Plot: What’s it about?
“The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” ranks as the tenth best movie according to the Internet Movie Database. This is the tenth best movie of all-time, mind you. I’m not certain that I agree. While I’m sure that the legions of fans that this movie has (and I’ll admit, I’m one of them) had a not to small part in that ranking, can we really agree that this movie is better than “GoodFellas”, “Vertigo”, “Raiders of the Lost Arc” or “Dr. Strangelove”? Uh…no. But all that aside, the second installment of the Lord of the Rings series did live up to the hype, unlike that of “The Matrix”. I might be the only person, however, who thought that this movie wasn’t better than the first. I felt lost in the middle of things and I’ve not read the books. Most everyone reading this review and who saw the movie has, though. I don’t mean to generalize, but I’m assuming that it’s a fact. Both movies were nominated for Best Picture and the first one might have deserved it, but not this one. So if you’re looking for orcs, dragons, wizards, hobbits, elves and about every other assorted creature under the sun; well you’ve come to the right place. Other than that, if you didn’t like the first installment, then this won’t do much for you.
And “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” essentially picks up where the first one left off, a fairly original move when you really sit down and thank about it. Though the movie will probably be remembered for the hour long battle scene at the end of the film. Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Samwise (Sean “Don’t call me Rudy” Astin) continue their voyage for the One Ring and hence destroy it. However, the pack has been split in half and the others now face challenges equal to that of the two Hobbits. Aarogan (Viggo Mortensen), Legolas (Orlando Bloom) and Gimli (John Rhys-Davies) have made friends of the Rohan, a race of humans that are in the path of the upcoming war, led by its aging king, Théoden (Bernard Hill). The two towers between Mordor and Isengard, have united for destruction. All the while, the corrupt wizard Saruman (Christopher Lee), has been under the power of Dark Lord Sauron, and his assistant, Gríma Wormtongue (Brad Dourif). They’ve created a grand Uruk-hai army whose sole purpose is the destruction of Man (Middle-earth). All the while, the rebellion against Sauron is heating up and will be led by Gandalf (Sir Ian McKellen), who we thought was dead after the Balrog captured him. One of the Ring’s original bearers, the creature Gollum (Andy Serkis), has tracked Frodo and Sam down in search of his ‘precious’, but is captured by the Hobbits and used as a way to lead them to Mt. Doom.
This movie is a natural progression of the first installment and for those who are looking for any kind of recap will not get one. This plays to the people out there who have actually read the books by J.R.R. Tolkien and though there are “purists” out there who wouldn’t like to have seen a thing changed; there has been for time constraints. And yes, when I mention “time constraints” with a 179 minute movie, there’s a lot of action to be put in that frame. But let’s get real here, first. The “sequel” if you can call it that, did actually live up to the expectations that the first one laid out. The third is looking to be the kicker in the bunch and though I’m not the best fan of the movies, I’ll make sure and see it in the theater. If it’s action you’re looking for, then you’re sure to have your fill here. Just about every positive aspect from the first movie is present here except for the presence of Sean Bean (his character was in The Fellowship of the Ring), who I felt made the movie “click” a bit more. Still, we have a varied cast and though it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea; this is sure to please the masses. I suppose it has, with it garnering awards for Best Picture and such, eh? Fans won’t want to miss out on this DVD and though the 4 disc version is the one to get, there are those of us who will be more than satisfied with this version. Recommended.
Video: How does it look?
Demo material here, folks. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers sports a gorgeous-looking 2.40:1 anamorphic transfer that looks great even on my 55″ screen. As we might expect with a new to DVD title, the image suffers from…nothing. Even considering the length of the film, no compression artifacts are present and even the dark scenes (which there are many) look absolutely pristine. The film has a 3-D effect to it, it’s so clear. In fact, it looks almost too clear. At times I felt that I was watching a video game or something of that nature; still I can only imagine how much better this would look in High Definition. I could throw a few more adjectives your way, but this is reference quality folks.
Audio: How does it sound?
Just as amazing as the picture is the sound. A Dolby Digital EX mix is supplied (I don’t have an EX receiver, but the 5.1 sounded just fine, thank you) and it is active the entire 178 minutes. When you have to turn the volume down when the menus pop up, you just might be in for some sort of treat, audio-wise. Dialogue is one part of the film, but the surround effects are so engrossing that it literally helps you get caught up in the movie. You get used to hearing the discrete effects come out of the rear channels. I like that my subwoofer actually has to do some work! Older movies and Dolby Surround tracks are just fine, but every once in a while you need to crank it up and this is the perfect movie to do it with. Again, I’m running out of words to describe how good the mix is. Outstanding!
Supplements: What are the extras?
While we all know that the 4-disc version will be the one to get, there’s those of us that will be just fine with this version (and I’m dreading writing the review to that 4 disc set as my fingers hurt already). But with the movie itself being housed on the first disc, this leaves the second disc for all the supplements. Though they are varied, they do serve a point and purpose. Here’s what to expect. On the Set–‘The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers’ is a featurette that plays like a longer trailer. Characters are shown and certain plot points are given, yet you’re still “lured” into the film. The same goes for the hour long documentary “Return to Middle Earth” which is exactly as it says. Both “The Long and Short of It” and “The Making of the Long and Short of It” are shown in their entirety (and both by actor/filmmaker Sean Astin) as are the eight featurettes made for www.lordoftherings.net. Plenty of DVD-ROM material is at our disposal as are the trailers, a music video and a trailer for the video game. While this has just enough extras to get us excited, rest assured that our money will be well spent with the 4 disc edition.
