Well, everyone, today, we are going to be doing movie reviewing in a way that I don’t normally do, but thought I’d try it this time around, and probably should have tried with the Hobbit trilogy. Oh well! Anyway, let’s now discuss the Lord Of The Rings trilogy that consists of The Fellowship Of The Ring (2001), The Two Towers (2002), and The Return Of The King (2003)!
Plot for Fellowship Of The Ring: In the mythical land of Middle-Earth, in the land of Mordor, the dark lord, Sauron forges a ring in the fires of Mount Doom, and attempts to use it to dominate over other magical rings of that world, and over all Middle-Earth overall. However, an alliance of men, and elves that resist the rings power, and march upon Mordor to fight Sauron, and his army. Though Sauron is vanquished, Isildur, the son of the king of Gondor, takes the ring for himself, instead of casting it in the fires of Mt. Doom, and destroying evil. For the next 2500/3000 years, the ring ends up in the hands of creatures like Gollum (Andy Serkis), and then in the hands of a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins (Ian Holm). Sometime after this, Bilbo, his nephew, Frodo (Elijah Wood), and a company of others are summoned to the elf kingdom of Rivendell). King Elrond (Hugo Weaving) then summons them, and tells them that the ring must be taken to Mordor once, and for all. Frodo then agrees to the difficult task, and is accompanied by Gandalf the wizard (Ian McKellen), Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Boromir (Sean Bean), Gimli the dwarf (John Rhys-Davies), and hobbits Sam, Pippin, and Merry (Sean Astin, Billy Boyd, and Dominic Monaghan respectively). Now, they must make the hard journey from Rivendell to Mordor.
So, unlike The Hobbit, I never got the chance to read any of the Lord Of The Rings books. So, in the reviews of these films, I will not be making any comparisons to the books. Also, my reviews of these films will probable shorter ones this time around. That all being said, what are the pros, or cons of The Fellowship Of The Ring?
Well, for the pros, the film, first of all, has an excellent score by Howard Shore. Throughout the course of this movie, his score has a way of making get more emotional, feel more excitement, feel suspense even more, and things like that. I’m actually thrilled to hear that Fellowship Of The Ring won an Oscar for Best Original Score, along with likely other Oscar awards as well. Then, there’s the characters. Frodo, Gandalf, Samwise Gamge, Aragorn, they are all really well developed within around three hours. Oh, and there’s also Gimli the dwarf, who helps provide comic relief for this film. Definite thanks to the filmmakers for the comic relief element mostly with Gimli. Additionally, the script was also well-written, well-paced, and also had some really funny lines from some additional characters as well. But overall, what makes Lord Of The Rings really well done is the pacing of the story. Yes, I’m sure there were much more incredible amounts of details in the books. However, what really makes this film, and even the other two films shine is the incredible amount of symbolism in this Lord Of The Rings series. I’m sure you can tell that Peter Jackson wanted to respect J.R.R. Tolkien’s work as much as possible. Why? Because a great amount of symbolism, particularly with the whole nature of good versus evil, is just incredibly well done here. Again, probably done better in the books. Even so, for what we got here, and for how much may have likely been condensed, it was definitely well done. What’s more is that the relationships are even well handled. Even when there is a point when a character gets sucked into evil, and temporarily betrays another one, it’s just great how this film even shows that if we allow it, we can get sucked into evil, making bad choices, of course feel guilty from time to time, and more.
Honestly, if there was one thing that maybe could have been included in this film is the whole deal with the Orcs. I know that a character in this movie briefly mentioned that Orcs were once Elves. So, if that was the case, and/or even if the book elaborated on that more, this film probably could have kept, and incorporated that element into this first film. Yeah, maybe that would have added an extra 15-20 minutes. But you know what, films like Titanic were a little over three hours. So, why not make this film, and maybe even the other two films do so as well, even before we had the extended editions of the Lord Of The Rings films, you know?
And that’s at least my review for The Fellowship Of The Ring. The film is full of suspense, comedy, great fantasy, excellent world building of Middle-Earth. Though maybe some things could have likely been elaborated on a little more, for what we got, Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring is an excellent film overall. If you haven’t seen this movie, then all the more reason to see it, and see what you think!
Final Rating 9/10 ⭐️
And now for my review of Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers!
Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers Plot: In this second installment, Frodo (Elijah Wood), and Samwise Gamge (Sean Astin) continue their journey to Mordor after getting separated from the rest of their company, and now being accompanied by Gollum. Meanwhile, Pippin (Billy Boyd), and Merry (Dominic Monaghan) escape from the orcs that captured them, then run into a company of talking trees, along with Gandalf (Ian McKellen) reuniting with Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas (Viggo Mortensen, John Rhys-Davies, and Orlando Bloom), to help King Theoden of Rohan (Bernard Hill) reclaim a kingdom by the name of Helm’s Deep).
Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers is definitely a good film. What’s even more is that this second installment is more action-packed this time around. At the same time, we see great development with not only the old characters, but also the newer ones as well. Theoden was a great leader, along with his daughter, Eowyn, who cares about her father, and ends up having a liking for Aragorn. Even villains like Grima were crafty as well. What makes the characters stand out even more is there being symbolic moments with some of them, whether it’s certain moments with Gandalf, Gollum dealing with inner conflict with himself, and more. Also, this is the second of three films, there could be times when this Lord Of The Rings like a bit of a drag. However, the action scenes, and any scenes that help develop the story, characters, and more help make up for that. And then, of course, there’s Howard Shore’s score. Why he didn’t even get a nomination for his score, or even win an Oscar for that year, I’m not sure. Still, that should have been the case, especially with how his score is composed near the end. Speaking of the beginning, and endings, I will say that you may yet find yourself surprised by how the very beginning of this film is set up as well. However, it is also a great setup for certain events that occur throughout the rest of this second film. I also heard that some things that weren’t in the book were added to this film. Of those things that I heard about, I will say those were rather interesting to hear about, especially a subplot that was included during the climax of this film. The conflicts that occur near the end, like the one at Isengard, and the awesome battle for Helm’s Deep, those were all really well done as well. Still, I will say that what also makes this really great is the script. This is especially the case with some of speeches that some of the characters make near the end, most notably a speech that Sam makes to Frodo that let’s just say could be one of the most powerful speeches spoken, and that would ring true even today. Finally, messages that include not giving up hope, even when it may seem easy to do so were really great as well.
And that’s my review for Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers. For a film that may feel a little more action-packed, it is done really well. The characters are still well developed, the story does well with moving along for the most part, and there are some really great lines as well. If you liked The Fellowship Of The Ring, then hopefully you will like The Two Towers just as much, if not more so. So again, see it, and see what you think!
Final Rating: 9.5/10 ⭐️
Plot of The Return Of The King: As Frodo, Sam, and Gollum get every step closer to Mordor to destroy the Ring, Sauron vamps things up by sending an army of Orcs, and other evil creatures to places like Minas Tirith, and other areas to destroy all that is good in Middle Earth. But can Gandalf, Aragorn, and the gang stop them? And will Frodo, Sam, and Gollum finally destroy the One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom in Mordor once, and for all?
Well, for the final installment, Peter Jackson went hard, and all in with this one. And boy, does it show! Not only did Jackson do well with the story, but also Howard Shore with the score, the people that made the visuals, and so much more. The CGI even on the monsters, and Orcs are really good even by today’s standards. Yes, this film may have been a little more violent this time around. Still, that’s expected, especially considering how much things vamp up this final time around. But what’s even more interesting is how symbolic this film was, maybe even more so than in say the first two installments. I mean with this film showing how people can be easily brainwashed into betraying others, how not everyone can be trusted, the fact that anyone can get enticed into so easily, learning to let go when necessary, and so much more. Oh, and another thing! I did think it was interesting that unlike the first two films, not only was there a song playing during the end credits, but you also had some of the characters singing on different occasions over the course of this film as well. And what’s even more is that you get a sense of different emotions as well. I mean you feel truly sad at points, happy at others, and more. Finally, as for the ending, I won’t say what happens, but let’s just say that it’s bittersweet, and a real tear-jerker
And that’s my review for Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King. Though it might have taken some liberties from the book, it does well with remaining faithful to its source material, and keeping a lot of symbolisms that were put in the book in the first place. And what’s more is that you may find yourself getting a little more enjoyment from this one than the previous two films. If you haven’t seen Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King, or the previous two films, do so ASAP, especially if you’re a fantasy buff, or want a story that’s truly exciting, has richness in it, and more. So yeah, see it, and see what you think!
Final Rating 10/10 ⭐️
Well, everyone, I hope you all enjoyed me reviewing this film, along with the other two films, and the Hobbit trilogy. Now, will Lord Of The Rings: The War Of The Rohirrim be almost, if not quite as good as this trilogy? We shall see!
Matthew’s Animated & Live-Action Movie Reviews 