The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

From the beginning to the very end, the Lord of the Rings trilogy is interesting and enjoyable. The books and the movies alike grasp one's attention as if they were real. You, the reader or viewer, can sense the pain of the characters, their emotions. The trilogy is truly powerful on screen. The second movie, however, I believe has something the first and third are missing; it feels like a bridge connecting two great islands. There is something unique about it that cannot easily be described. Metaphorically, the first movie is, say, a soldier. The third movie is the path home from war. And the second movie is the act of coming home because it contains the obstacles that must be passed through before achieving the goal. Although not 100% loyal to the written trilogy, the movies are done in such a way that the mainstream audience and LOTR fans from before the movies came out can say they were enjoyable and well made.

"The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" is another excellent installment in the thus far excellent trilogy. The film picks up immediately where "The Fellowship of the Ring" left off as Elijah Wood and Sean Astin continue their long and seemingly hopeless journey to destroy the One Ring in the fires of Mordor. They run into the creature Gollum (played amazingly by Andy Serkis in a revolutionary character-generation). Serkis' motives are unclear as the ring has literally run him insane and created a split personality that combats the character's natural good side. Meanwhile Billy Boyd and Dominic Monaghan have escaped the dark forces that captured them, but now are in another dilemma as they try to convince a forest of living, moving trees to support their cause for good and truth. Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom and John Rhys-Davies receive more help from the likes of Bernard Hill's army and his lovely niece (Mirando Otto). As all this occurs, Ian McKellen comes back and rehashes a role which seemed to have expired late in the first film. Hugo Weaving and daughter Liv Tyler know that victory is not certain and realize that they must leave their true homes forever to protect themselves and the lives of their people. Christopher Lee continues to create chaos with the help of the highly disturbed Brad Dourif (of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" fame). In the end not one, but two key battles will create the sure-to-be electrifying landscape which will be experienced by all in the franchise's final installment ("The Return of the King"). Many view "The Two Towers" as an achievement even more impressive than its predecessor. True the film does go beyond the technical faculties of "The Fellowship of the Ring", but it is hard for me to pick this installment over the first (which will likely always be my favorite). This film is more intense and you get the feeling of real danger and peril throughout, while the first was more of an emotional experience due to its nice elements of friendship, love and personal sacrifice. In short, "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" is an amazing sequel and it fits in well with the outstanding first film. 5 stars out of 5.

It seems ridiculous to want to add my own comments to a slew of others that are already in IMDB's records, but I feel like I cannot sleep nor cease the throbbing in my chest until I release some of what I have so recently seen.

Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings is one of the bravest projects ever attempted by a filmmaker. Mr Jackson deserves every ovation he will receive, every award, every bit of the praise and adoration that will be spoken and written.

This second installment of the story is a masterpiece in every sense, forget your prejudices about the books, they are another way of looking at this beautiful story (I know this is slightly against the rules, but a I cannot resist saying that a previous writers comment - a comment that compared the Lord of the Rings Films and Books to the difference between Romeo and Juliet in screenplay and ballet formats - was entirely accurate).

Gollum was an excellent amalgam, so easily could he have been an annoying Jar-Jar-Binks-Alike. Instead the way that Jackson and Serkis (and doubtless many many others) chose to portray the CGI incarnation of "Smeagol" was incredibly emotive and powerful. Gollum is profoundly disturbing, amusing, almost lovable... Not even John Ronald Reuel himself could induce that range of emotions for Smeagol in me...

A truly skin-crawling performance by a superb Brad Douris as the evil Grima Wormtongue was just beyond words. Douris _Became_ Wormtongue in a skillful fulfillment of what was already inspired casting.

Probably the most definitive casting of this film though was Manchester born Bernard Hill as Theoden, King of Rohan. The casting for "The Two Towers" makes one shake ones head and wonder, in retrospect, whether anyone else could have filled these roles. Mr Hill's performance was truly first rate, a performance which contributed greatly to "The Battle of Helms Deep", scenes which were a spinning tornado of emotions for the viewer.

Viggo Mortensen goes from strength to strength. His performance is visceral and yet sensitive. The overriding emotion that Tolkiens vision of Aragorn induced (at least for me) was awe at his heroics. Mortensen's portrayal in Jackson's frame brings new aspects to the Aragorn character. Mortensen's Aragorn is emotionally dextrous to go with his physical dexterity, he is sensitive, seemingly empathic, warmer and more fundamentally human, and yet super-human in presence and charisma. "Definitive" is not strong enough of a word.

If you still view Jackson's epic with scepticism I implore you to put down your preconceptions and your prejudices, but most of all put down the books... This is beautiful way to see middle earth, don't pass it up - The books are the ultimate fantasy epic - the pictures you draw in your head are better than anything you can imagine, but The Lord of the Rings "The Two Towers" is one wonderful interpretation of that epic story.

Go, Laugh, Cry, and Sit in Awe of this cinematic treat.

The opening scene of The Two Towers provides an outstanding, yet very brief, taste of action, cinematography, and special effects, only to be matched (and far surpassed) in the final hour of the film. The stunning events of the third hour of The Two Towers are undoubtedly the centerpiece of the film, and while the first two hours serve finely as story development, they primarily build anticipation for the final hour, which mostly depicts the battle of Helm's Deep. More than anything else, the first two hours merely tease and torment the patient audience. It's a shame that such a gap has to exist between the first minute and the final hour, but I take no reservations in saying that despite how you feel about the first two hours of the film, the final hour will make the wait entirely worth its while.

As stated, the road to the battle of Helm's Deep can be enormously long and painful for any viewer aware of what breathtaking scenes await towards the end of the film. Perhaps The Two Towers' biggest fault is in its own accomplishments; the first two thirds of the film are well shot, well paced, and they necessarily and adequately progress the storyline, but when compared to the spectacular final hour, the first two hours seem uneventful and insignificant. However, to be fair, I feel that it's simply impossible to create two hours of film that could appropriately lead into the battle of Helm's Deep. It's difficult to comprehend how such scenes came to exist in the rather short amount of time Peter Jackson has had to create six hours (so far) of finished film. The battle of Helm's Deep is simply unreal; it's unlike any event that has come to pass since fantasy films gained, and regained, popularity.

As assumed, The Two Towers begins where The Fellowship of the Ring ended. The majority of the film follows four separate groups and their story lines: Frodo and Sam; Aragorn and Legolas, Merry and Pippin, and Saruman and his army. The performances live well up to the standards of the first film, with a particularly notable performance from Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn, whose role is significantly larger in The Two Towers. Aragorn satisfies a thirst for someone to root for, a thirst that was left partly unquenched in Fellowship. It's much easier to root for Aragorn than it is for Frodo; Aragorn has many more qualities of a leading man, a soldier, and a hero. More than once did the audience, filled mostly with academy voters, applaud the heroics of Aragorn. Gollum also shines in a much-welcomed large role, due to extremely realistic computer animation, and a fine performance from Andy Serkis, upon which the animation was modeled. In Fellowship, it was appropriate to consider Gollum one of the many great 'features' of the film. However, here he is more of a leading character and a 'star,' and his convincing dual-personality, stabbing voice, and well-choreographed body movements make him consistently eye-grabbing and the center of focus of nearly every scene in which he appears.

As was The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers is a visual delight. Those who have seen Fellowship are no doubt familiar with the beauty of the landscapes of New Zealand. The cinematography is, again, one of the best aspects of the film. The swooshing camera movements that follow the armies and horsemen throughout the fields are extremely satisfying in this post-Matrix era. The shots of the ascending enemy-laden ladders in the battle of Helm's Deep are terrifying and chillingly gorgeous all at once. The visual effects take an appropriate leap forward from those of the first film. While the visual effects in Fellowship were outstanding, the battle of Helm's Deep provides for the best application of CGI since the rippling waves of The Matrix's 'Bullet Time.' The battle of Helm's Deep features absolutely awe-inspiring and seamless integration of acting, stunts, and computer animation. Each orc seems to have its own personality, demonstrated in its movements and visual features. The masses of armies fight with strategy and true character, which I imagine is much harder to accomplish than animating thousands of identical clone troopers. The only problem I have with the visual department is the look of Gimli, the Treebeard. Gimli's visual features seem a bit childish and uninspired, inconsistent with the standards set by the rest of the film. But again, there is simply nothing that compares to the battle of Helm's Deep. George Lucas and the Wachowski brothers certainly have not created anything that approaches the grandness and magnificence of The Two Towers' final hour, and I doubt they will do so anytime soon.

In The Fellowship of the Ring, I had a few minor problems with Howard Shore's score. While I thought it was gorgeous and it established several very memorable themes, I don't think it handled the sentimental scenes (opening in the Shire, Gandalf's passing) properly. I thought it caved in to the melodrama a bit too much, resembling the emotions from James Horner's Titanic. However, I believe that The Two Towers requires the type of score which Howard Shore accomplishes best: dark, continuous, and unrelenting, as demonstrated in Se7en and Silence of the Lambs. The theme used in many of the action scenes in Fellowship (low brass, six notes repeated with a rest in between) is much more present in The Two Towers, appropriately. A brand new theme is also unveiled, the theme for Rohan, a prominent kingdom in Middle Earth. Rohan's theme is played more often than any other melody in the film, underscoring most of the memorable and heroic scenes with great effect. Howard Shore undeniably exhibits his skills as an 'A-list' composer, and with a possible double Oscar nomination this year for The Two Towers and Gangs of New York, he could get propelled to the very top of the 'A-list,' right beside John Williams and Hans Zimmer in terms of demand.

If not the picture itself, there should be a way to recognize and award the battle of Helm's Deep. The battle sequence alone represents successful filmmaking in its highest form. The choreography of the battle, the visual effects, the pacing, acting, cinematography, and music, all work together in perfection to achieve grand filmmaking which is as entertaining and enjoyable as film can be. For this very reason, no one, whether a fan of Fellowship or not, should miss The Two Towers.

Peter Jackson truly outdid himself when creating the Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and he fails to disappoint us in the 2nd part of the Trilogy. The Two Towers shows us that he is not a one-hit wonder, like so many directors are. I actually think that The Two Towers reaches the same level as the Fellowship of the Ring, and sometimes even surpasses it.

This film is the biggest film in the trilogy. What do I mean by that? Well this film has so many things going like the amazing Battle of Helms Deep. Frodo and Sam journey to Mount Doom, to destroy the Ring. But the one who's leading them through the way is Gollum, he looks so creepy and realistic, that he doesn't feel disconnected from us. A powerful performance by Andy Serkis as Gollum, he should of been nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.

The Best part of the film, is quite easily and everyone knows it the ending. The ending of the battle of Helm's Deep is quite breathtaking, and as Gandalf the White comes in the distance with another army to defeat the Orcs. When Treebeard and his army of Entz tear down Isengard, the destruction and the battle is so immense in size, that you truly have to see to believe.

In size and scale, Peter Jackson has truly redefined the word "epic" and he also pays attention to the small things that truly elevate this movie from great to amazing. I definitely recommend this film to everyone, but you really should watch the first movie to truly understand what's going on.

10/10