Re:LotR: Return of the King – Cult or Corny?

Great action scenes (Jackson’s forte) interspersed with silliness that no good producer (Jackson’s achilles’ heel) would have allowed. The Rhohirrim should have been whipped up out of sight of the enemy and then their charge should have been a surprise to the orcs – would have been far more effective.

Denethor should have been left out, as should the silly Gondorian cavalry charge with lances against buildings.

The Dead shouldn’t have been used as a deus ex machina to wipe out all the orcs. As it turned out, the entire existance of the Rhohirrim (and the Gondorians) was unnecesary, as the Dead Dudes could have saved Gondor on their own (and killed every orc in Mordor, for that matter).

The movie should have, instead, featured Aragorn’s deception that he had the ring. That was key (in the books) to Sauron’s preoccupation with the forces of the West, and would have taken no additional onscreen time to explain.

The rest of the action bits I accept as Peter doing what Peter does best, but I thought the heart of the story simply wasn’t there. The good guys all just suffered because that is what good guys do.

Pity Jackson never read the books before doing the movies. What a treat we would have had if he didn’t rely on others’ interpretations of the books, or if there had simply been a producer involved who was determined to ensure that the best bits from the books got into the movies.

It was still a great flick, though. I loved getting dizzy watching the hobbits crawl up the stairs past Minas Morgul, and the special effects for the battles will by themselves convince me to get the DVDs, flaws and all. I would give it a B grade.