The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

• As the second movie of the LOTR trilogy, Peter Jackson once again comes through with a ridiculously good movie. I absolutely love this one (even though they are all fantastic), and it never disappoints or gets boring. In some ways, it’s a little similar to Fellowship of the Ring, but it’s also very diverse with great storytelling. Speaking of the story, all the movies are obviously a continuation, but I really like this one because of how it tells three separate stories as part of one overall plot. I really love being able to follow three different journeys in the same movie, as it always shakes things up and keeps it fresh. It also causes the movie to move at an excellent pace. It’s also very intriguing to see how each character or group deals with their main mission in different ways. And of course, when it comes to characters, the movie remains completely stacked when it comes to its cast. You have the same people from the first movie (minus Sean Bean), along with an addition of a few other fantastic actors. But, to me, the number one performance of this movie is Andy “the 🐐“ Serkis as Gollum. Not only is this one of the best performances of the 2000’s, or this decade, but it’s one of the best performances of all time. You can both hear and see so much emotion and internal battles from Gollum, even though he’s just a motion capture piece of animation. Even in his movements alone, you can see so much. But, you can also hear so many feelings in his voice, such as jealousy, pain, and greed. He’s definitely one of the reasons this movie has such a high score, and I can’t praise Andy enough for his hard work. I also love the new look that Gandalf has. All the other costumes look really good as well, and I love all of the makeup and looks. The orcs continue to have a fantastic design, as they are all different and gross in their own ways. I think the effects and CGI definitely improved in this movie from the previous one, and it’s so impressive for 2002 (especially Gollum). All the fight scenes are super fun and always pull you in, especially in the last hour of the movie. And please give Howard Shore the acknowledgement he deserves for the score. I think I enjoyed the score of the previous movie a little more, but this score is still so well written. It’s beautiful, intense, and mellow all at once. Overall, this movie is freaking awesome, and I would highly recommend it to all fantasy/adventure fans (just make sure you see the previous movie first). This film is officially Berry Approved, so go watch it now!