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. (20/11/2003)

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. (16/01/2003)

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. (28/01/2014)

The Two Towers is faster-paced, more action-packed and more spectacular than The Fellowship of the Ring. The film’s three hours flowed by like water. Not to mention the fact that The Two Towers is bursting at the seams with gems like the duel with Balrog in the first film. But I still liked The Fellowship of the Ring better. It was more drawn out and slower, but fuller and more consistent in terms of its content. The Two Towers is concise and serves up all that breathtaking action and spectacle in the form of a concertina book of beautiful but narratively less cohesive visual gems. Even if this drawback could be forgiven, because the film is “only” a bridge between two monuments, I still have another criticism – the humor, which detracts from the dignity and drama of the film (Golum cooking fish, Gimli on the ramparts). Visually, however, The Two Towers is a real gem with by far the most sophisticated and “best acted” digital character (Golum) to ever appear on a movie screen. (20/12/2002)

I don't know why, but the second part will probably be the best of the whole trilogy for me. It's not because of the story. All the parts are great in this respect. It's rather because of the gloomy atmosphere of the whole movie. Unlike the calm storytelling style of the first part, things are set in motion, the movie has a swifter pace and more action certainly doesn't hurt. The great Peter Jackson has everything worked out down to the last detail. Especially the epic final battle shows his brilliant directing skills. Compared to the first installment, the visual effects have also improved, Gollum in particular is excellent. Although I consider this part the best, I'm not saying that the other parts are inferior. The whole trilogy deserves 5 stars. (25/07/2012)