Rating: 
Summary: Wonderfully moving!
Review: Totally powerful and riveting until the end. Peter Jackson has done himself and the story proud.
Rating: 
Summary: Completely dissapointed
Review: Having seen the first two movies on DVD, I have to say that watching the third film in the series, the Return of the King, was probably the most baffling and dissapointing experience in all my years of watching film.
First off, whatever contract negotiations that were involved in making the third film animated were just completely wrong headed. The animated characters look nothing like thier real life counterparts, and Aragorn gets far less screen time then the title would suggest. Even so, it would have been nice to have the original stars (Ellijah Wood, Ian Mckellen, et al) at least lend thier voices to the characters. One can only surmise that the Producers of these films thought that audiences would be so wrapped up in the story that they wouldn't care if the final installment was mailed to people on cocktail napkins. And there is also so much that has not paid off in this third installment, not the least of which is: Where is Arwen?
I put the third movie next to the others in my collection, but somehow it doesn't seem to fit. Maybe I have to watch it a few times more.
Rating:
Summary: desiderio
Review: In a word, that is the best movie I have ever seen. I am not a keen Tolkien fan and consider his books, which I occasionally re-read, a little bit boring but full of details and original subject matter.
What I really find fascinating about the movie' which is a masterpiece in its own right, are the scenes which are not in the books:
1) the lighting of the beacons (it is sending the Red Arrow in the book),
2) the last march of the Ents,
3) the charge of the Rohirrim in the Two Towers and at the battle of Pelennor Fields (the way it is presented in the movie)
4) the sacrifice of Faramir with Pippin's song in the background. I fully agree with someone here who pointed out the fact that Jackson was right in emphasizing the historic approach in the movie, not a fantasy one. By the way, DVD buyers, do you also have a problem with a sound lag? I mean when watching the ROTK on DVD first comes the sound then the characters move their lips?
Rating:
Summary: The "Return of the Jedi" for this Generation
Review: The Lord of the Rings trilogy is very similar to Star Wars, thirty years later. Both boast great action scenes and amazing special effects. Viggo Mortenson is like Harrison Ford: both small-time actors who became big during and after their huge movies.
This is a great movie and at three and a half hours long is never boring. The characters are so developed and likeable (and the bad ones so hateable) you will find yourself cheering the entire way through. For people young and old, this a the perfect family movie or a great date movie. Peter Jackson does a wonderful job at taking the story from the book, but shortening it so it is not fourty hours long. Like what was mentioned above, this movie has great special effects. I will not spoil the movie so I will end in saying BUY THIS MOVIE!
Rating:
Summary: Five stars
Review: Since Jaws, some of the best movies ever made have combined spectacular special effects with heartfelt, personal moments. The closer these two elements come together, the better the film is. In Return of the King, you can see actors and special effects blend perfectly. Take, for example, Eowyn fighting the Witch-King of Angmar. She looks terrified but defiant, shaken one moment and able to deliver a killing blow in the next. But it's all faked --- she was attacking open air when her parts were filmed. The slithery Fell Beast and Witch-King were added digitally. We all know it's faked, but the moment is absolutely convincing. The rest of the movie has the same feel. Are the landscapes real, or digital? It doesn't matter. The actors draw you in and make it all seem real --- and the special effects artists have given every weapon, battlement, and creature a historical authenticity. The best parts of the movie are saved for the end. The One Ring has to be destroyed in a way that is epic but intimate. Frodo's struggle leads to a surprise twist, and Gollum becomes far more important to the fate of Middle Earth than anyone imagined. The epilogue scenes are beautifully-filmed, drawing the whole saga to a close perfectly. If you missed this movie at the theater, you should check out the DVD. It's worth watching over and over to catch every detail..
Rating:
Summary: Incomparably magnificent
Review: Simply put the greatest movie ever made, for the greatest story every told - and that means better than the usual classics such as the Homer (not Homer Simpson for the illiterate), Tolstoy, Shakespeare, Dickens, Goethe and other long dead authors. Better than the Matrix, better than Star Wars, better than Titanic or Spiderman, The Godfather, Citizen Kane, Metropolis or Finding Nemo or Gone with the Wind or any other movie I have ever seen, which includes virtually all of the AFI top 100 films list. Movie making history has been made with this epic production. Yes there will be those who did not like this movie, usually those who have not bothered to use their brains and actually read it and are to quote "regular cinemophiles". Tolkien himself accepted that many would find his novel boorish and to all those who quible and complain or did not like, you are entitled to your opinion and as the professor said, I (and he) will probably detest the things you find enjoyable. Each to his own! For those who have read the novels, and the true Tolkien afficionados, the changes may be irritating but certainly reasonable bearing in mind this is a completely different medium to a novel. I believe most fans (which spans the gamut from teenagers, to doctors and scientists, churchmen and regular people, educated people, stupid and smart in varying degrees, religious or agnostic), will agree that the spirit of Tolkien lives on. Special effects are part of the story, not the story, the battles do not detract from the individual storyline. Courage and fortitude shine through, characaters show their frailty, they are scared, and desperate but they find it within themselves to go on. Despite knowing the novel intimately, I was captivated and felt every moment as if it was the first time. The themes are all there, beautifully portrayed by a cast that cared about their work as art and not just a quick job to the pay the bill. If you don't find yourself moved, it shows you are one of those that Tolkien referred to above. Those who criticise the endings, show the lack of appreciation of Tolkien's depth. To gain a victory some people pay a price and can never regain their former lives. Simple victories are what the massess want, more poignant moments are far from the usual Hollywood fare or mass market paperback. Frodo paid for the victory, he can never be wholly healed of the scars. Sam's family is what they all fought for, the little people who as Frodo said "all the stupid little hobbits.. but I love the Shire.. " (a quote from the novel). They did not embark on this quest for personal power or fame, but for a higher ideal. The endings are perfect, as moving and bitter sweet as the novel.
Soundtrack is stirring, complementing the movie superbly. Many spine tingling scenes abound: the last ride of Rohirrim, the pass of Cirith Ungol, Shelob's lair, Farimirs pain and courage, Frodo and Sam's struggles, the ring that eventually overcomes Frodo, Gollum's glee at getting his precious, sweeping shots of Minas Tirith and the battle of the Pelennor fields. Peter Jakson, the whole NZ crew and New Line cinema deserve a standing ovation for their vision in bringing the most popular story of at least the 20th Century if not all time, to the screen and in going the extra distance to make it nearly perfect. The othe Oscar Nominations for best movie are no where near as good, a well deserved victory for deep and moving stories. Hints of the special edition abound, scenes to come probably include Merry's pledge to King Theoden, Eomers anguish at his sister's apparent demise, the Mouth of Sauron and probably a lot more.
Favorite scene; the spine tingling prelude to King Theoden's last ride. " Death!" they scream and then they thundered forward to "meet the doom of our time"
Rating:
Summary: "We've come to it at last..."
Review: Peter Jackson's awe inspiring adaptation of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy comes to a close with the Return of the King. Picking up where Two Towers left off, ROTK up's the ante for everything set in the previous two films; ranging from the ultra epic battle scenes (the battle of Helm's Deep from Two Towers is nothing compared to the warfare here), superb makeup and special effects, and amazing acting from everyone involved. Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) are close to concluding their quest to destroy the ring in the fiery depths of Mount Doom, while they are led by the deceitful Gollum (Andy Serkis) who has plans of his own. Aragorn (Viggo Mortenson) accepts his role in the kingdom of men while he, Legolas (Orlando Bloom), Gimli (John Rhys-Davies) and Gandalf (Ian McKellan) endure the never ending onsalught of dark lord Sauron's forces. Undoubtadly the best film in the Lord of the Rings film series, director/producer/co-screenwriter Peter Jackson and his crew have crafted something truly special here. ROTK deservedly won every Oscar it was nominated for (including Best Picture and Best Director), and the surprising and amazing emotional depth from the actors (Astin and McKellan especially) has to be seen to be believed. Roles of returning cast members, including Liv Tyler, Cate Blanchett, Bernard Hill, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Hugo Weaving, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, and Karl Urban, are more limited here, but their performances, along with the screenwriting of Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens, are to be comended. All in all, ROTK solidifies the prediction made before the first film was released: this will be and is a film series that will be cherished for generations to come.
Rating:
Summary: If you've seen The Two Towers, you've seen this already
Review: First, I'll start by saying that this review is not for fans of the original books by Tolkien. They will approach these movies in a different way than the rest of us, regular cinephiles or moviegoers, who didn't read those. I mean, for them is a whole other experience, since they are already familiar with the plot and characters and situations, so they will like the movies or not on their own. I will address, as I said before, the rest of us. I had seen the two previous installments and liked them both in some ways. I even tried to watch The Two Towers one second time and found it a bit tiresome. But, that was me. And then... this one. When I got to the theatre and the movie started to go, I found myself less and less interested in the characters and situations, and by half the movie, the trilogy's visual atmosphere had already worn out. For starters, this movie is almost the same as the previous one: one Frodo complaining all the way about the ring, one loyal Sam, one treacherous Gollum. But also, one good vs evil epical battle that seems impossible to win firsthand, one heroe against incredible odds, and one beautiful Liv Tyler that you don't really quite get why is she in the movie for.
You seen it before, all of this, now, this 3 hour elephant will give you all of this, all over again with one inmensely boring epilogue, which got even fans of the films to say that it should have ended quite earlier.
Scale does not always work for the best. This is not a great epic film, and frankly, after this one I finally turned the whole trilogy down. I am almost sure, that, like those Matrix movies (which are far worse than these, I'll reckon) LOTR won't pass the test of time like the Star Wars originals did, or other great epic films. Once again, for the Tolkien fan, this does not apply, I can basically understand their rejoice in movies they have been imagining for years, and I respect that. But for the casual viewer, beware, there is nothing you haven't seen before (except for that horrible ending, that is).
Rating:
Summary: Sigh...such a great series, sorry to see it end.
Review: I am glad to see I am not the only person who finds the closing of the series of LOTR makes me extremely sad. I remember how excited I was four years ago when browsing on the web I found out that the LOTR was being made. I was fearful of what would be done to this classic book, as all the movies to this point were atrocious. But after I saw the first film in this series I relaxed, and went with the flow. I beg to differ with some who felt the length and the multiple endings of this film were too much. Read your Tolkien. He also had multiple endings. When you have so many important characters, Tolkien knew there had to be an explanation for what happened to them after the quest had been fulfilled. He could not drop it at the place where the Ring and Gollum fell into the fire. Jackson may have made a mistake on editing as per having the screen go completely dark, but otherwise I felt this part of the series to be as strong as the first film, and complete. Lovers of Tolkien will complain that Jackson changed the story slightly. I think Tolkien would have approved of most of the changes. A king has to have a queen, and in many ways, the books were lacking in female presence. Jackson and his co-workers made up for that lack of presence, and I found it in keeping with Tolkien's mythology. Our world has changed. Though women did not participate in WWI (during Tolkien's time in battle), they were present during WWII, during Vietnam, and they are participators in current wars, for good or for evil. Strong women as presented in Jackson masterpiece are a part of our world, and fight alongside our men to preserve our freedoms and our homes, their homes. That needs to be recognized. I am waiting for the extended version of this movie to come out and then will buy all three extended versions together and give our current DVDs to my kids. The series, the three movies deserved recognition at the Oscars for doing something that had never been done before...making a classic tale, a long one, into a masterpiece by shooting three movies at the same time. My kudos to all the great actors and actresses involved, and to Jackson for not destroying my favorite book! Karen L. Sadler,
Science Education,
University of Pittsburgh
Rating: 
Summary: Good Movie.... not very good Extras
Review: let me start off by saying this movie was Great! the only complains would be the ending or should i say endings. but i can live with it (but i really desire that at least they should have taken off the ending with Sam and his children.... not only did that like...ruin it for me but Sam was not even the main character...it should not have ended with him... I have nothing against Sam he is one of my favorite characters...but to have him in the end...) for the extended edition (which i can imagine will be very long) they should TAke away that ending instead of extending now on to the dvd extras There is a Trailer in the dvd for all 3 movies...it like shows all 3 movies in 6 minutes...it is great... but other than that... the extras were not too good and they did not have a preview of the extended edition of ROTK Recommend it to add to the collection Great movies! but... star wars is better :)
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