A Darker Side of the Rings

Rating: 9/10 (5 February 2006)

Part of what made the last Lord of the Rings movie so great was its presentation. The light-hearted scenes were heart-warming and the darker moments were more suspenseful. The Two Towers takes a dark turn in the Lord of the Rings and uses it to be its primary mood. For the most part, this darker atmosphere pays off and helps the battles seem more impressive.
The Fellowship is broken in this movie, but the journey must continue as The Two Towers continues right where the Fellowship of the Ring left off, like a true sequel. Almost instantly, Jackson introduces us to a crowd favorite character, Smeagol and Gollum. But why do we love this two part combo character? Maybe it has to do with the world-famous line "my precious...." Yes, that line alone makes this ugly imp-like creature one the audience can't help but love.
Frodo and Sam don't have much a role in this movie, instead, The Two Towers puts the major focus around Aragorn, Legolus and Gimli, which I'm pretty thankful for. It's nice to see that after getting used to the silly hobbits that we get a movie that puts as much dedication towards the more serious part of the group. Gandalf also makes a return appearance and his changed attitude makes him more or less a more credible character this time around.
The battle sequences in this movie are big and great. The first few battles that take place out in open fields are impressive themselves, but you won't know true battle scenes until the battle for Helms Deep. This sequence, combined with the Ents taking on Isengard is one of the most impressive epic battle combos ever seen in a movie. The CGI in The Two Towers is also incredible, no shot looks bad or ugly, with the exception of the brutal and nasty orcs and Uruk-Hai.
Other new characters are brought into trilogy with The Two Towers and while it's nice to see some more good guys fight against the orcs, the movie lacks a spark to make them more lovable. The connection that Jackson establishes with these new characters exists, but it isn't used to the effect that he did with Smeagol and Gollum, which is a true shame.
Regardless of this flaw that affects the movie more than it probably should've, The Two Towers is an great sequel. Some will say that this is the best of the Lord of the Rings movies, which in some ways is true. But compared to how great the first movie in this epic trilogy was, The Two Towers just doesn't create the same impressive feeling that Fellowship of the Ring left.