Wonderful finale, sweeping emotions and action

Rating: 10/10 (21 January 2004)

Where do I start? Those who have already seen this movie don't need a review, and those who haven't will probably never look at my review given the multitudes of others to choose from. So, I'll just say how this movie personally affected me, as a fan of the books and of movies in general. I absolutely loved the original film, Fellowship of the Ring, and did enjoy the Two Towers, though not as much. I loved the emotion of the original (subtle scenes like Frodo's long decision-making boatside scene at the end), and found that the Two Towers was great in action and scope but as a result sort of put character development and characters' feelings into the background. But this makes sense, as the book it was based on dealt more with action and also had the burden of introducing half a dozen important new characters. Return of the King, however, is just simply fantastic. I try to avoid statements like "gets everything right", and "I enjoyed every minute of it", but in this case, it's true. I was so moved at the presentation of this film that I couldn't help getting misty at the end, despite knowing exactly what would happen (based on the books of course). I credit this to not only the great performances but also the stirring music (Annie Lennox's moving "Into the West" is a beautiful tune and perfectly echoes the sentiments of the film's themes). And also, I couldn't help being moved knowing that it was now all over, and there will probably never be another Lord of the Rings epic of this magnitude in my lifetime (and rightfully so). I just felt like I was saying goodbye to old friends. The movie, although beginning with an important flashback, begins immediately where the second film concluded, and every character has a conclusion. The main part of this movie that I loved is the simple fact that no character is shortchanged; the main characters have their own moments of screen time and good dialogue, from Gandalf telling Pippin what beautiful peace awaits him if he should die in battle, to Sam heroically carrying an exhausted Frodo on his own shoulders through sheer determination. It's all done well, and it takes its time to do it, which I wouldn't have any other way. Whereas Fellowship of the Ring dealt more in emotion and character development and the Two Towers was more hurried and action packed, I was delighted to see that return of the King found a perfect balance between the two and devotes ample time to both. The battle scenes are the grandest in scope and awe, and the highs and lows of sheer emotion are quite gracefully handled as well. And when everything is said and done and the battles are over, there's still a journey home for some of the characters and a good amount of movie left to enjoy. But everything moves along so smoothly, it's sometimes easy to forget that it's a 3 hour and fifteen minute ride. If there isn't action going on, there are scenes of pending action or drama at an almost nonstop rate, making sure that there's something to stop even the most restless from becoming bored.
If for some reason you've chosen my review out of the many available, let me at the very least leave you with this, and it will hopefully help you to decide to see it if you haven't yet: As the finale of a trilogy, this is the masterstroke that ties everything together and is successful on a multitude of levels. It's action packed and stirringly heartfelt at the same time. And finally, from someone who loves the books, I can say that although some omissions were made, the story doesn't falter as a result and the film as a whole was handled in about the most graceful, pleasing way I can imagine. It is, quite honestly, a cinematic masterpiece and a major accomplishment. I left teary eyed, happy for having been thrilled for more than 3 hours, and also quite sad that I don't have another of these films to look forward to.