The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Starring: Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Liv Tyler, Elijah Wood, and Hugo Weaving.
Directed by: Peter Jackson
Screenplay by: Frances Walsh, Philippa Boyens, and Peter Jackson
Release Date: In theatres now
New Line Cinemas
Pick any of these words: amazing, breathtaking, brilliant, fantastic, terrific, awesome, unforgettable, memorable, thrilling, dazzling. They can all be used to describe the third and final chapter of what is perhaps the best all-around movie trilogy of all time, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.
Does it really surprise any true moviegoer that director Peter Jackson has accomplished such a feat? With a cast boasting actors like Sir Ian McKellen, Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Liv Tyler, Cate Blanchett and Viggo Mortensen and special effects like nothing we've ever seen, this is no huge shocker.
For the uninitiated folks out there, here's the skinny: There's a Ring, forged in complete evil. Anyone who possesses it gets very greedy and goes insane. It's currently in the hands of Frodo Baggins, a Hobbit. Frodo is trying to get to Mount Doom, in Mordor, to throw the Ring into fire, thus destroying it. He's joined by his best friend, Sammwise Gamgee, and Gollum, a Hobbit who was turned into a slobbering lunatic by the Ring.
Meanwhile, also helping Frodo out in more violent ways are Aragorn, a Ranger who is also destined to be the next human King; Gimli, a ferocious dwarf with a deadly axe; Legolas, an elf skilled in archery; Gandalf the White, formerly Gandalf the Grey and a wizard with amazing power; and Merry & Pippin, two other Hobbits who are in the midst of a massive battle between good and evil.
Yes, everything comes to a head with Return of the King. Frodo, Sam and Gollum are still forging ahead to Mount Doom, but the greed-filled Gollum is actually leading the other two into the lair of the deadly spider Shelob. Aragorn is being thrust into the position of King while trying to give Frodo a chance to destroy the Ring. Gandalf and Pippin try to keep the city of Minas Tirith safe while the armies of the despicable villain Sauron (still just a fiery eye) move closer.
With a movie that lasts 201 minutes (but feels more like 100 minutes), it's hard to single out certain actors or certain people on the crew whose work stands out, but as always there are things you will remember walking out of this movie.
Again, the skill of the special effects work with Gollum is incredible. Andy Serkis gets only one moment here as an actual person, but other than that, he's hidden by computer-generated effects. Still, Serkis manages to make this role indelibly pathetic and frightening at the same time. His insanely driven loon is like a train wreck: You know you shouldn't watch, but you just can't help but stare at this pitiless thing. His performance veers from angry to simpering to threatening to simply annoying, and it's brilliant to watch.
The cinematography by Andrew Lesnie is sheer magic. For every majestic shot that we see, there's also a shaky, creepy little scene where the camera takes us in angles we've never seen and never thought to imagine. The scenes with Frodo and Shelob, while being extremely unnerving (count me in as a spider-hater), are amazing to look at and very well-done.
Of the human actors, those not enhanced by special effects, the best is Sean Astin, as the extremely devoted best friend of Frodo. His character goes from being a mere sycophant to a true hero. I don't know if I really bought him as a best friend for most of the first two movies, but now it's undeniable: his acting is nothing short of great here.
Some (well, most) of the actors get little more than one or two lines. Orlando Bloom and John Rhys-Davies, as Legolas and Gimli, get the shaft as Aragorn's trusty sidekicks here and have only one bit of good comic relief, during the battle at Minas Tirith. Oh, and by the way, that battle does indeed make the battle of Helm's Deep look like child's play.
Among the memorable scenes and imagery is a sequence in which Faramir, the brother of Boromir (the human who died at the end of the first film) tries to impress his crazy father by sacrificing himself for the cause of saving men. Another is the sequence in which Eowyn, the young woman in love with Aragorn, and Merry take on a murderous elephant with multiple trunks (I'm unfamiliar with the exact terminology, so forgive me). The sequence with Shelob is also memorable, because Orlando Bloom is once again sharing the screen with dead people (I guess his work in Pirates of the Caribbean got him properly prepared). Finally, the scene in which Gandalf comforts Pippin about death is memorable, as Gandalf comforted Frodo about life in the first film.
What else is there to say about Return of the King? It's the best film of the year, hands down. There's nothing better at the multiplex, and there won't be anything like it for a long time to come.
Josh Spiegel is an entertainment reporter for the Web Devil. Reach him at joshua.spiegel@asu.edu.
