Rating: PG13
Genre:
Fantasy
Theatrical Release: 12/18/2002(USA),
Release Date: 11/18/2003
SubTitles: English/Espanol
Dubbed: English
Sound: DD5.1/DTS-ESD/DDS
Run Time: 223 Minutes
Flags: Violence, Watch With Your Kids
Distributor/Studio: New Line Home Video
The second film in
Peter Jackson's series of screen adaptations of
J.R.R. Tolkien's internationally popular
Lord of The Rings trilogy,
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers literally begins where
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring ended, with the Fellowship splitting into three groups as they seek to return the Ring to Mordor, the forbidding land where the powerful talisman must be taken to be destroyed.
Frodo (
Elijah Wood), who carries the Ring, and his fellow Hobbit
Sam (
Sean Astin) are lost in the hills of Emyn Muil when they encounter
Gollum (
Andy Serkis), a strange creature who once carried the Ring and was twisted by its power.
Gollum volunteers to guide the pair to Mordor;
Frodo agrees, but
Sam does not trust their new acquaintance. Elsewhere,
Merry (
Dominic Monaghan) and
Pippin (
Billy Boyd) are attempting to navigate Fangorn Forrest where they discover a most unusual nemesis --
Treebeard (voice of
John Rhys-Davies), a walking and talking tree-shepherd who doesn't much care for Hobbits. Finally,
Aragorn (
Viggo Mortensen),
Gimli (
John Rhys-Davies), and
Legolas (
Orlando Bloom) arrive in Rohan to discover that the evil powers of
Saruman (
Christopher Lee) have robbed
King Theoden (
Bernard Hill) of his rule. The King's niece
Éowyn (
Miranda Otto) believes
Aragorn and his men have the strength to defeat
Saruman, his henchman
Wormtongue (
Brad Dourif), and their minions.
Éowyn soon becomes infatuated with
Aragorn, while he struggles to stay faithful to the pledge of love he made to
Arwen (
Liv Tyler).
Gandalf (
Ian McKellen) offers his help and encouragement as the Rohans, under
Aragorn's leadership, attempt to face down
Saruman's armies, but they soon discover how great the task before them truly is when they learn that his troops consist of 10,000 bloodthirsty creatures specially bred to fight to the death. Most of
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers was shot in tandem with
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King during a marathon 18-month shooting schedule, overseen by
Peter Jackson.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide