Just when I was starting to warm up to THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy, I feel like I have to be one of the detractors for the sake of sanity (Jeffrey Wells of Hollywood Elsewhere has been making a valiant effort). I'm not saying that THE RETURN OF THE KING is a horrible movie, it's just not the greatest achievement in cinematic history. Please, let's get some perspective, shall we?

First, Peter Jackson is obviously a talented director with great vision, but I think we can all admit that subtlety isn't his strong suit. He often allows his actors to over-emote as if they were on the stage in a Broadway show, so much to the point that there are moments where he might as well have plastered a title on the screen saying, "Really dramatic moment here, so don't miss it!" Of course, this really isn't a big deal in an epic fantasy film, as opposed to a small drama where emotions and acting are the main focus.


One thing I will say about Peter Jackson, the guy sure can orchestrate one hell of a battle. I mean, wow. Having seen films that feature massive battles like BRAVEHEART, GLADIATOR, THE PATRIOT and countless others in recent years, I've become a bit numb to them and sometimes I'll begin to tune out. Not to say these other movies have done a poor job depicting gigantic clashes, but Jackson puts the audience right smack in the middle and does so without excessively jump cutting to the point that we can't tell what's going on. When a wave of Orcs comes marching across the battlefield riding enormous elephants with huge tusks and sweeping trunks, I could feel their weight. Normally I dislike this kind of stuff, but the detail and care that went into its construction shines through, making the fight one of the most engaging I can remember. In fact, this battle to end all battles is so well done that I was almost able to forgive the film's horrendous ending.

Almost. What's sad about the final thirty-five minutes of THE RETURN OF THE KING, which is so pandering and sentimental I have trouble believing anyone could think it works, is it essentially spoils a pretty darn good movie up to that point. I understand THE RINGS trilogy is epic and contains a lot of different characters and subplots, but do we really need to see every single loose-end tied up in a nice little bow? A shorter ending that allows us to resolve the troubles of Middle Earth in our own minds would have been far more satisfying than having to sit there and watch every moment play out. The first 2 hours and 45 minutes went by at a surprisingly quick pace, but the last half hour felt like it went on for an eternity. Score: 3 out of 4

Posted December 22, 2003 | link