Anyone who read my opinion on the first instalment of the LOTR trilogy will know I'd been eagerly awaiting these films since first reading the books around 10 years ago. The Fellowship of the Ring movie last year had only further whetted my appetite for the sequels (why, oh why do we have to wait a year?) All bar one of my friends from home had thoroughly enjoyed the first movie, so with release of the second set for December 18th and a new Odeon cinema to try out in Colchester, the Two Towers seemed the obvious occasion for a Christmas reunion.
Unfortunately I hadn't managed to download the trailer from the official site (see end of opinion). Having read the books and seen the first film, I had a good idea what to expect though. Perhaps that doesn't apply to everyone - I heard (and I hope it's just an urban myth) that some people in America protested against this cash in on 9/11! Obviously unaware the book was published in 1954-5 and the film mostly finished before the terrorist attacks on the twin towers in New York (the trilogy was largely filmed all at once in New Zealand, they've since been working on special effects, editing etc and releasing the films at a rate of one a year)
The Film
Obviously, based on J. R. R. Tolkien's book, with screenplay by Frances Walsh and directed by Peter Jackson. It reunites the original cast (or rather, continues with them - as I said it was all filmed at once, which should ensure continuity), including Elijah Wood as Frodo, Ian McKellan as Gandalf and Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn.
For full credits, see: http://us.imdb.com/Credits?0167261#writers
The Plot
I don't want to give too much away, but I assume anyone interested has at least seen the first film, if not read the whole trilogy. A variety of taglines have been used, but I didn't think 'This Christmas The Journey Continues in The Two Towers'; particularly appropriate (more blatant commercialism). To recap the first film, a fellowship of nine heroic adventurers had been assembled in Rivendell to destroy the one ring of Sauron. At the end of the first film, the fellowship lies broken and scattered, and we last see Frodo and Sam sailing off alone (a point many criticised the first film for this anti-climax - get the point, we're only a third of the way through!)
This film follows the separate adventures of Frodo and Sam journeying towards Mordor with Gollum, Merry and Pippin captive of the orcs and Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli getting caught up in events in Rohan. I have to say, there's actually an awful lot going on, and at times it may be difficult to follow without having any background knowledge (from having read the book) - also remember this film is the middle part of a trilogy, so don't expect much of a proper beginning or end.
Back to the Film
I was worried how some of the effects would come off, particularly the ents (tree people) (the troll being my only real gripe with the first film). In fact, the ents were as good as could be expected - I thought they were perhaps a little cartoony, and also thought they ought to have been bigger (the size of the trees), but I couldn't really have expected better. Much the same goes for the Mumakil (what the hobbits call an 'oliphant'). If anyone has MERP (Middle Earth Role Play) it's perhaps worth noting almost all the creatures (though not the characters) are pretty much as illustrated in there - maybe my imagination was just wrong on some of them!
Gollum also worried me, and I had the feeling he could be the Jar Jar Binks of LOTR; but that proved (largely) unfounded. Apparently all his scenes were filmed three times - once with Frodo, Sam and a man in a suit, again just Frodo and Sam and finally just Andy Serkis (who played Gollum) before using lots of impressive computer graphics.
The acting was again impressive, and with the effects made everything pretty believable. Gollum's schizophrenic talking to himself was particularly effective, and him and Gimli (who seems to have become slightly Scottish) provided a couple of comic moments. Otherwise no one particularly stood out for me - there were several lingering looks between Aragorn and Eowyn though, and I think the romantic elements were deliberately played up for the screen (One of my friends currently reading LOTR tells me, despite Aragorn, Arwen and Eowyn, there's no mention of love until 80 pages from the end of Return of the King…)
Generally speaking, in fact, the story departs slightly from the book. In the books, it isn't until Two Towers that Boromir dies (which happened in the first film) - this film actually cuts slightly short of the book though, the director obviously choosing to leave Frodo and Sam at a different point (which I think less of a cliff-hanger, but perhaps better point to pause the film). There are a couple of other differences, most particularly the already mentioned romance and the hobbits going to Gondor (I believe Faramir releases them before they ever get that far in the book).
As I suggested earlier, someone without any knowledge may have difficulty understanding what's going on - this is despite the use of voiceovers and characters saying things just to explain events (which I found a bit grating, but then I knew what was happening). A large amount of the second half of the film is simply battle scenes however, which aren't too heavy on plot but can be just as confusing. I have to say they were brilliant though. While I wasn't always too sure about the individual orcs or trolls, as a huge horde the effects were brilliant - and apparently the attack on Helm's Deep took five weeks to film. These scenes may be scary for younger children - but anyone who's ever enjoyed Dungeons & Dragons, Warhammer, etc should love them.
Any other comments? I have to say I had a few more minor gripes. Just about every time I noticed the musical score, it seemed a bit heavy-handed and inappropriate. Several effects (horses through the Rohir halls, Legolas sliding on a shield down the stairs) seemed a bit far-fetched, and though I enjoyed a few comic touches I think some things were put in for laughs when they needn't have been.
Overall Verdict
Compared to the first film, this probably isn't quite as good. Ok, I sat there for most of the time with a great big grin on my face as the events of the book unfolded in spectacular fashion in front of me, but then I've always liked the whole fantasy thing anyway. I imagine most people will find this slightly less appealing than the Fellowship. Further, my critical faculties did have a number of small problems with this film - discussed above. Being the middle section of the trilogy, it doesn't work as well as a stand alone film either, and this probably costs it the vital 5th * in my review - hopefully when it comes to watching the trilogy as a whole (once the DVDs are out, I will happily sit through a 10 hour LOTR-fest!) this will be a brilliant part of the whole, but it doesn't stand on it's own quite as well.
Rating: 12a (this is a relatively new rating which I had to look up. It replaces 12 apparently and means children are allowed accompanied by an adult. It's up to you whether you think your children are mature enough, but bear in mind both scenes of fantasy violence and the long duration - the first film carried a warning it may be unsuitable for under 8s; this is certainly scarier) Duration: 179 minutes (creeping just under that 3 hour mark then ;) http://us.imdb.com/Title?0167261 http://www.lordoftherings.net/ two_towers/two_towers.html
Sad fact: J. R. R. Tolkien (1892-1973) would have been eleventy-one on Jan 3rd
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Action/Adventure - Director: Peter Jackson - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring:Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Liv Tyler, Sean Astin, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Andy Serkis
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Jan 8th, 2003
(Sep 3rd, 2005)
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