Lord of the Rings: Return of the King

[Guy Berger]

I'm so psyched about this... I've got my 8:15 PM Wednesday night tickets.

Guy

[Joe G]

Hell yes! I saw the extended Two Towers last Friday, and it was like a new movie! All the stuff that didn't make sense in the first release was now clear. I might go see the new one on Wednesday too.

[Adam]

I saw the extended Two Towers last night at the Cinerama DOme, but I had already seen it on DVD. It really is a better film than teh original theatrical version.

But I'm off to England. What's the best movie theatre in London to see Return of the King?

[undergroundagent]

The new one is suppose to be the best yet. A buddy of mine saw the Toronto premiere last Monday and said it was excellent...you'll walk away impressed apparently!

[Joe G]

Just got back from seeing this. Wow. Some very stunning scenes, especially the climax in Mordor. Those Nazgul were sure messin' some people up, too. I could sense that a lot of stuff had hit the cutting room floor, as things would be shown that weren't explained. I'm looking forward to the extended version for the missing scenes. But this movie was a very good finale, I'd say. I'm sure it will take a day or two to digest it.

[Jim Alfredson]

My sis said that Jackson had to leave over an hour of footage on the floor for theatrical release. You can bet your booty it'll be on the DVD.

[Guy Berger]

Just got back from seeing this. Wow. Some very stunning scenes, especially the climax in Mordor. Those Nazgul were sure messin' some people up, too. I could sense that a lot of stuff had hit the cutting room floor, as things would be shown that weren't explained. I'm looking forward to the extended version for the missing scenes. But this movie was a very good finale, I'd say. I'm sure it will take a day or two to digest it.

That was my feeling as well. I thought the ending was terrific, Jackson really did justice to Tolkien's vision.

And the battle of Pelennor Fields.... let's just say Helm's Deep was a joke in comparison.

Guy

[chris]

I have to agree-- Return of the King was awesome and captured the spirit of the book quite well. Missing at least one sequence that I really REALLY wish Jackson had filmed, but I knew it wasn't going to be there from the beginning.

I guess I have some minor quibbles about a few other things I would have liked to see (I'm not into the movie having to be exactly the same as the book, but there were a few things I wanted to see MORE of in the movie), but definitely a fantastic movie experience in my opinion.

Can't WAIT for the extended DVD version!

Strange thing was-- I showed up an hour early. Theatre seemed almost deserted. I thought "hmm" and got a drink and headed for the theatre-- it was already full a full hour before the show. The theatre was spacing the showings out and staggering multiple screens so people wouldn't line up so much outside the theatre. Luckily I saw some friends there so I didn't end up in the neck-bending seats up front.

[Alexander]

I saw it Tuesday night at a midnight showing. I also had the sense that a great deal had been cut for time (getting it down to a "mere" three and a half hours), I too was blown away. I didn't check my watch ONCE (haven't had that happen in a long movie since I saw "Lawrence of Arabia"). As great as Gollum was in "The Two Towers," I thought they did an even BETTER job on the animation in this one. He was absolutely flawless. After a while, I completely forgot that he was an animated character. Frodo and Sam's battle with Shelob was great too.

I'm sad for the loss of Sauriman in this film, but I know the character will get his final scene in the DVD edtion, so I'm not too broken up about it. Frankly, there's so much happening in this film, you never notice that he's not there.

The only thing that marred my experience was three assholes in the back row who evidently didn't know how long this film would be, because they kept groaning towards the end when the film kept on going. Finally, I turned around and said: "You know, if you'd read the book, you'd have seen this coming." The people sitting around me cheered.

[Brad]

Not more buzz about this movie? It's incredible. The only time I looked at my watch was when I ran to the bathroom. It was riveting. I don't mind telling you that I had a tear in my eye when Aragorn told the hobbits that they don't bow to anybody! I can't wait to see the The Two Towers extended version tomorrow. And if they really left an hour an hour of Return on the floor, that will be an incredible treat. These three movies are one of the great cinematic experiences ever. In the class of Lawrence for sure, for the panorama, the story, the majesty. One scene that grabbed was when Frodo put on the ring and Sauron's immediately turned to Mt. Doom. Amazing.

While I loved this one, I still say my favorite is the Fellowship. I've watched it countless times and still love watching it.

[Guy Berger]

I have to agree-- Return of the King was awesome and captured the spirit of the book quite well. Missing at least one sequence that I really REALLY wish Jackson had filmed, but I knew it wasn't going to be there from the beginning.

Which sequence? I wish they'd done the Scouring of the Shire, and it would have been cool to have the dialogue between Saruman and Gandalf in the Orthanc. But other than that, it's impressive how close they managed to stay to the spirits of many scenes (especially Eowyn and the Nazgul, and the Grey Havens).

Guy

[White Lightning]

Things to do during Lord of the Rings

1. Stand up halfway through the movie and yell loudly, "Wait... where the hell is Harry Potter?"

2. Block the entrance to the theater while screaming: "YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" - After the movie, say "Lucas could have done it better."

3. Play a drinking game where you have to take a sip every time someone says: "The Ring."

4. Point and laugh whenever someone dies.

5. Ask everyone around you if they think Gandalf went to Hogwarts.

6. Finish off every one of Elrond's lines with "Mr. Anderson."

7. When Aragorn is crowned king, stand up and at the top of your lungs sing, "And I did it.... MY way...!"

8. Talk like Gollum all through the movie. At the end, bite off someone's finger and fall down the stairs.

9. Dress up as old ladies and reenact "The Battle of Helms Deep" Monty Python style.

10. When Denethor lights the fire, shout "Barbecue!"

11. In TTT when the Ents decide to march to war, stand up and shout "RUN FOREST, RUN!"

12. Every time someone kills an Orc, yell: "That's what I'm Tolkien about!" See how long it takes before you get kicked out of the theatre.

13. During a wide shot of a battle, inquire, "Where's Waldo?"

14. Talk loudly about how you heard that there is a single frame of a nude Elf hidden somewhere in the movie.

15. Start an Orc sing-a-long.

16. Come to the premiere dressed as Frankenfurter and wander around looking terribly confused.

17. When they go in the paths of the dead, wait for tense moment and shout, "I see dead people!"

18. Imitate what you think a conversation between Gollum, Dobby and Yoda would be like.

19. Release a jar of daddy-long-legs into the theater during the Shelob scene.

20. Wonder out loud if Aragorn is going to run for governor of California.

21. When Shelob comes on, exclaim, "Man! Charlotte's really let herself go!"