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34
10,000 B.C.
55
Baby Mama
62
Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, The
36
College Road Trip
82
Dark Knight, The
31
Deception
41
Drillbit Taylor
57
Forbidden Kingdom, The
67
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
54
Get Smart
49
Hancock
34
Happening, The
57
Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay
78
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
71
Horton Hears a Who!
61
Incredible Hulk, The
65
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
79
Iron Man
57
Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D
35
Jumper
73
Kung Fu Panda
24
Love Guru, The
37
Made of Honor
52
Mamma Mia!
43
Meet Dave
58
Mist, The
48
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
55
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22
Postal
69
Redbelt
44
Ruins, The
53
Sex and the City: The Movie
76
Shine a Light
37
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35
Space Chimps
37
Speed Racer
61
Stop Loss
47
Strangers, The
55
Street Kings
33
Superhero Movie
93
WALL-E
64
Wanted
36
What Happens in Vegas...
54
You Don't Mess with the Zohan
93
WALL-E
82
Dark Knight, The
79
Iron Man
78
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
76
Shine a Light
73
Kung Fu Panda
71
Horton Hears a Who!
69
Redbelt
67
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
65
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
64
Wanted
62
Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, The
61
Stop Loss
61
Incredible Hulk, The
58
Mist, The
57
Forbidden Kingdom, The
57
Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D
57
Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay
55
Street Kings
55
Nim's Island
55
Baby Mama
54
You Don't Mess with the Zohan
54
Get Smart
53
Sex and the City: The Movie
52
Mamma Mia!
49
Hancock
48
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
47
Strangers, The
44
Ruins, The
43
Meet Dave
41
Drillbit Taylor
37
Made of Honor
37
Shutter
37
Speed Racer
36
College Road Trip
36
What Happens in Vegas...
35
Jumper
35
Space Chimps
34
Happening, The
34
10,000 B.C.
33
Superhero Movie
31
Deception
24
Love Guru, The
22
Postal
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

83
Alexandra
39
August
80
Band's Visit, The
76
Beauty in Trouble
79
Before I Forget
47
Bella
80
Bigger, Stronger, Faster*
60
Blind Mountain
55
Bra Boys
61
Brick Lane
70
Caramel
49
Children of Huang Shi, The
83
Chop Shop
82
Chris & Don. A Love Story
78
Counterfeiters, The
75
Days and Clouds
48
Death Defying Acts
54
Diminished Capacity
47
Doorman, The
64
Dreams with Sharp Teeth
73
Duchess of Langeais, The
85
Edge of Heaven, The
27
Eight Miles High
54
Elsa & Fred
81
Encounters at the End of the World
62
Expired
64
Fall, The
54
Felon
51
Finding Amanda
57
Flawless
86
Flight of the Red Balloon, The
63
Foot Fist Way, The
60
Fugitive Pieces
72
Full Battle Rattle
45
Full Grown Men
31
Garden Party
55
Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts
69
Go-Getter, The
73
Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson
59
Gunnin for that #1 Spot
10
Harold
68
Heartbeat Detector
36
Holding Trevor
68
Honeydripper
55
Irina Palm
66
Jellyfish
58
Jihad for Love, A
66
Kabluey
62
Kiss the Bride
63
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl
80
Last Mistress, The
38
Life Before Her Eyes, The
74
Lou Reed's Berlin
70
Love Songs
67
Mad Detective
xx
Man Named Pearl, A
64
Married Life
30
Meet Bill
33
Miss Conception
53
Mister Lonely
74
Mongol
52
Mother of Tears, The
52
My Blueberry Nights
71
My Brother Is an Only Child
85
My Winnipeg
61
On the Rumba River
69
Operation Filmmaker
61
OSS 117: Cairo - Nest of Spies
70
Outsourced
83
Paranoid Park
72
Priceless
51
Promotion, The
55
Quid Pro Quo
29
Red Roses and Petrol
79
Reprise
71
Roman de gare
77
Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired
56
Sangre de mi sangre
51
Savage Grace
76
Shotgun Stories
66
Son of Rambow
70
Standard Operating Procedure
57
Stone Angel, The
61
Stuck
72
Surfwise
25
Take
81
Tell No One
56
Then She Found Me
xx
Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic
71
To the Limit
54
Tracey Fragments, The
69
Transsiberian
71
Trumbo
71
Tuya's Marriage
83
U2 3D
56
Unknown Woman
86
Up the Yangtze
59
Very British Gangster, A
79
Visitor, The
61
Wackness, The
37
War, Inc.
65
Water Lilies
66
When Did You Last See Your Father?
55
Without the King
72
Woman on the Beach
64
XXY
67
Year My Parents Went on Vacation, The
75
Young@Heart
86
Up the Yangtze
86
Flight of the Red Balloon, The
85
Edge of Heaven, The
85
My Winnipeg
83
Chop Shop
83
Paranoid Park
83
Alexandra
83
U2 3D
82
Chris & Don. A Love Story
81
Tell No One
81
Encounters at the End of the World
80
Bigger, Stronger, Faster*
80
Band's Visit, The
80
Last Mistress, The
79
Reprise
79
Visitor, The
79
Before I Forget
78
Counterfeiters, The
77
Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired
76
Shotgun Stories
76
Beauty in Trouble
75
Young@Heart
75
Days and Clouds
74
Mongol
74
Lou Reed's Berlin
73
Duchess of Langeais, The
73
Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson
72
Woman on the Beach
72
Full Battle Rattle
72
Priceless
72
Surfwise
71
Tuya's Marriage
71
Trumbo
71
To the Limit
71
My Brother Is an Only Child
71
Roman de gare
70
Standard Operating Procedure
70
Love Songs
70
Outsourced
70
Caramel
69
Transsiberian
69
Operation Filmmaker
69
Go-Getter, The
68
Heartbeat Detector
68
Honeydripper
67
Year My Parents Went on Vacation, The
67
Mad Detective
66
Son of Rambow
66
Jellyfish
66
When Did You Last See Your Father?
66
Kabluey
65
Water Lilies
64
Married Life
64
Dreams with Sharp Teeth
64
XXY
64
Fall, The
63
Foot Fist Way, The
63
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl
62
Expired
62
Kiss the Bride
61
Brick Lane
61
Stuck
61
OSS 117: Cairo - Nest of Spies
61
Wackness, The
61
On the Rumba River
60
Fugitive Pieces
60
Blind Mountain
59
Gunnin for that #1 Spot
59
Very British Gangster, A
58
Jihad for Love, A
57
Flawless
57
Stone Angel, The
56
Unknown Woman
56
Then She Found Me
56
Sangre de mi sangre
55
Quid Pro Quo
55
Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts
55
Irina Palm
55
Bra Boys
55
Without the King
54
Diminished Capacity
54
Felon
54
Tracey Fragments, The
54
Elsa & Fred
53
Mister Lonely
52
Mother of Tears, The
52
My Blueberry Nights
51
Finding Amanda
51
Promotion, The
51
Savage Grace
49
Children of Huang Shi, The
48
Death Defying Acts
47
Doorman, The
47
Bella
45
Full Grown Men
39
August
38
Life Before Her Eyes, The
37
War, Inc.
36
Holding Trevor
33
Miss Conception
31
Garden Party
30
Meet Bill
29
Red Roses and Petrol
27
Eight Miles High
25
Take
10
Harold
xx
Man Named Pearl, A
xx
Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
|
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, The
New Line Cinema
 |
|
FILM:
GAMES:
MPAA RATING: PG-13 for intense epic battle sequences and frightening images
Starring
Elijah Wood,
Sean Astin,
Ian McKellen,
Viggo Mortensen,
John Rhys-Davies,
Cate Blanchett,
Orlando Bloom,
and
Liv Tyler
Sauron's forces have laid siege to Minas Tirith, the capital of Gondor, in their efforts to eliminate the race of men. The once-great kingdom, watched over by a fading steward, has never been in more desperate need of its king. But can Aragorn (Mortensen) answer the call of his heritage and become what he was born to be? In no small measure, the fate of Middle-earth rests on his broad shoulders. (New Line Cinema)
| GENRE(S): |
Action
|
Drama
|
Fantasy
|
| WRITTEN BY: |
Frances Walsh
Philippa Boyens
Peter Jackson
J.R.R. Tolkien (novel Return of the King)
|
| DIRECTED BY: |
Peter Jackson
|
| RELEASE DATE: |
DVD: May 25, 2004
Video: May 25, 2004
Theatrical: December 17, 2003
|
| RUNNING TIME: |
210 minutes, Color |
| ORIGIN: |
USA / New Zealand |
Named Best Picture at the 76th Annual Academy Awards, where it picked up a record-tying total of 11 Oscars, including Best Director (Peter Jackson) and Best Adapted Screenplay. Received a Golden Globe as Best Picture (Drama) of 2003, and Jackson earned another for Best Director. Named best picture of 2003 by the New York Film Critics Circle, Southeastern Film Critics Association, Chicago Film Critics Association, Broadcast Film Critics Association, and the Online Film Critics Society. Included on the AFI's list of 10 best films of 2003.

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
100
Entertainment Weekly
Lisa Schwarzbaum
The conclusion of Peter Jackson's masterwork is passionate and literate, detailed and expansive, and it's conceived with a risk-taking flair for old-fashioned movie magic at its most precious.

100
The Hollywood Reporter
David Hunter
An epic success and a history-making production that finishes with a masterfully entertaining final installment.

100
Newsweek
David Ansen
The second installment was better than the first, and this one is best of all. It has spectacular action scenes and imaginary creatures, and it’s by far the most moving chapter. The performances have deepened.

100
Time
Richard Corliss
The second half of the film elevates all the story elements to Beethovenian crescendo. Here is an epic with literature's depth and opera's splendor -- and one that could be achieved only in movies. What could be more terrific?

100
Variety
Todd McCarthy
Represents that filmmaking rarity -- a third part of a trilogy that is decisively the best of the lot. With epic conflict, staggering battles, striking landscapes and effects, and resolved character arcs all leading to a dramatic conclusion to more than nine hours of masterful storytelling.

100
Empire
Alan Morrison
Those who have walked beside these heroes every step of the way on such a long journey deserve the emotional pay-off as well as the action peaks, and they will be genuinely touched as the final credits roll.

100
ReelViews
James Berardinelli
Labeling this as a "movie" is almost an injustice. This is an experience of epic scope and grandeur, amazing emotional power, and relentless momentum.

100
New York Magazine
Peter Rainer
Jackson is rare among the makers of epic movies in that he knows how to do the small stuff, too. The Return of the King has “heart”--how else could it pump out all that blood?

100
New York Daily News
Jack Mathews
The most emotionally satisfying because, in addition to having both more intimate drama and more spectacular battles, it resolves all of the issues raised before.

100
New York Post
Lou Lumenick
A majestic conclusion to a nine-plus-hours epic that stirs the heart, mind and soul as few films ever have.

100
Chicago Tribune
Michael Wilmington
Like all great fantasies and epics, this one leaves you with the sense that its wonders are real, its dreams are palpable.

100
USA Today
Claudia Puig
As good as each individual movie is, the third film vaults the work into the stratosphere of classic movies. Key characters are enhanced, new civilizations visited and battles fought more intensely, while feelings and motivations are plumbed more deeply and movingly.

100
Los Angeles Times
Kenneth Turan
As completely real on the psychological level as its up-to-the-moment visual effects have on the physical.

100
The New York Times
A.O. Scott
It's been a long time since a commercially oriented film with the scale of "King" ended with such an enduring and heartbreaking coda.

100
Slate
David Edelstein
It might be the cinema's most astonishing holy war film. The Lord of the Rings took seven years and an army of gifted artists to execute, and the striving of its makers is in every splendid frame. It's more than a movie--it's a gift.

100
Charlotte Observer
Lawrence Toppman
Jackson had the vision, persistence, insight and patience for this mighty job, plus the smarts to shape stage veterans and overlooked film actors into a seamless cast. He's made himself as immortal as a movie director can be.

100
Miami Herald
Rene Rodriguez
Feels like a miracle, a movie that exceeds even the most formidable expectations without straying from its singular path. All hail this King.

100
Baltimore Sun
Michael Sragow
It rises, all on its own, to the realm of masterwork.

100
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
William Arnold
First and foremost, it soars because its grand design and numerous story problems were worked out half a century ago by a guy named Tolkien, and Jackson was smart enough to realize this.

100
Washington Post
Desson Thomson
This movie is not only a thrilling experience, it closes the book on a truly satisfying trilogy.

100
Dallas Observer
Gregory Weinkauf
This film is a miracle, an extravaganza equal to its predecessors and in some ways more stunning. It is a profound testament to the extraordinary power of moving images and sound.

100
Film Threat
Clint Morris
A masterful moment in cinema. Jackson has created a film that's deemed to be liked –- even loved -- by almost anyone of all ages. It's destined to become a classic series.

100
LA Weekly
Scott Foundas
The deep satisfaction of The Return of the King is in surrendering ourselves to the finale, in letting Jackson's superb storytelling (with due credit to co-screenwriters Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens) surround us like a blazing campfire tale -- which it does, gloriously.

100
Chicago Reader
Andrea Gronvall
Ties everything together with a dazzling synthesis of pagan animism, heroic quest mythology, orientalism, Pre-Raphaelite imagery, 1950s sci-fi creature features, and Hollywood war epics.

100
Premiere
Glenn Kenny
A phantasmagorical slab of epic entertainment that satisfies on every conceivable level.

100
Portland Oregonian
Shawn Levy
From the acting to the special effects to the landscapes to the cinematography, editing and music, to the details of decor, wardrobe and armaments, we never once feel that we are in anything but the hands of an absolute master of the medium.

100
Wall Street Journal
Joe Morgenstern
The invisible wizard Peter Jackson makes use of every scene to show us the meaning of magnificence. Never has a filmmaker aimed higher, or achieved more.
90
Washington Post
Stephen Hunter
Then, finally, there are the endings, all six of them...For us outsiders, it seems like too much of a good thing...But all those are minor rants: The big fact is that The Return of the King puts you there at Waterloo, or Thermopylae or the Bulge, any desperate place where men ran low on blood and iron and ammo, but not on courage.

90
Salon.com
Andrew O'Hehir
I love Jackson's "Rings" saga despite his propensity for whimsical animation whenever he tries to strike a chord of dread or menace.

90
The Onion (A.V. Club)
Keith Phipps
All in all, it's a fitting conclusion to the series, and yet there are disappointments built in. For one, Jackson has opted not to film Tolkien's downbeat "Scouring Of The Shire" epilogue.

88
Boston Globe
Ty Burr
Yet what I felt when the lights came up at the end of this visionary, titanic, relentless experience was something different: a strange relief that it was, at last, over.

88
Chicago Sun-Times
Roger Ebert
There is little enough psychological depth anywhere in the films, actually, and they exist mostly as surface, gesture, archetype and spectacle. They do that magnificently well, but one feels at the end that nothing actual and human has been at stake.

88
Rolling Stone
Peter Travers
This is a film in which ideas resonate as well as action. Gandalf’s words to Pippin about death have a muscular poetry.

80
The New Yorker
Anthony Lane
Peter Jackson has not really made a movie of The Lord of the Rings; he has sprung clear of it to forge something new. He has drawn a deep breath, and taken the plunge. [5 January 2004, p. 89]
80
Village Voice
J. Hoberman
In short, this Krakatoa is at once exhausting and riveting. It's a technological marvel, and for those not with the program, a bit of a bore.

78
Austin Chronicle
Marc Savlov
It’s odd and unfortunate, however, that The Return of the King just barely misses the eye-misting emotional wallop of the series’ previous installment, The Two Towers, which had a lyrical subtlety underpinning the vast vistas of growing chaos (and Christopher Lee hardly hurt matters) and hobbits-in-peril.

75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
Liam Lacey
The [final] battle is vast, and undoubtedly required thousands of hours of matching puppetry, robotics and computer code, but it is not without tedium.

75
Philadelphia Inquirer
Steven Rea
The Return of the King is too long...The various story lines...come together in stilted, episodic ways. The narrative is less-than-seamless.

75
San Francisco Chronicle
Mick LaSalle
Though an estimable success overall, The Return of the King has several scenes too many and too great a concentration on battles.

70
TV Guide
Maitland McDonagh
Despite its length, the film only starts feeling as long at the end -- or, more correctly, ends. Serious fans of the novels will be prepared for the serial codicils, but the uninitiated are likely to think the film is over several times before it actually is.

70
Film Threat
Kevin Carr
If The Return of the King was 2 1/2 hours long, it would have rocked. It would have been better than The Two Towers, which is the best film in the series.

50
Christian Science Monitor
David Sterritt
Add a lot of dull acting -- except Sir Ian McKellen and Andy Serkis -- and you have an uneven movie with yawns aplenty.


The average user rating for this movie is 8.6 (out of 10) based on 887 User Votes
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