The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

It's precious, it is! The second in the Lord of the Rings trilogy is stunning, but how well does the film come together? Full review with media.

Well on its way to becoming one of the greatest achievements in cinema history with last year's first instalment, film maker Peter Jackson's grand realization of The Lord of the Rings epic by JRR Tolkien continues with The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

Gollum (aka Smeagol) steals the show in The Two Towers.

Those who found Fellowship a ponderous opening act will be happier with the quickened pace and expanded scope of TTT. It certainly surpasses the first film in terms of wit, action, spectacle and narrative drive.

TTT follows several story lines that introduce new characters, take the viewer to new parts of Middle Earth and build to thunderous climaxes that moviegoers will long remember. The performances continue to be richer and more satisfying than one expects in such a fantastic tale; the special effects, including two wonderful new CGI characters, are tremendous and the pacing is tighter than 'Fellowship', though they are the same length.

For those familiar with the 1,300-page book that has been marketed as a trilogy since the 1960s, TTT is assurance that next Christmas' Return of the King should be a truly glorious event.

With no explanation for trilogy newcomers, the story picks up almost exactly where 'Fellowship' ended, with the original adventurers separated and Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) facing the next perilous journey alone. All we see from the first film is the wizard Gandalf's (Ian McKellen) apparently fatal plunge into the centre of the earth as he battles the fiery Balrog monster - a masterful special effects scene and a triumph of modern technology and artistic imagination.

It is truly a breathtaking moment when you see so many soldiers on screen at one time. Scenes of this scale appear frequently in The Two Towers.

Frodo's goal is the destruction of the One Ring, in the pit where it was forged, thereby stopping the resurrection of the disembodied Sauron, who has given his wicked wizard Saruman (Christopher Lee) the task of wiping out beauty, peace and freedom among humans, hobbits and their friends.

The movie criss-crosses from place to place as Frodo and Sam struggle towards Mordor, led by the devious and hate-filled Gollum - once a Hobbit-like being named Smeagol, but corrupted and driven mad by possession of the ring that Frodo now carries; friends Pippin (Billy Boyd) and Merry (Dominic Monaghan) make their way through a magical forest overseen by ancient tree-like beings called Ents; and the race by dwarf Gimli (voice of John Rhys-Davies), Legolas (Orlando Bloom) and Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) to save their friends. Many of the new characters and the relationships forged in this film will figure conspicuously in The Return of the King.

The three strands are woven tightly together, cutting swiftly back and forth, building to a crescendo of incredible sustained fury, first with the amazingly vivid and violent Helm's Deep war - the battle between the Fellowship's partisans and the vicious Orc legions of Saruman - then with Frodo, Sam and Gollum's successful penetration of Mordor.

Gandalf the Grey is now Gandalf the White. And he's got the Loréal to prove it.

Plot complexities are explained in part with flashbacks, flash-forwards and narrative recaps. It is possible the tale could confuse some who are not familiar with the books, but even non-readers of Tolkien stand to be swept up in the film's urgent pace and emotional intensity - not to mention its breathtaking visual riches.

Just as he did in part one, Jackson has been enormously faithful to Tolkein's original story - but also inventive and cinematically ingenious in his translation and compression. He has made more changes here than in part one, but none that destroys its sense and sensibilities. Jackson keeps the three hour sequel racing along with maximum drive and tension.

"You stupid, fat hobbit!" - Two Towers also has its fair share of humour, markedly improved over the first film.

One of the movie's great triumphs is the outstanding special effects, including two astonishing CG characters: firstly and most amazingly is the spindly limbed Gollum, a creature who's completely computer generated, based on the body and voice of actor Andy Serkis. Gollum is shocking in his authenticity and is by far the most expressive, least mechanical CG figure ever seen on screen and one of the movie's most engrossing characters. Secondly, is Treebeard, (voiced by John Rhys-Davies) leader of the Ents. Very tall and more tree than human, even though he moves and talks like a human. And the thrilling battle of Helm's Deep is one of the finest, most expansive combat sequences ever filmed.

Here is a movie, like Fellowship of the Ring, that's packed to the brim with wonders, chock-full of rip-roaring action, breathtaking landscapes, intoxicating spectacle and full-blooded characters - as heady a mix of fantasy and high adventure as we've ever seen - visions to haunt your dreams and action to set your heart pounding; vast and bloody battle scenes, whimsical comedy, macabre horrors and shimmering beauties.

If you haven't seen it yet, why not?

John Gold
DVD Reviewer, Kikizo Movies