A little long-winded in setting the finale up, but the second half is utterly spectacular

Rating: 7/10 (22 May 2016)

The final part of this epic trilogy sees Gandalf, Legolas, Aragorn and others battling Sauron and his evil army. Meanwhile, Frodo and Sam with Gollum in tow are heading towards Mount Doom to destroy the ring. Frodo and Sam's task seems straight-forward, but the pair are blissfully unaware of Gollum's plans and the danger that lies ahead for them.
Jackson has clearly upped the ante here and anyone who thinks that the first two films are big spectacles really needs to take a look at this film; it's visuals are arguably more striking than the previous outings and the special effects are perhaps bigger and better than the previous films. It's clear when watching this trilogy that Jackson is a good filmmaker and seems to have a love for filmmaking in general. Many people will see this as a positive, and to a large extent it is, but I can't help but feel that sometimes he gets a bit wrapped up in the effects side of things and less so in the narrative. This, to me, is more evident in the first half of the film where it takes an awfully long time to actually set the story up (complete with needless flashbacks which just confused things more than anything). Although the setup is overlong thankfully the story arc involving Frodo, Sam and Gollum was much stronger, more focused & much more interesting in this film than it was in The Two Towers. Frodo effectively ends up torn between the two of them most of the time creating a rather interesting dynamic between the three of them which was always engrossing to watch.
Where the film truly comes good is in the battle sequences that we see in the second half of the film and all I'll say is that they do make it worth your while sitting through the rather elongated setup to the story. Although there are battle sequences in the previous two films they are nothing compared to the spectacular battles that you'll see here - the battle sequences are bigger in scale and much more exciting and intense than in the previous two films and once battle commences it is utterly sublime.
TROTK is a very good end to a good trilogy and my only real gripe with it lay with its long-winded setup - it's seems that upping the ante with bigger and better effects has the knock on effect of a longer screenplay. At the end of the day although it is a long film it's never boring and it does at least reward the viewer's patience with some exciting and nail-biting set-pieces in its closing stages.
As a side note I'm also pleased that Jackson finally got his best picture Oscar for TROTK after being nominated for the first two films but failing to win it.