The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is a fantasy film, directed by Peter Jackson and based on the second volume of J. R. R. Tolkien’s book The Lord of the Rings. It was released on December 18, 2002, with a running time of 179 minutes.
Continuing the plot of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, it intercuts three storylines, as Frodo and Sam continue their quest to destroy the One Ring in Mordor and meet Gollum, its former owner. Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli come across the war torn nation of Rohan as well as the resurrected Gandalf, before fighting at the Battle of Helm’s Deep, whilst Merry and Pippin escape capture and meet Treebeard, the tree-like giant.
The movie was critically acclaimed, although the adaptation was more controversial than the first film. It was an enormous box-office success, earning over $900 million worldwide, outgrossing its predecessor, and is currently the 7th-highest-grossing film of all time. The Special Extended DVD Edition was released on November 19, 2003.
Plot
The film begins with a flashback set to the first film, with Gandalf battling the Balrog on the Bridge of Khazad-dûm as both continuously to hurtle down below. Frodo awakenss from his dream and continues his journey with his trusted and loyal friend, Sam. They are then attacked by the ring-possessed 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 Middle-Earth 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. 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 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, hiding from a newly seated Ringwraith on his flying Fell beast. Later they reach the Black Gate, only to have Gollum reveal to them a less risky path. Meanwhile, Éomer and his Rohirrim ambush and kill all of the Orcs and Uruk-hai 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 surviors of the Orc/Uruk-hai slaughter. Upon arriving at the battle site, Aragorn uses his tracking skills and find 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 risk open war, decides to flee to a large fortification which in times of trouble has saved the people of Rohan called Helm’s Deep. Gandalf leaves to find Éomer and his Rohirrim, as a strong attraction draws Éowyn to Aragorn during the journey to Helm’s Deep.
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 Easterners but are taken captive by soldiers of Gondor. Meanwhile, along the journey to Helm’s Deep, the travelers are attacked by Saruman’s Wargs. During the battle, Aragorn is dragged by a Warg and falls off a cliff into a raging river as the 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. 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 by Frodo. Faramir learns of the One Ring and to prove his worth to his father, decides the Ring shall go to Gondor. In Rohan, Aragorn washes up on the rivers edge and is nudged back to conciousness by his horse, Brego. He rides to Helm’s Deep passing Saruman’s army of Uruk-hai; 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, lead 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 Sauron.
In the pouring rain, the battle of Helm’s Deep begins with a flurry of Elven arrows piercing sky and Uruk-hai. The defenses are slowly being breached and the enemy manages to destroy the wall through its sewer drain. Despite Aragorn and Gimli’s best efforts, the Uruk-hai manage to penetrate the main door and soon the stonghold is overrun. In the midst of battle, Haldir is slain and the few remaining men fall back 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. 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 army. As all hope seemed lost, Gandalf, Éomer, and two thousand Riders of the Rohirrim arrive to push back the Uruk-hai into the angry Fangorn Forest where death and revenge awaited them. Elsewhere, the Ents attack Isengard, tossing stone and rock while collapsing a dam to flood its surroundings. At Osgiliath, Faramir and the Hobbits are confronted by a Ringwraith and its fellbeast. With the help of Sam, Frodo narrowly escapes the beast’s capture. 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 and hope rests with Frodo and Sam. 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.”
Cast
- Elijah Wood as Frodo Baggins: Frodo is the Hobbit who must destroy the One Ring. The burden of carrying it is becoming heavier.
- Sean Astin as Samwise “Sam” Gamgee: Sam is Frodo’s best friend and travelling companion.
- Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn: Aragorn is the heir-in-exile to the throne of Gondor, and has come to the defence of Rohan.
- Ian McKellen as Gandalf the White: The Wizard who fell fighting the Balrog has now returned, more powerful than ever, to finish his task.
- Dominic Monaghan as Meriadoc “Merry” Brandybuck: Merry is a Hobbit who had been captured by the Uruk-hai, now an ally of Treebeard.
- Billy Boyd as Peregrin “Pippin” Took: Pippin is Merry’s best friend and travelling companion.
- Orlando Bloom as Legolas: Legolas is an Elven archer and Prince of the Wood-elves, who joined the Fellowship after the Council of Elrond.
- John Rhys-Davies as Gimli: Gimli son of Glóin is a warrior Dwarf who joined the Fellowship after the Council of Elrond.
- and the voice of Treebeard: Leader of the Ents, tree-like giants. He is initially unaware of Saruman’s destruction of the forests.
- Andy Serkis provides the voice and performed motion capture for Gollum: Once a Hobbit-like[2] creature named Sméagol, he possessed the Ring centuries ago, but now is leading Frodo on his quest. Secretly he wants the Ring back. He has an internal struggle between the “Sméagol” and “Gollum” aspects of his personality.
- Bernard Hill as Théoden: Théoden is King of Rohan, and is healed by Gandalf to lead his country once more.
- Miranda Otto as Éowyn: Éowyn is Théoden’s niece. In love with Aragorn, she is an adept fighter.
- Karl Urban as Éomer: Éomer is Éowyn’s older brother. He was Chief Marshal of Rohan, exiled by Gríma Wormtongue, now gathering troops to defend Rohan.
- David Wenham as Faramir: Faramir is the leader of the Ithilien Rangers tracking Sauron’s troop movements. He captures Frodo, Sam and Gollum.
- Christopher Lee as Saruman: The corrupt Wizard waging war upon Rohan and devastating Fangorn Forest. He has allied himself with Sauron.
- Brad Dourif as Gríma Wormtongue: Gríma Wormtongue is Saruman’s agent at Edoras. He renders Théoden incapable of decisions, and desires Éowyn.
- Liv Tyler as Arwen: Arwen is the Half-elf whom Aragorn loves.
- Hugo Weaving as Elrond: Elrond is Arwen’s father. He expresses doubt over her love for Aragorn.
- Cate Blanchett as Galadriel: Galadriel is the Elven Lady of Lothlórien. Elrond communicates with her telepathically about the future of Middle-earth.
- John Leigh as Háma: Loyal doorwarden of the Golden Hall and a majordomo of Théoden.
- Bruce Hopkins as Gamling: Member of the Royal Guard and the right-hand man of Théoden.
- Craig Parker as Haldir of Lórien: Haldir of Lórien leads the Elves sent by Elrond and Galadriel to defend Helm’s Deep.
- John Bach as Madril: Madril is Faramir’s ‘right hand’ man, who informs him of battle preparations.
The following only appear in the Extended Edition:
- Sean Bean as Boromir: Faramir’s brother, he died in The Fellowship of the Ring. He appears in Faramir’s flashback.
- John Noble as Denethor: Denethor is Steward of Gondor and father to Boromir and Faramir.
In the Battle of Helm’s Deep, Peter Jackson has a cameo appearance as one of the men on top of the Gate, throwing a spear at the attacking Uruk-hai. His children also cameo as young refugees in the caves behind the Hornburg, and Alan Lee and Dan Hennah also cameo as soldiers preparing for the battle. Viggo Mortenson’s son Henry appears as a reluctant young Rohirrim warrior. Daniel Falconer has a cameo as an Elvish archer at the battle.
Production
Production Design
When Alan Lee joined the project in late 1997, Helm’s Deep was the first structure he was tasked to design. At 1:35 scale, it was one of the first miniatures built, and part of the 45 minute video that sold the project to New Line. It was primarily drawn from an illustration Lee had once done for the book, though fellow illustrator and designer John Howe suggested a curved wall. Used in the film for longshots, Jackson also used this miniature to plan the battle with 40,000 toy soldiers.
As a pivotal part of the story, Helm’s Deep was built at Dry Creek Quarry with the Gate, a ramp, and a wall with a removable section and the tower on a second level. Most importantly, there was the 1:4 scale miniature of Helm’s Deep that ran 50 feet wide. It was used for forced perspective shots, as well as the major explosion sequence.
The film explores the armies of Middle-earth. John Howe was the basic designer of the forces of evil. The Uruk-hai were the first army approved by Jackson, and Howe also designed a special crossbow for the characters, one without the redundancy of opening to reload, the realization of an 18th century manuscript. Also created were 100 Elven suits of armour, with emphasis on Autumnal colours due to the theme of Elves leaving Middle-earth. 250 suits were made for the Rohirrim, which for Bernard Hill, even came with leather inside. Emphasized are horses and the sun, even into their swords, which took 3-6 days to forge.
The Rohirrim’s capital of Edoras took six months to build on Mount Sunday, with thatched roofs, but that was simply the exterior: the buildings doubled as offices and lunch halls. The army created a road to the location, whilst the interior was filmed at Stone Street Studios with tapestries designed by Lee, and Théoden’s wooden throne created by his daughter. Hill endured heavy make-up for the possession scene where his skin was pulled back and released for increased wrinkles. Dourif shaved off his eyebrows and put potato flakes as dandruff in his hair for unnerving effect.
The film also provides a look at Mordor and Gondor, in terms of Frodo and Sam’s story. The Barad-dûr is seen fully in a tracking shot, a design which Howe called a mockery of Gothic Cathedrals. He and Lee fully created the Black Gate, though a typo in the script made the miniature into two. The Rangers and Osgiliath, the ruined city reflecting London during the Blitz. The set on a backlot was based around a bridge and reused some of Moria.
Awards
- Academy Awards
- Winner: Visual Effects, Sound Editing.
- Nominee: Best Picture, Best Art Direction - Set Decoration, Best Editing, and Best Sound.
- American Film Institute: Digital Effects, Production Design, Movie of the Year
- British Academy Film Awards: Best Costume Design, Best Special Visual Effects, Orange Film of the Year (voted on by the public)
- Empire Awards: Best Picture
- Hugo Award (World Science Fiction Society): Best Dramatic Presentation - Long Form
- MTV Movie Awards 2003: Best virtual performance (Gollum)
- Saturn Awards: Best Fantasy Film, Best Costume (Ngila Dickson), Best Supporting Actor (Andy Serkis)
