The Return of the King
|
Our Price: $13.61 Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $5.93 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Canada
Movie Reviews of The Return of the King
Movie Review: excellent
Summary: 5 Stars
The DVD was sent in a timely manner. Shipping packaging was excellent. Thank you for delivering a very good B-day present for me to give to a friend. M. MaklaryMovie Review: just as good as The Hobbit
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a good movie but it is missing some people like Legolas,Gimli,and Eomer. I recommend this movie.Movie Review: Not a perfect movie, but not a bad movie either
Summary: 4 Stars
First of, being a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien since I was 5, I quickly bought both of these DVDs when they become available when I live. I had noticed the poor sound quality of the Hobbit (ex. no roar of the dragon, no fluttering of the bird's wings, etc.) but lucky, this was not the case in "Return of the King". True, there seems to be extra sounds such as creepy orc laughter in the first war scene, but the additions work nicely. Unfortunately, some sounds are much louder than in the original. However, a problem never shows up in which you can't hear a character speak like in the Hobbit.In addition, I have never seen Rankin-Bass so clear in my life and this version can truly stand up with any ancient Disney movie. The viewer can notice every stone under every horse's hoof, every spiderweb in every corner, and even Frodo's wounds look even more graphic. I look at my old version and I don't know if Rankin-Bass ever indicated for this film to be this 'light', but I think it works much better than their old misty versions.
Some viewers may complain of the ugly yet original style (and the "twitching") of the characters but the clarity of the picture makes it easier to digest. For those who still think it's horrible, make sure to check out the Ralph Bakshi's animation of the Lord of the Rings (1978) for some real pure "cavity-candy".
In my opinion, this version is more true to the book than the recently released non-animated version of The Return of the King. True, there is no battle between Sam and the spider and there is no Golem teaming up with Frodo and Sam but there are some major points mentioned in this movie that were not in the 2003 version. For example: Frodo and Sam both say much more lines straight from the book (ex. Frodo says, while he is at the edge of Mount Doom, "I have come...but I do not choose to do what I have come to do...", etc.).
More additional parts include: Frodo and Sam dress up like Orcs, there are Watchers blocking an invisible gate, and the fact that the viewer can feel their struggle a lot more in getting to Mount Doom in this cartoon (Frodo and Sam supporting each other up the mountain, Frodo having nightmares of when he was tortured, etc.) than the Hollywood version (I personally felt that the Sam and Frodo part in the Return of the King [2003] was rushed but the war scenes were well done). Finally, you could really feel Frodo's madness (...was Frodo's evil laugh too much, I wonder?...) and Sam's despair in Mount Doom unlike the non-animated movie version.
For the negative side of this movie, the war scenes were poorly explained (who's Aragon again?) and I found myself often fast-forwarding these parts because of the confusion. Repeated footage of the same orcs is used again and again. Looking back at it, the war itself just looks like the orcs are in the battlefield fighting no one but trying to get into a large castle. Also, all the men are cowardly and hardly put up a fight. Our favorite Elf and Dwarf from the Trilogy are also no where to be found unless you consider those 2 men by Denethor's side to be them but there is no mention of this (and no Elf girl either!). In addition, there is no real connection between Frodo and Sam and the war unfortunately. One last note - Golem calls Frodo "Maaasssster" near the end and the viewer has no idea why he called him this because there is no explanation and with the new clear picture, I noticed that Golem took off an invisible finger when he claims the ring.
Both Return of the King movies have their best qualities. This animation version should not be ignored and should be appreciated in its own way. Remember - this was the first attempt at making the Return of the King and I really don't think it was perfect but I don't think it was really that bad either. I call this version the "Brown" version (almost everyone has brown eyes) while the non-animated version is called the "Blue" version (almost everyone has blue eyes). These movies are basically different sides of the same coin.
To sum it up - If you can tolerate other animation styles besides Disney, can also tolerate folk songs and you are a fan of the Lord of the Rings, then I recommend checking out this movie on DVD if you haven't already. But, be warned - this movie has much more emotion than other animated movie I have ever seen. The DVD itself also contains extras such as explanations of other characters in the Trilogy, a small biography of J.R.R. Tolkien, and English, French, and Spanish subtitles - in other words, nothing to write home about. If you want to buy this movie, buy it solely for Frodo and Sam and not for any of the war scenes (and ESPECIALLY the extras) because you probably will be disappointed. For any Rankin-Bass fans, the Last Unicorn is coming to DVD during March 2004, so now all we have to wait for is "Flight of Dragons"...
Movie Review: Don't overlook this one
Summary: 4 Stars
I have to confess that I have a great deal of affection for this animated version of ROTK. In some ways it conveys the spirit of the book much better than the Peter Jackson film, particularly in the parts with Frodo and Sam. The character of Sam comes across as more complex and convincing than Sean Astin's portrayal in the film, although I don't want to criticise the actor as I suspect this was mostly the fault of the screenwriters. And Frodo's sense of resignation is also well captured here, again much more true to the book than his terrified portrayal by Elijah Wood in the film. Much more of Tolkien's original dialogue is preserved here, which helps a lot. For instance, more of Denethor's best lines are preserved in this 90 minute cartoon than was the case with the 3+ hour movie. I also think that the music overall helps to convey the heroic and lyrical tone of the book, compared to the unrelenting horror-movie feel of the Mordor scenes in the live action film, even though much of it is admittedly silly, although even the much ballyhooed "Where There's a Whip There's a Way" has some basis in the text. I think the voice actors were excellent overall, even though I didn't particularly care for Casey Kasem as Pippin, and the Nazgul Lord did sound a little too, well, cartoonish. Still, John Huston's Gandalf will forever be the voice I hear when I read the books; a classic performance. Even though you can poke holes in this version if you want to, I suppose my only real complaint is that it failed to establish any connection between Aragorn and Frodo. Since the entirety of "Fellowship" and "Two Towers" was summed up with something to the effect that Frodo and Sam had "come far and through many brave adventures," I don't think it would have been unreasonable to provide some similarly cursory treatment to establishing that the the march on the Black Gate was for the purpose of helping Frodo and Sam. One final word: I don't mean to come across as overly critical of Peter Jackson's films. In fact I enjoyed them tremendously. However, I think this version also has a lot to recommend it. Also, please forgive me for coming across as a "Tolkien geek" but I couldn't help myself.Movie Review: Remembered fondly and still enjoyed
Summary: 4 Stars
I loved this movie (and the companion movie the The Hobbit) when I was a kid, and I still love many things about it. The background art is beautiful and all of the locations in Middle-Earth that are shown look as they "should." I like the way many of the characters are depicted, especially Sam, Frodo, Gandalf, Elrond, Gollum, Eowyn, the orcs and the lord of the Nazgul. (The lord of the Nazgul's voice is, unfortunately, comic and reedy.) I am not so fond of the depictions of Pippin and Merry, who have dopey American accents. I also don't care much for the depiction of Aragorn, whose absence and eventual return is not even explained. Because the movie actually starts halfway through the original Return of the King story, there is no Fellowship. There is no Legolas, Gimli, or Boromir, although Denethor is featured briefly. There are a couple of characters who I think are supposed to Eomer and Faramir, but they never speak and are not referred to, so you can't be sure. The Bard of Gondor is a strange, warbling addition.
I happen to be very fond of the music because I know it so well. It is certainly memorable, although definitely corny at times. My favorites are "The Wearer of the Ring", "Frodo of the Nine Fingers" and "Where There's a Whip, There's a Way."
The film is a strange mixture of fidelity to the source material and over-emphasis on "magic" to make it appeal to kids. Some of the dialogue is truer to Tolkien than Peter Jackson's films were. There are some gaps in logic and narrative. One odd thing I noticed is that the word "malignancy" is used 3 times in Gandalf's narration in the first 10 minutes. Other reviewers have mentioned that this movie is best suited for kids and nostalgic adults, and I agree. This movie (and The Hobbit) was my first introduction to Tolkien and the reason I read all the books when I was a kid, and I still enjoy it a lot.
The cover to the DVD is bizarre; it doesn't fit the look of the movie and looks Disney-fied.