I don’t like The Lord of the Rings films! Originally I had no intention or desire of ever watching them, as it was not of any interest to myself. I was then taken to see The Fellowship of the Ring by my parents, and then had trouble sleeping for the next week or so thanks to the visual decapitation of Lurtz by Aragorn. Eventually though, I was able to calm down from this moment, and as time went by, I conned myself into thinking the films were good, and saw the other two at the cinema, and was briefly a fan. But I am not a fan anymore. The films are relatively enjoyable; but they are simply, well, alright. They are more Overrated than anything else!
Anyone who knows me will know that I am not a fan of these films, and there are many reasons why. I mean for a start they are not all that much in the way of Fantasy. The fantasy type creatures are rare in number, and are barely ever on screen. The story may as well be set in medieval England if they are not going to use much in the way of creatures or Magic. I mean we are informed that Gandalf is a Wizard, but he rarely ever uses magic! In battle; he always resorts to using his sword, rather than conjuring up the Middle-Earth variant of napalm to attack the Orcs with!
And it’s not just the fantasy element; there are some errors around which no-one likes to talk about. For instance, it’s never made clear as to what the purposes of the original rings were. That’s how the story is set-up, and the title of the entire story. We are told Men, Dwarves, and Elves get rings, but for what purpose they hold is not made clear. Yes, Sauron has a master ring to rule over the others; but in terms of his build-up to power, the purpose of the ring is again not made clear enough, and so he looks less like someone who gained power through a ring, and more like someone who was just well organized in creating an army. Yes, after his death the ring makes more sense, but it’s just a glorified Horcrux; and not a very good one. At least Voldemort could take bodily form, Sauron could only come back in the shape of an eye; which surgeon messed that up?
Yes; I suppose I could read the books to clarify these issues, but that just makes the films something of a failure, as all the info needed should be on the screen for the viewer to take in; if I need to look elsewhere for clarity, then the film is a failure in it’s presentation. It would be like getting a new job, but then the company only partially tells you what you need to do, and the rest of it needs to be read up at home during your off time!
And there are other things too, many, many faults I see; but I am not here to bring up these faults. This was all a majestic set-up to bring you to my main point. Yes there are issues, but there are somethings I do like about these films. So continuing on this mini series of things I like from low points in cinema (other lists include good points about Godzilla 1998, and why the Phantom Menace is a very underrated film), I have chosen five things I do in fact like about The Lord of the Rings Films. There may be other points too (but probably not many), but these are the stand out five from the trilogy. So, here are Five Things I do in fact like about the Lord of the Rings films; Enjoy!
5. Haradrim Arrival – The arrival of the Haradrim in Return of the King is an amazing moment. We see the Riders of Rohan stop at the sight of something, and Theoden‘s sword change his own emotions. We then see the sight of the giant elephants, making their way to the battlefield. We hear the horn, and the epic war chant. It then dissolves into a regular battle scene, but the entrance was still a great enough moment!
4. Christopher Lee – You can’t say anything wrong with the acting talent of Christopher Lee, in any film. In his two movie appearances in the Lord of the Rings films, Saruman presents himself firstly as a wise and respectable character, before instantly turning bad, and becoming an iconic villain. His moments in the Two Towers are him at his best, as he becomes this great scientist, and tactician, presenting himself as a mad emperor. Its a shame really that Sauron is the ultimate villain, as Lee’s screen presence really makes him more of an interesting villain, with a much deeper story than anything Sauron does!
3. Bernard Hill – Bernard Hill is easily the most enjoyable and commanding screen presence of anyone in the entire film series. He is so enjoyable to watch, but conveys a real level of emotion in everything he does. It feels like that he should be the great king, not Aragorn. He looks like a king, and delivers real moments of leadership in tough times, with whatever he has access to. His monologues and speeches are amongst the best dialogue in the entire film, each one enjoyable, even if sad or depressed in tone. He stands above everyone else with real screen presence, and is always enjoyable, no matter what the scene or situation!
2. Easterlings – Gandalf makes it very clear in the Fellowship of the Ring that it is in Men that they need to place their hope in defeating Sauron. So with this understanding in place, why are the two main armies of Men at odds with at least two other tribes of Men? The Easterlings look Amazing. Their armor scheme does make them look a bit like Penguins, but they look incredible, and unstoppable, like the elite men of Middle-Earth. It’s a shame we only get to see them in one scene, but it is a pretty cool scene, my favourite from the entire trilogy, and also because it features the mighty Easterlings!
1. Ringwraiths – The first thing I liked about Lord of the Rings, was the Ringwraiths. I mean just look at them, they look like a horde of Grim Reapers. Their scenes in the first film, where they are hunting for the Hobbits, are dark, and sometimes pretty scary in their depiction. They look ominous and scary, and act like a real threat. Their time though is pretty short, but is still a golden screen time. Yes they return in the second a third films, but they sort of lose that cool and terrifying image when they are not riding together, and are doing it not on horseback. On horseback though, they look incredible, and a real feast/treat for the eyes!
Things I Like 
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