Thrilling, Gripping, Visually Exciting Conclusion to the Trilogy

Rating: 10/10 (19 December 2005)

"Lord of the Rings: Return of the King" is a terrific demonstration of CGI and special effects made to serve a thrilling story of good vs. evil.
I came in fully expecting that the "Return of the King" aspect would be the story line that would draw me in the most, but found that was given short shrift with a lot of that left out from the book, given over more to cinemascope-worthy battles that are the best since the early "Star Wars" movies.
If I hadn't read the book recently, let alone re-read the appendices several times to be sure I was getting the prophesies and genealogy straight, I would never have figured out what was going on with Aragorn as the heir to Isildur, as much of what he does to convince doubters is missing.
I also was a bit disappointed in Viggo not quite living up to "LOTR: The Two Towers," but I don't know if it was his acting or the dialog, especially in his "rally the troops" a.k.a. "another Crispin's Day speech," or if I found his traveling down the Paths of the Dead less frightening, and less motivated, than in the book. His Elvish-language song at the coronation was a nice touch.
Second to the battles, the lighting of the bonfires along the mountain tops was both gorgeous and exciting.
I am relieved that Eowyn and Faramir's romance shows will show up in the DVD because the sudden appearance of Arwen with an approving father in Minas Tirith is simply a befuddled resolution to the triangular tensions. I am sympathetic, however, about having to leave some things out in a rushed conclusion due to the length as I did have trouble sitting through to the credits, what with the extensive previews tacked on as well.
But the Gollum/Smeagol vs. Frodo and Sam competition was instead the more gripping, perhaps because the power of evil is so intensely represented by the close-up interior and exterior struggles of these almost-four characters trekking to Mordor.
I didn't mind the multiple endings that others have complained of as I respected the loyalty to the source material.
Howard Shore's music was martial without being bombastic, and Annie Lennox's vocalization fit in surprisingly in the over-the-credits song.
(originally written 12/28/2003)