*Official* The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King response thread!

[darthspielberg]

Amen. I loved it when Gandalf went Wiggidy Wiggidy Wild with his staff.

[Rogue]

I loved that part too. I was sitting there like "whoa, who knew?" Everyone in the theater was cheering and there was a guy at the back chanting "kick some ass!" Now that's audience participation. ;)

[JBomb87]

Well there is good saying that I remembered.

"Opinions are like *******s,everyone has them" lolol

[Queen Arwen]

I just came back from seeing it a second time. I appreciated the movie even more, and the scenes I thought were superfluous actually seemed to flow better this time around! I love ROTK. It's almost impossible for me to express how much, but I love it.

[Gandollum]

Saw it a second time, and have to say its much better than my first viewing. First time I saw this, I was analyzing the film for book stuff and just getting into it. However, I think the second time, I was just watching the film as it was visoned by PJ. The book changes didnt really irritate me, and the editing seemed a lot better. And I actually did shed a few tears. The battle scenes seemed a lot better and the character moments are more intimate. However, I still think the movie is problematic but I cant wait for the EE.
Pros
-Beacons
-Pippins song and Faramirs charge
-Introduction of Minas Tirith
-Howard Shore's music
-The whole ending- Aragorns Coronation, Return to shire, Grey Havens
-Mount Doom crosscutting with Black Gates
-Eagles
-Arwens vision
-Merry and Pip singing at the Golden Hall
-The Battle of Pellenor Fields
-Eowyn-Wiki fight
-Army of the Dead
-Gandalf rescuing Faramir and crew
-Ride of the Rohirrim
-Theodens amazing speech
-Theodens death
-Minas Morgul
-"You bow to no one", great job by Viggo and PJ, had me in tears
-Pippin leaving Merry at Edoras
-Legolas killing mumakil

Cons
-Denethor and his death- this has been bugging me the most, I just dont like how Shadowfax kicked him in the fire, it seemed like Gandalf and Shadowfax are murderers. It would have been better if he lit himself on fire and committing suicide. Even his fall seems way over the top. Maybe the EE will fix it, especially the stuff concerning the Palantir.
-Shelob- wasnt really impressed with her, but Jackson still tried his best. Her second entrance was more creepy than her first which is a bit dissapointing.
-Excessive use of slow mo, especally the stuff with Pip and the Palantir, and the ending with the fellowship reuniting, could have been better without the slow motion.
-Smeagol-Deagol scene- didnt really like it, but gave the normal audience a better view and understanding of Gollum.
-no MoS- of all the stupid cuts, this should have been in, I think ending it with a main villain would have been better. I didnt like how Aragorns life was endangered by a stupid cave troll, CAVETROLL!!!!:confused: , would have been more threatening if the Mouth of Sauron was there. Again the ee will greatly improve this part.
-Aragorns last speech- I dont know but it seems different than the trailer, it seems like PJ and co. sped his scene up or something.
-No Eowyn and Faramir relationship, ee will fix it
-No Merry-Theoden or Pippin-Denenthor relationship, EE will fix it.
-No Saruman, ee will fix it
-And of course all the other cuts that were made, hopefully the ending is much longer
-And lastly itS too short, ee will fix it
Again, even with its problems, I think ROTK is now the best out of the 3, but than again its not really supPose to be a trilogy, but one movie. 9.6/10

[DolAmroth]

Ive seen ROTK four times now and Gandalf Kicked Denethor into the fire cause he was grabing Pippin and I think Gandalf was worried he might throw Pippin into the flames.

[Gandollum]

Originally posted by DolAmroth
Ive seen ROTK four times now and Gandalf Kicked Denethor into the fire cause he was grabing Pippin and I think Gandalf was worried he might throw Pippin into the flames.

Yeah, I thought the same thing too. But, I feel that Denethor didnt want to die at the end, didnt he see Faramir's eyes open. Maybe he wanted to live, I think PJ could have handled that scene better, but I think the EE will clear this stuff up.

[DolAmroth]

Ya Denethor did see Faramir open his eyes right at the end but he was on fire as he was looking so it was a little to late. Also the real fake part about that seen was how far He ran on fire. He would have fallen down in pain about 5 seconds after he got lit ablaze.

[Gandollum]

Yeah, I didnt really like that part either, It seemed way over the top. He should have died before he reached the balcony.

[Glordreen]

Got back from my third viewing, the third viewing was better than the second, the expireince anyways.

[Queen Arwen]

Pros
Centered on Hobbits
-Gandalf and Pip @ MT
-Lighting of the beacons
-Pippin's Song/Denethor Being a Pig/Faramir's Suicide Mission (brilliant and amazingly emotional)
-Dunharrow
-Ride of the Rohirrim (didn't cry, but still loved it!)
-BOTPF in general! My opinion was much improved the 2nd time.
-Eowyn & WiKi: "I am no man!" One of my ABSOLUTE fave scenes!
-The Black Gate
-Mount Doom
-Aragorn's coronation

Cons
-Not enough on Human heroes: Aragorn (DEFINITELY needs more!), Eomer (coronation scene?!), and Faramir (Houses of Healing & wedding!!!!)
-Semi-retarded version of Denethor in general
-Houses of Healing
-Aragorn's Black Gate speech: trailer was better
-Saruman (I did notice it, and it did kind of bother me when I saw ROTK the first time.)
-MoS
-i.e., nothing the EE can't compensate for! :D

[ReActor]

Well I saw the movie for the first time last night and loved every single minute of it. Nothing I will say will do the film any kind of justice but in one word "Sensational".

I was really anxious going into the theatre for fearing that it would be a let down, or that I would cry like a baby! As it turned out only one of those fears came true. Although I didn't cry my eyes out...just a few tears.

I didn't not like anything. I find it hard to see where people are finding critisms. One of my favourite "epic" scenes which really get my pumped was the lighting of the beacons. The music, the scenery...it was awesome and definately a non-fight scene highlight.

Well worth the wait, I wanna see it again and I can't wait for the EE.

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Originally posted by Satan
The soldiers knew Denethor was a jackass and that they had a bit more to worry about with 200,000 orcs coming straight towards them. Denethor started screaming run run, flea for your lives... now that is no leader. Its a coward and a fool. I actully didnt fine Gandalf to be less nice at all considering Denethor was such a dick and everything, he deserved to get beaten up by Gandalf.

I agree, it seemed to me that Gandalf was just pissed off at Denethor for being that way, so eager to just give up and let the Orcs storm Minas Tirith, Gandalf on the other hand wanted to put up a fight so he knocked out Denethor and played leader during the Siege, and the Gondorians listen to him cause he is after all Wise and knows what he is doing unlike Denethor

[PsYkOoOoO]

i dont think denethor was respected at all in the books?

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

I dont think he was Psykoooooo, hes an absolute lunatic!

[PsYkOoOoO]

which is also why john noble is such a great actor...

[Gandollum]

I never thought he was a lunatic in the books, i thought he was misunderstood, mainly because of all the stuff, death and destruction, he saw in the Palantir. But hes still a jerk.

[Rogue]

I guess I'm the only one that the Denethor scene didn't bother..I thought the cruelty and madness came across well and in a way, you got the feeling that he got what he deserved. *shrugs* That's just me anyway.

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Oh no Rogue, I think that too.. John Noble played Denethor to perfection to make us hate the guy... you only ever really see a softer side to him when he sees Faramirs eyes open and hes whimpering before he runs off the pyre aflame

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Has anyone heard the story that John Noble says in the TTT EE Commentary when Denethor is introduced and he says that theres a story about Denethor that the reason he is the way he is to Faramir is because his wife died in child birth and when he sees Faramir he is reminded of it.

True or not, not a bad theory.. and that makes you really sympathize for Denethor

[Cloud Buster]

I don't know if anyone has commented on this yet, but I think it was VERY cool that the Gondorians called Gandalf "Mithrandir". I thought they'd dumb it down for the audience in the movie and have Gondorians call him "Gandalf" as opposed to his name in the book, "Mithrandir".

[PsYkOoOoO]

yea i think someone said that when the clip came out

[Rogue]

Originally posted by Spy-Of-Saruman
Oh no Rogue, I think that too.. John Noble played Denethor to perfection to make us hate the guy... you only ever really see a softer side to him when he sees Faramirs eyes open and hes whimpering before he runs off the pyre aflame

True..I just don't see how anyone, not matter how much pain and grief you're experiencing coud send their only living son to die with no remorse. Granted, he wasn't all in his right mind..I just don't see how he could be so cold to Faramir. That scene where he's eating while Faramir is charging just rips your heart out. What really made me "hate" him was when Pippin was telling him Faramir was alive..but Denethor was hell bent on killing both of them. That was whacked!!

[Samwise Gamwich]

Originally posted by DolAmroth
Ive seen ROTK four times now and Gandalf Kicked Denethor into the fire cause he was grabing Pippin and I think Gandalf was worried he might throw Pippin into the flames.

I have seen it 4 times now also...
Did you all notice where Gandalf vs. WIKI will be re-installed with the EE??
Between when Pippin tells Gandalf that Denethor has lost his mind and when Gandalf and Pippin arrive at the Pyre... Gandalf arrives with NO STAFF!!!

[PsYkOoOoO]

john noble's a great actor

[Boiiinng]

Originally posted by Samwise Gamwich
I have seen it 4 times now also...
Did you all notice where Gandalf vs. WIKI will be re-installed with the EE??
Between when Pippin tells Gandalf that Denethor has lost his mind and when Gandalf and Pippin arrive at the Pyre... Gandalf arrives with NO STAFF!!!

Yeah, this reminds me of another editing mistake. If you are going to leave out the Gandalf/Witch King confrontation, then you need to leave out the scene where the Witch King says that he will break him. That was only a few seconds anyway, and we never saw him "break" Gandalf.

[adt100]

You're right there Samwise. Speculation from the very first sneak preview of ROTK footage from the TTT DVD (released on the 'net a few weeks earlier) was that the scene with the nazgul landing on the wall of MT in front of Gandalf was while they were diring up to Denethor's pyre.

I'd hoped it wasn't, and that we'd have the Wiki either ride through the gate, or land on the top of the Great Gates (similar to his entrance from Minas Morgul) and then have the Fell Beast jump down into the courtyard to confront Gandalf. It was a shame we didn't see any of the Wiki directing the use of Grond either, (as in the book and the Rankin/Bass cartoon.)

[Spy-Of-Saruman]

Originally posted by Rogue
True..I just don't see how anyone, not matter how much pain and grief you're experiencing coud send their only living son to die with no remorse. Granted, he wasn't all in his right mind..I just don't see how he could be so cold to Faramir. That scene where he's eating while Faramir is charging just rips your heart out. What really made me "hate" him was when Pippin was telling him Faramir was alive..but Denethor was hell bent on killing both of them. That was whacked!!

I also felt like the guy truly had no soul when he said to Pippin so coldly "Go now and die in whatever way you see fit" that was eeeeeeeeeevil

[PsYkOoOoO]

'if i shall return..think better of me..'

'that'll depend on the manner of your return..'

that bloody son of a *****!!

but i like....hahahhahaa

[LOTRfan]

Several different reactions to Pippin and Denethor:

Somebody laughed when Pippin started his song. She shut up immediately when she realized IT WASN'T MEANT TO BE FUNNY!. The guy in front of me laughed at the line SOS just mentioned...I didn't really see what was funny about that either. The only reaction I noticed the second time around that was dead-on was when my lil sis said "**** You" out loud to Denethor when he told Faramir he wished he had died instead of Boromir. A few people around her laughed at her gusto for saying what everyone else was thinking. I guess it was kind of mean for me to hit her shoulder...it was just an automatic reaction. It was quite a comical moment looking back on it. I'm just happy she didn't get kicked out of the theater...

[evenstar]

The scene when Denethor tells Faramir he wishes he was dead was perfectly played, bout 20 people took a sharp intake when he said it. John Noble has such a harsh, cold tone which made it that line cut even deeper.

[BaMBbLeS]

That was the reaction when i saw it the first time too. I gasped along with the rest, but then imediatly thought about him dieing in a blaze of fire. I felt so horribly bad for Faramir there, and during Pippin's song. That part has to be my favorite part of the movie. So intense. I love it.

[Rogue]

There were several people that gasped throughout the whole Denethor/Faramir sequences. I was one of them. Then the sniffling and crying started after Pippin's song. My god, his voice was perfect for the song..I got so choked up and couldn't hold back the tears anymore. So sad.

[carnage4u]

Originally posted by Boiiinng
Yeah, this reminds me of another editing mistake. If you are going to leave out the Gandalf/Witch King confrontation, then you need to leave out the scene where the Witch King says that he will break him. That was only a few seconds anyway, and we never saw him "break" Gandalf.


very true,, when the witch king said that. it was cool, but no follow thru sadly.......

[Glordreen]

I disagree, it was just like the Wiki didnt get his chance to do what he said, thats the way I look at it. anyways we'll see it on the EE.

[Warren]

Just saw it a few hours ago. Truly, there is only one sentence ot describe how this movie was.








PETER JACKSON IS THE JESUS.

[Tim37ninjageniu]

Truly there is one sentence to describe you: _____________

[Queen Arwen]

Why isn't this thread a sticky anymore?

[Boiiinng]

Has anyone discussed how thin in the face Sam looked? I wonder if they shrunk his makeup down a little to show how long the journey was or if they just messed up for these scenes. You can see the obvious makeup marks along his cheeks.

[Lurtz_2000]

you mean it doesn't stay at the top?

[The Moose]

yes Lurtz a sticky always stays at the top. i think that is is no longer a sticky thread as many people have seen it now, and isn't really the "most" inportant and commonly used thread in this forum anymore

[tman662000]

Did anyone else absolutely LOVE the ride of the Rohirrim. Its so awesome, one of my top 3 favorite parts in ROTK and prob in my top 5 for the entire trilogy. Just the scope of it, and seeing everyones reaction to the battle, and the horn blowing. I love when you see Gondor getting their ass kicked by the trolls, and then you hear the horn in the backround, finally. That gave me chills.
I dont know about you, but I thought Theodens speetch was better than Aragorns. Maybe its just the way Hill delivered it, but its so well done. And then all the orcs fleeing when they see the size of this charge, its just crazy. Gondor owes alot to Rohan. Those guys kicked major ass, even when they were getting worked by the Oliphants, they never gave up.
"DEAAATH!!!!!!" absolutely chilling...

[king_of_hetzer]

come on people.Get a life.frodo gets his finger bit off.This is some good stuff


MERINA

[The Moose]

i saw it for the second time today, and was unfortunate enough to be sitting to someone who had (i think) read the list of funny things to do in ROTK, sa a few of them were done, to my annoyance. otherwise, i saw billy and katie jackson at Sam and Rosies wedding, which i missed first time around. realised that the Ride of The Rohirrim was better that i first thought it was. all the orcs chanting grond seemed better than before. heck, the entire movie seemed better than before. i'm still not ultra happy with aragorn's speech at the Morannon, was just too fast. overall: better second time around

[kylesmile]

It seems to be the general consensus that ROTK is better the 2nd time you see it. That is why I am highly looking forward to seeing it again either tomorrow or Christmas day.

[The Moose]

i think not only that, but it gets better every time you see it, but i'm sure that there will be a point when the movie ceases to become better

[Yeah Ok]

worst movie since gigli

[The Moose]

people, don't get mad. he's allowed to voice his opinion, and there's nothing we can do about that.

[Gandollum]

edit

[Smeagol]

Originally posted by The Moose
i think not only that, but it gets better every time you see it, but i'm sure that there will be a point when the movie ceases to become better

The movie improved for me upon my second viewing but for my third viewing I really noticed how long the ending was. :( I believe the Grey Havens scene - although beautiful for the book-lovers - was a bit pointless in the theatrical cut simply because the majority of the audience didn't have a clue what it was supposed to be about. :clown: So I consider my 1st and 2nd viewings to be more enjoyable than my 3rd, overall.

[adt100]

3rd viewing is book for 2.30pm this afternoon (after finishing the Xmas shopping), and my 4th with work friends again on the 29th. :D

I can understand the ending criticisms from non-viewers. Consensus seems to be that he should maybe have finished the TC after the coronation - "You bow to no-one" (focus on the Hobbits and then close in on Frodo).

[Samwise Gamwich]

NEWS FLASH!!!!

Revised Street Date for ROTK TE DVD

Follow this link:

http://www.dvdboxoffice.com/description.asp?id=B9285008-5B07-45BB-9F30-1EC501C639CB&class=mvi&wh=MAIN&s=gg&rate=CAD++%2D1%2E000+++++&pid=90050715

[Smeagol]

Originally posted by Samwise Gamwich
NEWS FLASH!!!!

Revised Street Date for ROTK TE DVD

Follow this link:

http://www.dvdboxoffice.com/description.asp?id=B9285008-5B07-45BB-9F30-1EC501C639CB&class=mvi&wh=MAIN&s=gg&rate=CAD++%2D1%2E000+++++&pid=90050715

I'm getting one. ;)

[Cloud Buster]

Originally posted by Lurtz_2000
does anyone kno the name of those creatues that were pulling grond???
they looked abit like rhinos

I know this is an older post but I just noticed it.

I think they were supposed to be Kine. Kine are these oxen like animals that hang out near Rhun. It is said that the Horn of Gondor (Boromir's Horn) was made from the horn of a Kine that was descendant from one of the great game Kine that the Valar hunted in the Eldar days.

[The Moose]

cool. finally, someone who knows something. so they may not be something made up by PJ after all

[Gandollum]

So the dvd might be released on March 29, but that falls on a Monday, videos always get released on a Tuesday.

[RebelwithaCause]

Yeah...that is odd. Hmm.

[adt100]

Saw ROTK for the 3rd time yesterday, can't wait for my 4th viewing on Monday. :D

[belfast-biker]

Originally posted by adt100
I can understand the ending criticisms from non-viewers.


Non-viewers?

[evenstar]

Non readers prob

[Gandollum]

When I saw it a second time, I saw the movie with my brother and mother who havent read the books and they didnt really mind the long ending, and there's some who have read the books and still complained about the ending. I dont know, I think its a matter of taste really.

[adt100]

Yes, I meant non-readers. :o

[Cbars]

I don't think it would have been an issue had the endings been blended a bit better, the fading to black time after time was a bit confusing.

[konman72]

Was really pumped for it, but it was a let down, the ending dragged on even though they cut the scouring of the shire. The sfx were not very well done, they were the bad kind of fake instead of the good/ok kind. The best parts were cut extrememly obviously, it just wasnt very good. And after rewatching the past installments FOTR and TTT i was not very impressed by them either.

[lotrfreak]

WOOO I FINALLY SAW IT!!!! YAY! BEST MOVIE EVER!!!:)

[PsYkOoOoO]

Originally posted by konman72
Was really pumped for it, but it was a let down, the ending dragged on even though they cut the scouring of the shire. The sfx were not very well done, they were the bad kind of fake instead of the good/ok kind. The best parts were cut extrememly obviously, it just wasnt very good. And after rewatching the past installments FOTR and TTT i was not very impressed by them either.

yea...already without the scouring and you are complaining about the length of the ending..well when we first heard the news about the scouring not filmed a lot of people were complaining and pissed...i wonder how they feel now...but in my opinion the ending was fine..it didnt exactly drag on and on...

[adt100]

I don't think for book readers is dragged at all. I would have liked even more (though not the Scouring).

[PsYkOoOoO]

more of....what adt?

[Smeagol]

Originally posted by PsYkOoOoO
more of....what adt?

I think adt100 would have liked to see more of the ending.

I think it should have stopped before The Grey Havens. I know the Purists would have ripped PJ's head off but cinematically it certainly would have been more viable, rather than prolonging things a tad too long.

Some people leave the cinema not thinking about how awesome the film was, but instead thinking about long the ending was. :alien:

[PsYkOoOoO]

i know but im just wondering what else he wants to see at the end..like...eomer becoming king and stuff?

[soulassassin]

Woo Hoo

My fav part in da movie is when the credits finally rolled in

Yay

[PsYkOoOoO]

.............really what are you doing in the lotr forum....

[adt100]

To cause trouble? :rolleyes:

I would have liked to see some kind of epilogue dealing with some of the appendices, tying up all the loose ends with regards the other characters final fates (Aragorn, Arwen, Legolas, Gimli etc), but only for the EE.

[PsYkOoOoO]

oh those...cool bring those on!!

[Elessar504]

I Finally Saw It!!!!

Epic, fantastic, amazing!!

I need more, more, more!!!

[redman]

Just saw it then. A mighty fine film. I dont care what ppl say, i loved the ending. It rapped things up nicely.

I suppose i'll have to let it sink in before i decide whether or not its better than FOTR, cause that was my fav.

Im glad they didnt focus solely on the battle of the pellanor fields cause PJ could have gone totally over the top with that.

[cg124]

i just saw this yesterday and it was incredible, the battles were so amazing, i loved every minute of it. this is definetly my favorite in the series

[Ryvyan]

I watched it thrice and I'm still a bit confuzzled that I've watched it thrice.

Does that make sense? It just doesn't seem real.

[adt100]

It's not mean to be real, it's fantasy! :D

[Ryvyan]

Mehh... real as in... Well, it doesn't seem real that I'm actually watching it in the cinema, and seems totally unreal that I've finished watching it.

I still feel in a daze, maybe it's really because it's a fantasy :P

[Glordreen]

I will be seeing it for thr fourth time today.

[Queen Arwen]

Lucky girl! I wish I could go.

[Gandollum]

Ive seen it twice, i might watch it again, but tickets are too expensive at my theatre.

[Queen Arwen]

They're not overtly expensive at my theater--$5 before 6 p.m.--but the problem of transportation is overwhelming for me. Also, the problem of my parents thinking I've already seen it enough times. :(

[Gandollum]

Ttickets over here cost $12.50 before 6 and $14.50 after 6. Its getting overly expensive.

[Queen Arwen]

Where do you live?!?

[Gandollum]

In Alberta, Canada, theres two major theatres close by and they're fairly new. We also have a few smaller ones, but usually they dont have any good movies playing. Its not too bad actually, the theatre that I go to is very nice, they have stadium seating and the screen is really big. I just think they could lower the price a bit. Ive already spent 50 bucks watching the movie twice including food and drinks.

[PsYkOoOoO]

how come in america there isnt a fixed cost for movie tickets?

[Queen Arwen]

It doesn't make sense to have a fixed cost because cost of living is VERY different in various cities. Take NYC, for example. A "fixed" cost for a ticket lies in the $10 realm after 6 p.m. In El Paso, $7.50 will get you a ticket after 6 p.m. But to have a standardized ticket cost is just ridiculous in America. That's capitalism for you.

[PsYkOoOoO]

oh...well in my country its fixed..so wherever you go it's the same price...and if you convert it to US dollars its about...5 6 dollars as well?when the standard of living is about the same..hmm..

[Queen Arwen]

You live in the UK, right? I wish I could go...and only $5 or $6 per ticket!!! That's awesome.

[PsYkOoOoO]

nonono..singapore...:)but im not a singaporean..just live here thats all

[Queen Arwen]

Cool. I myself was born and lived in the Philippines for 9 years.

[OBSERVER]

Real quick,

Denethor with a palantir was filmed and has a very strong possibility of being in the EE.
Liarrrrrrrrr

[Tornado]

Holy bumpage Batman.

[insaneMoViEgoer]

did you really need to bump this thread?

[OBSERVER]

Yeah. There isn't much activity anymore.

[Nimrandir]

good gracious me...I think you should let it go.

[OBSERVER]

I think we should have a moment of silence for Samwise Gamwich, who died about a year ago now and days before the EE DVD was released. This was the last site he visited. His account still remains active.

[Glordreen]

did Samwise Gamwich really die?

[insaneMoViEgoer]

yes. his wife came on and told us the news.

http://www.comingsoon.net/forums/showthread.php?t=34778&highlight=Samwise+Gamwich