Return of the King

Any of you Idaho Falls fans going to see this on opening? I'm so excited, I can hardly wait. I'm actually going to the Trilogy Tuesday here in Boise, all three at once...it's nuts. Merry Christmas to everyone and I hope you all enjoy the film, as it will undoubtedly be the best film of the year.

 

I am entertaining the idea of dressing up as a Ringwraith and scaring all the people in line. We'll see.

 

Caught it this afternoon, and it was really good. Something strange occurs to me. While the big battle scenes were excellent, I found that I like the quiet moments the best.

Best film of the year? I don't know about that. But, dang good? You bet.

 

Best film of the year....really now. I'll bet if we asked all 20 members of our club what they think the best film of the year is, we'd get 20 different answers.

There have been a lot of great films this year. Some that I have seen and/or been told are good:

The Recruit
Daredevil
Gods and Generals
Tears of the Sun (I thought this was great)
Bulletproof Monk
Finding Nemo
X2 (I thought it was better than X-Men)
The Hulk (personally, I was a bit dissappointed)
Bad Boys II (I've gotta see that car chase)
Tomb Raider II (Hey, it's Lara Croft!)
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Pirates of the Caribbean
Terminator III
Matrix II and III
Kill Bill Vol 1
School of Rock

Did I forget any?

 

I know this isn't going to be a popular opinion but for some reason I just couldn't get into this installment. The first hour was medieval dudes looking worried. The second two hours was very visually impressive and the last20 minutes seemed very forced and a little too overly sentimental. I know we just spent more than 10 hours with thise characters but how many shots of them crying do we need.

I haven't read the books, so I'm basing my opinion on the merits of the film not Tolkien's writing, but I do think people forget film is an entirely different medium and what works on paper doesn't always work on film. It just failed to do much for me. Visually this has some of the most impressive battle seequences I've seen, but when it was time to go home I was just glad it was done with. I'll admit it is a major accomplishment, but I'm not exactly in love with the thing. If I was more versed in Middle Earth lore maybe I would have gotten more out of it.
I know this would be hard for some to believe but I felt more after seeing the last Matrix film.

 

I really enjoyed the film, but to be totally honest, the best part of the experience for me was the SPIDER-MAN 2 trailer. I mean, I had chills. Doc Ock is gonna kick @$$!!!!

 

I saw the Spidey 2 Trailer online, so I didn't have to spend 8 bucks to see it, but it'd almost be worth it! That movie is gonna ROCK!

 

Since we're kind of on the subject of best film of the year, here's my list of the best stuff I've seen this year. Keep in mind, this isn't a best of all of the year because I haven't seen every movie this year.

1. School of Rock: It made me laugh, and bang my head all at the same time. A movie like that is priceless.

2. Kill Bill Vol. 1: A testament to how much butt a movie can kick without extensive use of CGI.

3. X2 - X-Men United: Come to see Nightcrawler bamf all over the White House. Stay to see Wolverine go Berzerker. Stay even longer 'cause it's just a dang good flick.

4. 28 Days Later: You may become a hypochondriac after seeing this movie.

5. LOTR- The Return of the King: A fun, emotionally powerful film that would be even better if it wasn't upstaged by the Spider Man 2 trailer.

6. Cabin Fever: You'd think an Evil Dead homage starring Rider Strong from Boy Meets World would suck hard. You'd be dead wrong.

7. Master and Commander: Russell Crowe looks pretty funny in knickerbockers and a ponytail, but the movie still kicks butt.

I'll stop there. There plenty of movies the I didn't list because I haven't seen them (like The Station Agent, Lost in Translation, ect.)

Please also keep in mind that this is only my opinion and that I'm not trying to ruffle anybody's feathers.

Later.

 

Well, that aspiring Nazgul was actually my husband. I didn't see it opening night, as I was wiped out helping my family in California give Grandpa a good send-off. Barry, bless his heart, suprised me when I got back with matinee tickets, however, so I missed nothing.
Pros- Besides the obvious, I liked how at Aragorn's coronation, we see Eowyn and Faramir making eyes at each other. They couldn't include the whole beginning of their relationship, but I'm glad it was acknowledged.
Cons- I'm glad I'm not the only one who felt like yelling, "Get on the boat already, Frodo!" As for "Best Picture" chances, I think ROTK should probably get it. But whether it gets it or not, it will probably not be judged on its own merits, unfortunately. If it wins, it will be more for the whole trilogy than for ROTK itself. And if it loses, Peter Jackson and company will have been robbed not once, but three times.