Movie : The Lord of the Rings : The Two Towers
Director : Peter Jackson
Starring : Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom, Miranda Otto, Liv Tyler, Christopher Lee
The Plot
I have never read any of J.R. Tolkein’s books. If I had I would have enjoyed this movie better. So many characters in the plot made me lose touch with certain aspects of the story. So, for those who have not yet read Tolkein, I will reproduce the plot as mentioned in the website Sreenit.com -
When we last saw the Fellowship of the Ring, one of its members was dead, another - the wizard Gandalf (IAN McKELLEN) - seemingly fell to his death saving the others, and the rest had split up into various groups.
The bearer of the Ring, Frodo Baggins (ELIJAH WOOD) is still attempting to make his way to Mordor with his friend and fellow Hobbit, Sam (SEAN ASTIN), where they plan on destroying the ring once and for all. They’re soon accompanied by Gollum (voice of ANDY SERKIS), an emaciated little creature who once possessed the ring. Suffering from a split personality disorder, he offers to help lead them to Mordor, but his evil side apparently has different plans. They eventually run into Faramir (DAVID WENHAM), the brother of a slain member of the Fellowship, while on their way.
Then there’s Merry (DOMINIC MONAGHAN) and Pippin (BILLY BOYD), other hobbits who were captured by the forces commanded by evil wizard Saruman (CHRISTOPHER LEE) who still plots on ruling Middle Earth and is building an army of monstrous Uruks to assist him. The hobbits eventually escape, but soon find themselves under the wary eye of Treebeard (voice of JOHN RHYS-DAVIES), an ancient and gargantuan tree-shepherd who wonders if they work for Saruman and are responsible for the heavy deforestation that’s occurring.
Meanwhile, human Aragorn (VIGGO MORTENSEN), elf Legolas (ORLANDO BLOOM) and dwarf Gimli (JOHN RHYS-DAVIES) are on their trail, hoping to save the hobbits. They eventually make their way into the Kingdom of Rohan where King Theoden (BERNARD HILL) has been put under a spell by Saruman and is controlled by his court advisor, Wormtongue (BRAD DOURIF).
With the king’s son dead, his niece and nephew, Eowyn (MIRANDA OTTO) and Eomer (KARL URBAN), now doubt the king’s abilities, particularly with Saruman’s forces closing in. Once the King is freed from his spell, things improve and they head off for the cliff fortress at Helm’s Deep where they hope to make a stand against the approaching hordes. Eowyn sees much in Aragorn, but he still longs for Arwen (LIV TYLER), his elf lover, who must make a decision about whether to leave with the rest of the departing elves, or stay with him and face his mortality.
With Saruman’s massive forces making their way through the land and toward the fortress, the various groups continue on their quest to defeat the evil wizard and eventually return the Ring to its point of origin where it can be destroyed once and for all.
(lengthy, wasn’t it? sorry!)
The Review
There’s something magical about mythological characters that attracts me immensely - those ancient costumes with armour, deadly bows & arrows, handsome quick horses, powerful good wizards, the ceaseless war against evil, beautiful princess at the castle anxiously awaiting the safe return of her knight...I recall making crude bow & arrow with broom sticks & strings as a kid and scaring the daylights of the birds!
So, if these characters can be successfully brought alive on a 70-mm screen, that’s great! Which is why director Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies based on Tolkein’s novel is an absolute treat to watch. The Two Towers, to me, is better than it’s predecessor The Fellowship of the Ring.
Peter brings out inspiring performances from his cast & crew.
We have some cool camerawork of breathtaking snow-capped mountains, rivers & valleys.
The special effects & makeup are excellent - walking trees, the chilling faceless dark lord atop his flying creature, hideous looking evil warriors or even the ugly & feeble hobbit Gollum who’s always fighting with his own conscience.
Among the cast, the performances that twinkle in memory are those of Ian McKellen, hero Elijah Wood, Sean Astin and Bernard Hill. Others like the handsome Viggo Mortensen & Orlando Bloom and the pretty Liv Tyler & Miranda Otto also impresses.
I would have loved to play Orlando’s character, the swift & sharp elf bowman Legolas. By the way, the siege of the cliff fortress by the evil warriors is one of the best sieges I’ve seen in movies. It betters the siege shown in The Kingdom of Heaven also starring Orlando Bloom. I’m sure he’ll agree with me!
Final word
A 4/5 movie - The only flaw I see? The showdown between the trees & the evil wizard Saruman’s army at the Two Towers lacked that captivating touch. It was a slight let down.
Anyway, an enjoyable entertainer no doubt.