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Quote of the Moment
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"No matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, it's the ones I love who will always be the ones who pay. I want a life of my own...I'm Spider-Man no more!"
- Peter Parker, Spider-Man 2
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Rating:   out of five
Written By: Kelvin Hui
Oh Lord! Get ready for the Power of the Towers! It's the sequel to one of the best movies that I have ever watched before. The Fellowship of the Ring was also the best experience that I have ever had in a theatre. Wow, as you can see the film is not only highly anticipated for me but also for everyone else. Now, while The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is good, and that's really good, it is not better than the original. It does not tower over the fellowship, at least not entirely. It has some aspects that are better than the first one like its funnier but then again it's missing other things that made the first one so good in the first place like the surprise. It is very hard to decide whether or not this part is better than the first, so I must say that both are equal since they both were amazing. Oh have no fear or doubt about this sequel just because I don't think it was better than the first one (I've heard people say that it is better), I still loved it to death. This winter, make sure that you continue the journey. It’s the shire thing and you don’t want to miss out on this cinematic experience. There are many things in The Two Towers to talk about, and this review is very long just like the films so let us begin!
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is the second film in Peter Jackson's epic adaptation of the J.R.R. Tolkien fantasy trilogy of books. Unlike the relationship between the Harry Potter novels and films, in The Lord of the Rings the books are not better than the movie. But the novels are very creative and detailed; Tolkien was a great writer when it comes to imagination and writing down his ideas onto paper. So if you have ever read the books you may notice that this movie does deviate quite a bit form the source material. The movie begins right where The Fellowship of the Ring ends, with a neat opening sequence explaining Gandalf’s return. The fellowship has divided, with hobbits Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) continuing their heroic quest toward Mount Doom to destroy the one ring of power and the trio of man Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), dwarf Gimli (John Rhys-Davies), and elf Legolas (Orlando Bloom) pursuing a group of Uruk-hai who have captured the fellowship's two other hobbits, Merry (Dominic Monaghan) and Pippin (Billy Boyd). There is a union now between the two towers, Barad-dûr, fortress of the dark lord Sauron and Orthanc, stronghold of the wizard Saruman (Christopher Lee). They are creating an army bred for a single purpose, to destroy the world of men?
Gandalf is indeed back for this chapter of the story with most of the cast returning as well which is good news although there are a couple of characters that do not show up again including Frodo's uncle Bilbo. There are also quite a few new characters to add even more to the already great actors and actresses that this movie has. Eowyn (Miranda Otto) who adds spice and something nice to the cast is a new addition. The fair blonde is the woman who falls in love with Aragorn, starting a love triangle. But don't worry, she's no match for Arwen (Liv Tyler) who is also back in this sequel. Her daddy Elrond (Hugo "Agent Smith" Weaving) returns as well. Especially with no makeup, Eowyn seems to look worse and worse as the movie progresses, a little bit of a letdown for me. Then there is her brother Eomer (Karl Urban), their uncle King Theoden (Bernard Hill), and his advisor Grima Wormtongue (Brad Dourif), the creature Gollum (Andy Serkis), among others. If that isn't enough characters for you to follow, I don't know how many is!
So what's all of this buzz you've heard of Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers? Let me tell you! First of all, the graphics are absolutely amazing, the scenery is oh so beautiful, the action sequences are intense, the acting is superb, the directing is fantastic, basically everything in the film is good! When speaking of graphics I have to mention the CGI character Gollum who by far must be the best one that has ever been created for a film. He's better than Dobby from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and he’s much better than Jar-Jar Binks from Star Wars. Gollum is funny, cute, and likeable, why if he were not so ugly then he would be even more likeable. And when I say funny, I mean I was laughing out loud because Gollum was hilarious. Although I was laughing the most out of the whole theatre for the entire film…Gollum helps Frodo and Sam find the way to Mount Doom while keeping an eye on his "precious." But he’s not the only CGI character in this film, there's also Treebeard which is a tree...with a beard...Actually, he's an Ent, the most ancient species living in Middle-Earth. He plays an important role as well, saving Merry and Pippin’s lives; he carries them on his branches for most of the movie. The graphics are a big part of these movies and with more than 600FX shots, this film has even more than the first one. There are Wargs, Oliphaunts (creative no?), and other creatures that the effects make up.
The scenery in the film is also incredible, breathtaking to be exact; I would give anything to visit such vast and gorgeous landscapes. New Zealand really is beautiful and someday I hope to visit that heavenly place, it was just the perfect choice for where this movie was to be shot. The action sequences are huge, absolutely huge especially the last climatic battle at Helm's Deep at the end of the movie. It is an epic encounter between the Uruk-Hai, orcs, and other creatures against the much outnumbered men and elves. There seems to be no hope for them but reinforcements come and so does hope. The battle is cool especially when our three heroes Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli are fighting the army of more than ten-thousand. My favourite scene is when Legolas jumps onto a shield and slides down a staircase while shooting arrows at his enemies. That must be the coolest part in the whole battle although there are quite a few other neat things that the characters do including a scene where Aragorn throws Gimli safely across a gap between two bridges. I thought that a dwarf does not need to be thrown?
The acting is very good, Frodo begins his descent into the dark side becoming more and more possessed by the One Ring. Elijah portrays this perfectly with anger and obsession, he strokes the ring as Bilbo and Gollum once did before him. The rest of the cast is also impressive especially Viggo Mortensen since he is now becoming the main character in this movie. He has to carry a lot of the film because the movie focuses on him a lot more than it did in the first one, but don't worry he pulls it off nicely with his acting and physical presence. Of course, when the characters cried, I almost cried as well. It’s a hard hobbit to break, I always cry in these movies! There is so much emotion in these films that you can't help but live inside of it and really feel for the characters. Sean Astin gives one of the most memorable speeches at the end of the film with a great performance when he is trying to talk to Frodo. There is only one word to describe Peter Jackson: genius. The man is an absolute genius, his vision for this trilogy is amazing I would have never imagined some of the things that have been created and done for this movie. The director really surprises me with all of the great things that he comes up with for these films.
Now are there any bad things? Well since the story is now following three different storylines, it doesn't seem like some characters were there as much as others were. There's Frodo and Sam, then Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli, and finally Merry and Pippin. It seems to me like Frodo and Sam and Merry and Pippin weren't there in the movie for quite a bit of it. Also Gandalf wasn't there for a lot of the film too. I know they were in it of course but the film really focused a lot on Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli, which is fine I suppose. It is something different from the first movie so it actually may be positive in a way although I did not love the idea. Another thing that may be bad or not is that this is the middle chapter and there really is no beginning or end but this really isn’t much of a setback. Oh by the way Peter Jackson does not give any background story at all so that may be a negative for a few people although it really isn’t much of a problem either. Other than that there's of course also the issue of time because this one is even longer than the original and that may be a drawback for some people. For me, it really isn’t that much of a problem since I like long films; you know that you’re getting your money’s worth especially with this movie. There are also a couple of scenes that didn't make any sense to me and I have a couple of questions. But these tiny details pale in comparison with all of the positive things that this movie has.
To conclude, after watching The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, I must say that it is one of the best movies that I have ever watched in my entire life. With its computer graphics and special effects, scenery, action sequences, acting, directing, and everything else that I may have forgotten to mention, it is a movie that will not disappoint the audiences. This one was just as good as the last, maybe it is better maybe not I still don't know how I feel about the topic. I'm happy that this part of the trilogy will only enhance this franchise's popularity and status because it certainly is worthy of any award and honour it may receive. The movie is already nominated for Best Motion Picture - Drama and Best Director - Motion Picture for the Golden Globes, I hope that it will go on to be nominated for Academy Awards and win for the categories mentioned above as it so rightfully deserves to. Hopefully Peter Jackson is saving the best for last; The Return of the King will be opening next year at Christmastime and I’m looking forward to the experience!
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