The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Review

by Bob Bloom (bobbloom AT iquest DOT net)
December 19th, 2003

THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING: 4 stars out of 4. Starring Elijah Wood, Ian McKellan, Viggo Mortensen, Liv Tyler, Sean Astin, Orlando, Bloom, John Rhys-Davies, Miranda Otto, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Bernard Hill, David Wenham, Andy Serkis, Karl Urban, John Noble, Ian Holm and Sean Bean. Director of photogrpahy Andrew Lesnie. Music by Howard Shore. Based on the book by J.R.R. Tolkien. Screenplay by Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens. Directed by Peter Jackson. Rated PG-13. Running time: Approx. 202 mins.

Wow! What a magnificent achievement.

With Return of the King, director Peter Jackson and his filmmaking crew have outdone themselves, completing the Lord of the Rings trilogy with a sweeping epic filled with wondrous effects, blood-curdling battles and, most of all, heart.

Despite all the spectacle, the real drama of Return of the King lies in the much smaller conflict between three individuals: Frodo, the reluctant ring-bearer; his faithful companion, Sam; and their treacherous guide, Gollum.

The closer they get to Mount Doom, the heavier the burden of the ring becomes for Frodo. The stalwart Sam tries to ease his load, while Gollum uses guile to create a rift between the two.

Those purists who treat J.R.R. Tolkien's masterpiece as gospel may be upset with some of Jackson’s and co-writers Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens' alterations and omissions. Though Jackson may not have kept to the letter of the saga, he definitely maintained the spirit and grandeur of Tolkien.

Return of the King is high adventure on a grand scale with larger-than-life heroes of every size.

Jackson's staging of the battle on Pelennor Fields makes the Helm's Deep encounter in The Two Towers look like a skirmish. What with charging four-tusked elephants, giant catapults, thousands of men on horseback, tens of thousands of Orcs and deadly, flying Nazguls, it is an awe-inspiring sight of overwhelming magnitude.

Return of the King's strength rests on the foundation that Tolkien built and to which Jackson adhered. The Lord of the Rings does more than chronicle a titanic struggle of good against evil. It's a tale about people, their sacrifices and their abilities to find within themselves the necessary strength to accomplish their tasks, whether it be to don the mantle of kingship and assume the responsibility of leadership or to triumph over overwhelming odds to complete a quest most would deem impossible.

And, as each film in the trilogy has improved upon the other, so have the performances.

Elijah Wood conveys the fear and determination of Frodo, as he trudges through Mordor toward his final destination, constantly struggling within himself to keep from faltering in his task.

Viggo Mortensen's Aragorn has grown in stature from a solitary Ranger and rogue warrior to a battle-hardened, but wise and just king. Mortensen displays the posture and royal demeanor of a man not only accepting, but embracing, his destiny.

Sean Astin rises to the challenge in King. In the first two films, he was a combination of comic relief and the voice of conscience for Frodo. In this final outing, his Samwise Gangee displays the fiery grit and fortitude to rescue Frodo and nudge him forward, as well as the heartbreak and compassion to feel his friend's enormous pain.

Billy Boyd's Pippin and Dominic Monaghan's Merry also get a chance to display their true mettle.

And, of course, Andy Serkis' Gollum remains an amazing creation. Serkis himself makes an appearance at the beginning of the film, which flashbacks back to the day Smeagol first possessed "his precious."
Once again the WETA special effects crew's outstanding talent makes you forget that Gollum is merely a CGI creation.

Jackson creates some wonderful moments of horror in the sequences featuring the giant spider Shelob. They are technologically superb as well as bone-chillingly frightening.

I do have one nitpick: The absence of Christopher Lee's Saruman and the resolution of his fate have been left on the cutting room floor.
From a cinematic standpoint, I can appreciate and understand Jackson's decision. However, I do feel a bit cheated as Saruman, next to Sauron, is the piece’s major villain. My only comfort is that Jackson has given assurances that Lee's scenes will appear in the film’s extended DVD version.

The movie’s finale has truncated Tolkien's final pages, but Jackson wisely has retained the novel's moving finale. It is an appropriate conclusion, one that will bring tears to the eyes of even the most hardened filmgoer.

With the Lord of the Rings trilogy finally completed, you can look back in appreciation at Jackson's single-minded perseverance. Never faltering, he remained true to his vision as well as Tolkien's. He brought Middle Earth to life, a feat as daring and amazing as Frodo's torturous journey to Mount Doom.

Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette, IN. He can be reached by e-mail at [email protected] or at [email protected]. Other reviews by Bloom can be found at www.jconline.com by clicking on movies.
Bloom's reviews also appear on the Web at the Rottentomatoes Web site, www.rottentomatoes.com and at the Internet Movie Database:
http://www.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Bob+Bloom

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