Reviews

I am glad they made this film and it is very entertaining overall. I love to escape the real world for a couple of hours and just drink in the atmosphere and experience adventures with characters that now feel like old friends. Also, the special effects are wonderful. Makes you feel like everything happening is so real. That is the best part.

I read the books and was looking forward to being blown away by the final installment because that's where all the buildup from the first two movies is supposed to finally tie up all the loose ends and finish in a blaze of glory. The movie does this....to a point.

Unfortunately, I feel that the greatest weakness is the lack of character development and a good flowing storyline. I think in the simplest terms there is just too much material and there was probably not enough time to edit it properly. I hope they take greater care in the extended DVD edition. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that the ROTK extended DVD turns out like the Two Towers did. That film was greatly improved in the DVD version.

FOTR was the best of the bunch because middle earth came to life and the story was presented pretty darn near to perfection. Not too many battles, not too many sentimental scenes, and not too many special effect fill ins. Balanced might be a good way to describe the first film.

The Two Towers was a bit longer and drawn out (as mentioned earlier, personally I like the extended edition better...it fills up the holes in the story better, particularly in regard to Faramir and Boromir) and was uniquely different and special because of the introduction of Gollum. Also, middle portions of a story are pretty tough to pull off but it was done well.

ROTK looked a bit chopped up to me. Time was wasted in certain areas and important items left out. (Spoilers may follow):

1. Too much time spent on Denethor. I really didn't enjoy watching him eat his food for so long. Establishment of his madness could have been handled better. Did he have any redeeming qualities?

2. Too much time spent on Arwen. Could have moved this along a little faster.

3. Too much time spent on close-ups of orcs and their darn teeth. Big yawn.

4. Battles are great but too much emphasis on battles. Of course, this sells many tickets with the "we need excitement every minute" crowd.

5. Too much crying. In the books I don't remember Sam being so weepy.

6. What happened to Saruman and Wormtongue? Poof, gone. No really good explanation except they are stuck in a tower and watched by Treebeard.

7. Faramir disappears looking like a corpse. Then he reappears looking fit as a fiddle. Did we miss something?

8. Eowyn is crying over Theoden. She was supposed to look after Merry too but nothing on that and Poof, she is gone. Oh, there she is again near the end all of a sudden, smiling and looking great. Did we miss something there too?

9. Merry looks in worse shape than Eowyn at the end of the altercation but he shows up in the last battle and she doesn't. Why? Do hobbits bounce back from battle faster than women? Not sure.

10. What made Theoden such a great hero? He didn't seem to be very good at doing very much.

11. Our hobbit friends have been through a lot of tough situations over the course of the three films. This is a little gripe of mine, but I think the maturation process from innocent, small town hobbit to battle scarred veterans could have been handled a little bit better. I don't think I would have had them giggling/laughing and jumping on Frodo's bed at the end...but that's just me, perhaps.

That's just a short list, but because of these issues and more, the movie is Good, but Not Great.

Finally, I have no problem with the multiple endings, because I was sad to see everyone go and I have a hard time saying goodbye myself. Personally, though, I would have ended it with the ship sailing into the west.

Good job, to all involved. Sean Astin, in particular, you deserve an award for a standout performance. Well done. Peter Jackson, thanks for some great memories and a lot of fun in the past three years.

I really liked this movie. I had a bad day and it cheered me up. Sure, it had the typical elements of a coming of age movie, and the general premise wasn't very original, but I don't care. The story was well told and it had me laughing and feeling better when I left the theater.

A big plus is the cast. Great actress who plays the lead. Terrific chemistry between her and the coach. Everyone was very likeable and believable.

The main characters are people I would like to know, and basically every character was treated respectfully. Lots of misunderstandings, but nothing too unreasonable. Only one issue caused me to cringe a little bit in embarassment, and that was the WUSA soccer thing (I really hope in a couple of years it'll get more popular here), but overall I had a great time laughing with the audience.

One more thing, and this may be a spoiler (look below):



Okay, I admit it. I'm a sentimental romantic. Therefore, I believe that every romantic/coming of age movie should have a kiss in it. Not just a matter of fact kiss, but a really romantic and satisfying (but sweet) kiss. Well, this one has a decent kiss in it. If she had walked away without a kiss that would have been real disappointing.

For example, I wish the second "Anne of Green Gables" miniseries had a kiss like the one in this film. Frankly, that miserable kiss between Anne and Gilbert ruined the whole second show for me. What a letdown!

Not so here! Accordingly, this movie gets a high grade by me for having a decent kiss at the end!

I first saw Star Wars Episode IV at the age of 12. It one of the most memorable movie experiences of my life. Up until then I was a Disney movie kid, but this opened up a whole new cinematic world for me.

I have enjoyed all the movies in the first trilogy (The Return of the Jedi was a little weak, but I still liked it), and was looking forward to the prequels.

***Beware of Possible Spoilers***

In my humble opinion, the first two movies of the prequels have the following problems:

1. Actors with absolutely no charisma (exception: Ewan MacGregor).

The first movies had Harrison Ford. What can I say about him that other's haven't? The man oozes sex appeal, male strength, humor, and swashbuckling charm. These prequels need a Harrison Ford type very, very badly.

The first trilogy had Mark Hamill. The guy is very handsome, and I don't care what people say about his acting abilities, I think he managed to convey an innocence and daring and growth of character over the three films that Hayden Christensen probably will never be able to match. A Sean Penn or even Brad Pitt type (did ya see Fight Club?) is needed here.

The first movies had Carrie Fisher. Although she didn't have a lot to do, she conveyed a fresh faced intelligence, independence,and senator-like seriousness that Portman's Amidala never possessed. To top it off, she only had one simple white dress and did a lot more with it then Amidala in her many over the top ensembles. (Vera Wang, are you available for Episode III costuming?). Too be fair, Portman is passable, but her choice of Anakin as the love of her life and Jar Jar as her proxy in the Senate diminishes her appeal considerably.

All I can say is thank goodness for Ewan MacGregor. Imagine what the guy could do with a decent script?

2. The storyline is unbelievable.

First of all, Amidala in love with Anakin? He is so whiny, full of anger (for no apparent reason), so rude to his Master, and so immature, why would a supposedly mature Senator / ex-queen / older woman fall for that? In my heart of hearts I'm hoping for Obi-Wan to eventually seduce the dillusional girl / woman and show her what a real man is. Then we can all wonder if Obiwan is the father of the twins (he he he).

Second, Anakin doesn't see his mother for years, and then shows up just in time to see her die? If that Lars guy could buy Shmi's freedom, why couldn't Anakin's Friend the Queen? Yeesh.

Third, Amidala's top gets ripped strategically in that gladiator ring scene. Why her? Why couldn't Anakin's pants be ripped off strategically as well? If this movie's romantic element is supposed to appeal to the girls in the audience, then at least give the girls a thrill and let us see Anakin in his Jedi Jockey shorts. Also, when women shoot at things, why can they never hit a target? Check out Leia in Star Wars, does she ever hit anything? Amidala is a slight improvement, but she will never win any markswoman awards. Give me a break.

Fourth, Why in the world would a person want to be a Jedi in the first place? It always seems that if they experience a victory it is by pure dumb luck. Sure, they can jump and fly and swing that saber, but so can the dark side guys, and sometimes even better. If the Jedi are so attuned to things, why do they have to talk to a dishwasher in a diner to figure things out? Or rely on a little kid in a class to reason the location of a planet? (I know, I know, there is an explanation ::roll eyes:: but there are A LOT of explanations in this film).

Fifth, the story did not flow. All those cut-away scenes seem like a lazy editing tool, resulting in a glued together plot. Cut to Amidala and Anakin. Cut to Obi-Wan. Cut to Dooku. Cut to Yoda.....ad nauseum.

3. The script is very bad.

Many people have commented on this, and I heartily agree. George, you need to stick to the things you excel in, such as special effects. You also have an exceptional imagination, however, don't try to do everything yourself. I'm sure Hollywood is full of talented writers (and directors for that matter). Ask for some help. Take your time. Accept some constructive criticism. If you spread yourself too thin, you may end up with Episode III, Howard the Duck Returns.

Other than that, the things I liked in the movie were: the special effects, the many action scenes (especially Coruscant and the asteroid chase), the planet Kamino, Jango Fett, the Yoda fight, the new and improved look of the light sabers, and the return to space.

If I really like a movie, like Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings, I'll see it at least 3 times in the theaters. As for Episode II, however, once in the theater is enough.