A brief review of The Return of the King
by theenglish

I have to admit that I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many grown men crying in a movie theatre as when I saw The Return of the King. And I’m not talking about the audience. Peter Jackson’s boldest move in the series was allowing his characters to visibly shed tears. And the tears go on forever. Sam crying with Frodo, Pippen crying in Minis Tirith, Merry crying with Eowyn, and all four of them crying together more than once.

Tolkien’s books in many ways are about manly camaraderie during war and the bond that forms between them. Jackson’s portrayal of this bond has led to many “slasher” groups on the net, and tons of jokes about the homoerotic relationship between Sam and Frodo, but I must admit that it was refreshing to see such unashamed expressions of emotion by male characters in a movie.

The past three years of hobbit-instalments have really been a treat, taking me back to when I was young and truly excited about fantasy adventure movies. Lucky kids of the 21st century. Back in my day, we had to wait three years between instalments. I saw Star Wars when I was seven and Return of the Jedi when I was thirteen. And like the original Star Wars movies, the Lord of the Rings saga is truly movie history in the making.

Unlike George Lucas’ attitude toward the current Star Wars movies, however, Peter Jackson understands that effects are the backdrop of the movie and not its entire story. Jackson also has a great eye for CGI and knows how to make the camera work with the film. The biggest disappointment of last year’s Spider-Man for example, was the cartoon-y super hero fighting the thugs. It looked fake because the camera was still. Jackson’s use of camera movement during the battles is reminiscent of Saving Private Ryan. The non-stop movement is breathtaking and thrilling, but never obscures the action nor does it try to take away from the inherent power of the story.

The Return of the King, like its predecessors, remains nearly 100% faithful to the themes and intent of Tolkien’s story while still taking cinematic license with specific elements. As most of you know, the great Christopher Lee does not make an appearance as Saruman. The Scouring of the Shire never takes place. And Sam never wears the one ring. But these minor differences aside, Jackson and the cast succeed in capturing the sadness, wonder, and beauty that make the end of the trilogy what it is.