|
|
|
 |
Reviews |
 |
Source:
rec.art.movies.reviews newsgroup
Rating:
 
|
I'll wait until the extended versions come out late next year before passing final judgement on Peter Jackson's rendition of the Lord of the Rings. I found the extended versions much, much better. My opinion of The Two Towers was turned around by seeing the DVD the night after seeing FotR: there are still some quibbles, like the idiotic Ents and Aragorn's near-death experience, but on the whole it's a fantastic rendition of Tolkien, especially after seeing it more than one time.
Probably, I'm reacting in the same way to The Return of the King: on first viewing, there were scenes I expected to see but didn't, scenes there were there but were surprises, and a sense of being rushed towards the end. I got distracted after the first thing that didn't conform well to the books (never mind knowing the filmed fate of Saruman and the Scourging of the Shire), and stayed distracted. Seeing RotK a second time should make most of these distractions go away, and I can enjoy the movie as a movie, rather than the hoped-for rendering of books I read twenty years ago.
Nonetheless, there are some problems that I can't see being worked out from additional viewings or from an extended version. To start with, there are moment of dramatic punch that Tolkien delivers in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields that are missing from the film, and we never feel that doom hangs by a thread. Where is Gandalf facing the Lord of the Nazgul after the Gate is shattered? Where is the southern wind that parts the dark clouds at dawn, as the Rohirrim ride in to the sound of horns? Where is Eomer's despair turned into joy when the banner of the King is unfurled? Oddly, the old Bass-Rankin kiddie TV movie effort -- may it be eternally cursed for putting those godawful songs (you know which ones!) into my head forever -- got this closer to the book than Jackson does, though my memory of the cartoon is fuzzy.
Regarding the Witch King and the rest of the Nazgul, they've been handled badly by Jackson, though I'm not sure of Tolkien does much better. The fundamental problem is that they're, well, the Nine, agents of unspeakable terror, but were driven off Weathertop by Aragorn waving a torch, even though their prize was within reach. By the third volume, the Lord of the Nazgul seems about ready to take down Gandalf all by himself. It just doesn't seem credible. Tolkien walked us past this inconsistency by building up the drama of great events unfolding over hundreds of pages, and by showing Aragorn to be the King of Men. Jackson has much less room to maneuver, and his Nine, beyond their winged steeds, aren't awe-inspiring.
And this indicates the most important defect: there's lack of... majesty. Granted, majesty, like the boogeyman underneath the bed, is hard to do on visually. Everyone has a different idea of how it looks, and most likely the on-screen depiction is going to look wrong, hokey or stupid to someone. We saw this, say, in Fellowship, when Frodo offers Galadrial the Ring. She is supposed to be full of terrible majesty as she describes herself as a Dark Queen, but instead looks like she got caught in an "I Love Lucy" episode set in some wacky beauty parlor where the hair dryers have gone crazy. But this scene from Fellowship is minor compared to what should be in the Return of the King, where displays of majesty and inner power follow one upon the other, all backlit by the glow of Middle Earth's long history. Majesty is sometimes in the CGI -- Minas Tirith and the White Tree are dead on, the armies outside the walls are awesome, but Gwaihir isn't -- but not in the actors. In the end, I didn't believe Viggo Mortensen was Elessar, Elendil's heir.
I may be too harsh on this movie, focusing on flaws while leaving out how I did enjoyed it, but flaws are much easier to find, and even if I don't know Quenya and haven't read The Histories of Middle Earth, I can nitpick with the best of them. Note that I don't expect a perfect fan-boy rendition of Tolkien: for a movie, we can cut out a lot of the songs, drop some characters, repurpose others to some degree. I did like the movie -- Shelob was fantastic, as was Cirith Ungol and Orodruin, and many other things both in the theatrical release and what's expected in the DVD -- but this wasn't exactly the movie I had imagined twenty years ago, even if it was mostly so. And that's the main problem right now, the dissonance between my expectations and the film we now have is larger than I would have liked.
Anyway, I am looking forward to the DVD, which will help matters, in particular by making the ending feel less rushed; there might be a lost weekend next November, when I watch all three back-to-back-to-back. We also should keep in mind the brilliant McSweeny's article about the lost audio commentary on FotR by Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn, and the fact that there was no spectacular car chase scene around Mount Doom with vintage Minis. Things could be far, far worse.
By : Cheng-Jih Chen
|
|
Source:
rec.art.movies.reviews newsgroup
Rating:
|
SYNOPSIS: As the forces of darkness march to Gondor, Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli ride with those of Rohan to give aid. Simutaneously, Frodo and Sam make way to Mordor with the deformed two-faced Gollum as guide, to destroy the ring.
It is a race against time, as the fate of man rests on the actions of two hobbits.
MY TAKE: The title itself may be play on words, as director Peter Jackson is somewhat the current king of cinema (and rightfully so). His trilogy of middle-earth is a work of true genius.
We may unknowingly wear a smug grin while our hearts race in anticipation during various majestic breathtaking scenes; particularly a battle to end all battles involving the elephant-like mumakil, uruk-hai, orcs, trolls, easterlings...and men...(for those into the middle-earth mythology).
And what of the main characters?
*Gollum (Andy Serkis) is more desparate in this picture, becoming a more villainous character (one we love to hate, and can't wait to see get his comeuppance).
*Faramir(David Wenham), knight of Gondor, is still trying to please his hardened father, Lord Denathor(John Noble), the steward of Minas Tirith.
*Samwise Gamgee(Sean Astin), becomes a hero watching over Frodo(Elijah Wood), be it fighting a huge spider named Shelob, or protecting his friend from Orcs and Uruk-hai...and Gollum.
*Gandalf(Ian McKellen) gets to show his commanding and fighting skills in that long awaited battle.
*The lovely Eowyn(Miranda Otto) shows her battle skills along with the two mischievous hobbits, Merry(Dominic Monaghan) and Pippin(Billy Boyd.
*Elrond(Hugo Weaving)returns to make history with Aragorn.
*The trio of Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Legolas(Orlando Bloom), and Gimli(John-Rhys Davies)all have ample time to show their sides of the story, as the end draws near.
*Aragorn, whom was loved both by Eowyn and the elven girl Arwyn(Liv Tyler) when we last left him in THE TWO TOWERS, gets to choose his love.
It ends with a well-thought out credit sequence as we are treated to character sketches as Annie Lennox sings the tune 'Into the West'. (Although, it is not as smooth as Enya's 'May it Be' from FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, or haunting as Emiliana Torrini's 'Gollum Song' from THE TWO TOWERS, but it fits nicely as a closure theme).
THE RETURN OF THE KING is a film that balances special effects, with strong acting, and a tight script.
POSITIVE/NEGATIVE NITPICKS: Howard Shore's theme seems to be more darker, more desparate in keeping with the theme of the film. Whereas the first had a lighter, hobbit-ish theme, the second had a Nordic sound for the Rohan scenes, and a military-like theme for the Helms Deep scenes, this film evokes the desparation to rid middle-earth of the darkness that has plagued it for so long.
As for particular scenes: We wonder what happened to Saruman, only given a hint of what has happened to him between this and the last picture. It is of note that actor Christopher Lee was upset that director Peter Jackson had cut his important scene. Hopefully, we will see it in the extended edition next year.
FINAL COMMENTS:
Is it really the end?
It is said that Peter Jackson wants to go back in time with the 'The Hobbit,' which will reunite him with some of his 'Lord of the Rings' stars.
With a brilliant trilogy behind us, it'll be interesting to see what started it all.
By : Joel B. Kirk
|
 |
Featured Posters |
|
|
