The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

While Frodo and Sam edge closer to Mordor with the help of the shifty Gollum, the divided fellowship makes a stand against Sauron's new ally, Saruman, and his hordes of Isengard.

Director:

Peter Jackson

Writers:

J.R.R. Tolkien (novel), Fran Walsh (screenplay),

Stars:

Orlando Bloom, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen

Top 250 #20 | Won 2 Oscars. Another 76 wins & 82 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bruce Allpress	...	Aldor
Sean Astin	...	Samwise 'Sam' Gamgee
John Bach	...	Madril
Sala Baker	...	Man Flesh Uruk
Cate Blanchett	...	Galadriel
Orlando Bloom	...	Legolas Greenleaf
Billy Boyd	...	Peregrin 'Pippin' Took
Jed Brophy	...	Sharku / Snaga
Sam Comery	...	Éothain
Brad Dourif	...	Grima Wormtongue
Calum Gittins	...	Haleth
Bernard Hill	...	Theoden
Bruce Hopkins	...	Gamling
Paris Howe Strewe	...	Théodred - Prince of Rohan
Christopher Lee	...	Saruman the White

Storyline

Sauron's forces increase. His allies grow. The Ringwraiths return in an even more frightening form. Saruman's army of Uruk Hai is ready to launch an assault against Aragorn and the people of Rohan. Yet, the Fellowship is broken and Boromir is dead. For the little hope that is left, Frodo and Sam march on into Mordor, unprotected. A number of new allies join with Aragorn, Gimli, Legolas, Pippin and Merry. And they must defend Rohan and attack Isengard. Yet, while all this is going on, Sauron's troops mass toward the City of Gondor, for the War of the Ring is about to begin.

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Plot Keywords:

ring | army | hope | wizard | king | 

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Taglines:

All will be sacrificed... All will be lost... Unless all unite against evil. (Trailer)

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for epic battle sequences and scary images

Details

Official Sites:

Aurum [es] New Line Cinema

Country:

USA New Zealand

Language:

English Sindarin Old English

Release Date:

18 December 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Two Towers

Filming Locations:

Camperdown Studios, Camperdown Road, Miramar, Wellington, New Zealand

Box Office

Budget:

$94,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$2,706,046 (Japan) (21 February 2003)

Gross:

$49,935,319 (Europe) (19 December 2003)

Company Credits

Production Co:

New Line Cinema, WingNut Films, The Saul Zaentz Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

179 min 223 min (special extended edition) 235 min (extended edition)

Sound Mix:

DTS-ES Dolby Digital EX SDDS

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

There were never more than 100 Uruk-hai at any time; the rest were all computer generated.

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Goofs

When Legolas is waiting on the wall for the Urak Hai battle to begin at Helms Deep his hands repeatedly change position on his bow between shots.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Gandalf: You cannot pass!
Frodo: Gandalf!
Gandalf: I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. Go back to the shadow. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udun! You shall not pass!
Galadriel: The power of the enemy is growing. Sauron will use his puppet Saruman to destroy the people of Rohan. Isengard has been unleashed. The Eye of Sauron now turns to Gondor, the last free kingdom of men. His war on this country will come swiftly. He senses the Ring is close. The strength of the Ringbearer ...

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Crazy Credits

On the extended edition DVD, John Noble, who plays Denethor, has his name typoed as John Nogle.

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Connections

Spoofed in The Simpsons: Dude, Where's My Ranch? (2003)

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Soundtracks

"Farewell to Lorien"
(from extended version)
Music by Howard Shore
Lyrics by Fran Walsh
Performed by Hilary Summers

User Reviews

If you're a fan, that's not about to change.

Really, I should probably let this film soak in a bit; I am, after all, on something of a "post-viewing" high right now. However, at this moment, my feeling remains the same from the first installment - this is the movie experience I've been waiting my whole life for. In case you haven't gathered, this movie is visually stunning, literally breathtaking. I mean that, some of the scenes in this film simply stopped my lungs in their tracks, shocked at the pure, enveloping beauty of the shot. Peter Jackson has a profound grasp of visual manipulation like few directors have ever had.

The acting is, as always, superb. Kudos for hiring "actors" not "stars"; "Oscar-worthy" over-acting could have threatened the realistic touch the film's remarkable cast supply. Specific mention goes to both John Rhys-Davies in his well enjoyed comic turn, and very largely to Andy Serkis, who was a major role in creating the most realistic and brilliantly well-performed CGI character I've ever seen (Gollum).

For the most part, and as a fan of the books, I take no offense to the slight plot modifications. My understanding is that Tolkien himself realized that visual adaptation of LotR would require a somewhat different take on his work, and was apparently open to such minute changes. There are also a few tiny bits and pieces I was disappointed to see not make the final cut, however, I'm sure a future inevitable extended DVD will take care of those.

In short, if you found the continual enjoyment I did with the first movie of LotR, this movie will in no way let you down. Not even for a minute.

Highly recommended, 10/10.