The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

After watching the theatrical version a few times, I was convinced that, after the excellent Fellowship, The Lord of the Rings movie saga was doing a head dive before it got a chance to take off properly. It was indisputably a strong experience, but too obviously to be taken at face value without anything hidden “underneath the surface". “Merely" perfect craftsmanship and “just" a good movie which, in this case, is too darn little. It’s void of emotion and some of the changes leave you speechless; not even Michael Bay comes anywhere near this. Add to that unbalanced pace and overall incoherence. But then I saw the Special Edition. It’s incredible how this version, which lasts 45 minutes longer, has far better and more balanced pace and, thanks to added and extended scenes, it gains a completely new dimension. These are two different movies in terms of both tone and quality. (11/20/2003)

The most contentious part of the trilogy... The fact that the film is really very good in all aspects only stands out fully in the extended version, in which the otherwise rather broken story of Merry, Pippin and Treebeard is finally concluded; the story of Faramir (eventually one of the best changes) unfolds and the whole film gets some energy. Not energy in the sense of "dynamic forward run", but energy in the sense of "yes, it moves slowly, but I would like it to move even slower, because it is extremely beautiful". I am incredibly irritated by Aragorn's incomprehensible fall into the abyss. Why? But a speck this small can't devalue the impression of a great spectacle. King Theoden's monologue before the Battle of Helm's Deep is another of the moments that will remain in my memory forever, as is the return of the Rohirim to the king... (01/25/2004)

Flashier, more explosive, and slightly faster than The Fellowship of the Ring, but not really better overall. The Two Towers has a lot of unforgettable moments, Peter Jackson is uncompromising in the action scenes and there is an abundance of severed limbs. But it's amazing how masterfully he composes the intimate scenes, too, especially the elven ones. Howard Shore’s Unique music also plays its part, it’s properly action-packed and beautifully resonant, exactly how the score for a massive film like The Two Towers should be like. But Fellowship has its unmistakable charm, besides begin the first, something new that is hard to resist. In addition, occasionally, the continuation of the monstrous trilogy is a bit too pompous (especially scenes with Bernard Hill), but without a doubt, it is one of the films of the year. (08/11/2006)

The Two Towers is such an emotional and visual barrage that the brain is not able to absorb everything it sees at first, and when it was over I couldn't remember what I saw at the beginning. This is not a film to watch once, you absorb it only after a second or third viewing. Die-hard fans of the book will probably squeal in disgust at how Jackson dared to change the plot and character of Faramir. I don’t care, on the contrary, I think those changes benefited the film. I even loved the much-criticised scene with Arwen, in fact, I think it’s one of the best in the film. A film is a film and a book is a book, they are two different worlds. I'm interested in the film and it's well made, it's spectacular and awesome. (01/16/2003)

For me, it is undoubtedly the weakest part of the series, yet it contains scenes that other films could never reach. For example, ordinary scenes, when Gandalf and the Gondorians arrive to help, always move me to tears. Nevertheless, one has the feeling that something great is expected. That great something is, of course, "The Return of the King." However, if every film had such an interlude within the trilogy, the studios would have a win. Epic and intimate at the same time, emotionally powerful, beautifully Hollywood-esque, but also sometimes disgustingly brutal. However, the film works best in a trio with the other two films. (01/28/2014)