The Return of the King (TV 1980)

Two Hobbits struggle to destroy the Ring in Mount Doom while their friends desperately fight evil Lord Sauron's forces in a final battle.

Directors:

Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin Jr.

Writers:

J.R.R. Tolkien (novel), Romeo Muller

Stars:

Orson Bean, Theodore Bikel, William Conrad

Cast

Cast overview:
Orson Bean	...	Frodo Baggins / Bilbo Baggins (voice)
Theodore Bikel	...	Aragorn (voice)
William Conrad	...	Lord Denethor (voice)
John Huston	...	Gandalf (voice)
Roddy McDowall	...	Samwise Gamgee (voice)
Brother Theodore	...	Gollum / Smeagol (voice) (as Theodore)
Paul Frees	...	Orc / Goblin / Uruk-Hai / Lord Elrond (voice)
Don Messick	...	King Theoden / Easterling / The Mouth of Sauron (voice)
John Stephenson	...	Gondorian Guard / Dwimmerlaik - The Witch-King of Angmar
Casey Kasem	...	Meriadoc 'Merry' Brandybuck (voice)
Sonny Melendrez	...	Peregrin 'Pippin' Took (voice)
Nellie Bellflower	...	Eowyn / Dernhelm
Glenn Yarbrough	...	The Minstrel (voice)

Storyline

This film adapts the final book of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy where the Hobbits, Frodo and Samwise, struggle through the barren land of Mordor to destroy the Ruling Ring in Mount Doom. At the same time, Gandalf and the others wage a desperate battle against the forces of Sauron at Minas Tirith, but Sauron seems to have the upper hand while the source of his power, the Ring, slowly threatens to corrupt its bearers.

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Plot Keywords:

ring | hobbit | battle | end of war | heroism | 

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Genres:

Animation | Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Musical

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 May 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

El retorno del rey

Company Credits

Production Co:

Topcraft, Rankin/Bass Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Orson Bean, who had previously played Bilbo in 'The Hobbit (1977)(TV)', plays Bilbo and Frodo Baggins in this film. In Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films, the part of Bilbo is played by Ian Holm, who had previously played Frodo in the BBC Radio adaptation.

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Goofs

"Cirith Ungol" is mispronounced ("Sirith" instead of "Kirith").

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Quotes

Meriadoc Brandybuck: Nay, Pippin. Not till Bilbo has cut the cake.

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Connections

Featured in Ringers: Lord of the Fans (2005)

User Reviews

This is actually painful to watch...

First of all, I'd like to express how much I love The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Tolkien was a genius. Peter Jackson did a great job on the films, I think. But Rankin-Bass, however, did not.

SPOILERS

The thing that bothered me a lot in this movie was the music. It was annoying, and ends up getting stuck in your head. Right now I'm trying to get rid of the one about Frodo's Nine Fingers. The animation is awful. There were also several elements of the story that bothered me, in animation, and in plot. For example, why did Elrond have a beard? Elves don't have beards. They are clean-shaven, always. Why did Merry and Pippin meet on the Pelenor DURING the battle? Where are Legolas and Gimli? What's with Denethor? The orcs looked much too top-heavy to be able to walk. The Nazgul were terrible. (They were on flying horses.) Denethor was bad, as well, as he just looked like a crazy old man with a back problem. He didn't look strong at all, as he was portrayed in the books and the recent film by Peter Jackson. Gollum looked as if he were pregnant, and sounded like a guy clearing his throat. And Sam's frequent exclamations of, "Oh, my God!" and "Lord, help me!" were not true to the books. (Although Tolkien was a Christian and so am I, the phrases should not have been in the movie.) And the battering ram, Grond? The thing looked as if strangely colored drool was coming out of its mouth rather than fire.

This was overall the worst adaptation of anything I have ever seen. It was, truly, painful to watch.

No, really, I was writhing in agony. Good thing the library rents out tapes for free.