a worthy follow up to the seminal Fellowship of the Ring

Rating: 10/10 (31 December 2002)

Without doubt, Peter Jackson has once again done justice to Tolkien's staggering literary achievement. This film, though much, much darker in tone than Fellowship, delivers the depth and breadth of the novel in dramatic and engrossing fashion.
Although several portions of the book have been either omitted or amended for the silver screen, the story does not suffer in any way. Fans of the book may be disappointed that the Ents received short shrift, but when viewed through the average cinema goers eyes (i.e. one that has not had the benefit of reading the book)even the most ardent LOTR fan must agree that the changes made sense. Several characters enjoy more screen time, notably Gimli, who provides comic relief at times when the on screen drama demands it. My highlight was the image of the Ents descending on Isengard. CGI has never seemed more appealing.
I for one will be counting down the days to "The Return of The king". I will also be keeping my fingers crossed that certain elements of that particular book make the final cut.