BETTER THAN FELLOWSHIP

Rating: 10/10 (20 December 2002)

The Fellowship of the Ring was a sermon preached to the converted; The Two Towers directs its evangel at the undecided, and will no doubt win more to the flock of the faithful. Although the second act of a trilogy (it will make more sense to those who have seen part one, and it begs to be concluded with the finale next year)it stands on its own with great action set-piece. Peter Jackson seems to do better when he has more balls up in the air, staging eye-popping battles, reaching deep into the emotional lives of his characters, and telling a rousing tale with the best visual effects you'bve ever seen, especially the wholly digitized Gollum, whose internal struggle against corruption is captured as believably as his body movement. Two Towers extends its franchise, and the meaning of epic, in a way that few movies have since Star Wars. The bar has been raised.