Review: LOTR2
So I saw Lotr part2 today. And here’s my non-spoiler review. First off, at 7 we started watching the first Lotr and that ended ~ 10:30, then we caught Two Towers at 11:00 making 6 hrs of LotR fun. I read the books, 1 and 2 and will be critiquing it as both a movie and a movie of the book. In the first sense, I feel it did a good job. The plot didn’t seem to drag out. There was plenty of action and emotion. I thought Legolas sliding down a staircase on a shield while shooting arrows was a bit cheesy but hey, the guy is definately slick. The CG was well done and convincing. You could believe there were that many people when you know there was no way to have that many people. The cinematics, scenery and all that artsy stuff was good, and really made me feel like such a place as Middle Eart existed. As a movie, I think Two Towers was great. Now for it as a book.
I feel, while it did do the book justice in someparts, it left me with something missing. The character development was awesome. While I don’t think they played out the growing friendship of Dimli and Legolas, it is still evident. My gripe about what they did with Dimli is that he’s not really supposed to be comic relief. While in the books, both Legolas and Dimli are sometimes comical in their unlikely and changing alliance, I think they took advantage of Dimli in the movie. Legolas didn’t seem to develop that much. He’s still the slick archer, bent on honor and friendship. Aragon is becoming more of the man he ends up to be. They did a good job changing his outward perspective which reflects his inward character. You can also see significant change in the Hobbits. Frodo’s struggle becomes all the more evident as he battles the ring while Sam develops even more as his loyal and trustworthy sidekick. The other two hobbits fall a tad short but are slowly changing from the dim witted hobbits in FotR. They did a good job with Smeagol’s character. They it out like it’s from Fight Club. His inward struggle with himself and the ever going conflict. The characters were awesome. Even the not so main characters were good portrayals. They do a good job0with custom and acting to portray the blantant black and white of Middle Earth. Despite the characters, it didn’t really follow the book. Most obvious is the ending. It doesn’t end where the book ends off but earlier. This left me very diappointed, yet there is good forshadowing with Smeagol’s soliloquy. Another thing that really bothered me was SPOILER with the ent meeting. They made the wrong decision! I mean come on! atleast follow the book! Don’t change the book around, and for what? So they go south and decide to have war but where do all the ents come from? They were all supposed to go home, not go south and just HAPPEN to be there for war. Geez! It wouldn’t have made it hard for them to decide to goto war. Another grip is the on going love scenes between Aragon and Arwen. I’m not picking this up in the book but I guess every movie’s gotta have love. ? I dont get it either… Last inconsistency was with Helm’s Deep. There’s a suprise for the defenders at Helm’s Deep and it sure surprised me. I never saw it coming and I guess cuz it wasn’t in the book. I guess it’s sorta important as not only does it make the outcome of the battle more convincing but also of the desperation before the battle. I think it positively adds to the movie but still detracts from the ways of the books. Another inconsistency was they made Sarumon out to be the ally of Sauron. This is far from the truth. Sarumon sought the ring not for the Dark Lord but for his own gain. He was building an army to rival that of Mordor. He was trying to play both sides but that in turn causes his fall which took place in this book but not the movie. All in all, I give it a 4/5. It is a must see, but leaving off before the book ends REALLY irked me. The characters and action was good but just walking out disappointed makes it almost suck. Esp when there should be like 30 more minutes of it … There are a few short comings with the descrepencies that make me a little mad but most of them can be overlooked. Nevertheless, the quality of the movie does the book justice just like the first one. It drives the plot and develops the characters. Go read the books, then watch the movie.