Rating: 
Summary: Review Of The DVD, Not The Film
Review: I won't bother reviewing the film since there are already a gazillion of them, and you've probably already seen it in the theatre anyway. So I'm reviewing the theatrical-release DVD. Picture was sharp and contrasty, but a number of shots exhibited quite a bit of grain for some reason. Either there was very little grain, or a very noticeable amount, it's odd. That was occasionally distracting, but didn't ruin it for me; overall it looks very good. The sound is excellent, dialogue is clear and the sound effects will test your system as much as any soundtrack out there. No complaints there.The extras are pretty weak in my opinion, with several exceptions. There are no audio feature commentaries by the director, actors, or anyone. We get some trailers, and an assortment of television and web documentaries that you've probably already seen. There is a very mediocre short film by Sean Astin that for some reason is in here. Now Sean seems like a nice guy, and a decent actor, but how his little film got onto a DVD that will be seen by many millions of people, I don't understand. My only explanation is "filler". It has nothing to do with LOTR except for the fact that Peter Jackson appears briefly in it, and it basically looks like your average undergraduate student film, but shot on really nice film stock. The two features that are worth seeing are the preview of the DVD Extended Edition due out in a few months, and some sneak-preview clips of the third film, Return of the King. Of course all the extended edition preview makes you do is wish you hadn't bought this disc and instead saved for that one which will undoubtedly be much, much cooler, as was the one done for the first film. So while the film itself is very good, and gets 4/5 stars from me, as does this disc, I suggest you just rent and wait to get the Extended Edition, which will probably get 5/5 stars from me for both the film and the DVD.
Rating: 
Summary: This is so good!
Review: I've read the trilogy and the Hobbit more than once and look forward to rereading them after I've seen all the DVD's. There are differences, however, they really just contribute to the adventure. Those who whine about this video not being true to the text version just don't get that both versions play out in myriad ways within the confines of our minds. Go for it, this DVD is that good. I got lost in the adventure and the cinematography was superb. The acting is first class and the action sequences stunning. This is so good.
Rating:
Summary: To be expected
Review: Well, what can I say that hasn't been said already? Awesome flick based on an awesome trilogy. More violent than the first installment, but the graphics are awesome - Gollum comes to life! I can't wait until December to see how they do with the third installment. Word on the set was that Return of The King is essentially saving the best for last. The battle for Helms Deep is one of the best action sequences I have ever seen in any movie. I read the books over 25 years ago and everything came to life. The Ents are truly awesome. Walking trees that actually look cool while walking? It doesn't get any better!
Rating: 
Summary: Wait for the Extended Version to come out
Review: I think any fan of the books or movies will want to have The Two Towers, but they should wait for the extended edition. The "specials" on this version are simply rehashes of documentaries already released, and to refresh ones memory about the story, I'd recommend renting this at the video store instead.
There is Sean Astin's short as a special feature, but I doubt that'll be omitted from the EV, and even if it is, it's not that big of a deal.
Wait the two more months for the one with more footage.
Rating: 
Summary: I just don't understand
Review: I remember reading the Tolken books about 25 years ago, and I recall at the time I found them very entertaining. So why do I find both movie renditions so boring? True, it's been 25 years or so since I read the books and I'm sure my tastes have changed, but I don't remember the books being mostly about war. I don't remember trying to figure out how Frodo could one minute be following Gollum and the next Gollum is nowhere in sight. My suspicion is that the makers of the film are too caught up in the computer generated special effects and have forgotten that what makes a good movie is a good story. Gollum is pretty good, but he does look like he could be a close cousin of Dobby the house elf out of Harry Potter. The rest of the special effects seemed unbelievable. The marching hordes had no real detail and appeared fuzzy to me. The battle scenes had the same problem. The figures of the non-humans always seemed to be moving just a little too fast for the "camera" to catch the details. I have a further suspicion that the director was so interested in his special effects, that he forgot to try and get decent performances out of the actors and actresses involved in the project or to care about totally lame dialogue. And by the end of the movie, I thought if Sam said "Mr. Frodo" one more time, I would scream! The film makers are so interested in showing us zillions of beasties marching on what's left of civilization that they forget the need to deliver a coherent plot. They are so interested in making nifty computer generated tree people that they've forgotten that not everyone has read the book within the last 3 months and it would be nice if they developed the people and the plot well enough for those of us who are not immersed in the "Ring" culture to be able to follow and perhaps enjoy the movie.
Rating:
Summary: Tolkein for non-fans...
Review: ...including me! This is the first time I've ever been excited about LOR. I'm incapable of plugging through the books, but I've appreciated these films. I'm excited to see the ending!
Rating:
Summary: Phenominal Masterpiece of Storytelling
Review: I tried so hard to hold out for the Extended Edition release in November, but just couldn't wait that long to watch this movie a few times, so I went ahead and bought this. This movie is just as wonderful as the first film, with only one difference: The first film focused on all of Tolkien's characters and lots of history. This film mainly focuses on humans. While "Two Towers" does stray a little from the original books, those strays do not distract or disturb the story in any way. For instance, the elves never came to Helms Deep to help mankind in the big battle... but that sequence offered a wonderful sense of hope and is a favorite scene in many people's eyes who have not read the books. I didn't mind the strays at all... in fact, I would rather the movies NOT follow the original story to a "T" because then no one would want to read the books to find out what really happened. I won't go into what the movie is about because I think just about everyone in the entire world has seen this movie and there are hundreds of reviews here to tell you the story. But, what I will focus on is the DVD extras. Included is some short cast interviews about the Two Towers and the making of it. There is a big teaser about the 43-minutes of extra footing that will be in the Extended DVD release and I can't wait to see it. There were many Treebeard scenes that were cut out and many very interesting plot points. They seem so pivotal to the story that I can only imagine the reason they were cut was because they didn't want us sitting in the theater for 4 hours! There is also 12 minutes or so of what to expect from "Return of the King", which will not at all spoil anything, but does offer a general background of what events will take place. If you're looking for glimpses of Shelob the spider or Sauron's physical form, you will not find it at all here. But, like I said, they do give you a few clips to look at and a general discussion of what takes place. Most people enjoyed the Helm's Deep battle, but this upcoming battle in the last movie dwarfs Helm's Deep!! Is this DVD worth buying or should you hold out for the Extended DVD in November 2003? Well, I couldn't wait that long. I love this movie and it is a movie I can watch over and over. The extras are not 5-star material, but they are ok - best being the sneak peak of the next movie and clips of extra scenes that will be added to the DVD release in November. If you can hold out for the extended edition, I would. But, if you are a 'freak of a fan' like I am of these movies, you won't mind buying both! But, I don't mind over-supporting excellent movies such as these... they don't come around very often!
Rating:
Summary: Tolkien's Epic Fantasy Continues
Review: Following in the tradition set by its predecessor "The Fellowship of the Ring", "The Two Towers" continues where "Fellowship" left off. The two hobbits Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) begin their journey to Modor to destroy the ring. Along the way, they encounter Gollum (Andy Serkis), a mysterious creature who agrees to be their guide, but Gollum is hiding a secret of his own. Meanwhile, the battle between the forces of Sauron and the people of Rohan wages on. Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Legolas (Orlando Bloom), and Gimli (John Rhys-Davies) have joined forces with the people of Rohan to thwart the attacks of Sauron's Orcs and his evil magician Saruman (Christopher Lee). Determined to make Rohan an example in his desire to rid Middle Earth of Men, Sauron has unleashed his full fury against its people, but the people of Rohan, led by their king, once under Sauron's control but freed by Gandalf (Ian McKellen), have retreated to their mighty fortress of Helm's Deep. It is here where they will stand and fight. The battle scenes at Helm's Deep are the high point of the film. The special effects are like none I've ever seen before. I thought the ones in the first movie were good, but these are much better. The acting is superb throughout, but I think Viggo Mortensen and Orlando Bloom deserve special recognition. Their characters of Aragorn and Legolas are my favorites, and the producers could not have picked two better actors to fill these rolls. I cannot wait for the final installment "The Return of the King". If its anything like "The Two Towers", then it will be nothing less than excellent. Watch this wonderful movie and see Middle Earth come to life.
Rating:
Summary: Phenominal Film
Review: The Two Towers is one of the best movies this year. Peter Jackson makes a huge jump of genres from horror now to action/adventure. This DVD includes many bonus features including interviews, tv spots, everything. Watch for Return of the King to come out December 17.
Rating:
Summary: A review to please purist and non-reader newbies
Review: I've read a lot of reviews from "pursist" who have completely trashed this movie for not following the book exactly and also newbie's who seem to think that the movie is flawless and don't seem to mind that Peter Jackson needlessly butchered much of Tolkein's good work. I would like to inform you that you are both wrong. The LOTR books would not make good films as they are, there are simply far too rich, they need to be abridged and simplified. However, Jackson did an absolutely rotten job of this. He needlessly added pointless action scenes such as those terribly animated "warg" riders (wargs are giant, intelligent, and malicous wolves, Pete) and the much hated Aragorn falling of the cliff and then wasting 30 minutes flashing back to liv tyler scenes. While simultaneously leaving out very important details such as Gandalf's journey to Isengard, where he shows Saruman what's what, obtains the palantir, and many other meetings and plot points. These details could have fit into a 3 hour movie if Jackson wouldn't have tried to "improve" on Tolkein by adding made up scenes. The Two Towers did do an amazing job on some things, such as Smeagol and Helm's Deep (so the evles weren't there in the book, get over it, i for one wanted a chance to seem some evles kick some ass and it did fit somewhat with themes present in the history of Middle Earth, which i think is what Jackson was getting at). So all in all I think the movie is a firm okay. Not really good, but not completely awful. It does make me sad though because it did seem to me that Jackson was a lot more faithful to the LOTR story in Fellowship and made it shorter by simply leaving things out (Tom Bombadil for example), but did not resort to adding a lot of new material the way he did in TT. Oh well, perhaps he is going the way of George Lucas, the success of the first movie must have deluded him to the point where he thought he could do a better job that Tokein. I guess Peter doesn't really understand the whole theme of LOTR which is sad. Power corrupts. Even if you desire power to do good you will do evil. In this case if you desire the power to change Tolkein to make a good movie you will make a bad one. Ironic isn't it.
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