When I was seven years old, I remember what is only the second memory I have of ever being in a movie theater. The first, when I was six, was when I saw Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones a movie that can only be described as imperfect. However, the next movie I saw is a movie that in many ways would be quintessential film of my childhood. When I sat down in the theater for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, I thought that 201 minutes was a long time. What I learned is just how much entertainment can be forced into that period of time. I remember seeing the previous two, but it was in that theater that it was decided that at least once a year, I would watch all 12 hours of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. In my youth, the first and third installments were the films that dominated my parents DVD player. I couldn’t tell you how many copies of those movies I went through. However, as I got older, my appreciation for those films maxed out. They are perfect movies. The middle installment was the one I always struggled to get through. It was just the one that I had to watch in order for my OCD to allow me to move onto The Return of the King.
In my young adulthood though, it became clear to me that it might actually be the best of all three. I will first admit it is an infinitesimally small gap between all three, but if you pointed a gun at my head today, I would rank them 2, 3, 1. The thing that The Two Towers does so well is two fold, and they both are derived by the fact that it is a perfectly tuned middle installment.
Let’s start with the fact that The Fellowship of the Ring is a perfect movie. It introduces several characters and establishes the trajectory that they will go on during this story. The thing that The Two Towers does that makes it just as good, is that it takes those characters to their logical next step, as well as introduce the audience to more new characters. The story continues the development of Aragorn, Arwen, Frodo, Gimli, Legolas, Meriadoc, Pippen, and Samwise so effectively. However, it also effortlessly introduces and develops characters like Eomer, Eowyn, Faramir, Theoden, and most impressively, the character Gollum.
Aside from the characters (which is the focus of this story), the world building at hand in this film, is the strongest at any point in the movie. The first movie is understandably hyper-focused on introducing the characters and their adventure. This film however, does an incredible job of introducing the idea that their adventure has stakes outside of the characters themselves. The kingdom of Rohan is a truly brilliant allegory for a smaller state that is caught in the middle of a war that they had no role in starting, and the way it gives us moments to spend with the peasants, the soldiers, the mothers and sons and daughters and fathers. It makes moments like the death of some random elf with ten minutes of screen time, feel significant. It makes the audience genuinely feel with Aragorn when he sees all of his dead brothers and sisters in arms (LOTR is the most based piece of literature ever-come at me).
If you need anymore proof that (from a technical POV) this movie is perfect, look no further than the scene where Gollum and Sméagol are debating the merits of not killing Frodo. First off, the CGI at hand was considered a technological break through at the time. This, lead to the performance. Captured in CGI, the performance by Andy Serkis is truly Oscar-worthy. Along with the cinematography being used to show the contrast between the two characters on screen, I don’t think that scene could have been any better.
However, all of that cinematic achievement is not why this movie rises above its counterparts in the trilogy. Rather this one is the most honest. In The Fellowship of The Ring, we see the characters get leveled by their circumstances. In The Return of The King, we see them triumph over their circumstances to victory. The reason that The Two Towers is so profound in its story is because it meets the characters in their exhaustion. Whether it be Frodo and Samwise’s mental exhaustion, Aragorns physical exhaustion, or King Theoden’s emotional exhaustion, we as the audience are left asking throughout the story, “Why are they even trying?” This movie is not interested in asking “Who…” or, “What…” This movie is far more concerned with establishing that the characters who we are watching all have breaking points, and whether now, or later, they will be broken. It’s what makes Samwise’s words at the end so powerful. He simply reminds that even though they are in misery now, “there’s good in this world, and it’s worth fighting for.”
Sawyer Huelat 