Not the film of the book!

Rating: 10/10 (29 December 2002)

For anyone who has read the book of the Two Towers this film is going to be a bit of a dissapointment with the many scenes that Peter Jackson has either changed or inserted into the story. Peter has also been kind enough to let us have a toilet break halfway through the film with a load of old rubbish inserted with regards to the Elves. I'm not too bothered about an odd line or so being uttered by wrong characters but to change the story so much is beyond belief..at one point Sam says to Frodo "Frodo, we shouldn't be here - but we are"...quite! This can only be a joke on Peter Jacksons part as indeed Frodo, Sam & Gollum should definately not be there. Faramir is made to look stupid whereas in the book he makes a wise decision by letting the party go. There are many other variations on the book with battles with Wargs, Aragorns apparent demise and the trip to Gondor.
Anyway if you hadn't read the book then you will probably love it. The effects are fantastic and Gollum is an absolute gem. It should make George Lucas think about what can be done with CGI characters. There is plenty of good quality action in this film with the battle of Helms Deep and the Ents marching on Isengard being particularly memorable.
I think that I really need to see the film again so that I can assess it properly. All I kept doing was notching up the major variations to the book. Now I have got over the shock of that I can watch the film again and enjoy it for what it is.
7/10 (for now)