The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (movie)

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Promotional poster featuring Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn
Promotional poster featuring Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a film directed by Peter Jackson, based on part 3 of Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. The premiere screening was held in Wellington, New Zealand on December 1, 2003, attended by the director and many of the stars. Further premieres took place in major cities around the world in the days leading up to the film's worldwide theatrical release on Wednesday, December 17, 2003.

It is the third part of a trilogy, following the events portrayed in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, also directed by Jackson.

The film's story is based on later events in The Two Towers and the whole of The Return of the King, the second and third parts of J. R. R. Tolkien's epic fantasy The Lord of the Rings.

(The Return of the King also served as the basis of an animated film of the same name that debuted on U.S. TV in 1980, featuring the voices of Orson Bean as Frodo Baggins and John Huston as Gandalf.)

Contents

Awards

On January 27, 2004, the film was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Soundtrack, and Best Adapted Screenplay; however, none of the ensemble cast received any acting nominations. On February 29, 2004 the film won 11 Academy Awards, winning in every category it was nominated for. It tied with Ben-Hur and Titanic for the most Oscars ever won by a single film, and broke the previous record for a sweep set by Gigi and The Last Emperor (See Movies with 8 or more Oscars).

Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

As confirmed in the feature on Gollum in the Extended DVD Edition of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, Andy Serkis appears in person in a flashback scene playing Sméagol before his degradation into Gollum. This scene was actually held over from the previous film because it was felt that it would have a greater emotional impact if audiences had already seen what the Ring's influence had done to Sméagol. In his degraded state Gollum is "played" in the movies by a CGI character whose movements are sometimes derived from a motion-capture suit worn by Serkis, and sometimes from footage of Serkis interacting with the other actors and then digitally replaced by Gollum.

The city of Minas Tirith, seen briefly in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, is seen in all its glory. The filmmakers have taken great care to base the city closely upon Tolkien's description in The Return of the King, Book V, Chapter 1. Close-ups of the city are represented by sets and long shots by a large and highly-detailed model, often populated by CGI characters.

This film contains key scenes that occurred in the middle portion of the novel The Lord of the Rings but were not included in the film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. These include the scene in which the monstrous Shelob attacks Frodo and is wounded by Sam.

Other key events include the Siege of Gondor; the re-forging of the shards of Narsil into Aragorn's new sword Andúril; Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas's journey through the Paths of the Dead; the epic Battle of the Pelennor Fields, and Oliphaunts (everything being carefully choreographed in advance, a process Jackson describes as like planning a real battle); Merry and Éowyn's role in the defeat of the Lord of the Nazgûl; the destruction of the One Ring and the final fall of Sauron; Aragorn's assumption of the throne; and the departure of several of the heroes to the Undying Lands.

The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy is highly unusual in that it is to date the only movie series whose separate installments were written simultaneously and shot all at once, so that it could be considered three parts of a single very long film. This ensured that all three movies were consistent in terms of story, acting and direction. Therefore audiences who enjoyed the first movie were fairly certain of enjoying the second and third, which would not have been the case had the films been written and shot separately as in, say, the case of the first Star Wars trilogy.

Cuts and alterations

According to British newspaper reports appearing on November 13, 2003, Christopher Lee was unhappy to learn that a seven-minute scene featuring a confrontation at Isengard in which Gandalf casts Saruman out of the order of Wizards, would not be appearing in the finished film, and he decided to boycott the premiere as a result. Peter Jackson has confirmed that this scene, although not in the theatrical release, will be included in the extended VHS and DVD editions planned for release in 2004. These are officially scheduled for release in November 2004, although some British DVD-collecting magazines have suggested they may be brought forward, perhaps as soon as May. Other rumours suggest that the DVD may be a five or six-disc set, with the movie occupying three discs rather than two; some rumours suggest that the extended cut may be as long as six hours, although four and a half is probably a more realistic figure. In January 2004, Peter Jackson indicated that the recently completed extended edition is four hours and ten minutes long. He also mentioned the inclusion of "The Voice of Saruman" scene, as well as Frodo and Sam running with the Mordor orcs.

Fans also hope that the extended discs will feature deleted scenes and outtakes, which were not included in the first two titles. There are further rumours of an even more spectacular Lord of the Rings Trilogy box set in the future, and Jackson has half-seriously mentioned the possibility of re-editing the trilogy into a TV miniseries, along the lines of The Godfather movies.

A sequence that did not make it from the book into the film at all despite the hopes of many fans, was the "Scouring of the Shire", in which the Hobbits return home at the end of their quest to find they have some fighting to do, owing to Saruman's takeover of the Shire. Jackson felt that it would tax the audience's patience to mount another battle scene after the critical conflict, the defeat of Sauron, had already been resolved. In the book, the fall of Saruman takes place at the end of the scouring, but in the film's theatrical release Saruman is left trapped in the tower of Orthanc by the Ents.

Other scenes from the book but not appearing in the movie, which may or may not make it into the extended version:

  • Théoden meets Merry and Pippin and calls them holbytlan, suggesting that the word hobbit is derived from Rohirric; Pippin comments that the King of Rohan is "A fine old fellow. Very polite."
  • The Rohirrim bypass the main road to Gondor by negotiating with the Wild Men of Drúadan Forest for passage through their woods.
  • The Witch-king begins to pass through the outer gates of Minas Tirith and is challenged by Gandalf, but as a cock crows the horns of the Rohirrim announce their arrival and the Witch-king is forced to ride back to meet them.
  • The Mouth of Sauron taunts Gandalf at the Black Gate and presents evidence that Frodo had been captured (which was true, although Frodo was rescued by Sam before he could be interrogated).
  • The spirit of Sauron rises like a black cloud from the ruin of Barad-dûr before being blown away by the West wind.
  • On the way to the Morgul Vale, Frodo, Sam and Gollum pass through the Crossroads, where there is a giant statue of a seated king with his head laying on the ground nearby, "crowned" anew with flowers that have grown there.
  • Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli pass a mound of human skulls when they enter the Dwimorberg, the haunted mountain.
  • Denethor, using a palantír, struggles mentally with Sauron in a secret room at the top of the White Tower of Ecthelion, helping to explain Denethor's madness.
  • Incognito in Orc armor, Sam and Frodo are forced to march with a band of Orcs who are heading for the Battle of the Morannon at the Black Gate.
  • Aragorn shows his reforged sword to Sauron using the palantír recovered at Isengard.
  • Éomer grieves over (as he thinks, incorrectly) the death of Éowyn in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.
  • Faramir and Éowyn meet and fall in love in the Houses of Healing.
  • After the coronation, Gandalf counsels King Elessar and shows him where to find a seedling of the White Tree.
  • Near the end of the story, Legolas and Gimli travel through Middle-earth together, Legolas leading a trip through Fangorn Forest and Gimli through the Glittering Caves behind Helm's Deep.

Other alterations to the story include:

  • In the film shards of Narsil are re-forged by Elrond at Arwen's urging, and Elrond travels to Rohan where he presents the reforged sword to Aragorn and orders him to take the Paths of the Dead. In the book, Narsil was reforged when Aragorn first brought the hobbits to Rivendell (following a prophecy that the reforging could only take place after "Isildur's Bane", the Ring, was found).
  • The company of Rangers of the North, who along with the two sons of Elrond join Aragorn after Saruman is defeated, do not appear at all in the film, in which Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli take the Paths of the Dead alone.
  • In the book, the beacons of Gondor are lit before Gandalf and Pippin arrive, as a part of Denethor's careful mustering of Minas Tirith's defenses. In the film, Denethor refuses to light the beacon of Minas Tirith, or indeed to organize any defense of the city, so Gandalf persuades Pippin to sneak past the guards and light it, causing the rest of the beacons to be lit in response.
  • In the book, Gondor's formal request for aid is sent to Rohan by a courier carrying the Red Arrow (although Rohan was already mustering to Gondor's defense, in part at Gandalf's urging). In the film, there is no courier, and the Riders are spurred to help Gondor by the beacons (above).
  • In the film, Gollum tricks Frodo into mistrusting Sam and sending him away, so that Frodo enters Shelob's Lair alone. In the book, Frodo and Sam have no break in their trust, except for a brief instant upon Frodo's rescue from the orc tower where he demands that Sam return the Ring.
  • In the film, the burning Denethor runs along the "prow" of Minas Tirith and falls like a meteor. In the book, Denethor lights his pyre and lies down upon it to burn, clasping the palantír;.
  • Unlike the book, Merry is not taken to the Houses of Healing to recuperate from his encounter with the Witch-king (with the aid of Aragorn's knowledge of the healing herb Athelas, which he also uses to heal Faramir and Éowyn), but instead rides out to the Last Battle alongside Aragorn and Gandalf.
  • In the book, Gollum slips accidentally into the Crack of Doom while dancing in triumph after wresting the Ring from Frodo. In the film, Frodo jumps on him one last time and causes them both to fall; it is subsequently revealed that he was able to catch himself on the rock below the precipice, from which Sam pulls him back (after a brief hesitation by an apparently suicidal Frodo).
  • In the film, it is not revealed that Frodo is to sail to the west with Bilbo, Gandalf, Elrond, Galadriel, and (in the movie only) Celeborn until after most of them have boarded the ship. In the book, Frodo and Sam join with Bilbo and the elves in the woods while traveling to the harbor.

Following the destruction of the One Ring, most of the second book of The Return of the King is an anticlimax tying up loose ends (although Tolkien considered the "Scouring of the Shire" to be one of the most important chapters of the trilogy). These denouments are only briefly summarized in the films, where we get a hint of Frodo's periodic bouts of illness following his return to the Shire, we see Sam getting married to Rosie, and we follow Gandalf's and the Ringbearers' departure from the Grey Havens. The film's closing scene shows Sam returning from saying farewell at the Grey Havens and coming back to the Shire and his home and family (returning at night in the book, during the day in the film).

The film remains faithful to the book in quoting the last lines spoken by Gandalf ("I will not say: do not weep; for not all tears are an evil", although Gandalf has some minor dialogue following this in the movie) and by Sam ("Well, I'm back.").

Box Office Records

Note: because the box-office receipts below are not adjusted for inflation, they have little objective meaning—thanks to increasing ticket prices, new films will inevitably break such "records" continually.

After two years of attention and acclaim since the release of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, audience anticipation for the final installment of the trilogy had reached a fever pitch when the movie was finally released to theaters on December 17, 2003. New Line Cinema reported that the film's first day of release (a Wednesday) saw a box office total of $34.5 million—an all-time single-day record for a motion picture released on a Wednesday. This was nearly twice the first-day total of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (which earned $18.2 million on its first day of release in 2001), and a significant increase over The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers as well (which earned $26.1 million on its first day in December of 2002).

The substantial increase in initial box office totals caused optimistic studio executives to forecast that The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King would surpass The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers in total earnings. If this proved to be true, then this would be the first blockbuster movie trilogy for each successive film to earn more at the box office than its predecessor, when all three films were blockbuster successes. (The general opinion in movie circles in 2003 was that a movie had to earn more than $150 million to be considered a "blockbuster").

These forecasts proved accurate. According to Box Office Mojo, between the time of the film's release and its winning the Academy Award for Best Picture on February 29, 2004, Return of the King had earned approximately $1,014,763,077 in worldwide box office revenue—$364,091,000 in the United States, and $650,672,077 in sixty countries worldwide. The domestic take is expected to stop near $400 million, and the worldwide take is expected to end at about $1.1 billion (about $750 million overseas). The worldwide revenue is slightly enhanced compared to the earlier movies when converted to US Dollars because of the decline in the dollar's exchange rate in 2003. It was the second film in history to earn over $1 billion in box office revenue in its initial release (the first being Titanic in 1997). This compares favorably to the first two films of the trilogy: in their first 35 weeks of theatrical release in North America, the gross income of the first two movies was $313,364,114 and $339,789,881. These figures do not include income from DVD sales, TV rights, etc.

The cast

The following will appear only in the extended edition:

External links


References

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