Noel Appleby
Everard Proudfoot
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The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a 2003 epic high fantasy adventure film directed by Peter Jackson from a screenplay by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, and Jackson. It is based on 1955's The Return of the King, the third volume of the novel The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien.
- $1.148 billion
- Howard Shore
- $100 million
- Barrie M. Osborne, Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson
- Overview
- Synopsis
- Plot
- Extended Edition
- Trivia
- Memorable Quotes
- Reception
is the third and final film in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, directed by Peter Jackson and based on J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings
Globally, the film is one of the highest grossing films in cinema history. The film won 11 Academy Awards at the 2004 Oscar ceremony including Best Picture, sharing the world record for most academy awards received with Ben-Hur and Titanic, and also was the first fantasy film to win Best Picture.
Andy Serkis appears as Sméagol before his degradation into Gollum. This scene was actually held over from the previous film because it was felt that it would have a greater emotional impact if audiences had already seen what the Ring's influence had done to Sméagol. In his degraded state Gollum is played in the movies by a CGI character whose movements are derived from a motion-capture suit worn by Serkis, and sometimes from footage of Serkis interacting with the other actors and then digitally replaced by Gollum.
The city of Minas Tirith, glimpsed briefly in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, is seen in all its glory. The filmmakers have taken great care to base the city closely upon Tolkien's description in the book. Close-ups of the city are represented by sets and long shots by a large and highly-detailed model, often populated by CGI characters.
The film contains key scenes that occurred in the middle portion of the novel The Lord of the Rings but were not included in the film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. These include the scene where the monstrous Shelob attacks Frodo and is wounded by Sam, who comes to his aid.
Other key events include the Siege of Gondor; the re-forging of the shards of Narsil into Aragorn's new sword Andúril; Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas' journey through the Paths of the Dead; the epic Battle of the Pelennor Fields, the charge of the Mûmakil; Merry and Éowyn's role in the defeat of the Lord of the Nazgûl; the destruction of the One Ring; the final fall of Sauron; Aragorn's assumption of the throne and the departure of several heroes to the Undying Lands.
picks up the story from the end of The Two Towers. The film begins with a flashback sequence where we discover how the character Gollum (Sméagol) first came across the One Ring. Before becoming Gollum he was a hobbit-like creature known as Sméagol. He is shown fishing with his cousin Déagol who, after being pulled in to the water by a large fish, discovers the One Ring in the river Anduin. Sméagol demands that Déagol give him the Ring for his birthday, but Déagol refuses. This leads to Sméagol violently strangling him to death and stealing the One Ring. After killing his cousin, Sméagol escapes to the Misty Mountains and slowly mutates into the creature known as Gollum. As this sequence ends, we see Frodo, Sam and Gollum approaching the mountains of Mordor with Mount Doom in view. Gollum is still leading them and Sam continues to have bad feelings on where Gollum will lead them to. Frodo, however, has full trust in the creature.
Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, King Théoden, Gamling and Éomer arrive at a ruined Isengard, which has been flooded out by the nearby Isen river. There, they meet with the Hobbits Merry and Pippin, who are eating and sitting "on a field of victory". The Ent Treebeard tells the group that Isengard has been taken over by the Ents, and that Saruman is imprisoned inside the Tower of Orthanc.
At the foot of Orthanc they confront the traitorous wizard who stands atop of his tower. Saruman says to King Théoden that they could be allies once more, but Théoden explains that they shall both have peace when Rohan avenges all the people killed at the Westfold and Helm's Deep by executing Saruman on a gibbet. Saruman mentions to Gandalf that Frodo is heading towards immediate doom and that Aragorn will never be crowned King of Gondor. He reveals to the others the palantír which he kept in secret, and knows all the ways of the enemy. Then, they are informed by Saruman that Sauron is readying his forces for a final strike. Gandalf makes an offer with Saruman to come down from his tower and be spared, but Saruman attacks him with a ball of fire instead. Luckily, the Wizard survives and he shatters Saruman's staff, thus casting him out of the order of wizards. Before Saruman can give them more information, Gríma appears. Théoden says that Gríma is freed of Saruman, and that he can surrender and be a Man of Rohan as he once was. Gríma happily bows to Théoden; however, Saruman insults the Rohirrim and claims that Gríma will never be free and slaps him to the floor. In his anger, Wormtongue attacks Saruman, fatally stabbing him in the back. Legolas quickly fires an arrow into Gríma, killing him, but he is too late to save Saruman, who plummets from Orthanc's top and is impaled on a watermill.
Treebeard informs the group that the Ents will return to fill up Isengard as they once did. As the watermill spins and Saruman is submerged below the water, he drops the palantír from his sleeve. Pippin sights the palantír in the water and jumps down from Aragorn's horse to get it. Upon finding the palantír beneath the water, Pippin is told to give it to Gandalf, and he does so, but Gandalf is unsure in the hobbit, and knows that he may be up to something.
The group then ride for Edoras, where they will celebrate their victory at Helm's Deep. That night, there is a post-battle party in the Golden Hall, where King Théoden is given the Cup of Kings by his niece, Éowyn, and addresses the people of Rohan, including Aragorn, speaking of the men who died defending the gates of Helm’s Deep and saving their country. Then, there is a huge feast where Éomer volunteers Gimli and Legolas into a drinking competition - eventually, Legolas wins after Gimli passes out. Éowyn gives Aragorn the Cup of Kings and Théoden joins her. He says that he is happy for her and that Aragorn is an honorable man. Théoden then says that it was not him who led their people to victory, but soon gets off the subject with Éowyn. Merry and Pippin are drunk and dancing, singing songs of the Green Dragon Inn in front of a large crowd of Rohirrim men, who are enjoying the show. Pippin pauses for a moment to find Gandalf watching him but is quickly pulled back into the dance by Merry, and the pair continue to enjoy themselves. Aragorn then discusses with Gandalf the progress of Frodo and Sam on the quest to destroy the One Ring. Gandalf says he has received no news of Frodo and Aragorn says that every day Frodo moves closer to Mordor. Gandalf responds that his heart confirms Frodo is alive.
Elsewhere, near the Mountains of Shadow, Frodo and Sam are asleep whilst Gollum secretly sneaks away and confronts himself at a pool. Gollum/Sméagol argue with themselves over whether they will kill the Hobbits and take the Ring, but Gollum says that they shall lead Frodo and Sam up a stairway, where “she” will kill them. Then, from the Hobbits' remains, Gollum/Sméagol shall take the Ring. However, Sam suddenly attacks Gollum, having heard his plans, but is dragged away from him by Frodo, who does not believe that Gollum is a villain. Frodo leads Gollum away, who looks back at Sam, giving an evil grin. At Edoras, everyone is sleeping. Aragorn goes into the main hall where Éowyn lies sleeping. As Aragorn approaches to pull the quilt upon to her, Éowyn awakens briefly to tell Aragorn of a “Great Wave” flooding a great city, destruction and darkness. Aragorn listens and then watches as she falls back asleep.
Extended scenes
As with the previous movies, several scenes were removed from the theatrical version of The Return of the King, only to be present in the extended edition: •The scene of Sméagol strangling Déagol is extended. •Merry and Pippin's conversation at Isengard (prior to the arrival of the others) is extended. •The heroes' final confrontation with Saruman, leading to the fallen wizard rejecting Gandalf's offer of redemption and having his staff broken. Wormtongue appears more receptive to Théoden's offer to return as a man of Rohan, but when Saruman mocks his servant and slaps him to the floor, Wormtongue stabs him in the back with a knife. Legolas shoots Wormtongue dead as Saruman falls off of Orthanc and onto a spiked wheel, with the palantír falling out of his sleeve and into the water. •To compensate for the removal of this scene, the theatrical version includes a short dialogue between Treebeard and Gandalf which indicates that Saruman is imprisoned inside Orthanc. Wormtongue is neither seen nor mentioned, but it is presumed that both he and Saruman remain trapped in their tower under the watchful eyes of the Ents. •In Edoras, Éowyn gives Théoden the cup of kings before he toasts "the victorious dead". •Legolas and Gimli's drinking game (which Legolas wins handily). •Pippin stares at Gandalf for a few seconds during his dance with Merry, foreshadowing his later use of the palantír. •During the night, in one of the other rooms in the Edoras Great Hall, Gimli snores and Pippin can't sleep. Aragorn leaves that room and comes upon Éowyn in Edoras' main hall. She tells him about a dream she had (of a great shadow moving over a green countryside) before Aragorn continues on to the balcony to meet with Legolas. •Merry tells Aragorn about his past life with Pippin as Shadowfax rides to Gondor. •Gandalf and Pippin's first meeting with Denethor is expanded; the Steward of Gondor commands Pippin to tell him how Merry and Pippin survived when Boromir did not, and Pippin tells him that Boromir died protecting him and Merry. After Pippin relates Boromir's last stand, the scene continues as in the theatrical version, with Pippin offering his service to Denethor. •After meeting with Denethor, Gandalf and Pippin go to the edge of Minas Tirith, where Gandalf tells Pippin that the weather above Mount Doom is not the weather of the world. •Frodo, Sam, and Gollum arrive at the Cross-roads of the Fallen King, where they see a statue that was defaced by Orcs. Sam notices the original head of the statue lying nearby, with flowers growing around its forehead - when the sun disappears behind a cloud, the flowers vanish and the trio carries onward. •As they begin climbing the stairs of Cirith Ungol, Sam warns Gollum that he will kill him if he tries any tricks. •The beginning of the Orcs' final push at Osgiliath is extended, showing Faramir's group trying to predict where the next attack will come, ultimately having one of Faramir's soldiers killed by an Orc archer. •As the Rohirrim prepare to leave for Dunharrow, Merry enters Théoden's service as a soldier of Rohan. •After Faramir's conversation with Gandalf, Denethor berates his son for not bringing the One Ring to Minas Tirith when he had the perfect opportunity to do so. •Faramir notices Pippin wearing his old clothes and talks about his relationship with Boromir and Denethor. •Éomer tells Éowyn that Merry would flee the second he sees battle. •Aragorn's conversation with Éowyn during the mustering of the Rohirrim is extended. •At Dunharrow, Legolas shows Aragorn and Gimli where the Paths of the Dead are. •As Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli travel the Paths of the Dead, they discover a large pile of skulls, setting up a later scene. •After Aragorn demands the Army of the Dead's allegiance, the ghosts disappear, having seemingly refused his offer. The cavern begins to collapse, causing an avalanche of skulls that Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli narrowly escape. Emerging from the Paths of the Dead, the three heroes see the Corsair ships advancing through the burning remains of Gondor's southern colonies. As Aragorn falls to his knees in despair, the King of the Dead reappears and tells him that the Army of the Dead will fight for him. •During the siege of Minas Tirith, Gothmog stops another Orc from moving forward. •The Orcs attempt to use a regular battering ram on the gates of Minas Tirith, but the ram proves too small and the gate too strong and well-defended. Seeing this, Gothmog tells Murgash that Grond will break through and orders his army to "bring up the wolf's head", leading to the theatrical version's scene where Grond approaches the gate. •Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli encounter the Corsair ships, and Legolas kills their captain (after being "accidentally" bumped by Gimli). When the remaining pirates refuse to surrender, Aragorn summons the Army of the Dead to attack them. •Merry and Éowyn discuss the former's courage as the Rohirrim ride towards Minas Tirith. •Pippin briefly watches the carnage raging at the base of Minas Tirith before he notices Denethor and the guards on their way to the Tombs. •Gandalf and Pippin encounter the Witch-king on their way to save Faramir. Setting his sword aflame, the Witch-king breaks Gandalf's staff while his fellbeast keeps Pippin paralyzed with fear, but the horns of Rohan distract him from killing either the wizard or the hobbit. •In the theatrical version, the horn that stops the Witch-king from killing Gandalf was heard, but in a different context. In the theatrical version, Gandalf is looking at something - presumably the battle or Pippin, as in the extended edition - when the horn sounds, and the shot of the Witch-king taking flight to see the incoming threat is removed. Gandalf is still seen with his staff when Pippin finds him, and since the encounter with the Witch-king does not occur, the absence of Gandalf's staff is a mystery in the theatrical cut. It does explain though why Gandalf is seen holding it again at the Grey Havens, as it hasn't been destroyed. •Denethor explains to Gandalf why he is burning himself before he drops the torch onto his pyre. •Théoden sees Éowyn fighting Orcs during the Battle of the Pelennor Fields •After narrowly dodging the falling Mûmakil that separated him from Éowyn, Merry is shown fighting some Haradrim soldiers •In the theatrical version, the first part of this scene is shown just before the Witch-king picked Éowyn up by her neck, setting up Merry's surprise attack against the Lord of the Nazgûl. In the extended edition, Merry's scene is shown before Gandalf talks to Pippin about a "far green country" •After being dismounted and separated from Merry, Éowyn kills an Orc and then fights Gothmog. Ultimately, she punches him in the face and wounds his leg, giving him a limp. •After the death of the Witch-king, Gothmog pursues a wounded Éowyn in an attempt to kill her, but is himself killed by Gimli and Aragorn as they arrive with Legolas and the Army of the Dead. •The night after the Battle of Pelennor Fields, Pippin finds Merry's leaf brooch on the battlefield shortly before finding Merry himself underneath a dead Orc. In the theatrical version, Pippin sees Merry himself, and the scene is not altered to appear as night time, implying that Pippin found Merry shortly after the battle. •After the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, Éomer finds a wounded and unconscious Éowyn and thinks she is dead; Aragorn then heals her at the Houses of Healing, where she meets Faramir and discusses the state of the world, with Faramir expressing his view that the darkness of Sauron will not endure. •The scene of the Orcs fighting each other at Cirith Ungol is extended. •During the Last Debate, Gimli's final comment comes before Gandalf says that Sauron will not take the bait, to which Aragorn replies that he thinks Sauron will. •After the Last Debate, Aragorn finds the palantír of Minas Tirith and uses it to confront Sauron. •While walking through Mordor in Orc armor, Frodo and Sam are forced to join a contingent of Orcs marching to the Black Gate, only to escape after triggering a brawl. •On their way to Mount Doom, Frodo and Sam remove their Orc disguises and stop for a short rest. Sam sees a star in the sky, but Frodo is too exhausted to notice. •When Aragorn challenges Sauron at the Morannon, the Black Gate opens slightly, allowing the Mouth of Sauron to emerge. After taunting the assembled Free Peoples with the claim that Frodo was dead, he is decapitated by Aragorn, after which Sauron's army emerges as in the theatrical version. •During Gollum's battle with the Hobbits on the slopes of Mount Doom, Frodo reminds him that "Sméagol" promised to serve him. Gollum retorts that "Sméagol lied", although it is unclear if "Sméagol" had been lying the entire time or if the "Gollum" personality is simply mocking Frodo. •Saruman and Wormtongue are presented as part of the main cast, and then afterwards they are both listed in the credits •Unique fan club credits are present at the end of the movie.
•This is the only film in both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogies in which Gandalf is never seen in his Grey form.
•Stock footage from The Fellowship of the Ring include:
•Déagol's hand taking the ring at the bottom of the river
•Isildur slicing Sauron's finger.
•Boromir getting shot by arrows.
•Witch-king preparing his Morgul-knife on Weathertop, and Frodo screaming. The actual stabbing scene is absent.
"I do not fear death.—Aragorn
"I don't want to be in a battle, but waiting on the edge of one I can't escape is even worse."
—Pippin
"For Frodo."
—Aragorn
"Long ago the men of the mountain swore an oath to the last king of Gondor, to come to his aid, to fight. But when the time came, when Gondor's need was dyer, they fled. Vanishing into the darkness of the mountain. So Isildur cursed them. Never to rest until they had fulfilled their pledge. You shall call them from the great twilight, the forgotten people. The heir of him turned the oath they swore. From the north shall he come, need shall drive him. He shall pass the door to the paths of the dead. The way is shut. It was made by those who are dead, and the dead keep it. The way is shut."
On January 27, 2004 the film was nominated for eleven Academy Awards:
•Academy Award for Best Picture
•Best Director
•Best Original Score (Howard Shore)
•Best Adapted Screenplay
•Best Art Direction
Dec 17, 2003 · Edit page. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King: Directed by Peter Jackson. With Noel Appleby, Ali Astin, Sean Astin, David Aston. Gandalf and Aragorn lead the World of Men against Sauron's army to draw his gaze from Frodo and Sam as they approach Mount Doom with the One Ring.
- (1.9M)
- Action, Adventure, Drama
- Peter Jackson
- 2003-12-17
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The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. Jump to Edit. Summaries. Gandalf and Aragorn lead the World of Men against Sauron's army to draw his gaze from Frodo and Sam as they approach Mount Doom with the One Ring. The final confrontation between the forces of good and evil fighting for control of the future of Middle-earth.
Oct 16, 2023 · For a list of other meanings, see The Return of the King (disambiguation). The Return of the King. Information. Director. Peter Jackson. Writer. Novel: J.R.R. Tolkien. Screenplay: Fran Walsh. Philippa Boyens. Peter Jackson. Producer. Peter Jackson. Barrie M. Osborne. Fran Walsh. Starring. see below. Cinematography. Andrew Lesnie. Editing.
Mar 9, 2024 · IMDB Profile. The Return of the King (subtitled A Story of the Hobbits) is an animated adaptation of the novel by J.R.R. Tolkien which was produced by Rankin/Bass as a TV special which originally aired on ABC in the U.S. on May 11, 1980. It has since been released on VHS and DVD.
Dec 18, 2023. Rated: 3/4 • Nov 3, 2023. The culmination of nearly 10 years' work and conclusion to Peter Jackson's epic trilogy based on the timeless J.R.R. Tolkien classic, "The Lord of the ...
