The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

I've just seen this on the big screen for the first time since I saw it at London's sadly now long-gone Odeon at Marble Arch, which - at the time - boasted the biggest screen in the UK, and it has lost little of it's magic. Continuing with the interwoven tales of "Frodo", "Sam" and their treacherous guide "Gollum" as they trek through fire and brimstone to get the ring to Mount Doom; whilst Gandalf, Aragorn and the surviving members of the fellowship try to stem the might of "Sauron" and his armies of orcs and their allies. While this is undoubtedly a…

100/100 As the war for middle-earth grows to unbearable levels, Frodo and Sam's desperate attempts to get to Mount Doom and destroy the ring faces horrific resistance both externally and internally. Quite simply the best fantasy film ever made and, overall, one of the finest films ever made. The ability of the film to continue the events presented in the first two films and take them to a phenomenal level is grand in scale and epic in vision. The warfare scenes are a visceral, sometimes painful, sight to behold. An amazing end to an incredible journey!…

"I'm glad to be with you, Samwise Gamgee... here at the end of all things." Starting my monthly rewatch of the Lord of the Rings early and out of order for 2026 but Tolkien will forgive me. But I'm so grateful for the proper ending each character gets although I would've loved to have seen the battle for Hobbiton at the end.. But we got our heart ripped out with the Grey Havens final scene.