Movie: The Lord of the RingsThe Return of the King

	Distributor:	New Line Cinema
	Release:	December 17th, 2003
	Genre:	Action/Adventure, Drama, Science Fiction/Fantasy
	MPAA Rating:	PG-13 for intense epic battle sequences and frightening images

After enduring a lot of commercials and trailers, it was a relief when the New Line logo finally appeared, signalling for the Middle Earth magic to begin.

Like the first two, this is a beautiful movie. We see more of Pippin as he is whisked away from his companions and becomes a guest of the Steward of Gondor. Billy Boyd had the luck to sing a simple song, with the backdrop of war to give it significance and feeling.

I've always cried over the death of Theoden king in the novel, so it is natural for me to love that scene in this movie.

Although the Denethor I have imagined from the books had more finesse than the Denethor here who eats sloppily, the movie capture the madness of the character. The scene where Frodo has to throw the ring into the fire was executed well - we see how Frodo finally gives in to the power and claims the ring, only to be saved by the greed of Smeagol. Sam as usual is the lovable loyal servant, and the ending is so sweet - showing him returning to his family in the Shire after seeing Frodo off at the Grey Havens.

Now for the fun parts. Orlando Bloom once more gets his share of Legolas-in-action scene. I think Jackson inserted those moves after the initial filming because he realized how Legolas clicked with a certain demographic. The elf nicknamed by some internet denizens as Figwit makes an appearance due to insistent female fandom clamor. The proliferation of slash fiction about LOTR characters definitely ruined some heartwarming scenes. Since most people watching are college students, people were hooting whenever Sam/Frodo, Merry/Pippin or other guy/guy characters would have "tender" moments. It confirms that majority of the audience have access to the net and have read the slash fiction - which includes Cassandra Claire's secret diaries.

I was amused. I don't know if Peter Jackson would be.