Rating: 
Summary: THIS IS AWESOME!!!!!
Review: Ok, first of all, what's not to love about a movie that stars hotties like Orlando Bloom and Elija Wood. The movie is awesome especially if u have 5.1 surround sound! The first scene is so cool. I found it a lot more entertaining than the last one.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely outstanding!!
Review: Forget quibbles about minute details, this is an outstanding achievement and DOES follow the books in all ways necessary. I could not believe how well this has been put together. The casting is fantastic, the story runs well, even jumping between the various actors so we know what is going on all over Middle Earth. It is wonderful. To address a few of the details, if jackson had not added a little point here or there, the 3rd movie would be a bit short as the 3rd book is half appendix. It also the changes also explain things that are more difficult to put into a visual format. They work well. I, for one, am delighted with the whole thing and this is a monumental achievement. Congrats to Jackson and cast on a job well done!
Rating:
Summary: Couldn't get any better.....
Review: I think this movie well exceeds its predecessor in all aspects. Peter Jackson does a great job of running 4 to 5 storylines concurrently, and without allowing the audience to tire of the story. Just as it starts to get a little boring, Jackson gives us a breathtaking piece of scenery or a dynamic battle/action sequence. I must say that I feel one actor is glossed-over somewhat in the movie and in the extras on the DVD. Sure, McKellan (Gandalf)...Bloom (Legolas)...Mortensen (Aragorn).... and others do a wonderful acting job, but none can surpass Christopher Lee (Saruman). My favorite scene in this whole movie is Saruman's "To War!" speech. This is the highlight of the film....the rest of the story moves downhill from there. Lee just does such an awesome 30-second speech...I want to just jump right in and build an army for Mordor myself! He is so convincing as the evil wizard. It bothers me that Lee's acting is not more recognized. I was quite disappointed that he was not interviewed very much for the DVD extras. I sure hope this will be remedied in the Extended Edition (also additional scenes with Saruman would be nice!). Overall, the DVD is well packaged and the on-screen menus are very easy to navigate. I was very happy to learn (upon opening) that the DVD designers had made each disc with a photo of each of the Two Towers. Also, the Ringwraith riding into the screen every time something is selected on the extras disc is a nice touch. Good work, New Line!! I am sure looking forward to the Extended Edition in November...and the Return of the King in December!
Rating:
Summary: Following the Journey...
Review: I think it's really hard to find a movie where the sequel exceeds the first. However, THE TWO TOWERS definitely does this, probably because you move more out of the introduction phase and more into the storyline. For that reason, if you have never seen the first movie and are trying to watch this one first, you are going to be lost. The story picks up, expecting you to know what's going on and who everyone is. This movie includes the same characters as the original; however, there is less focus on Frodo and the other hobbits, and more on Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli. Basically, this movie continues Frodo's quest to destroy the Ring. Gollum soon arises, and despite Sam's detesting, Frodo trusts Gollum to lead them to Mordor, since they cannot find the way on their own. There is a HUGE emphasis on Gollum as a result of this, which is great because he becomes more than just a figure that wants the ring. On the other side, Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli search for the other two hobbits and later try to save the race of Men, whom Saruman desires to destroy. There's more action in this sequel, in my opinion. There's also a person who is possessed/controlled, more of a love story (which I didn't like), and so much more humor. There are several moments in the movie where someone cracks a joke or something funny happens (mostly about and to the poor dwarf), which I felt added to the movie a bunch. There are also new creatures in this one. The ending isn't [bad] either (it isn't a big cliffhanger or anything). The movie continues to follow the book pretty well, and the additional features, such as "bringing Gollum to life" and "creatures of Middle-earth" are interesting. There's also a 10 minute preview of THE RETURN OF THE KING. This movie is one of my top 5 favorites (as is THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING). A must see!
Rating:
Summary: The Best Movie Ever!!!
Review: This is one of the best movies of 2002! The acting was incredible! And the plot was great! The visual effects and music (score) Lord of the Rings: Two Towers offers is outstanding! The action and drama sequences are two wonderful things that this movie has in it. I am proud to own Lord of the Rings: Two Towers on DVD!
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, stunning, magnificent.
Review: Peter Jackson is a truly amazing person; a mentor to any amateur filmmaker (in my opinion). Tolkien's epic classic is preserved and enhanced so much onscreen that one begins to wonder if any text has ever been adapted to the screen so successfully. And if the one happens to be me, I do more than wonder; I know.
The performances are marvelous. Elijah Wood as Frodo Baggins is stunning, haunting, and conflicted, as he is put in situation after situation in which he must rely on his willpower, which is fast dwindling as he succumbs more and more to the corruption of the One Ring. And Sean Astin, as his faithful companion Samwise, is equally impressive while he has to bear the negative effects of Frodo's increasingly bad temper caused by the Ring. Andy Serkis, as the CGI Gollum, is also excellent, an extremely sad character who tries to remain good but is also slave to the Ring; above all else he wants his Precious back.
Supporting characters are also fabulous, Liv Tyler as Arwen nearly brought tears to my eyes as she made one of the most painful decisions of her life, the one lonely tear trickling down her face was beautiful and haunting. Ian McKellen is great as always, as Gandalf the white, Viggo Mortensen is slightly cliched but fantastic as Aragorn, and there are countless others too numerous to mention.
The scope is amazing, as parts of New Zealand totally transform into Tolkien's Middle Earth. Every camera angle is beautiful, the Howard Shore score is awesome. Nothing is overlooked, and there is no doubting the genius of Peter Jackson and the rest of his crew.
Rating: 
Summary: Aging Tolkien Novice Cries Out to Purists
Review: Have the well thumbed books on my shelf. Learned a long time ago that my imagination was better than any cinematographer/director/producer so I no longer expect the author's take (which is merely MY interpretation of the author's view) when consuming someone else's vision of it. That said, get a life. We each have our own interpretation of what we ingest. If you don't like the interpretation, don't pour your money into the coffer that will continue to offend you for it will only come back to condemn your vision further.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant Simply Brilliant
Review: Peter Jackson truly brought the second instalment to the next level; and not just with more characters and bigger and more jaw dropping special effects and battle scenes. The characters have been developed into ones that the audience truly cares about and roots for. Keep in mind that the third instalment and conclusion to the trilogy "the return of the king" i am almost certain WILL blow the forst two out of the water; but we will just have to wait until december 17 to be sure
Rating:
Summary: The Middle Chapter..
Review: While any other series would more than likely lack any real substance or storyline in it's middle section (there being no beginning or end) this second installment of the "LOTR" trilogy actually manages to advance the story and one-up part 1. The true souls of this movie are Frodo and Aragorn who continue to deepen as characters and show streaks of heroism that seem to surprise everyone around them, including themselves. My favorite sequence so far has to be the late night conversation Gollum has with his evil and good sides, his movements, facial expressions and creepy voice are an astounding feat of computer animation, you truly feel like Gollum is a real person. For a 3 hour film, "...The Two Towers" moves at a very brisk pace and never bores, even during the more sudued scenes. This is a terrific continuation and that leaves me eager to see just how good "Return Of The King" will be.
Rating:
Summary: Rebuttal to a Rebuttal of purists
Review: First I would like to say that this was an excellent movie. Yes, there are differences from the book. As someone who loved the books, I was originally put off by the differences in the movie, but after watching the DVD a few times, I realized that my objection wasn't to the differences in how the movie flowed, but in how the producers seemed to view the audience. Both Faramir and Treebeard initially make decisions inconsistent with the book till a few scenes later where they switch their decisions back. I assume this was done for impact to the audience as Treebeard (being a shepherd of the forest) would have been aware of the destruction to the trees beforehand (as he did in the book) and Faramir - had he truly been under the influence of the ring and been in its presence long enough to travel to Osgiliath, would certainly have not released Frodo. Both of these seemed to be changed for the visual impact to the audience though it somewhat falls short in Faramir's case IMO. Adding the Elves to Helms Deep also seemed unnecessary as the same result could have been obtained by adding (as was in the book) more Riders. Last and probably worst for me was the twisting of the Elrond/Arwen role to that of a 14 year old girl vs. her father (presumably for the 14 year old girls in the audience). No aspect of that was in the books as both Elrond and Arwen knew their duties to themselves and others. In todays time of self-indulgence, however, maybe this would have been completely lost on the audience. People have said that it would have been a 15 hour movie to be true to the book, but these scenes actually added to the length unnecessarily IMO. I do not believe that attendence or sales of the film would have been hurt had those scenes been done more true to the book, but I am not a producer. All of that having been said, these things make up just a small portion of the movie. So much of the movie IS true to the spirit and letter of the book that it is more than worth the 5 stars I gave it. I am looking forward to seeing the extended scenes from the Two Towers as well as the Return of the King later this year.
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