better perhaps, but I didn't enjoy it as much

Rating: 8/10 (6 January 2003)

This second film of the trilogy makes me glad I saw the first one, and whets my appetite for the third. But as a film by itself, yeesh. I mean, it's lousy to be like a bride after her honeymoon thinking, "that was really nice honey...(but is that all you've got?)" Which is to say no, the fireworks did not go off for me this time.
So why didn't they? I mean, if you enjoy battle scenes you'll love Two Towers. All it needs is a couple of play by play announcers from Monday Night Football to make it really complete. "We're here with Gimli the dwarf, talking to him about that big play in front of the castle gate. Gimli, weren't you a little nervous when Aragon tossed you into that army of sword-swinging mutants, or have you two handled that play before?"
Maybe it was two or three too many helicopter shots, round and round and round and ....oh no, Gravol please! Peter Jackson, I love ya, we love ya, and the New Zealand Department of Tourism loves ya, but you've got to come up with some different stuff!
Maybe it was seeing so much of Gollum, in such detail, when he's a lot sicklier in my imagination. Maybe it was talking trees that looked like, well, computer-animated talking trees.
Overall, my impression of Two Towers is more, but less. More is happening, but less is memorable. The characters are more developed, but they're less charming. The cinematography is again stoo-pendous, but in ways that we've seen before. Like Olympic competition, when you've the bar so high, further gains come in increments.
Fellowship of the Ring blew me away. Two Towers, as good as it is, just blew over.