|
Quote of the Moment
|
|
"I believe there's a hero in all of us, gives us strength, makes us noble, even though sometimes we have to give up the thing we want the most."
- Aunt May, Spider-Man 2
|
|
|
|
|
Rating:   out of five
Written By: Kelvin Hui
One Ring to rule them all, One ring to find them,
One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them.
All hail to the King! The King has finally returned and let me just firstly say that it was absolutely worth the wait! We are watching cinematic history being made with The Lord of the Rings trilogy, arguably the best one ever created ranking amongst other such beloved series like Star Wars and Indiana Jones. These movies are currently being cherished by fans that dress up like the characters, watch all three in succession, or simply love them like me. In the years to come it will still be loved by these same individuals, when the pictures are re-released for its anniversary they are the ones who will go and watch them once again. The films have been said to be a phenomenon and I realize now that that’s exactly what it has become, it’s just an amazing experience to witness it happen and even be a (hobbit-sized) part of it. This is the first time that three films have been shot concurrently and released periodically year after year for three glorious Christmases; it is just an incredible feat by everyone involved with the project. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is the third and final chapter in the trilogy, one of the most highly anticipated movies of the year if not all time. Everything that has happened in the story, all of the pain and suffering that the characters have endured have led to this...
In this adaptation of the third volume of J.R.R. Tolkien's classic fantasy trilogy the film opens with a flashback sequence of a young hobbit by the name of Smeagol (Andy Serkis) and his cousin Deagol. They’re fishing when the latter gets pulled into the water and what should he find but the One Ring, which he quickly snatches from the Earth. Once Smeagol sees it he desires it and a fight breaks out between the two ending in tragedy. The audience is able to observe Smeagol’s hideous transformation into Gollum before the story continues where it left off in The Two Towers. Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) continue to be led by the dastardly creature into the very heart of Mount Doom; they soon enter Mordor and pass through Minas Morgul as they climb the staircase of Cirith Ungol. Meanwhile, the other members of the fellowship including Gandalf the White (Sir Ian McKellen), Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Legolas (Orlando Bloom), and Gimli (John Rhys-Davies) are accompanied by King Theoden of Rohan (Bernard Hill). They soon meet Treebeard (voiced by Rhys-Davies) and their friends Merry (Dominic Monaghan) and Pippin (Billy Boyd) in the ravished Isengard. Soon thereafter we meet Eomer (Karl Urban), Eowyn (Miranda Otto), Faramir (David Wenham), and the only new human character his father Denethor (John Noble), the Steward of Gondor (Whoo! I believe that’s the entire cast). Minas Tirith is the site of the next great battle between the mighty forces of the evil Sauron and free peoples. The dwarf, elf, and man must first pass through the Paths of the Dead to command the ghost army to aid them, as the battle for Middle-Earth is about to begin. Then they must travel to the ancient city and Aragorn must find the courage inside of himself to reclaim the throne of Gondor as King.
More than a year ago, I wrote in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers review that I was looking forward to the third and final film in this hugely popular and successful series. There have been news and articles about the finale throughout the year plus the fantastic trailer only fuelled my desire. Now that the Return of the King has been released and I have watched it, I must say that it was very well done indeed. It was such a good ending to the long and epic story, a grand and extravagant finish to the films. This movie has everything going for it: a fantastic cast, an ingenious director, truly epic action sequences, drama including intimate moments with and between the characters, a dash of romance and humour, and nearly 1500 incredible computer-generated shots - as many as the other two films combined.
The cast of The Return of the King is truly large and great varying from veteran actors such as the wonderful Ian McKellen and Bernard Hill to young future stars like Elijah Wood, Orlando Bloom, and even Viggo Mortensen. If it weren’t for these films, the world would never have been introduced to these many faces such as the unknown Bloom and relatively unfamiliar Mortensen who have catapulted into fame especially with the ladies and even the gentleman including me…oh wait I’m not supposed to say that…McKellen was once again simply great; he fits the role so well being the wizard that can be humourous, serious, and caring from one scene to the next. He’s in this film more than he was in The Two Towers and he makes us enjoy every second that he is onscreen. Sean Astin and Billy Boyd really come out of the shadows of being the sidekick and comic relief with larger roles especially for the latter, they show that they can act quite well. Wood was once again amazing; he portrays Frodo exactly as he should be, a hobbit that is exhausted, scathed, and consumed by the ring. With the help of betrayal and paranoia all attributed to Gollum and even Samwise’s own desire he becomes an empty shell of himself. Serkis gets a scene at the beginning of the film as the uncorrupted Smeagol and an amusing cameo at the end as a hobbit carrying a pumpkin into the bar where the hobbits are. But he shines once again as Gollum, being both treacherous and funny at the same time when he carries out his plan to take back his precious. In the second installment there was much more sympathy shown for the character but except for a few glimpses he turns into a full villain here. Bloom and Rhys-Davies provide much appreciated humour while Otto gives romance and crowd-pleasing moments such as when she defeats the Witch King with assistance from Meriadoc. Cate Blanchett, Liv Tyler, Hugo Weaving, and Ian Holm all make brief appearances in the movie, it’s nice to see some of the original cast/characters in this film again.
Peter Jackson, the New Zealand filmmaker who co-wrote, produced and directed the three films deserves all the credit in the world and apparently he’s receiving it from both the critics and fans that have seen the last chapter. People have been saying that it’s the best of the three and whether or not that’s true much of the credit must go to the man who truly made his mark with The Lord of the Rings. His vision of the movies has made them what they are today, with the help of countless individuals including writers, concept artists, executive producers, musicians, carpenters, craftspeople, the list goes on and on he has accomplished his mission and how!
One of the most hyped up things about The Return of the King must have been the action sequences such as The Battle of Pelennor Fields and the Siege of Minas Tirith. Good things come to those who wait which is what you have to do for some time before the War of the Ring truly begins dazzling you with its scope and grandness. The battle scenes are truly epic with hundreds of thousands of orcs, uruk-hai, trolls, massive elephantine mumakil with the haradrim who control them, easterlings, and the terrifying Nazgul with their equally frightening dragonlike creatures against an army that includes members of the fellowship, thousands of humans, elves, and eventually the very powerful ghosts. The action is spread out wisely by Jackson and company; it is like a real battle with plans and strategy. First battalions of orcs take Osgiliath in a gruesome fight where the enemy wins and then the Siege of the White City begins. Catapults are used to launch massive rocks against each other, then Sauron’s army continues its assault with the Nazgul who destroy men with the Fell Beasts. The siege continues turning into The Battle of Pelennor Fields, a truly epic encounter between good and evil, where thousands fight against each other. The action sequences are fantastic, for example there’s a crowd-pleasing scene given to Legolas all for himself where he takes down an oliphaunt and the men that are controlling it. Also, the entire sequence where Frodo meets Shelob, which was carried over from the second movie is both frightening and entertaining; it was very well done especially the gigantic spider, which is as realistic as possibly imaginable.
There were amazing battles but that does not mean that Jackson didn’t include the dramatic feelings and stories of the characters such as Frodo, Sam, and Gollum. In fact this installment is likely the most emotional of the three because their journey has become just so desperate, you can hear it in Sam’s voice and see it in Frodo’s eyes. The final chapter returns to their story and focuses on them once again much like in the first part The Fellowship of the Ring. There are intimate moments between the characters such as Merry and Pippin but especially Frodo and Sam, it is the emotional payoff that provides the heart of the film. The relationship between the two is one of true friendship, they care and love each other as brothers and it’s nice to see such a bond connecting two male characters because that is sadly rare in our modern society. The action leads to scenes with drama so its important to have a good balance, which this film does. There are only several scenes with romance in them such as Arwen refusing to leave Aragorn because she truly loves him and would regret it forever if she did. Then there’s the relationship between the aforementioned man and Eowyn, which provides some sweet dialogue although it ultimately ends in heartbreak for both of them. The end where he is crowned king and kisses his love is a very nice scene because they are finally able to be together.
The much-appreciated humour comes mostly from Gollum, Gandalf, and my favourite dwarf Gimli who is funny with his sarcastic remarks: "Certainty of death. Small chance of success. What are we waiting for?" Other characters also provide laughs such as Merry and Pippin of course in this dark and emotional film that is still very fun to watch and experience. I actually had no idea that this movie has so many special effects but it doesn’t surprise me what with all of the creatures including Gollum, Shelob, mumakil, the dragonlike creatures, trolls, thousands of horses, the creations of Minas Tirith, Mordor, and so forth. The Eye of Sauron interestingly becomes like a lighthouse which is a good symbol since it is constantly looking over everything in its lands searching for the One Ring much like a real one would be looking for ships. It is splendid to simply look at Minas Tirith, a beautiful establishment and Sauron’s armies are truly colossal.
The Return of the King is not without its faults because every movie has its own problems even if it is the best film you have ever seen or your favourite. Firstly everything truly happens in this installment, the battles are truly epic and the emotions are truly shown. Unfortunately the film is truly long as well, arguably too long for its own good (hmm...kind of like this review...) because in my mind it does take away from it. At an overwhelming 210 minutes or three and a half hours (32 minutes longer than Fellowship and a full 40 minutes longer than Towers) the movie does drag at certain parts especially the ending, which takes a lengthy time to actually occur. There are several false conclusions and admittedly the first couple would have been terrible but each one after would have been fine. It is not Jackson’s fault for the length; the fact is that there are just too many storylines, characters, and material to cover from the books. The director does a fair job pacing the movie, which arguably goes too fast during certain action sequences including Legolas' and Eowyn's crowd pleasing moments and lingers too long on the goodbyes of the hobbits. Another problem with the film is that certain actors don’t get enough screen time, this is The Return of the King not Pippin’s Adventure. There should be more scenes with Aragorn because he supposedly becomes the main character in the movie. Also Legolas and Gimli do not have much to do and although their dialogue is much appreciated the audience does not see them for long periods of time.
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King will undoubtedly go down in cinematic history as one of the most epic, groundbreaking, and most importantly best pictures ever created. My favourite scenes include when Aragorn is giving his memorable speech to the army, when Sauron says his name but he simply turns around and says "For Frodo." before running into battle, and finally when the hobbit fails in the moment of truth, those scenes were simply awesome! With the success of the film assured, Jackson had more freedom to do what he wanted, he could make the movie as long as he sees fit, have characters sing and rhyme. The ending is long but yet each scene is well done, the crowning of Aragorn where everyone bows to the hobbits was a nice touch and Frodo’s final farewell to his friends is beautiful. Also, I enjoyed Pippin and the King singing their sad songs, Gollum tauntingly rhyming to Frodo when he was in Shelob’s lair was entertaining as well. I loved that there were flashbacks to The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring such as Frodo being stabbed by the Witch King at Weathertop, Boromir being shot with arrows, and the butterfly appearing to Gandalf again to signify that the eagles were coming. It was brilliant to include those scenes because it adds to this movie and reminds the audience of how good the first film, which I adored, was. The Return of the King simply is a crowning achievement as a finale for the fantastic trilogy that has both been critically acclaimed and a box-office behemoth. The third film has already earned $223.7 million in 12 days and been nominated for four Golden Globes - Best Picture (Drama), Director, Original Score, and Original Song. It deserves to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards and ringleader Peter Jackson, who has devoted seven years to bringing the legend to life, should duly be awarded Best Director. With the release of The Return of the King, the trilogy has sadly come to an end and for the first time in three years there won't be a Lord of the Rings film to look forward to next Christmas and that is truly bittersweet.
|
|
| | |
