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Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The
New Line Cinema

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The reviews


8.8

based on 39 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 317 votes
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FILM:

GAMES:

Metacritic Games: PS2 The Two Towers

MPAA RATING: PG-13 for epic battle sequences and scary images

Starring Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Liv Tyler, Christopher Lee, Cate Blanchett, and Bernard Hill

In the second chapter in J.R.R Tolkien's epic trilogy, the Fellowship faces unimaginable armies and deception while also witnessing ancient wonders and the untapped strength of their people. (New Line Productions)

GENRE(S):	Fantasy
WRITTEN BY:	Frances Walsh Philippa Boyens Stephen Sinclair, Peter Jackson J.R.R. Tolkien (novel)
DIRECTED BY:	Peter Jackson
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: August 26, 2003 Video: August 26, 2003 Theatrical: December 18, 2002
RUNNING TIME:	179 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA / New Zealand

Received 6 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. Also received a Best Picture nomination at the Golden Globes. Named Best Picture of 2002 by the Online Film Critics Society.

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

Boston Globe Ty Burr

The miracle is that 'The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is better: tighter, smarter, funnier.

100

Time Richard Corliss

Towers, while not quite so varied as Fellowship in its moods and settings, has a grave gusto that energizes every moment...a thrilling work of film craft.

100

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

The Two Towers moves faster, covers more ground, has more action and -- with the introduction of the marvelous character Gollum -- packs some much-appreciated laughs.

100

Film Threat Chuck Russel

Thank you, Mr. Jackson for pushing film into a new age -- Ladies and gentleman, we have our new directing God!

100

ReelViews James Berardinelli

Like its predecessor, The Two Towers is a great motion picture, and not to be missed by anyone who appreciates fantasy adventure.

100

New York Magazine Peter Rainer

Jackson has a genuine epic gift: Few filmmakers have ever given gross-outs such resplendence.

100

Washington Post Desson Thomson

One fabulous Middle-earth show.

100

Washington Post Stephen Hunter

Gripping, whole and nourishing. Certainly of the fantasy film series currently in American theaters -– I include "Harry Potter and the Secret Toity" and "Star Trek: Halitosis" -– The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is the best, and not by just a little.

100

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

Moviegoers should be almost as entranced by the teeming, glorious landscapes and dark, bloody battlegrounds of Two Towers: astonishing midpoint of an epic movie fantasy journey for the ages.

100

Newsweek David Ansen

What's remarkable is how immediately, after a full year, The Two Towers seizes your attention, and how urgently it holds you through three seamless, action-packed hours.

100

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

Casts a spell and then some -- a ringing testament to the power of motion pictures.

100

Film Threat Eric Campos

There’s no question here that moviegoers will be treated to a completely enveloping, three-hour vacation from reality.

100

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

The result is harrowing and inspiring. As escapist entertainment, it's the movie of the year.

100

The Onion (A.V. Club) Keith Phipps

What makes Towers so staggering is the way it brings the full scope of Jackson's adaptation into focus. Without missing a beat in three hours, the film shifts from epic to lyrical and back.

100

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

A brilliantly conceived, boldly executed, cumulatively thrilling fantasy epic that expands the art of film and is sure to be the middle link of one of the movies' greatest trilogies.

Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy

You will be heartened by the amazing sensation of watching one of the greatest works in the history of the medium unfold in front of you, piece by piece, year by year.

The New Yorker Anthony Lane

The virtues of Jackson's trilogy, thus far, have been pace and astonishment, which is almost the same thing. [6 January 2003, p. 90]

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

One of cinema's most absorbing fantasies.

Salon.com Charles Taylor

Yes, there are some "middle-chapter" problems, but Peter Jackson's Tolkien adaptation hasn't lost its devastating humanity, its heart-stopping cinematography or its epic sweep.

The New York Times A.O. Scott

Never has a film so strongly been a product of a director's respect for its source. Mr. Jackson uses all his talents in the service of that reverence, creating a rare perfect mating of filmmaker and material.

Dallas Observer Gregory Weinkauf

The year's greatest adventure, and Jackson's limited but enthusiastic adaptation has made literature literal without killing its soul.

Variety Todd McCarthy

Has a sharper narrative focus and a livelier sense of forward movement than did the more episodic "Fellowship."

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

God forbid this should ever play on an IMAX screen -- the concussive soundtrack and relentless visuals would likely strike viewers deaf and blind (but what a way to go!). Simply breathtaking.

USA Today Claudia Puig

Epic battles, spectacular effects and multiple story lines make The Two Towers a most excellent middle chapter in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.

Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez

For now, The Two Towers feels like the second installment in what next year, when Frodo finally reaches Mount Doom and the story draws to a close, we'll surely be hailing as a masterpiece.

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

Most moviegoers will leave buzzing about the climactic Battle of Helm's Deep. But in my eyes, this is Gollum's show more than anyone else's, even the special-effects wizards behind the scenes.

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

What it comes down to is superbly staged battle scenes and moral alliances forged in earnest yet purged of the wit and dynamic, bristly ego that define true on-screen personality.

San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle

An outstanding effort that maintains the integrity and purpose that distinguished "The Fellowship of the Ring."

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

Jackson's superior sequel to last year's first installment in his Rings cycle - resurrects the beloved Gandalf (majestic Ian McKellen) and rejuvenates the audience, too.

New York Post Jonathan Foreman

The sequel's battle scenes -- especially the climactic assault on the Helm's Deep fortress by the armies of darkness -- easily put those of the "Star Wars" series to shame.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Liam Lacey

Both a triumph of design and cinematic engineering and, at the same time, long, repetitious and naive.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

A rousing adventure, a skillful marriage of special effects and computer animation, and it contains sequences of breathtaking beauty. It also gives us, in a character named the Gollum, one of the most engaging and convincing CGI creatures I've seen.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

Spectacular in every sense of the word, even if you don' t know an Orc from a Uruk-Hai.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

Seeing Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is like having a second date with the woman who made you fall in love at first sight.

LA Weekly Russel Swensen

Falters precisely because there's not enough stumbling, and far too much striding gallantly forward.

Slate David Edelstein

A glorious, visceral mess -- The film is, by most criteria, an ungainly piece of storytelling. Yet it sweeps you up and hurtles you along like water from an exploded dike.

Village Voice J. Hoberman

Jackson's movie is one portentous happening after another -- not unreasonable in that his source, J.R.R. Tolkien's trilogy, is basically the fantasyland equivalent of a world war against absolute evil.

Los Angeles Times Manohla Dargis

If the second film never reaches the highs of the first -- we have met the players before and there are no new worlds of wonder -- it nonetheless invests moviegoing with a sense of adventure.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

This second installment is heavy on battle sequences, which will thrill some viewers more than others.

The average user rating for this movie is 8.8 (out of 10) based on 317 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

George C. gave it a10:
Two Towers doesn't have the mood that the first one does, there are more battle sequences, heavier plots, and thrilling moments. This is Gullom's show, partailly Aragorn's (who of which has a background that gives off 10 minutes of important refferences of who he will become). Gandalf has just risen, it is partailly his show. Same Legolas', he is important in this because it is about time the elves stop chillin at home talking poetry, this time the elves go to war, which gives Legolas more screen time, which I like. Gimli, well he is always the humorous little cheekster that gives the fun to the screen. Frodo, this is ultimately his show, taking the ring to Mordor, his advnture is the most important. There many other characters, eomer, Eowyn, Theoden, Theodred, Pippin, Merry, Sam (who becomes way more important in #3), Gamling, Gladriel, Saramaun, Saraun, Treabeard, Arwen, and Lord Elrond. Everyone is connective and always have a powerful importance in the show. I loved this movie, this is the best of the three, has excellent moments, and the outline is very interesting. This is defintely up for the Oscars, it may have won only 2, but the Oscars it got it certainly deserved.

Christopher J. gave it a9:
Great external and internal conflict! This is the best of the trilogy. Gollum is the best computer-generated character in cinema up to this point. I think the extended version it too long, though.

Cory B. gave it an8:
A great movie! Full of adventure and fun, more epic than the first.

Jeff Z. gave it a10:
It mayfocus on the humans more than the hobbits, but it has a great battle scene and Gollum is a great psycho! not faithful, but not as boring as harry potter.

Jeremy E. gave it a10:
In my opinion the best Lord of the Rings movie.

Derek P. gave it a10:
Give it up! This was the best of the trilogy by some substancial amount. I mean take into consideration that 1 year before Fellowship ended and you felt in awe. In Awe! This one completely satisfied my expectations plus some. PS. Anyone who loves LOTR should buy the box sets, the special features are amazing and have replay value.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The New Line Cinema

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, The
New Line Cinema