a monumental achievement

Rating: Null/10 (21 July 2004)

`The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King' - though, in my view, not quite as compelling as the monumental `The Two Towers' that directly preceded it - is, nevertheless, a worthy conclusion to this one-of-a-kind cinematic achievement. In the final installment of the trilogy, the hobbit Frodo, his loyal companion, Sam, and the nefarious cretin Gollum, are still heading toward Mount Doom to destroy the ring which threatens to hold the world in its diabolical grasp. Meanwhile a whole host of other characters do further battle with the forces of evil massing to take over Middle Earth.
Under Peter Jackson's skillful directorial guidance, never have the resources of cinema  cinematography, art direction, matte design, special effects  been marshaled with more effectiveness in bringing a fantasy world to vivid life. As with `The Two Towers,' the eyes pop and the jaw drops at the sheer magnificence of the spectacle taking place on screen. The seemingly endless vistas, sweeping camera movements, ferocious battle sequences and one truly terrifying giant spider offer some of the most visually astonishing moments in motion picture history. It will be a long time before we encounter a film project of this size and scope again.
What struck me most while watching `The Return of the King' was how Tolkien had created a view of the Middle Ages as it might have been had Christianity never existed  a view that film, by its intrinsically visual nature, only enhances. As the camera scans the horizon, we are struck by the fact that there are no cathedrals, no country churches, no spires dominating the landscape. In a similar way, there are no clergy present, no Christian symbols such as crosses or rosary beads, no sacred artwork  all visuals that define our image of the Middle Ages. Instead of priests there are wizards and elves; instead of crucifixes, we find magic rings and New Age medallions. `The Return of the King' allows us to re-imagine a period in history, bereft of the single most dominating influence that came to define that era. It's still the classic battle between the forces of good and the forces of evil that have defined human history - but as filtered through Tolkien's Teutonic imagination and vision, that conflict becomes the stuff of mythology and legend.
In the mass of special effects, it's easy to overlook the fine performances of Elijah Woods as Frodo, Sean Astin as Sam, and Andy Serkis as Gollum, who together provide the heart and soul needed to keep this sprawling epic tale life-sized and moving.
If truth be told, impressive as this film undoubtedly is, a certain  perhaps inevitable - fatigue factor does creep in during portions of this third installment. Perhaps the elements that seemed so fresh in `The Two Towers'  the epic battle scenes, on a scale far grander than any we had ever before encountered, or the schizophrenic conflict between good and evil being waged inside Gollum's twisted psyche  seem like just more of the same here. Unlike the second part, `The Return of the King' provides little that is new to take us to that higher level we keep hoping for and expecting.
That being said, I must also add that the emotional impact of the final moments is simply overwhelming, as the characters we have come to know and love over the course of the tale engage in the most moving scenes of leave-taking and parting since `The Wizard of Oz' and `E.T.' There are some who have balked at the sentimental nature of these moments, calling them anticlimactic and self-indulgent, yet after having invested so much time getting to know these characters and sharing in their adventure, the audience has earned the right to a bit of over-the-top sentiment, and I see no reason to criticize the filmmakers for pulling out all the emotional stops here. If anything, these scenes demonstrate the intense bond Jackson and his crew have forged with their legions of loyal, appreciative fans.
There's no doubt about it, taken as a whole, this nine-hour-plus saga of `The Lord of the Rings' is one of the great epic experiences of our time.