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Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King Dir: Peter Jackson Rating: M Now showing absolutely everywhere 
‘The Return Of The King’ is almost above criticism. After all, it’s the final installment in one of cinema’s best loved series. It’s hard to imagine that anyone would this without having seen ‘The Fellowship Of The Ring’ or ‘The Two Towers’, so the audience’s desire for closure would be enough in itself to allow the film to surf to a conclusion even if Peter Jackson had somehow dropped the ball in the final yards. Of course, he doesn’t. ‘…King’, like its predecessors, is a stunning film, visually lush and filled with magnificent performances from what is, after all, possibly the best-cast ensemble in cinema history. Elijah Wood stumbles through the film as the much put-upon Frodo, creeping through Mordor to destroy the Ring with faithful sidekick Sam (Sean Astin) and the duplicitous Gollum (Andy Serkis) while fellow Hobbits Pippin and Merry (Billy Boyd and Dominic Monaghan) are reunited with the wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellan), the heroic Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Gimli the dwarf (John Rhys-Davies) and Legolas the elf (Orlando Bloom) as they prepare for the final assault of the forces of the evil Sauron against Gondor, the last kingdom of men. If the emotional weight of the first two films was carried almost entirely by Wood, it is in the last chapter that his co-stars truly shine: Aragorn, as the titular returning King, is given weight by Mortensen’s stellar performance, and Miranda Otto is one of the surprise stars of the film as Eowyn comes into her own for some seriously ass-kicking action. Bernard Hill is also magnificent as the redeemed King Theoden, leading his men into a battle they know they can’t win. However, it is Sean Astin’s Sam Gamgee that is the heart of the film, literally carrying Frodo to Mount Doom to destroy the ring. The rest of the cast are no slouches, mind: McKellen is typically excellent, Ian Holm returns for a welcome cameo as the much-aged Bilbo, Cate Blanchett is suitably ethereal as Galandrial while Hugo Weaving gives Elrond new depth and passion beneath his elvish exterior. Merry and Pippen are separated for the final chapter and each is given a chance to shine but Gimli and Legolas are reduced to little more than comic relief as they flank Aragorn. However, the pair are still excellent throughout; particularly as they continue to tally up their victims during the battle scenes (a running gag Jackson introduced in the first film). Serkis’ Gollum is again the de-facto star here, giving a nuanced and expressive performance that would be stunning for an actor and hard to believe possible in a computer-gnerated character (and, as with the other films, makes you wish that Industrial Light & Magic had half of the talent of Jackson’s effects house Weta. Maybe then the Star Wars prequels wouldn’t have been so much hokum –yeah, you heard me, Jar-Jar). Serkis also appears on screen in human form in the film’s opening scene, a flashback of the discovery of the ring by his alter-ego Smeagol. Yes, there’s still been huge chunks of plot excised (no battle for the Shire, for example) and Christopher Lee was famously furious at his scenes as Sauruman being cut - but hell, it’s already over three hours long. And, despite what some angry nerds on internet bulletin boards would have you believe, there hasn’t been any dramatic change to the ending. But let’s face it: you’ve probably already seen it, and if you haven’t I’m probably not going to change your mind. That Jackson can fill the screen with spectacle - the battle scenes are jaw-dropping in their scope - and yet still keep a handle on the characters and their relationships means that it’s a visual and emotional rollercoaster ride from start to finish, and a more than worthy coda to the series. |
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