Not quite as good as "Fellowship", but it's a wonderful continuation

Rating: 9/10 (21 December 2002)

"The Two Towers", is, on balance, not as good as "Fellowship". It has parts that are much, much better, but as a whole film, it is a less-compelling experience. Perhaps I'm just spoiled from watching FotR over and over and over. I found myself saying, "Oh dear, that's another incredible helicopter shot of New Zealand. It's the eighth one so far."
The Battle of Helm's Deep is nothing short of amazing. I felt tired, physically TIRED, after watching the whole sequence. The casting, as usual, is fantastic - Andy Serkis IS Gollum, Miranda Otto IS Eowyn, Brad Dourif IS Wormtongue, etc.
Fans of the book be warned: TTT makes MAJOR changes in the plot, that, while logical, may shock the viewer. Specifically, the Frodo/Sam/Gollum story and their run-in with Faramir is changed considerably.
SPOILERS
I wish they worked on the Fangorn sequence a little more. Merry and Pippin certainly got the short end of the stick story-wise. The Ents, surprisingly, were very good, but their surroundings left much to be desired and looked very "blue-screen". The flooding of Isengard rocked.
Gollum, while not photo-realistic, looks good. And Serkis gives the best reading of the character I have ever heard; he is, at turns, threatening, disgusting, pitiful, and innocent.