One film to rule them all- The new IMDB King?

Rating: 10/10 (19 December 2003)

Until yesterday, I agreed with the consensus view of IMDB users that the Godfather was the greatest movie of all time. I've changed my mind. What set the Godfather (I & the young Vito Corleone sequence of the Godfather films) was the profound feeling of family, and of immersion into a culture that tempered the violence & intrigue of the plot, and made watching them a holistic experience. Peter Jackson has outdone this in the Return of the King.
The action sequences are the best ever, in terms of build-up and excitement. The seeds of friendship, fellowship and romance that are planted in the Fellowship of the Ring and developed in the Two Towers come into fruition here. The flaws of the Two Towers are remedied- better pacing, fewer stupid Gimli comments. The film is filled with an incredible sense of devotion, of love by all the participants for Middle Earth.
Jackson has invented a new way of filmmaking, of immersing the actors into an alternate reality for years, until they became inhabitants of it. The attention to care and detail is noticeable throughout the film- and it feels as if we are immersed in Middle Earth, with its cornucopia of cultures, dreams and desires. The film feels like a labour of love and the characters achieve profound depth, especially in the scenes where the characters say goodbye to each other. I think it was also a stroke of genius to include the flashback on the origins of Smeagol/ Gollum's attachment to the ring. This makes their last shot even more meaningful, and should secure Any Serkis a best supporting actor Oscar. My only complaint is the complete absence of Saruman- sure I know adding the Scouring of the Shire sequence would have been one too many endings, but there should have at least been a shot of Saruman and Wormtongue brooding in Orthanc.
I've read other reviewers' complaints that there are too many endings, and while the movie would have been perfect to end after "ending one or two", all of the endings were necessary. Jackson said that we should think of the trilogy as parts to one 11 hour movie, and with that in mind, the multiple endings serve to tie up threads started early in the epic. Little things from the opening Shire scenes, like Bilbo's party, like Sam's nervousness around Rosie; and Gandalf blowing a smoke ship through Bilbo's smoke ring; alluded to important events that needed to be shown to bring closure.

11/10 on a Spinal Tap Scale