A Reel 20: THE LORD OF THE RINGS - THE RETURN OF THE KING

“And the Fellowship of the Ring, though eternally bound by friendship and love…was ended.”

 

This month marks the 20^th anniversary of THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING. 

 

Directed by Peter Jackson, THE RETURN OF THE KING was the third and final film in Jackson’s adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic fantasy novels. The first film came in 2001 with THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING, and continued with THE TWO TOWERS in 2002. The third film and eventual Best Picture winner followed the quest to destroy the One Ring and rid Middle-Earth of the evil menace of Sauron. 

 

The journey to Middle-Earth began in 1997, when New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson overcame many starts, stops, and legal challenges to bring the books, his personal favorites, to the big screen. The original plan was to adapt the books into two parts, but upstart studio New Line Cinema committed to three. Along with screenwriters Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, and long-time Tolkien artists Alan Lee and John Howe, Middle-Earth and its fantastic characters and places began to take form. Filming for all three movies would begin in New Zealand and would last an entire year.

 

The cast of was a collection of well-established actors. Elijah Wood would take on the role of Frodo Baggins; the young hobbit who comes into possession of the One Ring. He was joined by Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Cate Blanchett, Sean Astin, John Rhys-Davies, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, Orlando Bloom, Sean Bean, Ian Holm, Andy Serkis, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Bernard Hill, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Karl Urban, John Noble, and Viggo Mortensen as the future King. Visual effects would be a combination of practical and new techniques in CGI. Howard Shore would compose the score. 

 

THE RETURN OF THE KING would follow in the footsteps of its predecessors, opening in December to rave reviews and box office success. It would finish as the highest grossing film of 2003, and the second highest of all time at the time of its release. At the 76^th Academy Awards, it would win all eleven awards for which it was nominated, including Best Picture. Today, it is recognized as one of the greatest and influential films ever made. 

 

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One of the greatest moments in Oscar history came on Oscar night in February of 2004, when famed director Steven Spielberg announced the Best Picture of the year by saying: “It’s a clean sweep!”. The moment made THE RETURN OF THE KING the first fantasy film to take home the big prize, and for many fans of fantasy and sci-fi, it was moment of victory. In the long run, the film would pave the way for a new generation of big budget, multi-film storytelling, for in five years the Marvel Cinematic Universe would take cues from the RINGS trilogy and change cinema even more. 

 

Before that, in December of 2001, This Blogger and a group of friends gathered at the cinema to see FELLOWSHIP for the first time. We would all re-unite each December for the next two years and two films, and along the way we would discover our own Fellowship. The themes of loyalty; being true to each other despite challenges, time, and distance…resonated with us then and now. Three members of our Fellowship were in my wedding, and each December I run a day-long marathon of all three films; for my Fellowship, for the last 20 years, and for the next 20. Today the film stills stands tall as a perfect adaptation of a novel, and a cinematic avalanche of spectacle and emotion. THE RETURN OF THE KING was, and still is, a feat that still towers over all. 

“You bow to no one.”