Featured Audience Ratings

• Directors C

  
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• Kase V

  
  Though not as precise in its storytelling abilities as its predecessor, 'The Two Towers' makes up for its slowly paced plot with epic action pieces. The Battle of Helm's Deep is massively exciting and impressive, and Serkis' work as Smeagol is just as brilliant.… More
  Though not as precise in its storytelling abilities as its predecessor, 'The Two Towers' makes up for its slowly paced plot with epic action pieces. The Battle of Helm's Deep is massively exciting and impressive, and Serkis' work as Smeagol is just as brilliant. The story may be a little bit of a drag in the second installment of the saga, but the epic battle and final third make it all worth while.

• Al S

  
  A spectacular and supreme epic action-packed adventure fantasy. It's extraordinary and breathtaking. Astonishing and amazing. The landscapes are beautiful and the performances are magnificent. One of the finest special effects adventures since The Empire Strikes Back. This is my… More
  A spectacular and supreme epic action-packed adventure fantasy. It's extraordinary and breathtaking. Astonishing and amazing. The landscapes are beautiful and the performances are magnificent. One of the finest special effects adventures since The Empire Strikes Back. This is my favorite part of the trilogy. An astonishing and tremendously well-crafted epic that's gorgeous, breathtaking and utterly unforgettable. The cast is superb, their chemistry has improved, especially between Mortensen, Bloom and Davies, they are strong, funny and remarkable. An exhilarating and adrenaline-charged action-ride.

• Dan S

  
  The 'Empire Strikes Back' of the LOTR trilogy, concerning the hobbit Frodo (Elijah Wood) and his quest to return the ring back to where it was forged. As is the case with this trilogy which neither starts out strong (like 'Fellowship' staying too long at The Shire)… More
  The 'Empire Strikes Back' of the LOTR trilogy, concerning the hobbit Frodo (Elijah Wood) and his quest to return the ring back to where it was forged. As is the case with this trilogy which neither starts out strong (like 'Fellowship' staying too long at The Shire) nor finishes with force (the many drawn out conclusions to 'Return of the King'), Jackson is allowed to pick up from the middle and finish with an open-ended conclusion to this film, which in turn makes this his strongest film yet. Aragorn's maturing into a king, Gandalf's rock-star return, and Gollum's creepy presence makes this movie a tremendous one that offers a ton of variety in addition to its gorgeous cinematography.

• KJ P

  
  Okay, for my liking, "The Two Towers" is not as exciting as the first film, but the payoff is much grander. The stakes are much higher and the visuals have improved, but the middle of this story just feels like it drags on a bit before getting to the good stuff, but not to… More
  Okay, for my liking, "The Two Towers" is not as exciting as the first film, but the payoff is much grander. The stakes are much higher and the visuals have improved, but the middle of this story just feels like it drags on a bit before getting to the good stuff, but not to say that the slow parts are not fantastically written, because they are. In fact, the final act of this film is my favourite part of the entire trilogy. The battle at helms deep is some of the best films action I have ever seen. The choreography is immensely impressive. The second instalment in "The lord of the Rings" trilogy is the strongest plot and character-wise, but my least favourite when it comes to the viewing itself. This is such an incredible trilogy.

• Phil H

  
  Onward to Mount Doom, the perilous journey continues from where it left off. Still in familiar territory with this sequel as the 78 Bakshi film also covered most of what happens here, just about, so yes I can still compare to a degree hurrah!. So as we crack on with the story its not… More
  Onward to Mount Doom, the perilous journey continues from where it left off. Still in familiar territory with this sequel as the 78 Bakshi film also covered most of what happens here, just about, so yes I can still compare to a degree hurrah!. So as we crack on with the story its not long before you discover there's a lot of dialog, quite a lot, in fact bloody hell what have I gotten myself into!. Yes the first like two hours of the film is much dialog and not really very much else. Now if you're a Tolkien fanboy this will be music to your ears as Jackson does cover a whole heap of plot, although there are variations and changes still as there were with the first film. I should point out quickly that all visuals, details, location work and performances are of course as you would expect and still on par with the first entry. There isn't too much need to go into all that as the quality is still just as high all round and I explained those standards in my first review. This is of course the film where we meet 'Gollum' properly as a full fledged character. Now in my humble little opinion you either like this guy or you don't, personally I can't stand this character even back in the Bakshi film. I realise he is suppose to be a wretched creature but jesus christ he's annoying, annoying on the same level as 'Jar Jar Binks'. His voice just pisses me off and his design with those big eyes looks completely ridiculous, the guy has 'Disney' eyes for gods sake!. Again upon release this character got huge raving reviews about the CGI and all round rendering against the live action. Again I simply don't understand what the hell everyone was on about as I saw shoddy CGI abundantly with some awful rendering against live action characters in places. Its not all bad for sure, a scene with 'Gollum' sat on a rock next to some open water eating a fish shows how good SOME of the CGI could be. In general I was never impressed with this effect and his quite childish and basic looking features, the only aspect that looked real was his eyes, kinda. So to be honest most of the film is really rather dull and slow for the most part. There are bits of interest within the plot that spring up to keep you awake ('Merry' and 'Pippin' with the orcs) and of course the odd eye popping moment of real scenery ('Edoras'). But lets be honest here, it all gets into gear when 'King Théoden of Rohan' decides to move his people of 'Edoras' to 'Helm's Deep' and everybody starts to suit up for war...WAR!!!. Before we get there you have the intriguing sub plot with 'Merry' 'Pippin' and 'Treebeard'. Now this part of the plot I always liked and I loved the 'Ent' species, huge ancient old gnarly trees that could come alive, walk and talk. This was one area which never really saw the light of day in the Bakshi film. I was happy to see that 'Fangorn forest' did live up to my expectations with its sweeping, mystical, magical appearance. I loved how light beams broke through the twisted huge trees, the gentle humming of insects in the background, the bold palette of greens, yellows and browns of the undergrowth, all together giving this harmonious fairytale utopia. Now this was never going to be an easy task creating living trees and to be honest I think the designs were pretty good for the 'Ent' species. Well the odd tree character looked a bit silly, the weeping willow type character didn't quite work if you ask me hehe why would that be in a forest? probably not a weeping willow I know but it looked like it. Amazingly 'Treebeard' isn't fully CGI, he is actually a large puppet/model against bluescreen with the help of CGI later on naturally. To be brutally honest, the sequences with both 'Merry' and 'Pippin' riding around with 'Treebeard' are, well...pretty poor looking. The big problem with these films has been dreadful bluescreen effects which are hideously obvious to the point that the foreground is virtually a different brightness to the background. Hard to pull off yes but it does look very basic. The models are quite nice and better than the fully CGI 'Ents' but neither are exactly believable which I hate to say. Anyway after a whole lot of plot development and slow slow character driven dialog blah blah blah we finally get to the meat of the film and what we've all been waiting for, THE BATTLE AT 'HELM'S DEEP'. 'Finally we are here', I know that's what I was thinking, I'm sure you were too, yes you were don't lie. Now far from me to describe myself as a 'battle whore' but this huge huge finale certainly got my nipples tingling with excitement. As the massive army of orcs, Uruk-Hai and god knows what slowly lurch closer you can't help but get pumped. 'Aragorn' summons his army of men and elves to arms, walking up and down the vast stone fortified wall of 'Helm's Deep' invoking a warriors passion into the hearts of all that stand beside him. On the other side of the wall in the pouring rain the orcs and Uruk-Hai pound the ground with their spears, baiting their foes...oh yeah its full on kick ass!. In short the battle doesn't disappoint in any way, Jackson milks every moment for as much heroic posturing as possible with plenty of good short 'suit up' sequences just to make sure you know there is gonna be some epic hacking n slashing. The good guys are holding firm but slowly succumb and you really do start thinking how the hell are they gonna turn this around!. Its a full rollercoaster of emotion as the goodies crumble along with their fortress and become overrun. The epic splattering of orcs, men and elves is interspursed with silly moments I have to say. The orcs manage to get the explosives into the drainage, the weak spot of the 'Helm's Deep' walls. But then they have one big orc do some kind of Olympic torch bearing act and run across the battlefield holding the igniting flame aloft for all to see and shoot at...eh?. Why not just light it when they dumped it?. I didn't like the odd moment of Hollywood where 'Legolas' slides down some stairs on a shield like a surfboard whilst shooting multiple arrows one after another. Does this elf ever run out of arrows by the way? his pouch is always chock full. When 'Aragorn' throws 'Gimli' across a quite large drop onto the main bridge at the entrance of 'Helm's Deep'. He then proceeds to jump it himself and they both fight off quite literately hundreds of Uruk-Hai. And when all the heroes come charging out of the fortress on horseback they pretty much go through hundreds of big sturdy heavy Uruk-Hai as if they were made out of paper. Finally, when 'Gandalf' shows up with 'Éomer' looking down on 'Helm's Deep', errr that near sheer downward gradient drop they all ride down on horseback!! excuse me!!. Yes its little quibbles but things like that detract from the sensible story and I always notice this stuff haha. The effects are better than the first film yet still have the same problems in my opinion. One good example of some pretty terrible CGI action would be the attack of the 'Isengard wolves' or 'Warg riders'. This sequence really is jerky with nasty bluescreen and a whole load of fake looking action set pieces. There are also many little moments throughout which simply don't look right, one tiny sequence shows 'Legolas' mounting a horse as it trots past him which is quite literately absolutely awful looking haha. On the plus side the orcs and Uruk-Hai seem to look much better this time, not quite as hokey. The 'Ringwraiths' look good on their flying dragon-like steeds and there seems to be a bit more blood on show methinks too, ever so slightly more gooey and gory. Overall I thought this film was for the most part rather dull and not as good as the first film. The finale battle is obviously the best thing in the whole film and without it there would be problems. The film does feel much more like a serious historical drama for the most part up to the final big battle. From that point on it obviously becomes a much stronger fantasy action film which it really needed frankly. Not that the rest of the film is bad, its just a wee slow and dull, filling in lots of plot before it all heats up. The thing is the dialog and slow building in the first film was much more interesting because you're getting to know the characters and their world. Here its just filler getting 'Frodo' and the gang to the next big step, but kudos for getting it all in there and staying true to the book. To be continued.....

• Lucas M

  
  Just like several great series, The Lord of the Rings, present a surprising and exciting sequel of this spectacular tale. With a terrific acting by Andy Serkis as Gollum.

• Samuel R

  
  Although my least favoured out of the trilogy, 'The Two Towers' probably contains the more sophisticated part of the story than the others. It shares the same pros and cons to the first chapter. However, because there is far more talking in this one, the film can feel like… More
  Although my least favoured out of the trilogy, 'The Two Towers' probably contains the more sophisticated part of the story than the others. It shares the same pros and cons to the first chapter. However, because there is far more talking in this one, the film can feel like its dragging too much, espescially with its slightly longer story. Its recommended to watch the 'Fellowship' before, to understand the situation easier.

• Eric S

  
  More political than the first yet essential to the story. Stick around for the battle of Helm's Deep, it's incredible.

• Matthew Samuel M

  
  The film draws you in, and never lets you down as it delivers more action and more complexity than the first one. It is a brilliant lead into the finale. The fantastic thing about the film is that though it is of the fantasy genre, we feel close to these characters and actually care… More
  The film draws you in, and never lets you down as it delivers more action and more complexity than the first one. It is a brilliant lead into the finale. The fantastic thing about the film is that though it is of the fantasy genre, we feel close to these characters and actually care about their situation. It's surprising that despite the use of CGI work, nothing seems fake. Everything is tangible and raw.

• Scott G

  
  Definitely one of the most authentic and powerful films to be produced by Peter Jackson, as can be said for the others, but this one just seems to shine as my favourite for both it's plot and strong casting line up, being the second in the trilogy, this installment could be seen… More
  Definitely one of the most authentic and powerful films to be produced by Peter Jackson, as can be said for the others, but this one just seems to shine as my favourite for both it's plot and strong casting line up, being the second in the trilogy, this installment could be seen merely as a lead up to one of the biggest and best finale's in film history, and Peter does an outstanding job in creating yet another masterpiece for the critics to naturally love.

• Alexander D

  
  THE TWO TOWERS is truly the best LORD OF THE RINGS film, and it really should have won the Oscar for Best Picture, if any in the epic trilogy. This one is the most interesting, and it doesn't carry on forever at all.

• Christopher H

  
  The second entry in the Lord of the Rings trilogy manages to surpass the first film in every way. Packed with more adventure and action than the first. Andy Serkis gives a very chilling performance as Gollum despite being in a motion-capture suit. The battle of Helms Deep is pure… More
  The second entry in the Lord of the Rings trilogy manages to surpass the first film in every way. Packed with more adventure and action than the first. Andy Serkis gives a very chilling performance as Gollum despite being in a motion-capture suit. The battle of Helms Deep is pure awesomeness.

• Raymond W

  
  The continuation of the Lord of the Rings trilogy by Peter Jackson is one of epic, sweeping, intense, breathtaking and extraordinary quality. Loved every minute of it.

• Thomas B

  
  Peter Jackson left the entire world on a cliffhanger when he finished The Fellowship of the Ring. After having done such an impressive job with the first film and then having the balls to stay true to the source by finishing as he did, he was almost setting himself up to fail; giving… More
  Peter Jackson left the entire world on a cliffhanger when he finished The Fellowship of the Ring. After having done such an impressive job with the first film and then having the balls to stay true to the source by finishing as he did, he was almost setting himself up to fail; giving himself a task even greater than the original undertaking: a sequel. Not just any sequel; a sequel to film being touted as one of the greatest fantasy films ever made and himself being declared a genius. This sort of hype is almost impossible to live up to. Almost. Taking up where its predecessor left off, The Two Towers follows Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas as they chase down a troop of Uruk-Hai, Frodo and Sam as they journey further towards Mordor and Merry and Pippin as they, well, get into lots of trouble. The story is much more divided in comparison to the first of the series with a fellowship of nine journeying together rather than three different groups and their various shenanigans. This is the first challenge to overcome for filmmaker Peter Jackson: how to tell all these stories in under four hours? Not only that, but how to allot time to the different storylines without 1) making it boring and 2) losing focus on the main story which just happens to be the more boring aspect of the source material: Frodo and Sam's trek towards Mordor. After all, how inventive can one director be with half the story taking up by two diminutive figures walking towards a place which they don't actually reach by the time the films finishes? It's almost as if Jackson hasn't noticed these issues as the second film is just as fulfilling and story-driven as the first without sacrificing any major plot points or basically getting rid of anything that would cause a fan outcry. Yes, technically the ents do show up to help at the battle of Helm's Deep and no we don't get to see Merry and Pippin in Treebeard's house or talking to Quickbeam but in the end, Peter Jackson has conquered these seemingly mammoth tasks with ease. This is a reflection on Jackson's instinct for pace, as the extended edition shows that these time-consuming though unnecessary scenes were in fact filmed, but were left on the editting floor. Jackson's fearlessness with the source material yet mindfullness of it as well means that the story is left completely intact; enough to appease any fan. Jackson has also made room for the lighter moments as well, revelling in the joy of discovery when Merry and Pippin first encounter Treebeard and having time for jokes between the double-act which just keeps getting better of Legolas and Gimli. Jackson doesn't forget about his characters either, keeping the film from feeling hollow by introducing the beautiful Miranda Otto as never-to-be love interest Eowyn and the abandoned-by-his-country Eomer as well as extending his existing characters in Merry and Pippin who only get more endearing, Frodo and Sam whose seemingly unflappable relationship is beginning to show some strain. And even though Gandalf's character goes under a major revamp he's still the same enigmatic mentor as before, albeit slightly more badass. It's this attention to detail which makes Peter Jackson's work so watchable, all the way through the crazy runtime. Shore's score is as strong as ever, this time bringing the beautiful theme of the world of men to the fore. Shore's understanding of motif and mood is pivotal here, even more so than Fellowship as the story isn't as driving as its predecessor. Because of this, Shore's score is able to ferry us through the slower moments and throughout the entire film. The performances here are just as textured as they were in the first film. Not only that, but the sequel factor means that actors are able to loosen up a little more, in particular in the case of Orlando Bloom's Legolas and John Rhys-Davies' Gimli. The two of them have more fun than it should be possible to have in an epic of this size and they pull it off without ever feeling camp or not taking it seriously enough. Ian McKellen's Gandalf is still the standout of the series but it's great to see the rest of the cast becoming more and more involved in their characters. Viggo Mortensen's Aragorn is one of the performances which shows a lot of progression. His presence has more gravitas in this one and his character is more layered than the original; more difficult to read. Elijah Wood has much less to do in this film, leaving him to keep mostly the same expression on his face for most of the film. While this may be true to story, it does occassionally make you wish that he had something else to do than walk around some rocks for a while. Sean Astin's Sam is similarly beleagured and while their parts of the film are integral to the story, you sometimes wish that we'd move back to the interesting parts a little sooner. Bernard Hill makes a great addition to the cast as Theoden as well as his onscreen daughter Eowyn played with fragile strength by Miranda Otto. Brad Dourif's Grima Wormtongue is fantastic; a slimy, manipulative groveller who snivells perfectly through every scene he's in. Another of Towers' achievements lies in another of its new characters: Gollum. Gollum is a completely CG creation, performed by Andy Serkis with groundbreaking technology, enabling Serkis to interact with the actual actors and thus makes the performances all the more real. This innovation makes for incredible viewing as one of the more unfilmmable sections of Tolkien's work is brought to life onscreen. Serkis' performance is largely discounted in terms of acting accolades but it's incredible to see. His work here set the benchmark for motion capture. But all these technical factors fade into the background at the Battle of Helm's Deep: a battle scene so epic that it drowns out everything that comes before it. Ten thousand Uruk-Hai facing off against Rohan's much depleted forces is so overwhelming that it makes it difficult to spot any kind of flaws in the rest of the film. Jackson seamlessly blend CG with fantastic costume and makeup to create an entirely believeable all out war which lives up to the scenes detailed in the book and revells in the little moments like Legolas riding a shield down some stairs or a rousing speech from King to King. Jackson's sense of pace throughout the battle is fantastic, moving from the Entmoot to Sam and Frodo without ever losing momentum. And the coup-de-grace of Gandalf's arrival is as breathtaking a moment as the series brings in any of its three films. While this may be the weaker cinematically of the three films, the fact that I'm still giving it five stars shows you just how high the bar is set for this series. The fact is that, despite lacking the grandeur of the third and the sense of wonder and scariness of the first, it's still a better film than 90% of the blockbusters Hollywood vomits up on regular basis. Truly incredible filmmaking. Defining Scene: The Battle at Helm's Deep. Of course. Quotes: Stupid fat hobbit. What's happening out there? Shall I describe it to you? Or would you like me to find you a box? They're taking the hobbits to Isengard!

• Dead A

  
  I think I liked the second one a bit less than other two. But it was nice.

• Manu G

  
  The Battle for Middle-earth Begins! Great Film! Fantastic story! Epic battles were just amazing. This fantasy magical story keeps getting better and better. Highly recommended! The film begins with a flashback set to the first film, with Gandalf battling the Balrog on the Bridge of… More
  The Battle for Middle-earth Begins! Great Film! Fantastic story! Epic battles were just amazing. This fantasy magical story keeps getting better and better. Highly recommended! The film begins with a flashback set to the first film, with Gandalf battling the Balrog on the Bridge of Khazad-dûm, but this time continues from Gandalf's perspective, with the scene continuing to follow both as they hurtle down below, fighting while in free-fall. Frodo awakens from his dream and continues his journey with his trusted and loyal friend, Sam. They are then attacked by the ring-obsessed Gollum wishing to retrieve "his precious" from the ones he thinks stole it from him. The Hobbits subdue and bind him with Sam's Elven rope given to him by the Elven elder Galadriel in Lórien. Sam distrusts Gollum and wishes to abandon him, but Frodo understands the burden of the creature and takes pity on him. Realizing they are lost in the Emyn Muil and in need of a guide, Frodo persuades Gollum to lead them to the Black Gate of Mordor. In Rohan, the pack of Uruk-hai run across the grassy landscape with their captives Merry and Pippin. Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli are in pursuit, following three days of running, Legolas surmises the Hobbits are being taken to Isengard, where Saruman is marshalling his Uruk-hai forces to do the bidding of Sauron. In the kingdom of Rohan, home of the horse lords, King Théoden is mentally and physically weak due to the enchantments of his steward, Gríma Wormtongue, who is secretly in the service of Saruman. Orcs and Wild Men of Dunland incited by Saruman freely roam the land and kill the people including the king's only son Théodred. Théoden's nephew Éomer interrogates Gríma, angrily realizing he has lustful eyes for Éomer's sister Éowyn and that he is now an agent of Saruman. Gríma banishes Éomer for undermining his authority and Éomer sets forth to gather the remaining loyal men of the Rohirrim throughout the land. Frodo and Sam traverse the Dead Marshes, passing the undead fallen warriors of the Second Age who haunt the marshes and evading a newly seated Ringwraith on his flying fell beast. Later they reach the Black Gate, finding it to be heavily guarded, (they observe a contingent of Easterlings from Rhûn arrive to reinforce the garrison) only to have Gollum reveal to them a less risky path: Sam remains distrustful, but Frodo gives him the benefit of the doubt. Meanwhile, Éomer and his Rohirrim ambush and kill all of the Orcs and Uruk-hai holding the two Hobbits captive at nightfall. During the battle, Merry and Pippin narrowly escape their captors by fleeing into the trees where they are aided by Treebeard the oldest of the Ents. Éomer later encounters Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli and in turn tells Aragorn there were no survivors of the Orc/Uruk-hai slaughter. Upon arriving at the battle site, Aragorn uses his tracking skills and finds hobbit tracks that lead into nearby Fangorn forest. The three discover a wizard who is ultimately Gandalf reborn, now known as Gandalf the White. The quartet proceed to travel to Edoras, where they exorcise Saruman's hold on King Théoden and banish Wormtongue. Théoden is confronted with his dead son and rather than risk open war, decides to flee to a large fortress called Helm's Deep which in times of trouble has saved the people of Rohan. Gandalf leaves to find Éomer and his Rohirrim, promising to return within five days, as a strong attraction draws Éowyn to Aragorn during the journey to Helm's Deep. Wormtongue flees to Orthanc and tells Saruman of Rohan breaking from their grip; Saruman then decides to destroy Rohan. In Ithilien, Gollum battles his split personality in an attempt to befriend Frodo and Sam and ultimately banishes his "evil" half. The two hobbits are witness to an ambush of Southrons but are taken captive by soldiers of Gondor. Meanwhile, along the journey to Helm's Deep, the travelers are attacked by Saruman's Wargs and their Orc riders. During the battle, Aragorn is dragged by a Warg and falls off a cliff into a raging river as the grief-stricken survivors reluctantly move on to Helm's Deep. In Rivendell, Elrond knows that the age of Elves is ending and convinces Arwen that it is hopeless to stay and should leave for the Grey Havens. Elrond shows her a prophetic vision if she waits for Aragorn, even if he succeeds in destroying Sauron and becomes King of Gondor, he will still succumb to mortality: Arwen will suffer grievously once he is dead and she is left to wither away- she reluctantly agrees to leave. Elsewhere, Frodo and Sam are taken to Henneth Annûn and brought before Faramir, the younger brother of Boromir. Gollum eluded capture and in order to save his life, is lured into a trap unknowingly by Frodo. Faramir learns of the One Ring and, seeking to prove his worth to his father, decides the Ring shall go to Gondor. In Rohan, Aragorn washes up on the river's edge and is nudged back to consciousness by his horse, Brego. Battered but undaunted, he rides to Helm's Deep, passing Saruman's army of Uruk-hai, which numbers at least 10,000 strong. His arrival is met with relief but is short lived with the news of only 300 men in the stronghold. In the midst of despair, a battalion of Elves from Lórien, led by the Elf Haldir, arrives to assist in the ensuing battle. At Fangorn forest, Merry, Pippin, Treebeard and other Ents hold a Council to decide on the roles of the Ents in the war with Saruman. In the pouring rain, the battle of Helm's Deep begins with a flurry of arrows from both human and Elven archers cutting down dozens of Uruk-hai. Scaling ladders are placed upon the Deeping Wall, and the Uruks swarm up to engage the defenders. The defenses are slowly being breached and the enemy manages to destroy the wall through its sewer drain, using a rudimentary explosive device created by Saruman. Despite Aragorn and Gimli's best efforts, the Uruk-hai manage to penetrate the main door and soon the stronghold is overrun. In the midst of battle, Haldir is slain and the few remaining Elves fall back into the Keep. In the Hornburg, however, the Uruks have also scaled the walls, and have breached the gate, forcing the defenders to retreat into the Keep. In Fangorn, Treebeard and the other Ents have decided to not have any involvement in the war. Frustrated, Pippin cleverly takes him to the section of Fangorn Forest Saruman has decimated near Isengard. Treebeard is filled with rage at Saruman's betrayal and commands all other Ents to seek vengeance. The Ents gather and embark upon 'the Last March of the Ents'. Meanwhile, as the Keep is now under attack and realizing Gandalf's words before he departed, Aragorn and the rest make one last gallant ride on horseback to attack the Uruk-hai army, in a desperate bid to allow the Rohirrim's women and children to escape. As the riders are surrounded and all seems lost, Gandalf, Éomer, and two thousand Riders of the Rohirrim arrive to push back the Uruk-hai into the just-arrived forest of Huorns outside of Helm's Deep. Elsewhere, the Ents also attack Isengard, tossing stones and rocks while collapsing a dam to flood its surroundings. At the ruins of Osgiliath, Faramir and the Hobbits are confronted by a Ringwraith and its fell beast. With the help of Sam, Frodo narrowly escapes the Ringwraith's efforts to capture him. Sam narrates how the story must go on and how they should keep pressing forward as Faramir decides to free them to finish their quest. Gandalf and the others now know a full war is inevitable (as Sauron will surely seek retribution for the defeat of Saruman) and hope rests with Frodo and Sam, who have resumed their journey to Mordor with Gollum. Accompanying them once again and having felt betrayed after his subsequent mistreatment by Faramir's men, Gollum's darker nature returns and decides to reclaim the ring by leading Frodo and Sam to "her".

• Jim C

  
  Just as good as the original, and still lives up to the great name Lord of the Rings, I loved it. Still on their journey to Mordor, Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) are lost, and after being ambushed by Gollum (Andy Serkis) but capture him instead and they make him lead them… More
  Just as good as the original, and still lives up to the great name Lord of the Rings, I loved it. Still on their journey to Mordor, Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin) are lost, and after being ambushed by Gollum (Andy Serkis) but capture him instead and they make him lead them to Mordor. Aarogorn (Viggio Mortensen), Gimli (John Davies), and Legolas (Orlando Bloom) still fight Saurons army and search for Pippin and Mary, but will actually find the thought dead Gandalf ( Isn Mckellen). The plot adds on to the breathtaking trilogy and worldwide phenomenon. The action is amazing and surpasses the first one. The effects and make up are great and really detailed. Acting is top notch and great. Its better than the first I think, it leads up to the great third film, and is purely amazing.

• Melvin W

  
  Sam: Mr. Frodo, put the ring on; just this once, disappear.  Frodo: I can't... You were right, Sam. The ring is taking me. If I put it on he will find me.  "A New Power is Rising" Peter Jackson's second film in his epic fantasy-adventure trilogy isn't quite… More
  Sam: Mr. Frodo, put the ring on; just this once, disappear.  Frodo: I can't... You were right, Sam. The ring is taking me. If I put it on he will find me.  "A New Power is Rising" Peter Jackson's second film in his epic fantasy-adventure trilogy isn't quite as good as the first, but it's still one of the best movies of the 21st century. Jackson's Lord of the Ring's are second to none when it comes to storytelling and visuals. These movies are so entertaining and fun to watch. All the details of these movies are just ridiculous in how perfect they are. The battle sequences are amazing to say the least. The Two Towers is as jaw dropping as the first. It's a complete spectacle. To describe The Lord of the Ring films as anything other then masterpieces is selling the films short. It's really hard to describe to people who haven't seen these movie(although, there aren't that many left) how good they are. I actually re-watched this trilogy with a friend who hadn't seen it. When we started the first movie, you'd a thought I was about to kill him. Needless to say he got hooked after the first 15 minutes, just like everyone else and ended up loving the series.  No matter how many times I see this movie, I am always amazed. Every time I watch it, I notice things I hadn't the time before. The Lord of the Ring movies are probably the most fun movies to go back and re-watch, as you can always take something new away from it.

• Eric A

  
  The glue between the first and the last. Loved it.

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