IronWatcher’s review published on Letterboxd:
Watched on Blu-Ray (Extended Cut)
In the battle with the Balrog, Gandalf (Ian McKellen) was dragged into the infinite depths of Khazad-Dûm, Boromir (Sean Bean) died trying to protect two hobbits from a horde of orcs, but they were kidnapped anyway. The heir to the throne of Gondor Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), the pointy-eared elf Legolas (Orlando Bloom) and the fierce dwarf Gimli (John Rhys-Davies) took up pursuit of the two kidnapped hobbits, Pippin (Billy Boyd) and Merry (Dominic Monaghan). Meanwhile, the renegade Lord of Isengard Saruman (Christopher Lee) continues to raise his army of 10,000 Uruk-Hais in his catacombs, and he also poisoned the soul of Théoden (Bernard Hill), the King of Rohan, with the help of his "advisor" Gríma Wormtongue (Brad Dourif). It is precisely from this poisoned man that Aragorn and his companions seek help, but it is only with the power of the reborn Gandalf that they succeed in purifying his soul and drawing the people of Rohan to his side. They sense the danger and Théoden decides to flee to the mountain fortress of Helm's Deep. A battle seems inevitable.The cross-country political and dangerous situation has only one cause: the Ring.
The Ring that Frodo (Elijah Wood), accompanied by Sam (Sean Astin), carries to Mount Doom to destroy it once and for all and that Sauron is trying to find in order to subjugate Middle-earth. Meanwhile, the creature Gollum (Andy Serkis), who has been following them since Moria, is defeated in battle by the two hobbits and swears eternal allegiance to the "Lord of the Treasure". From then on, he acts as a guide to the Morannon, the "Black Gate of Mordor" and subsequently also to the "secret staircase".
"The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" picks up the plot of the first part and continues it without further ado. Those who have not seen the predecessor will inevitably be overwhelmed by the sheer diversity of characters, by all the technical terms and the foreign geography, and will only understand stationary. However, all three films were intended from the beginning as a trilogy and as a coherent story, shot in 16 months at a stretch. Therefore, the film cannot be accused of not actually having a beginning and an end. The second part does have a finale (the Battle of Helm's Deep), but if you look at the trilogy as a film of colossal length (about 12h), the finale is rather a small highlight among many.
As in the predecessor, the director combines gigantic panoramic shots of the landscape of Middle-earth (shot in New Zealand) with the profound and fascinating universe, around the elegant Elves, around the grumpy Dwarves, around the greedy Men and all the other races. Around history, around legends and myths, politics and morality. Despite the fantastic images that the second part has to offer, there is no "jaw dropping" "WOW!" moment that the audience still felt in the first part. Just think of the feeling one had when for the very first time the hill dwellings of Hobbingen, the buildings of Rivendell on a valley cliff, the huge statues by the river ("Gate of Argonath") or the incredible mines of Moria were seen on the screen. In any case, this second part relies more on action (due to the story), but the choreographers and Peter Jackson know how to stage it brilliantly. The battle in Helm's Deep is incredibly exciting and even offers a surprise in the final hour, which went down as one of the most defining moments in the history of cinema. Truly a "magic moment" that on the one hand defines the film, and on the other gives you pure goosebumps.
As in the predecessor, Peter Jackson does not stick slavishly to Tolkien's novels, but rearranges some of the plot lines. The director did not deal with a whole four chapters in this film, but moved them to the final conclusion of the series. Likewise, some descriptions of the characters deviate from those in the book. For example, Faramir, Theoden, the Ents and others act somewhat differently in certain situations in the book. The changes Jackson made here, however, mostly serve the purpose of dramaturgy or to evoke certain emotions, but the changes are not noticeable and usually fit into the plot without any problems.
Most of the actors play their roles authentically and very credibly. Brad Dourif in particular knows how to hold his own and sells the role of the insidious and deceitful Gríma very well. His make-up helps him: the greasy hair, the pale and cold skin, the dark lips and the glassy eyes make him look so gruesome that he lives up to his name "Wormtongue".
But the talented actors Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom and John Rhys-Davies also form an excellent trio and especially the latter lightens the gloomy and depressed mood with his funny and almost cute manner at the right moment. Be it through slapstick, grimaces or his comments. But also the wizard Gandalf, played by Ian McKellen, is just as decisive and present as in the predecessor, but in comparison he seems much more serious, he has no opportunities to portray the depth of his character and thus has less screentime anyway, but this is plot-related and the actor cannot be blamed.
The two Hobbit actors Dominic Monaghan and Billy Boyd, on the other hand, do their job quite well. Just like the other two hobbit actors: Elijah Wood is always believable as the young Frodo, who becomes more and more addicted to the ring, as is Sean Astin, who brings the worried friend wonderfully to the screen. Not to forget, the little darling among many fans, Gollum, is the real star and focus of this film, perhaps even of the whole series. He is the tragic character who has his own inner struggle with a mind poisoned by the Ring, two personalities. On the one hand he is the nice, helpful and friendly Sméagol, on the other hand he is the poisoned spirit of the ring, this is especially noticeable in his monologues, which he performs as if it were a dialogue between his two personalities. Andy Serkis, who always wore a motion-capture suit, embodies both "the good" and "the bad" in Gollum almost perfectly.
Equally praiseworthy are the cinematography and editing, the latter of which won the Oscar, as did the visual effects. To bring camera and editing into harmony, Howard Shore's score is always used at the appropriate points, once again providing an unforgettable and by now considered "Lord of the Rings"-typical feeling, which has been expanded by several tracks, such as the "Rohan" theme.
