Starring: Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen
Directed by: Peter Jackson

Most people would agree that The Fellowship of the Ring was an amazing movie, exceeding the expectations of even the most picky movie goers and hardcore Lord of the Rings fans. It's for this reason that I was absolutely blown away that it was possible to make the sequel, The Two Towers, much better than the first.

I don't think there is any English word to describe how good this movie is. Maybe the elves have a word, or the ents...but in English, the words amazing and fantastic seem vulgar... Peter Jackson and anyone responsible for this movie should be praised as geniuses. In the not to distant future, this movie will replace air as the thing we breathe to stay alive! It's so good that....

Let's start with the acting. From the very beginning the acting blew me away. I have to give special credit to Sean Astin as Sam Gamgee. Keeping in mind that they filmed all three movies together, it was incredible to note the small changes in Sam. He was a more confident, stronger character and you could tell right away. The same could be said for all the characters. Even Legolas (played by Orlando Bloom) had more human qualities this film, most notably a sense of humor and a stronger loyalty toward Aragorn (who is quite the heroic figure played by Viggo Mortensen).

Even Gimli the dwarf (John Rhys-Davies), a more minor character (no pun intended) was effectively used as a comic relief. But he wasn't just a comic relief thrown in for some cheap slapstick jokes. He is a spirited character who adds a warmth and camaraderie to the film without being a corny character. I can go on forever about how good the acting was. Elijah Wood is even creepier this time around as Frodo who is slowly being taken over by the ring. Even Miranda Otto as Eowyn, another supporting player, had an undeniably strong presence in the film. Quite frankly, the entire supporting cast was simply amazing. Despite being in a world that doesn't exist, and sometimes speaking in languages that are made up, there wasn't one unconvincing line! The emotion was always there.

This movie has a lot more CGI than the first. For the most part they use them to make horrific monsters but to call Gollum a simple monster seems inadequate. Just like in the book, we hate him, pity him and fear him all at the same time. The fact that he's this inhuman creature, the CGI on this character was so advanced, he looked real. At many points you couldn't even tell it was a computer generated thing. And the voice acting by Andy Serkis was enough to put Gollum's performance over that of many real actors in the industry (Editor's note: Andy Serkis actually did physically act. Gollum's body was then superimposed onto his). Even Treebeard, a computer generated character who's basically a walking talking tree, was convincing. I had assumed for sure that would have been the worst part of the movie, but they managed.

Otherwise the movie was a perfect blend of action, drama and even a bit of a love story (which seemed beside the point of the rest of the plot and was responsible for the only lags in the movie). You follow the characters, care about them and fear for them. Even though the story diverged on three separate storylines, the directing was such that the action never seemed to be abruptly interrupted, just smooth transitions from one storyline to another. Quite a challenge, but Peter Jackson was obviously up to the task.

Just looking at the movie, I was overwhelmed trying to fathom the amount of effort that was actually put into project. All the extras they had to hire, then direct them in concert with computer generated hordes. Then to integrate all this into the extremely elaborate sets and the breathtaking scenery of New Zealand... Jackson must have been mad to even consider doing something so grand. MAD I TELL YOU!!! But he succeeded and the results are spectacular. His vision of Middle Earth isn't a caricature or a mockery of real life. Middle Earth is a world in its own right and though fictional, it has been recreated magnificently down to the last detail. For anyone who has read ANY fantasy literature or ever played a role playing game, you can now see where it all came from. They're just variations on Tolkien's world, and for Peter Jackson to take on the challenge of recreating a world that so many people know so well, and to succeed, is unbelievable.

Lord of the Rings purists may not appreciate the many deviations from the book, but I think where Peter Jackson took some creative liberties are very understandable. What true fans wanted was more emphasis on the hobbits, and a Faramir who is more consistent with the character from the book. Thankfully I was young when I read the book and don't remember it enough to have picked up on the changes. Strangely enough, people who haven't read the book might appreciate this movie more. The Two Towers was a really fun time at the movie theatre. You simply must go and see this movie, even if you don't like fantasy. The movie is long, but there is always something to see for every moment of the 3 hours. The sheer scope of this film is mind boggling. You will be impressed!

MastaCSG
Ace

DroopyMcC		Words alone cannot describe the scope of the LotR films. Where do you begin? The Two Towers is better than Fellowship, and that's saying something. Uniformly excellent on all fronts. No need for backstory allows us to jump right into the world of Middle-Earth. When the history of cinema is written, Jackson's fantastic trilogy will be a major turning point in film making. He should retire from making movies after this, because there's no way he can top himself. Can't wait for the next one...
King

ASY		I enjoyed The Two Towers much more than Fellowship. The two end battles scenes blew me away, and Gollum impressed me greatly. And Legolas is one bad mofo... excellent.
King