Uplifting, Heartrending, a Master Work

Rating: 10/10 (22 December 2003)

I feel as though a significant portion of my life has ended. Long has it been since I first feasted my eyes on Peter Jackson's visually luscious adaptation of the `Lord of the Rings' novels. Back then I was a sophomore in high school, as green to life as I was to the literary prowess of J.R.R. Tolkien. Three years later, I'm a senior in high school, and just as green and naÃ¯ve about life. However, my knowledge of Tolkien is another story. If the ultimate test of the potency of a piece of entertainment is by what degree it alters your life, then `The Lord of the Rings' trilogy, as a whole, is the most effective series of films I have ever watched. Since the release of 2001's `Fellowship of the Ring,' the first movie in the trilogy, I have spent three years reading, writing, and speaking Tolkien, becoming increasingly enamored by his passionate storytelling and mastery of language. And now, the journey has ended. With the debut of this season's `Return of the King,' director Peter Jackson has officially concluded his three film adaptation of the series in such a way as will be remembered for centuries to come. A common gripe concerning last year's `Two Towers,' the middle movie of the trilogy, is that the focus of the story shifts too far from Sam and Frodo. But in `Return of the King,' a film boasting twice as many CGI effects, battle sequences, and sweeping camera movements, Sam and Frodo steal the show. I never imagined I could feel so pure while crying in a theater. In retrospect, `Titanic,' the film I had always considered to be one of the biggest tear-jerkers in existence, feels so incredibly cheap. Sure, you're sad that Jack dies, and it's an easy emotion to convey due to the natural inclination of grief towards death. But shedding tears of joy - being moved, not by a cheap death, but by courage shown in the face of impregnable odds, by unwavering devotion to a friend in a time of need - now that is quite an experience. And when it's all over, you too feel exhausted. Indeed, as my close friend put it, simply viewing this film is a feat in its own right. It has the adventurous spirit of a David Lean flick, matched with the simplistic moral clarity of an Aesop fable, with a dash of old fashioned heroism. And perhaps I'm biased because fantasy is such a fresh idea in modern (meaning recent) cinema that it couldn't help but succeed. But I assure you, the success of this film and its predecessors comes solely from the respective literary and narrative genius of both J.R.R. Tolkien and Peter Jackson. Together, they have birthed a chapter in the history of film that inspires on all levels - a refreshingly optimistic statement about hope and the power of fellowship. `Return of the King' is a must see, and a must read.