The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Storyline is an excellent film that many consider one of the best movies ever made. It has inspired many authors and directors and even expanded into other media, including games, toys, and comics. This article will provide you with an overview of the film’s storyline and a review for each of its 10 chapters.
Contents
All About Of the Return of the King Storyline and Short Reviews
Sméagol and Déagol are fishing when the One Ring is discovered in the river. Psychopathic Sméagol kills his cousin. He retreats into the Misty Mountains and becomes Gollum.
Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, and King Théoden of Rohan visit Merry and Pippin in Isengard. The group returns to Edoras after obtaining Saruman’s Palantir. Pippin sees Sauron and a burning tree. He flies to Minas Tirith to inform Gondor’s steward Denethor about the impending attack. Pippin ignites the beacons, which call for Rohan’s help.
Frodo and Sam travel to Mordor, unaware that their new guide, Gollum, plans to betray them and seize the Ring. The Witch-king of Angmar, Lord of the Nine Nazgûl, invades Gondor. Frodo, influenced by the Ring’s rising power, sends Sam home. Gollum then lures Frodo into Shelob’s cave.
Frodo falls into a chasm after fighting Gollum. Sam returns to Shelob, paralyzing and confining him, weeping at Frodo’s apparent death. When Orcs grab Frodo, Sam realizes his mistake and rescues him while Orcs fight. The hobbits now go to Mordor’s Mount Doom.
Elrond notifies Aragorn that Arwen is dying. Elrond presents Aragorn Andril, reforged from King Elendil’s sword Narsil’s parts. Aragorn promises to liberate the afflicted spirits if they aid Gondor.
A suicide assault injures Faramir, and Denethor goes crazy believing his son is dead. Invasion of the Orc army by Gandalf. Denethor intends to burn himself on a pyre to rescue Faramir. Denethor dies in agony.
Théoden’s army battles the Orcs. The Haradrim kill the Orcs, and the Witch-king wounded Théoden, but his niece Éowyn kills him with Merry’s help. Théréeoden dies. Aragorn defeats Sauron’s army with his Army of the Dead.
The Dead are liberated after their task. The hobbits can ascend Mount Doom because Aragorn is distracting Sauron from Frodo and Sam.
However, Frodo penetrates the mountain. He gives up his finger in the Ring’s power, but Gollum reclaims it. They plummet together. Sam rescues Frodo, but Gollum perishes in the lava. Mount Doom erupts as Sauron dies, and enemies escape.
The Climax of the Movie
The climax of the movie is the Battle of Helm’s Deep. It is a very intense scene, and it is very well portrayed in the movie. The scene has a lot of action, and the music makes it even more intense. The whole battle is shown from Helm’s Deep’s point of view, and it shows how well Aragorn defended his kingdom against Sauron’s army.
This battle shows how effective defense can be, even against an army as large as Sauron’s. The battle is also very well matched with the music, and it makes Helm’s Deep seem like a real fortress.
This part shows how important Éomer was to his armies’ success: He is proven to organize such an army in just half a year while taking a proper three-month holiday. On the other hand, he is proven incompetent by his inability to bring up supplies only a year and a half into Helm’s Deep’s construction, while it was expected to run out of water not more than four months in advance.
During this scene, Éomer forgets Pipp’s identity and takes his horse out of the stable. This demonstrates why Aragorn gave him queenly duties despite being a lesser lord and his loyalty to Pippin in Game Of Thrones II: The Kingkiller Session – Éomer!.
This scene shows Gond Orian archers’ ability to pick the right spots. They were able to hit Sauron even when he was “flying.”
The Story Behind the Movie
The story behind the movie is just as epic. It covers so many great events that happened in Middle-earth’s history and expands upon them greatly (Frontier).
At first, most of Book Three followed closely on the heels of “The Hobbit” itself: a prologue summarising how Gandalf found pine-trees growing amid Isengard; a chapter that reinstated Saruman but did not return to Middle-earth after his removal from Orthanc and imprisonment by Gandalf followed by Legolas shooting an arrow at Orthanc, thus exposing Sauron’s presence there once more; ushers for two “strange riders” (Gandalf and Strider) appearing in the Shire.
Gandalf then orders Thorin’s Company to continue with their quest, not even stopping short of Grey Eagle River but passing over Needle Creek instead – a significant departure from the book as Gandalf says this is because there are too few ponies left in the Shire.
The second chapter addresses Thorin’s quest itself and features a friendly conversation with Stone-foot about dragon sickness (chapter XI), where Bilbo observes that orcs come along as companions.
Production
The Lord of the Rings film series was the first to have three different installments written and made simultaneously, and it continues to be the most successful (excluding pick-up shoots).
Because it contains the culmination of the narrative, Jackson thought The Return of the King to be the most straightforward of the films to create.
The Return of the King was initially intended to be the second of two planned films under Miramax from January 1997 to August 1998, and it was intended to be more or less in its completed structure as the first film would conclude with the Battle of Helm’s Deep in The Two Towers.
Production took place in New Zealand between October 11, 1999, and December 22, 2000, with a six-week pick-up shoot in 2003 before the film’s release. Filming took place under several units around the country.
The first two sections of the film were shot in New Zealand and Iceland, while front-facing and car scenes were filmed on sets built at Halen Haller.
Thorin Oakenshield’s character is based upon Isaac Newton and a young Brian Blessed. The Stone-foot hobbit at the chat of dragon Sick was based on Brian Blessed and a young Matthew Broderick as “Randy” from War Games.
In this chapter, Peter Jackson shot the remaining scenes for New Zealand, Iceland, and Northern Ireland with little to no visible CGI. The New Zealand chapter was filmed in Uruk, but this sequence had to be reshot at a second location.
Jackson said that the second time around, he also felt it necessary to show more of the river where people are drowning and use new camera techniques such as high close-ups.
The Cast and Characters of the Film
There is no verbatim adaptation of Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings in this film; the script was modified from Tolkien’s novel.
MacDonald went on to say, “In addition, there are significant portions of the story that have been removed – for example, there is a crucial section of Bilbo living until chapter 9 when Frodo kills him, and then we jump to the Burrow with Sam and the Ring.
There was a significant amount of information that needed to be trimmed — we’ve got a long tale, but most of it has been condensed into a few minutes.”
Elijah Wood Plays Frodo Baggins.
The One Ring is inherited by a young hobbit from his uncle Bilbo, also known as the One Ring. Wood was the first actor cast in the film, premiering on July 7, 1999. In his audition video, Wood dressed up as Frodo Baggins and spoke lines from the novel, demonstrating his enthusiasm for the book. Wood was selected from a group of 150 other artists. Jake Gyllenhaal tested out for the role but was ultimately passed over.
Ian Mckellen as Gandalf the Grey.
Sean Connery was called, but he refused because he didn’t understand the idea, while Patrick Stewart was rejected because he didn’t like the screenplay. Both actors were unavailable for comment. Patrick McGoohan was also considered, but he could not participate due to health reasons.
Christopher Plummer also turned the role down. Neill was also interested, but he declined to consider a conflict with his upcoming role in Jurassic Park III. McKellen had to iron out his calendar with 20th Century Fox before being cast since he had a two-month overlap with the X-Men filming schedule.
It was believed that Russell Crowe might be a suitable alternative, but the actor rejected it because he did not want to be typecast and since the role in Gladiator was seen to be similar. The role was offered to Day-Lewis in a second attempt, but he declined the offer.
Mortensen was in a play when Mark Ordesky, the executive producer, spotted him. Mortensen’s son, who happens to be a book enthusiast, pushed him to take the role. After finishing the airplane book and getting a crash course in fencing from Bob Anderson, Mortensen began filming the Weathertop scenes in earnest.
In part, because he patched up his clothing and carried his “hero” sword off-camera, Mortensen gained popularity among the cast and crew.
Sean Astin Portrays the Character of Samwise Gamgee.
In addition to being Frodo’s best friend, he is also a hobbit gardener. Astin, who had just become a father, forged a protective bond with Wood, who was 18 at the time, as Sam’s connection with Frodo.
Boromir Is a Fictional Character Created by Author Boromir (Sean Bean)
He is a son of the Stewards of Gondor, and he accompanies the Fellowship on their journey to Mordor in The Lord of the Rings. As a fan of the book, Bruce Willis expresses an interest in playing the role, while Liam Neeson was offered the role but turned it down.
Orlando Bloom as Legolas Greenleaf
Orlando Bloom auditioned for the role of Legolas. Although he was not short-listed, Christopher Lee cast him as Sir Argo in a stage production of Beowulf, after which Warner Bros hired Orlando to play the elf’s most loyal and beloved companion.
Overall Reviews
Although “The Lord of the Rings” and “are both adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien’s books, they contain minor but significant changes to certain story elements, sometimes necessary to accommodate a workable plot line or provide an alternative explanation for otherwise illogical actions on the part of the characters.
Despite these changes, the two films are still considered in serial continuity and continue the same story on different timelines. As both The Lord of the Rings film trilogy and “strongly emphasize that all three works belong together, they can’t exist.
Fan of the Movie
Random House Kappa printed 15,000 copies of the book, initially released in 2000. More than 5 million copies of the narrative have already been sold in 31 languages throughout Europe, Asia, and Oceania.
Worldwide Pants adapted it into a film in 2010. Peter Jackson directed the picture, which cost a whopping $120 million to make. Gandalf the Grey is played by Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen plays Aragorn, and Elijah Wood plays Frodo Baggins.
Sean Astin (Samwise Gamgee), Orlando Bloom (Auric Goldfinger), and Dominic Monaghan (Auric Goldfinger) star in the film (Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring).
Critics Analysis
Empire’s Alan Morrison awarded the picture an excellent five-star rating. In his review, he praised Peter Jackson for “keeping the series’s momentum rolling on and on through the traditionally ‘difficult’ middle part and ‘weak’ finale.
Delivering a climax to the story that’s neater and more affecting than what Tolkien managed on the printed page,” and for “keeping the momentum of the series rolling on and on through the traditionally ‘difficult’ middle part and ‘weak’ finale, delivering a climax “Those who have walked with these heroes every step of the way on such a lengthy trip deserve the emotional pay-off as well as the action peaks,” Morrison said, “and they will be affected when the closing credits roll.”
The film received three and a half stars from Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times, who described it as “such a culminating accomplishment, such a visionary use of all the instruments of visual effects, such a pure spectacle, that it can be appreciated even by individuals who have not watched the other two films.” Time magazine’s Richard Corliss called it the greatest picture of the year.
The biggest complaint leveled against The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King was its length, especially the epilogue; even positive reviewers remarked on the film’s length. In his review for the film (which he rated an ‘A’), Joel Siegel of Good Morning America said: “It would be my finest picture of the year if it didn’t take 45 minutes to finish.
As it is, it’s simply one of cinema’s greatest triumphs.” The advent of the Army of the Dead, which ended the Battle of the Pelennor Fields quickly, was also criticized.
Visual Effects
The Return of the King has 1,489 visual effects shots, approximately three times the first film’s and twice the second’s combined. Jim Rygiel was once again the visual effects supervisor. In November 2002, Alan Lee and Mark Lewis started combining pictures of New Zealand terrain to create the digital arena of the Pelennor Fields.
They had to record 450 movements for the MASSIVE digital horses (but deaths were animated) and retake a scene of two mûmakil Éomer taking down that had initially taken six months in two days. A Canadian firm scanned Shelob’s head sculpture in ten times more detail than Weta could previously capture.
The King of the Dead is portrayed by a prosthetic actor whose head periodically changes into a more skull-like computerized version. The Mouth of Sauron’s mouth was additionally expanded 200 percent for impact.
Many miniatures were made to portray Jackson’s fantasy world, such as a 7m high and 6.5m circular 1:72 size model of Minas Tirith. The Extended Edition scene of the falling City of the Dead features 80,000 miniature skulls totaling one cubic meter.
After 1000 days of filming, the miniatures crew finished the Black Gate in November, and the Ring’s destruction was filmed on November 25.
Imdb and Rotten Tomatoes
The Return of the King, like its predecessors, was universally acclaimed. The film has a 93 percent approval rating on the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 8.70/10.
“The Lord of the Rings – The Return of the King is a poignant and rewarding climax to a wonderful trilogy,” say reviews on the website. Based on 41 reviews, Metacritic scores the film 94 out of 100, signifying “universal acclaim.” CinemaScore rated the picture a rare “A+” on a scale of A+ to F.
The picture grossed $377,027,325 in the US and Canada and $763,654,686 elsewhere, totaling $1,140,682,011.
It is the highest-grossing picture of 2003, the second-highest-grossing film of the 2000s, the highest-earning film of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the highest-grossing film ever produced by New Line Cinema.
It was Time Warner’s highest-grossing picture for eight years until Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 beat it in 2011. With over $1 billion in worldwide sales, it was the second most grossing picture of all time. Box Office Mojo says the picture sold over 61 million tickets in its first US run.
Conclusion
If you haven’t seen the Lord of the Rings trilogy, this blog post is for you. It’s a detailed explanation of the story and themes of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, and a review on how it compares to its two predecessors, The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. This series has captivated audiences for decades and will continue to do so for years to come.
FAQs
1.Which Characters Are Good and Which Ones Are Bad?
Ans: There is no correct answer to this question. Everyone sees things differently, and your opinions may change decade by decade. One could argue that the books make Aragorn’s personality ambiguous. His character is complicated and thus should be trusted as better than a stereotyped hero with obvious redeeming qualities or think Gandalf.
2.What Is the Most Important Scene in the Movie?
Ans: Several scenes have an important impact on the story. I’m quoting from memory, so there could be some disputable points, but here goes:
1) Feint attack with raft and murder of Faramir – this set up Legolas’s need for Gollum, Gimli’s quest to the Eye of Sauron and Frodo’s decision not to destroy Gollum.
2) The Limbo scene does get longer than the version in Fellowship, but this is about how evil has won over good for Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli.
3.What Is the Longest Lotr Book?
Ans: As this is not a detailed feature article comparing each film with the books, I researched the question and found my findings. The Return of the King, published in 2003, is 166 pages longer than Fellowship (published in 1977) and Two Towers (published in 1998).
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