I think I'm starting to come around on this series

Rating: Null/10 (25 May 2003)

It took me six months before finally seeing the second installment of Peter Jackson's adaptation of Lord of the Rings. I saw the first right around the time of its release. I was one of the few who just didn't get it. Coupled with how bored I was with the first Harry Potter movie, I came to the conclusion that I was never meant to be into straight fantasy. I'm about the only one of my friends who does not get excited about Dungeons & Dragons or Magic: The Gathering. Nor have I ever read Tolkien's books.

So Two Towers finally showed up at the dollar cinema (actually a buck fifty). With all of the hooha surrounding these films I figured at some point I would have to see it anyway. It's cheaper than renting it from Blockbuster AND I'm seeing it on the big screen.
I actually enjoyed this one for the most part. It occurred to me that the problem I had with Fellowship of the Ring is probably the same problem that most people had with The Phantom Menace: it holds itself back a bit. It saves all its good ideas for later and lets itself simply be an introduction to a larger whole.
This middle part of the trilogy finally is swept up with all of the imaginative stuff that you expect to see in this type of movie. Gollum and the big walking tree guys really sold the whole thing for me. As impressive as the Battle of Helms Deep was, I liked watching the big tree guys putting the smackdown even more.
However, an observation. While most of geekdom has proclaimed the Lord of the Rings movies to be the hands-down winner as between it and the Star Wars prequels, I still stand firm on my belief that both these series are qualitatively even. The dialogue in Two Towers bears little resemblance to how real people speak or interact with one another. Most everyone speaks in succint proclamations with very little nuance. But that's okay. It's not dialogue or subtle character development that brings us to these movies. It's all about the imagination and epic scope.