Misleading title - should have been called The Two Lovers

Rating: 5/10 (29 August 2012)

I was VERY disappointed by this movie when it came out. True, Jackson does a great job in bringing Tolkien's world to life, and the shots are epic. However, as a Tolkien fan, I find the film tantamount to blasphemy.
I understand that you have to remove parts of the book to keep the film at reasonable length, and I understand that you need to make adaptations of the story for the screen. What I don't understand is why you take a literal masterpiece and remove most of it just to include a love story that adds nothing, and isn't very romantic even. Apart from the battle of Helm's Deep, almost none of the events are taken from the book, and those that are have been changed beyond recognition.
I (re-)read each book prior to watching the movies - bad mistake! If I didn't have the book in such fresh memory when I saw the movie, I might have appreciated it more.
Don't watch this movie with the expectation that it's an adaption of The Two Towers. It isn't. The story is rather based on the Aragorn/Arwen story in appendix A to The Return of the King, with "a little" imagination from Jackson. They should have included much more from the book and made this story a movie on its own.
A love story staring Viggo Mortensen and Liv Tyler could have been a hit. It would have given the scriptwriter an opportunity to really focus on the love between Arwen and Aragorn, and Arwen's decision to become mortal, thereby forsaking her chance to ever see her family again. That's some powerful love right there! "The Two Lovers", as this movie should really have been called, fails in capturing that love. Neither does it capture the sorrow Elrond must feel, knowing that he will live an eternity without his precious daughter.
If you liked the movie, do yourself a favor and read the book for the REAL story.