May 28, 2004

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Publication Date: Friday, May 28, 2004

Ready to Rent

Director Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King" watches more like a compelling three-hour commercial for its extended version video release than an actual film. It is filled with scenes leading nowhere or, worse still, skipping along from one highlight to another, leaving one strangely unfulfilled. It is, however, one of the most entertaining commercials that I had seen last year, full of delirious imagery and Wagnerian (read broad, not deep) emotions that loudly announce its own "epicness," leaving one deaf and dazed after a viewing. Jackson opens the film with a creepy prologue whose mood seems to be sadly lost after its opening. We are treated to an operatic origin of the character Gollum, who, on his birthday, kills his brother for the cursed ring and is driven mad, only to find refuge for hundreds of years in the solitude of the mountains, where he slowly degenerates physically into an amphibious cadaver. If there ever was a heart or drama to Tolkien's story, it would lie in this character, whose humanistic pain and deceitfulness is captured beautifully for "The Return of the King" by the creature designer. There are very stunning moments where Gollum seems to exist within the frame and sometimes eclipse his rightfully suspicious traveling companions Sam (Sean Astin) and Frodo (Elijah Wood). This is crucial because Gollum plays such a huge part in their never-ending dilemmas which, I can happily say, are plentiful and keep the film from slogging into tedium until the last 15 minutes.

The plot is bare, almost absent, which is a relief because there is nothing to get in the way of the film's true interest - big things battling other big things in vast, open spaces, which the film wonderfully delivers. Again we are given several interconnecting stories. Sam, Frodo and Gollum are racing toward Mount Doom to destroy the ring by throwing it into fire. Frodo, however, is physically and mentally worn by his burden and becomes prey to Gollum's poisonous intentions. Meanwhile Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) discovers his true kingship and mounts an army to defend the city of Minos Tirith, who is under the demented leadership of steward Denethor, against the armies of Mordor. The film's true strength lies in its visuals, that seem to be prompted by 30-plus years of heavy metal album covers depicting winged serpents atop crags or muscular Ogre armies wielding thunderous weapons. My favorite passage, in an appropriately demented nod toward the 1939 version of the "Wizard of Oz," was the strenuous climbing of Sam, Frodo and Gollum up the sheer face of a cliff while Orc armies pass underneath.

In the end, I felt "Return of the King" should have earned its Best Picture award by actually being released as a complete film, with the additional 50 minutes saved for the other extended version released later this year. True fans would have willingly sat through its four-hour running time again and again, which I'm sure they will for many years to come. -Joe Ramirez

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