The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Plot synopsis:
In the opening scene, a flashback, two hobbits, Sméagol (Andy Serkis) and his friend Déagol (Thomas Robins), are fishing the River Anduin near the Gladden Fields in the North of Middle Earth. Déagol is dragged into the river by a powerful catch and discovers the One Ring glinting in the river bed. He collects it and climbs out of the water. Sméagol sees him fondling it and as they both succumb to the Ring's power they begin to quarrel. Sméagol demands the Ring, saying that it's his birthday and it should be his present. The squabble turns into a fight; Sméagol strangles his friend with his bare hands and pries the Ring from Déagol's clenched fist. As a result, Sméagol is ostracized from his community and driven away. Suffering terribly from loneliness and shame, Sméagol takes solace in his love for the Ring, which slowly tortures his mind. He takes solitary refuge in caves beneath the mountains, where under the influence of the Ring he lives to a very great age.He dwindles into a hunched, furtive, slinking creature known by the unpleasant noise he makes in his throat -- "Gollum."In the present, on the outskirts of Mordor, Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) are resting in an alcove. Sam awakes and sees that his master has not slept. The days are growing darker the closer they get to Minas Morgul and Mordor. Gollum arrives and urges them to move on.Away in the west, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Legolas (Orlando Bloom), Gimli (John Rhys-Davies), Gandalf (Ian McKellen), Théoden (Bernard Hill), and Éomer (Karl Urban) ride through the forest of Fangorn to Isengard, where they meet Merry (Dominic Monaghan) and Pippin (Billy Boyd) feasting among the wreckage. They go to see Treebeard at the tower of Orthanc in the center of Isengard, where Saruman (Christopher Lee) has been trapped. Gandalf opposes Gimli's call to kill Saruman, saying that the wizard has no power anymore and will pose no further threat. Saruman shows himself to them. Grima (Brad Dourif), who is still with him, stabs him with a knife. Legolas shoots Grima with an arrow, but Saruman falls down to his death, landing on the spikes of a large waterwheel. As they are talking, Pippin sees the palantír amongst the flotsam and is entranced by it, but Gandalf quickly asks it from him and hides in under his cloak.The group rides to Edoras, where King Théoden has prepared a large banquet to 'hail the victorious dead' of the Battle of the Hornburg. There Éowyn (Miranda Otto) shows affection for Aragorn which Théoden notices; he tells her that he is happy for her, Aragorn being an honorable man and the architect of the victory at Helm's Deep. Gandalf expresses to Aragorn his concerns over the quest. Aragorn tells him to trust in what his heart tells him, that Frodo is still alive.Gollum awakes in the night as Frodo and Sam are sleeping and goes off to one side to murmur to himself. His evil half senses some doubt in Sméagol and insists that if he can murder once (referring to Déagol) he can do it again. Gollum then begins leading Sméagol through their plan, to deliver the hobbits into the clutches of Shelob in Cirith Ungol, after which the Ring can be reclaimed. Sam hears the conversation and beats Gollum for his treachery. Frodo intervenes, saying that as their guide Gollum is necessary for their quest. Sam glowers as Gollum flashes him an evil smile while Frodo's back is turned.That same night back in Edoras, Pippin's curiosity gets the better of him; relieving a sleeping Gandalf of the palantír, he looks into it. Pippin sees a vision of a white tree in a stone courtyard set ablaze, but in doing so he is caught by Sauron and submitted to mental torture and questioning. Aragorn tries to rescue him, briefly exposing himself to Sauron. Pippin recovers from his ordeal and it is discovered that he did not tell Sauron anything of the Ring's whereabouts. From Pippin's vision of the White Tree, Gandalf deduces that Sauron is now moving to attack the great Gondorian city of Minas Tirith and he rides off to send warning, taking Pippin with him, lest his urge to look into the palantír (left now in Aragorn's keeping) return again.Leaving Rivendell on her way to the Undying Lands, Arwen (Liv Tyler) has a vision of Eldarion (Sadwyn Brophy), the son she will have with Aragorn. She realises that her father lied to her when he said she and Aragorn had no future together. She returns to Rivendell and convinces Elrond (Hugo Weaving) that having forsaken the life of the Eldar, she cannot leave Aragorn now. She tells her father that as foretold, the time to reforge Narsil has come. Narsil, the sword of Elendil, is the birthright of the true heir of Isildur, the man who used the sword to cut the One Ring from Sauron's hand.Gandalf and Pippin arrive at Minas Tirith, City of Kings, that was built out of the rock of Mindolluin. There Pippin recognises the White Tree as they go to find the Steward Denethor (John Noble). They approach him as he mourns over Boromir (Sean Bean), his son. Pippin swears loyalty to him in recompense for Boromir's sacrifice. Denethor seems to be caught up in his grief and has not taken measures to fortify the city against the threat of Sauron.Meanwhile, Frodo, Sam, and Gollum arrive at Minas Morgul. Wary of the enemy, they locate the Winding Stair (leading to the pass of Cirith Ungol) that lies hidden in the cliffs surrounding the accursed city. Just at that moment, the doors of the city open and the Witch-king of Angmar, leader of the Nazgûl, dispatches his immense Orc army from his lair, heralding the start of the war. The outpouring of the army is witnessed by Gandalf and Pippin as a flash of lightning shoots up at the opening of the doors. At the urging of Gandalf, Pippin lights the first of the beacon signals to Edoras, alerting Théoden, Aragorn and the rest of the Rohirrim to muster at Dunharrow and thence to Minas Tirith. As they leave Edoras, Aragorn notices that Éowyn saddles up with them and that she is girt with a sword, but she insists that she rides only to see them off and that the men have found their captain in Aragorn.The Morgul army crosses Anduin at Osgiliath in makeshift boats and engages the Gondorian contingent (lead by Boromir's brother Faramir (David Wenham)) in battle. The orcs prove too strong and drive the Gondorians out of Osgiliath; Faramir and his few surviving men retreat to Minas Tirith, pursued by the Nazgûl. Gandalf, riding out to meet the retreating men, wards them off, saving Faramir. Upon his arrival, Faramir (who met Frodo, Sam, and Gollum in Ithilien just before they headed for the mountain pass into Mordor) tells Gandalf of the dangerous route Gollum is taking Frodo and Sam on, convincing Gandalf of Gollum's treachery. The hobbits, lead by Gollum, are struggling to climb the extremely steep stairs. Gollum reaches out and empathises with Frodo, saying that he understands his pain. Gollum also poisons Frodo against Sam, saying that Sam will try and take the Ring from Frodo.In the captured Osgiliath, the Witch-king orders his captain to "send forth all legions" and annihilate the population of Minas Tirith, saying that he himself will "break" the wizard Gandalf. Denethor, ill-pleased by Faramir's failed defence of Osgiliath, manipulates him into taking a doomed ride to reclaim the city. Gollum continues to play the hobbits against each other, this time by blaming Sam for eating their food provisions. Frodo, in his deluded state, is suspicious of Sam and orders him back home when Sam, trying to be helpful, offers to carry the Ring, thereby fulfilling Gollum's cunning prediction. Faramir rides head-long into the arrows of the encamped orcs as Pippin sings for Denethor who unconcernedly eats his noon meal. Faramir's attack fails and Faramir is dragged back by his horse in a death-like coma.At the weapon-take at Dunharrow, a hooded figure slowly rides on a white horse along the winding road to the encampment in the hills. The figure reveals himself to Aragorn as Elrond. He presents Aragorn with his birthright -- the newly reforged sword Narsil, now named Anduril, Flame of the West. He urges Aragorn to use this sword to recall the Dead Men of Dunharrow and use their allegiance to the heir of Isildur (i.e. Aragorn) to stop the attack of the Corsairs' ships, which are already sailing from the south. Aragorn accepts this counsel and rides off that very night into the Dimholt, along with Legolas and Gimli. As he is preparing to go, a tearful Éowyn comes to Aragorn and begs him not to go, declaring her love for him, but Aragorn, knowing now that Arwen has refused the promise of Valinor, likewise refuses Éowyn's love. The next morning, Théoden rides off to war with six thousand riders, unaware that Éowyn and Merry, who were both told to remain behind by the King, are part of his army.The Morgul forces, composed mostly of Orcs, begin the siege of Minas Tirith by catapulting the heads of captured prisoners over the walls. Denethor sees his son Faramir and believes him to be dead; he also beholds the might of the forces marshaled against him and at this he loses hope and his mind, ordering the Gondorians to abandon their positions. Gandalf, however, steps in and incapacitates Denethor, assuming control of the defense. A skirmish between Gondorian trebuchets and Mordor's catapults ensues until the Witch-king and the other Ringwraiths on their Fell Beasts attack, destroying the trebuchets and sewing terror among the defenders.Away in Cirith Ungol, Gollum betrays Frodo to the giant spider-creature Shelob, but Sam returns to fight her off. Sam believes Frodo is dead, but when Orcs from the Tower of Cirith Ungol come and investigate, Sam overhears that Frodo has only been paralysed by Shelob's stinger.In Minas Tirith, Denethor, stricken mad with grief at having spent both his sons, prepares a funeral pyre for himself and the unconscious Faramir. Denethor is unaware that Faramir is not dead and the pyre will burn him alive. Gandalf and Pippin arrive in the Hallows and manage to save Faramir, but Denethor is thrown onto the pyre and as he burns to death, he turns and sees his son stirring awake from his injuries and exhaustion. Down in the city, the battle goes ill with the Gondorians, as the huge battering ram Grond shatters the gates of the city and trolls pour in. As the defenders retreat to the upper levels of the city, the orcs crawl through the streets of the lower levels, looting, burning and massacring the men of Gondor. But suddenly in the midst of the chaos a lone horn penetrates the air and all turn to the west and see the army of Rohan arrive at last, to the rising of the sun. The Rohirrim charge into the Orcs with great effect. However their joy is cut short by the arrival of the forces of Harad and the immense elephants, the Mûmakil. The Witch-king descends on Théoden, killing Snowmane his horse and fatally wounding the King. Seemingly in the nick of time, the Corsairs' ships arrive to help the stranded Orcs, but it is Aragorn who jumps off the lead ship, followed by an army of the dead. They completely destroy the Orcs and Mûmakil, while Éowyn and Merry kill the Witch-king. Théoden dies of his wounds and Aragorn holds the Dead Army's oath fulfilled, releasing them from their curse so that they may rest in peace.Sam rescues Frodo from Cirith Ungol, which is mostly empty following a fight between the two factions of the Tower's Orc garrison over Frodo's valuable mithril shirt. They begin the long trek across Mordor to Mount Doom. Gandalf realizes that ten thousand Orcs stand between Cirith Ungol and Mount Doom, which will prevent Frodo from reaching his destination. Aragorn proposes they lead the remaining soldiers to the Black Gate to draw the Orcs away from Frodo's path, as well as distract the Eye of Sauron. Sam carries Frodo up to Mount Doom, but Gollum arrives and attacks them, just as the Battle of the Morannon begins. At the Crack of Doom, Frodo, instead of dropping the Ring into the fire, succumbs to its power and puts it on, disappearing from sight. The act alerts Sauron, who sends the Ringwraiths racing towards Mount Doom. Gollum renders Sam unconscious then attacks Frodo, seizing his ring finger and biting it off. As Gollum rejoices at finally having reclaimed his Precious, Frodo, still under the sway of the Ring's attraction, charges at Gollum. After a brief struggle, they both fall over the edge of the precipice. Gollum falls into the fire with the Ring, while Frodo barely hangs on with his strength failing. Sam rescues Frodo as the Ring finally sinks into the lava and is destroyed. Sauron's Eye screams as his essence fades before the tower of Barad-dûr collapses and then explodes, forever banishing his power. The Orcs, Ringwraiths and the remaining forces of Sauron are consumed in the ensuing shockwave as the earth collapses under their feet; the Black Gate and Mordor are both shaken apart. Frodo and Sam become stranded when the entire top of Mount Doom is blown off in a large eruption. They voice their regrets at not being able to see the Shire again amidst the torrents of lava and the destruction of Barad-dur. With the destruction of the Nazgul, Gandalf is able to call upon the Eagles to carry the hobbits to safety. They awake in Minas Tirith, reuniting with the other members of the fellowship, all of them but Boromir having survived the War of the Ring.In Minas Tirith, Aragorn is crowned King of the West, heralding the new age of peace, and marries Arwen. Here is when everybody kneels down in homage to the little hobbits. The hobbits return to the Shire, where Sam marries Rosie Cotton (Sarah McLeod). Frodo, having finished writing his entry in the Red Book of Westmarch, is still suffering from the effects of the wounds he received from the Ringwraiths at Weathertop and from Shelob. Realizing that he will never have peace in Middle Earth, he decides to go with Gandalf, Bilbo, Elrond, and Galadriel to the Grey Havens and sail to Valinor, the Undying Lands. Before embarking at the havens, Frodo passes the Red Book to Sam to record the years of his life to come. Then the last ship to leave Middle Earth sets off, pulling slowly away from the shore and passing along the Straight Road into the Uttermost West. Pippin and Merry take their leave and Sam is left staring into the golden sunset. In the last scene, Sam walks back up the lane to Bag End, where he is greeted by his wife Rosie, and his children. Surrounded by his family and with the rest of his life ahead of him, Sam sighs and says "Well, I'm back." He goes inside and shuts the door as the screen fades to black.

Tags: boring, fantasy, murder, suspenseful, cult, violence, atmospheric, flashback, good versus evil, insanity, action, melodrama, tragedy, romantic

Review:
The Return Of The King is the final chapter, and since it is the climax and resolution of the epic journey, it has a little more intensity and urgency than the previous installments.At this point everyone has come to know and love all of the characters, and the stakes have become tremendously high.
The first installment, `The Fellowship of the Ring,' provided heaps of exposition on the ring's importance and influence, and in `Return of the King,' we see it pay off, big time.After the armies of Isengard have been defeated due to an allegiance between Theoden (Bernard Hill), the king of Rohan, and the elves, the main threat to middle earth is now concentrated in the kingdom of Mordor, controlled by the dark lord Sauron.
The dark lord Sauron needs only to regain the one ring of power to conquer all of middle earth, and two hobbits, Frodo (Elijah Wood) the ring-bearer and Sam (Sean Astin), must continue their journey, directed by Gollum, to Mount Doom, the only place where the ring can be destroyed.
Aragorn, played with an unmatched sense of honor by Viggo Mortenson, is about to meet his destiny as the future king of all men, while Andy Serkis continues his expert portrayal of Gollum (Serkis' provided not only the voice of Gollum, but also assisted during production by acting out the scenes of the computer-generated character with his fellow actors).However, the real acting triumph of the film is Elijah Wood as Frodo Baggins.
Think of `Return' as a mix of `Fellowship' and `Two Towers,' with enough action and character development worthy of ending a film event of this magnitude.The bottom line, fans of the films will not be disappointed.
Not to mention superb ensemble acting, moods that shift effortlessly between mediaeval battles of colossal proportions and convincing bloodshed, beauty and wonderment, fantastic natural and artificial landscapes and cityscapes, touches of humour, well-paced dramatic tension, and human bonding that is moving enough to just let you dry your eyes as the unassuming credits flash by.Return of the King is the greatest of the Tolkien trilogy by New Zealand director Peter Jackson.
The movie then moves deftly between different segments of the story - the sadness of the lovely soft-focus Liv Tyler as fated Arwen whose travails and woman's love succeeds in having the Sword that was Broken mended, the comradeship of Sam and Frodo (Sean Astin & Elijah Wood) that is tested to the limits, the strong commanding presence of Gandalf (Ian McKellen) who keeps an eye on things whilst turning in an Oscar-worthy performance, the ingenious and very varied battle scenes, and the mythical cities of that rise out of the screen and provide key plot elements.This is a fairy story of human endeavour, the defeating of power cliques and the triumph of the human spirit that could almost be compared to Wagner's Gotterdammerung.
John Rhys-Davies continued with Gimli's joking performance; he's really too amusing to take seriously, but does a good job at it.For the old Tolkien fans, this movie stays quite close to the book, although they did have to omit some portions, most notably the taking and retaking of the Shire and the time spent in the Halls of Healing in Minas Tirith.
Humanity makes a last stand at Minas Tirith, the Hobbits travel through Mordor, our heroes try to by time for Frodo to complete his mission and the Evil Sauron gets tired of the whole game and lashes out with all his might and fury."Return of the King" is 4 hours of payoff, a third act in a gigantic epic rather than a mere film of its own.
The quieter character moments keep gaining in potency and the full weight of the stakes and their heartbreaking consequences is never in doubt.The cast of these films have played their parts to perfection and again Jackson deserves overall credit for choosing actors that so perfectly match Tlolkien's creations: Ian McKellen and Christopher Lee are their own usually excellent selves, and the hobbits remain endearing, but of all the uniformly great cast, the true standouts are Viggo Mortensen and David Wenham as the tragic Faramir, whose relationship with his brutish father is the most traumatic of the film.
And though he may offer one ending too many, he does have the decency to show off each surviving character with the appropriate screen time and respect.Now that the trilogy is complete, it can be viewed as one big film, as it should be.
The rest of the fellowship is rallying to the defense of Minas Tirith, and preparing for even more deadly battles to come.The heroism and romance are incredibly moving - when was the last time you saw an entire audience leaving a theater after a fantasy movie rubbing their eyes?
I got the feeling that the film really let rip - it knew this was the ending and it did feel that everything came together in a collection of noise and energy which really made it feel like the final part of a trilogy rather than just a stand alone film.The one area where the film really stutters (and actually caused people to leave the cinema in annoying numbers) is ironically the place where Jackson is true to the book, and that's the final 20 minutes.
It is the strongest of the trilogy and brings it all together really well, it is an emotional event more than a film and, if Jackson needs 20 minutes of slow closure to finish it to his satisfaction then I can give him that in return for all the hours of wonderful cinema that he has given me..
I personally think Two Towers is the best for its scope and better exploration of some of the characters, but while it is still great Return of the King is better than Fellowship of the Ring.My only slight disappointment is the ending, it does feel overlong and bloated for me, almost as if there was more than one ending filmed.
That said, what does make the ending at least watchable for me is the way it is shot, the marvellous score and the performance of Gollum.Despite this minor discrepancy, Return of the King is extremely good and in my view one of the better Best Picture winners last decade.
Jackson's movies took the sheen and inherent value of Tolkien's stories and placed it in a visual medium, a place where fans of LOTR could witness and love the events and people they held so dear.
But Tolkien, despite his perfectionist griping and loathing for any film version of his book, would respect Jackson for continuing the act of creation, for taking his modern-day mythology and spreading it to as many people as possible.
From the loyalty of Sam and the weight of epic history to the sacrifice of Arwen and the never-completely-won nature of war, Jackson's movies capture the essence and heart of Tolkien's tale, with the benefit of the director's own imaginative fruit as well.
"The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King" is the third and final installment of Peter Jackson's adaptations of Tolkien's famous fantasy novels.
The culmination of 10 years' work and the final chapter of Peter Jackson fantasy adventure film series, The Return of The King fires on all cylinders, as we follow our favorite middle earth characters in a larger- than-life journey that will lead to the final confrontation between the forces of good and evil.
Whereas in FOTR and The Two Towers when we were still learning about our characters and their surroundings, everything about the ring's importance and power is unleashed in this third installment and to great effect.With the exception of maybe only The Godfather Trilogy, the LOTR film series is indisputably the greatest in film history (it was only the second sequel to nab a Best Picture Oscar, the only other being -you guessed it- The Godfather Part II).
They have raised the bar for all filmmakers to follow, and reminded millions of jaded moviegoers of one simple truth: Love, attention, and genuine dedication to (and appreciation of) one's material can overcome inconceivable obstacles, and always...always shows on-screen.And now it's over.With the longest running time of any film in the cycle (early indications suggest next year's extended DVD cut will clock in at over 4 hours long), RotK is an all-out assault on the senses.
This film is off the hook, gloriously so.In tone and "feel", RotK rests comfortably between Fellowship of the Ring's penchant for character-centric drama, and The Two Towers' colder, more mechanical "war movie" approach.
There's something strangely knowing in his final scene.One of the unfortunate things about The Return of the King is that it suffers worse than the first two movies from a lack of dignity at certain times.
The fate of king Debethor reminds us of Greek tragedies and the film contains great moral learnings,most in the words of the wizard Gandalf.The fantasy and the charming, sublime atmosphere make me consider this movie the greatest work or art ever created by mankind..
Peter Jackson, I feel simply could not have done a better job in using the beautiful new zealand landscape to portray Tolkien's vision.Without a doubt the speech, roars and sheer numbers of the rohirrim at the pellennor charge in the sunset is truly the greatest sequence of film i have ever seen.
In Return of the King - which follows the book (that I have not read, though heard what is in it that is not in the film) as close if not closer than the past two - co-writer/co-producer/director Peter Jackson brings Tolkien's grand tale of the quest to destroy the ring to an end.
Though the film does carry quite a load to it (at three hours and twenty-one minutes it's the longest of the three in theatrical form, and it definitely does go on at least ten to fifteen minutes longer than it should), and expands and deflates on the details of some characters (i.e. Saruman is nowhere in sight in this version, while Arwen gets more than what is from the original work), there are plenty of rousing scenes and sequences, terrific battles, and a grasp on the visual effects as a whole that don't let up.
A film ahead of its time, Lord of The Rings The Return Of the King is the best thing I have ever seen....
It's just hard not to feel disappointed, given the huge promise of the first movie, to find that the trilogy as a whole is quite good but nowhere near great.Certainly Jackson achieved a very impressive feat in constructing battle scenes that are even more exciting and terrifying than the excellent ones in the previous two movies.
In front of an amazingly beautiful scenery, Peter Jackson was able to create a fantasy-movie, which unlike so many others before did not deal with old clichés and thus is far away from any trash-movie a lot of people had expected it to be beforehand.Although I am sure that the cast of this film will soon be forgotten, The "The Lord of the Rings"-trilogy will stand the times and be one of the most renowned pictures of the las decade..
This movie, the conclusion of Peter Jackson's epic film series based on the Tolkien novels of the same name, was fairly good on the whole.
The love story is gone, and Eowyn is not as disguised as she should be (in the Battle.) Obviously it was filmed but cut, since the two look at each other at Aragorn's coronation.So, it was a good movie with a few flaws..
STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All CostsIn the concluding adaptation of Tolkien's trilogy,Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) head with Gollum to Mount Doom to dispose of the troublesome ring,whilst the rest of the gang brace themselves for the final battle for Middle Earth.Having put my achy,fidgety,restless bum through the ordeal of the first two movies,I found it only fitting to watch the concluding part (which would be the longest part at a whopping 201 minutes!!!)Luckily,I happened to be watching this one on DVD as opposed to at the cinema and was therefore free to press the pause button at any moment I deemed appropriate in order to take a break and watch it entirely at my own pace.I would certainly only deem it advisable to watch this at a cinema that has a break for refreshments halfway through.I think my school of thought all along really has been that of a fair few others.If you were a fan of the books,then these movies will probably be the equivalent of a wet dream come to life.If you have never read any of the books,however,it's all likely to emerge as a big overblown,self indulgent affair,as I think sadly has been the case with me.The ending especially here is a real nerve grater,as it appears to come again and again after over three hours of patient sitting and observing,only to keep droning on that bit longer.Given the heavy handedness of it all anyway,it just makes for even more of a labourious experience.In the movie's favour,it is a bit more emotionally involving than the last two and manages to draw you in to the plot a bit more,although that may just be because you know a bit more what to expect and so you've resigned yourself to it that bit more.The battle scenes and cinematography in general are certainly nothing to sniff at either.This is,giving away from some laughable and not entirely convincing acting indeed.But,given how little the story had already engrossed me to this point,it's all a bit too little too late.It may have reached #4 on the IMDB top 100,but given I don't know a 'hobbit from a racehorse',it's best use in my favour would seem to be as the ultimate late-night cure for insomnia.**.
It has cemented itself as one of my all-time favorites (was my number-one favorite for quite a few years), and the Lord of the Rings saga overall remains one of the most sublime marriages between spectacle, storytelling, and style.If you watch the Extended Edition of this film, you will be treated to about an hour of bonus scenes, which offers a lot of excellent substance.
I decided first off that no matter how much the film makers changed the story, as long as the general plot line and points that Tokien was trying to make were made in a fashion that Tolkien would have liked, I would accept these movies.
The main part of this movie that I loved is the simple fact that no character is shortchanged; the main characters have their own moments of screen time and good dialogue, from Gandalf telling Pippin what beautiful peace awaits him if he should die in battle, to Sam heroically carrying an exhausted Frodo on his own shoulders through sheer determination.
First, let me say that I did like "Return of the King." It's a special effects masterpiece that is destined to become a classic, along with the first two installments in the "Lord of the Rings" saga.But, to me, it was far less enjoyable than the first two films, the second of which was the best of the three.
RELEASED 2003 and directed by Peter Jackson, "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" adapts the third part of JRR Tolkien's popular fantasy trilogy about adventures on Middle-Earth: Frodo (Elijah Wood), Sam (Sean Astin) and Gollum (Andy Serkis) continue to try to make their way to Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring.
And that gives me a good position to rate this as a film and not a screen adaptation.Every single time Elijah Wood laughs in this movie (in the entire trilogy actually), I almost throw up.
Not that Peter Jackson didn't make a great movie that will go over in history as one of the best, I just think he leaf out a very important part of the story.
Before I review this good movie, I have to get something that's been bothering me off my chest.I went with eight people to see "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King." All eight of them found it "good" at best.
(We get to see Gollum's background in the film, too, which is something that will satisfy Tolkien's fans that have read the stories.)Meanwhile, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) returns to the throne of a kingdom (hence the title of the film) to claim his position as heir of Isildur, but first gathers together Legolas and Gimli (Orlando Bloom and John Rhys-Davies) to help battle the Orcs venturing closer to their castle, along with Gandalf the White (Ian McKellen), who opens a can of whoop [butt] in this movie.This is the darkest film of the trilogy.
Return of the King - Special Extended Edition.While normally a person to find enjoyment in both fantasy and science-fiction, I am one of the few who haven't really enjoyed Jackson's earlier takes on the Tolkien masterpiece I had less than stellar expectations.The film however did kick off on a promising note and for the first hour or so I was having a pretty decent time.
The Return of the King is the spectacular finale to the already fantastic first two movies in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
"The Return of the King" has some nice battle scenes, but it's just another action movie with mostly good special effects.
This movie is without a doubt one of the if not the greatest achievement in the history of filmmaking .It is not just the best movie I have seen in my entire life but my best cinematic experience.Peter Jackson has changed the history of cinema with the amazing magnificent epic saga "Lord of the rings"."The Return of the king" is a great conclusion to this breathtaking saga and is far way better then the first two episodes.Guys I do not recommend you to see this series ,you Must see it.