Rating: 
Summary: The Majesty Of Middle Eartth
Review: Director Peter Jackson's adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy epic, The Lord Of The Rings, has been nothing short of amazing. The story has it all. Rich characters, fierce battles, exotic mythical locales, and the entire journey has many parallels timeless to every generation. The Return Of The King is the topper to one of the most well made movie trilogies ever put on film. To be honest, I have only read the first book in the series cover to cover (a long time ago) and have used the films as a way to catch up. The Return Of The King, like the other two films in the series, allows you to lose yourself in the story and have a great time doing so.The Hobbit Frodo (Elijah Wood), his trusted friend Sam (Sean Astin), and their guide, the treacherous Gollum (Andy Serkis), continue their mission to reach the fires of Mount Doom in order to destroy the One Ring. Meanwhile, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) not only struggles to lead his outnumbered followers, as they try to surrvive against the growing power of the Dark Lord Sauron, but he must also take his rightful place, once his destiny is revealed. Even as Gandalf (Sir Ian McKellen) tries to discover the best way he can help the forces for good take back Middle Earth. Even as the extended cut of the film is readied for release on DVD, there's little to complain about, as far as the theatrical version is concerned. All of the characters are given their due. The only regret I have, I guess, would have to be that Saruman the White (Christopher Lee) is not here. Jackson has said that Saruman's fate will be a part of the aforementioned extended cut...The film is long...but so were the other installments. If you've hung in there this long you wont be disappointed, otherwise, why read this review? The extras, located on the second disc, in my mind are there solely to whet your your appetite, while anticipating the the four disc DVD set. There are three well produced in-depth documentaries. "The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision" looks at Jackson and his continuing quest to bring the trilogy to the screen. "A Filmmaker's Journey: Making The Return of The King" is a pretty good half hour look behind the scenes. I do think the set will ultimately do a better job though. The National Geographic Special: Beyond the Movie ties actual "history" to the epic fantasy. The six featurettes are fine little snipets of information about different aspects on the movie, but may have worked better as one whole, rather than a broken up buffet. A preview of the Electronic Arts video game called The Battle For Middle Eath Continues, DVD-ROM content offering weblinks to other goodies, and a well edited Lord of The Rings Trilogy supertrailer, running almost seven minutes, tops of the bonus material. My suggestion: Rent the theattrical version, like I did and wait to purchase the 4 disc set.
Rating: 
Summary: Yawn.
Review: I'm glad I didn't spend the $ and 201 minutes of my life to see this painfully ponderous tome in the theatre. As it is, I resent the rental fee but I asked for it. This could have been good at a two hour running time. Do the film makers think we have bladders of iron? It is troubling that Frodo's journal has blank pages for Sam to fill; please no mas!
Rating: 
Summary: Awful waste of 4 hrs
Review: A complete waste of money, time, and some hours of extremely unpleasant after taste. A horrendous experience. Wonder why in the space age, people are still fascinated by epic wars, honor in death, and glory in victory achieved by endless bloodshed. I have no idea who gave this movie so many oscars - fixed, I am sure.
Rating: 
Summary: A great ending to a great trilogy
Review: While many people stated this has been their favorite of the trilogy, I admit I loved them all equaly. Personaly, I think that they are all way beyond most movies that are released nowadays. I'm sure you can find recaps / favorite scenes / best lines in other reviews, so I'll skip them. The 2 things that had bothered me in the movie are: 1) Some loose threads. While the fates of many of the characters (Sam, Frodo, Aragorn & Arwen, Gandalf, Galadriel, Celeborn & Lord Elrond) were closed very nicely, some others were simply not given. Nothing was told of the future of the kingdom of Rohan - was it merged into a united men kingom with Rohan? If not - was Eomer the new king? What about the fates of Eowyn and Faramir? (even though I understand this might be added in the extended version of the movie). Also - the future of Merry, Pippin, & especially - of Legolas and Gimli - was missing. Has
Legolas gone to the Gray Havens? What had happened to his friendship with Gimli? 2) The only horrible part of this movie - the 'special features'. Not only do they cover the whole three movies (so they contain stuff that most people who watched the previous movies already know) - many of them were recycled. The first 2 features, for instance, contain a lot of the same interviews... The acting was superb (as usual) - especially Sean Astin & Andy Serkis (who finally had a chance to act as himself!). Even the Arwen inserts werent that bad this time.
Rating:
Summary: An amazing achievement for generations to enjoy
Review: For me, this is the best of the three movies. It brings everything together and is the climax of the story. The battles are absolutely breathtaking visually and do have touches of humor to break the relentless fury of the battles. For example, after Legolas has done an amazing attack on one of the marauding giant elephants with the dozens of soldiers riding it with a 10.0 dismount, Gimli says, "It still only counts as ONE!" and off they go to more fighting. When I read the book I was most touched by the scene where Frodo and Sam and just about finished on the slopes of Mount Doom and Sam says, "I may not be able to carry the ring for you, Mr. Frodo, but I can carry you!" He rousts his last reserves of strength and carries Frodo to their fate. The movie was just as I had imagined it and I wish Sean Astin would have won every acting award for his portrayal of my favorite character in the trilogy. The entire trilogy is a gift to all of us. Yes, the books should be read and there is more there than in any movie could ever portray. However, this is such a spectacular achievement that people will be enjoying it for generations.
Rating:
Summary: The Final Chapter of an Amazing Trilogy
Review: "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King", starring Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Ian McKellan, Viggo Mortenson, and others, is the final chapter of this trilogy. Most trilogies begin falling in quality after the second or third edition. This trilogy stays on top through every edition. This edition won an amazing four Golden Globes and a record-tying eleven Oscars(clean sweap in both ceremonies), both including Best Picture and Best Director. "Ben-Hur" (1959) and "Titanic" (1997) are the only other films to win eleven. Like "The Fellowship of the Ring" and "The Two Towers", this honors the book version, written by JRR Tolkins, delightfully. This also is one of the greatest action and fantasy films created in many years. Such quality proves that the eight years spent on production and the two years spent on filming were spent wisely. Since release, it's become the second highest grossing film worldwide with more than $1 billion in the Box Office, only exceeded by "Titanic". "The Return of the King" explores the further threat of the end of peaceful civilization. Frodo's ring takes over him more, the wars become more grand, Aragon's fight for the throne grows more crutial, and the odds of survival become slimmer. The spectacular chain of events keep audiences interested and amazed in every moment. Director Peter Jackson leads the cast and crew to accomplish this masterpiece, which keeps audiences intact until the end. The action scenes become more intense throughout the film. Frodo's duty of destroying the ring grows more crutial, which grows more difficult because of Gollum's yearning for the ring. However, the dramatic and the emotional theme never fades. The characters' emotions are always expressed to the fullest as they should. Therefore, this is more than an action/fantasy film. The score, written by Howard Shore, blends perfectly with the events. The fight scenes become more intense, and the dramatic vibes become more emotional. While some songs are used for all three editions, the new ones are great editions to the trilogy. Certain symphonies will become as well-known as the "Star Wars" or the "ET: The Extra Terrestrial" theme in the following years. "Into the West" is a great ballad to end the movie, which is played in the end credits. Annie Lennox sings it beautifully and emotionally. It wonderfully commemorates and gives more closure to this film and trilogy. The visionaries offer a more grand viewing experience. The spectacular background is nothing like most other films. The amazing hard work spent on the graphics and the millions spent on it paid off greatly. Many filmmakes considered such perfection impossible before the film was released. Regardless, it never distracts from the storyline's emotional aspect. The costumes and the make-up wonderfully blend with the old-time theme. The characters' physical features are realistic-looking. The evil citizens become more scary-looking thanks to the artists. The actors express the emotional aspects wonderfully. Sean Astin performs at his career best in this film as Sam, who determinely supports Frodo through the journey. Ian McKellen's Oscar-nominated role for "The Fellowship of the Ring" as Gandolf is to be highly noted, though slightly less demanding on this edition. Elijah Wood expresses Frodo's struggles wonderfully. As Frodo's well-being becomes increasingly in jeopardy, Wood accomplishes the process in every step. All other actors add their own unique sense of being in the film. Hobbits keep their cheerful and unique personalities, the fighters grow more determined, the evil grow more evil, and the stubborn become unforgettable thanks to the individual actors. "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" is a great film to end this trilogy. This is bound to be a classic in the following years as it will continue pleasing audiences. Those interested in this film must watch the other two editions in order before watching this one. Otherwise, the chain of events will be confusing. ***Oscars won: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Effects, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, Best Make-up, Best Editing, Best Original Score, Best Original Song,
Rating:
Summary: the three are an unbelievable accomplishment!
Review: and the last one is very good, but not as great as the first. This DVD however has one of the worst layer changes I have ever seen - very slow.
Rating: 
Summary: Third movie is least of the trilogy
Review: It's an incredible achievement but falls short in the end. There were very crucial parts left out and I'm not sure how the biggest one can be put back in for the extended version. I hate being a spoiler so I won't get more specific. Also, the ending here is way too sappy for my tastes. Explosive expressions of joy make me want to vomit. With all it's faults, I really don't think anyone will ever do it better.
Rating:
Summary: oooh yeahhh
Review: this was the best of all three. The battles, the acting, the new characters, the interaction between the characters, etc. I really appreciate Sam in this one--there's a lot of "Go Sam!" moments--and Aragorn. But of course, Aragorn is the best character in all three. Set him loose with Anduril, and he'll wipe out all Mordor. Or Isengard. Legolas? Forget him. He stinks.
Yeah, the DVD extra features were disappointing--I think I've gotten too used to the super-in-depth Extended Version features. Haha. Yes, person from Rio de Janeiro, there will be an Extended Version which, according to various Internet sources, will feature the scene with Eowyn and Faramir. (And there was much rejoicing)
Rating:
Summary: 5 star film/ 3 star DVD
Review: While the film speaks for itself, the thing I wanted to point out was the DVD. The extra features are REALLY thin. The meat of it being 2 documentaries that I had already seen on cable. At this point, I would be inclined to just rent this edition and save my money for the extended edition that's coming out before Christmas. Sorry Amazon, there just no reason to spring 18 bucks to buy this when for another ten dollars I can increase my content by ten-fold ...
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