreat. The Rohirrim dominate the early parts of the battle when they appear as their horses allow them to mow down Orcs, but they are overwhelmed when the Haradrin appear on even larger mounts.
The orcs even show they know how to form ranks even though it doesn't do them much good. The battle at the gate of Mordor is less tactical but has quite a few great moments with fights against overwhelming numbers and some nasty creatures. Plus Sam gets to fight off a giant spider with just Sting and the Light of Elendil.
While fantasy is a regularly used genre in literature and becoming more popular in movies, there had never been scenes like this certainly not this well shot and written, and there haven't been any since. These are the kind of films that are made for watching on a theater screen.
Ultimately though, it is not those massive creatures and huge moments that define this ultimate chapter but the emotional highs of the film. Frodo and Sam turn on each other, but they ultimately come together to overcome Gollum and send him careening into the heart of Mordor with the ring. Aragorn takes his crown and his duty finally. Merry and Pippin manage to succeed in changing the course of events just a bit more.
The conclusion of the film is not perfect. This epilogue to the story wraps up everyone which takes a bit more time than necessary. That said, all of the scenes are well done with several being extremely powerful including everyone bowing to the hobbits and Bilbo resting on Frodo's shoulder as they prepare to leave Middle Earth with the last remaining elves.
Once more, Howard Shore deserves a ton of credit for a score that truly captured the heart of the film. The music was at the center of many of the best scenes in the movie. As I said, Pippin's song is the central emotional element of the film's most affecting scene. Plus the soundtrack includes Annie Lenox's "Into The West" which might be the series' best song.
Ultimately, The Return of the King works on a variety of levels. It is deep, engrossing, and action packed. The characters each get their time to shine with fantastic acting throughout. There's hardly a wasted scene even in the Extended Edition until the conclusion which does linger a bit though is not unwelcome.
Final verdict:
Three Defining Success
Three Defining Success
- There's warrior elephants, ghost armies arriving from giant ships, and undead kings riding giant flying worm dragon creatures. No film has ever had set pieces this grand and fantastical.
- The consistent emotionally heavy story that allows so many characters fantastic moments in which to shine.
- Acting is at its best in the whole trilogy with Andy Serkis, Sean Astin, and Elijah Wood in particular all pulling out emotionally charged performances.
- The film's epilogue is abnormally long, going through a few too many explanations of the fallout to the film's ultimate clash.
- The adventure is over. At the end of the film, the journey ends, and there may never be an epic quite like this ever put on film. Well, unless you restart the series but you should probably wait a week at least to begin the nine hour plus adventure again. Maybe.