When it comes to The Lord of the Rings trilogy, I don't think I've ever known a single person who's said that the second movie, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, is the best movie in the trilogy. In fact, when I ranked all of the Rings movies, I put it right above the three Hobbit flicks.
Middle movies in beloved trilogies are sometimes the best films in the entire series. Case in point: the original Star Wars trilogy. Just ask anybody (or ask us), The Empire Strikes Back is the best Star Wars movie. The Dark Knight is also the best Batman movie in Nolan's trilogy, and many would argue that The Godfather Part II just narrowly edges out the first movie.
Upon a rewatch, I feel like I owe The Two Towers a MAJOR apology. Here’s why.
For One Thing, This Is The First Time I’ve Watched The Movie Without Watching The Other Two Movies In The Trilogy, Which Really Helps
When watching The Lord of the Rings movies, one does not simply watch one movie in the trilogy. One has to make a whole day of watching all three movies in one sitting (Bonus points if you watch the Special Extended Editions). That said, for some reason, I walked in on my wife while she was finishing the first movie, and I decided that I would just jump in at the middle since I didn’t feel like asking her to start over.
Let me just tell you. The second movie, which I haven’t seen by itself since it came out in 2002, is WAY better when you haven’t just sat through 228 minutes (Because we ONLY watch the Extended Editions in our household) of The Fellowship of the Ring. Starting with that fantastic scene of Gandalf fighting the Balrog never disappoints, but it’s all the better when you’re not already tired - like I always am - after watching the first movie.
And, this is important because my biggest complaint with the second film is that it’s kind of slow. This upsets me since the second book is actually the best in the trilogy, since a lot of the coolest moments, like Shelob the spider, were actually in the second book, but were saved for the third film.
Starting fresh with The Two Towers, rather than it just being “the middle movie,” really does make all the difference in the world.
Gandalf Returning As “Gandalf The White” Just Hits Differently This Time Around
Here’s the thing about The Lord of the Rings trilogy. All three films feel like one whole story when viewed one after the other. When viewed separately, I now realize how different each movie’s tone is. For example, there’s a dire, but also hopeful tone in The Fellowship of the Ring, whereas The Return of the King has a dramatic and triumphant tone. So, when viewed in succession, this all works really well.
However, in the past, when viewing all three movies, I always viewed The Two Towers as being the gloomiest and driest. However, when viewed on its own, I now realize it has almost an apocalyptic tone to it, which really works in its favor. Similar to The Empire Strikes Back, we get a feeling that the villains are making great headway. Members of the Fellowship are separated, and Saruman is mostly unchallenged now that Gandalf is out of the picture. Meanwhile, Sauron’s army is legion, and it looks like he may very well win Middle-earth.
Which is why when Gandalf returns, bathed in light (and in white!), you feel like the tides have truly turned. This is important since Rohan’s king, Theoden, has been under Saruman’s spell, and Gandalf is the only one who can possibly free him. And free him he does, which sets things in motion for the side of good.
This moment - Gandalf’s triumphant return - just hit harder when it’s separated from the other two films, and it lightened this grim movie, giving it hope. In other words, it’s truly awesome.
I Also Really Appreciate The Ents A Lot More This Time Around
Let me tell you. When The Two Towers initially came out in theaters, I probably would have called it one of the most disappointing movies of the 2000s. Now, yes. I'm aware. That's super hyperbolic (just like me saying that I wish Mystic River beat The Return of the King), but when I first saw this movie, I couldn't believe how slow it was, and a major reason for that was the Ents.
Sagacious…but slow, the main Ent we follow is Treebeard, and it doesn't help that we're…I guess “stuck” is the best word for it…with the two most boring members of the Fellowship in Merry and Pippin when we’re with Treebeard. Initially, I couldn't BELIEVE how much the Ent scenes slowed down the pacing of the film.
Upon a rewatch, I actually really dig the Ents. I love their inner politics and how they find a common enemy in Saruman. I also now think that the Ents attacking Isengard is one of the coolest scenes in the entire trilogy, and I have no idea how I could have disliked the Ents before.
Seriously, what was wrong with me? The Ents are freaking amazing!
I Also Now Think The Helm's Deep Fight Is The Best Battle In The Entire Trilogy
I think a big reason why I've always disliked The Two Towers might actually be BECAUSE of The Battle of Helm's Deep, since the fight itself is like 40 minutes long!
It was the kind of fight that would be cool in a video game, but at the end of an already long movie (and remember, this would be AFTER I've already sat through The Fellowship of the Ring), well, I always found it more grueling than gratifying.
All I can say now is that this fight is awesome! It adds to the apocalyptic tone I mentioned earlier with how dark it is, and there are so many moving pieces and characters on screen that it is truly the epic climax that it's meant to be. I also love how every major character - including my favorite member of the Fellowship, Gimli - gets a moment to shine in some way.
This brings me to my apology for this movie, because…
I Was 100% Wrong. The Two Towers Is Awesome!
I can't believe I'm saying this, but I now think The Two Towers might be my favorite movie in the entire trilogy. It doesn't have the optimism of the first movie or the exuberance of the third film. It does have a weight to it that the other two movies don't even touch.
It's also punctuated with great moments throughout, and splitting up the party actually gives it a lot more breathing room.
So, yes, I'll openly admit it. I was 100% wrong about The Two Towers. It's an epic adventure, and all the better if you watch it separately from the other two films. And, if I could be so wrong about The Two Towers, could I perhaps be wrong about The Rings of Power, which I watched for one season and then gave up on?
Maybe I need to give it another shot, too.
