Movie #: Title:   Year: 2003         IMDB mediatype
Genre: Director:     IMDB   Rating:  PG-13  Box Set? box set?

FileNameRunTimeFileSize(MB)
1016 Lord of the Rings The Return of the King.mp42010

Synopsis

The final battle for Middle-earth begins. Frodo and Sam, led by Gollum, continue their dangerous mission toward the fires of Mount Doom in order to destroy the One Ring. Aragorn struggles to fulfill his legacy as he leads his outnumbered followers against the growing power of the Dark Lord Sauron, so that the Ring-bearer may complete his quest. (top 250: #3 )  

More Info

Like the first two Lord of the Rings installments, the theatrical-release DVD of The Return of the King has superior picture and sound quality, and that's the important thing. The features on disc 2, however, fall a little short. Two brief documentaries (23 and 28 minutes) chronicle the making of the trilogy and have some good information, but they're best suited to those who aren't very familiar with the films, and some of the material overlaps. A surprise is the complete National Geographic Beyond the Movie program , but it's mostly an excuse for film clips as it draws rather tenuous connections between Tolkien and history, such as comparing Aragorn to William Wallace or Gandalf to Ben Franklin. The six lordoftherings.net featurettes (17 minutes total) are part recap and part making-of, and the Eowyn and digital-horse segments have some appeal. Also included are trailers (including the trilogy supertrailer), TV spots, and a pitch for the related video games (the already-released Return of the King plus the upcoming Battle for Middle-Earth). Unfortunately, some of the more enticing features of the previous theatrical releases are missing: no music video, no preview of an upcoming movie (obviously, because all the films have been released), and no preview of the inevitable extended edition (presumably because there's a longer time between the release of the ROTK theatrical version and the release of the extended version). Still, the film doesn't really need any extras to make it a worthwhile pickup. --David Horiuchi