We all know the story told in the movies based on the Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien. The three Lord of the Rings movies are generally considered to be among the best movies ever made and to me they are also by far the best fantasy movies ever. I will provide a short analysis of each movie and then answer the question: when comparing the three movies, which one is the best?
The Fellowship of the Ring
As the introduction to the world and characters of LOTR, The Fellowship of the Ring pulls viewers into the story, amazing them with the rich and detailed world and likeable characters. The movie sets up the complete story line and prepares viewers for what is to come. It is therefore very memorable but at the same time it is somewhat slow-paced with lots of dailogues and less action/ battles.
IMDb rating: 8.8 – Rotten Tomatoes rating: 92%
The Two Towers
The second movie of the trilogy is well balanced: Frodo and Sam go off to destroy the ring while at the same time the rest of the fellowship go on their own quests. This results in several story lines focusing on the struggles of Frodo but at the same time gives attention to the other people and races that inhabit Middle-earth and their fight against the forces of evil. There is much attention for politics, deceipt and mistrust while the dialogues between Legolas and Gimli even provide some humor. The battle of the Ents at Saruman’s tower and the legendary battle at Helm’s Deep between the Rohirrim and the Uruk-Hai are a great conclusion to this movie.
IMDb rating: 8.7 – Rotten Tomatoes rating: 96%
The Return of the King
The third and last Lord of the Rings movie focuses on two major topics: the ever more difficult quest of Frodo to reach mount Doom and destroy the ring on the one hand and the build up to the enourmous battle on the Pelennor Fields at the city of Minas Tirith on the other hand. Together they bring the trilogy to a very tense, tragic and impressively made ending. A minor downside is that it takes a really long time to get there: at some point I felt like ‘just get it over with’!
IMDb rating: 8.8 – Rotten Tomatoes rating: 94%
Comparison and Conclusion
You may already have understood it when reading the short analysis of each of the movies: The Two Towers is my favorite LOTR movie. It has the best balance between character development, the journey to destroy the ring and action in the form of smaller fights and the large battle at Helm’s Deep. The other two movies were great but focused a bit too much on specific themes which to me made them just a little less good.
Still, together I believe the movies to be by far the best fantasy movies made and I do not expect any other fantasy movie to ever outclass them. However, I do hope that one day The Hobbit will also be made into a movie and that it will be of the same quality.
Tags: Fantasy Movies, J.R.R. Tolkien, Return of the King, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers
March 7th, 2013 at 13:33
to my previous comment all three films are brilliant fellowship is excellent, two towers is breathtaking and the return of the king is a masterpeice, but still two towers for me but in the books the return of the king is my favorite
March 7th, 2013 at 13:30
ithink they are all good, but two towers for me
February 20th, 2013 at 18:57
Fellowship is my favorite! It has a bit more Mystical feeling in it than the other 2…… But The Lord of the Ring trilogy are my favorite books and movies by far!!!!
February 1st, 2013 at 15:17
They are all great films. But I favored Return of the King. The third film is the climax of the series: We get to see the “Great Battle of our time”, the Ring get destroyed, and the Kings Return.
The Academy Awards pretty much say it all:
The Fellowship of the Ring — Wins: 4
The Two Towers — , Wins: 2
The Return of the King — Wins: 11
January 29th, 2013 at 09:28
I think its the lord of the ring the return of the king, its just the best movie, the way its filmed and the actors do the best in that movie.
January 12th, 2013 at 18:43
I Like all of them done.
November 13th, 2012 at 06:45
For my opinion, I got true battle feelings, senses, graphics and pleasant sound tracks in these 3 movies. Moreover, these 3 movies are really qualified and brilliant with great graphic at that time 2001-2003 and still now. Story line is also amazing and 80% attract the viewers’ attention. These three movies are strongly linkable and draw our attentions & senses till the end.
October 20th, 2012 at 16:18
I agree with Gwyn. All are brilliant movies but I love the beauty and mystic atmosphere of the elvish realms in Fellowship which may be my favourite. The ents in Towers were awesome as well.
June 16th, 2012 at 11:12
mine is the two towers because its interesting and they all split up and its just cool
the return of the king is to long
fellowship 3/4 is boring
June 2nd, 2012 at 17:06
There is no best Lord Of The Rings film, they are all awesome and all deserve to be watched!
May 31st, 2012 at 15:42
My absolute favourite trilogy ever. But the “Fellowship” is my favourite as a book and as a film. It concentrates more on the journey than on battles and warfare. It also hasn’t got as much despair and hatred in it as in the two sequels.
Return of the King is almost as good as the Fellowship of the Ring. It has epic battle scenes and heroic deeds.
Even though Two Towers is a brilliant film, it’s the shortest straw out of the three. It tends to get a bit boring in some parts.
May 26th, 2012 at 21:36
I have to agree with the writer of the synopsis, sorry don’t know your name, I love all 3 movies, but without a doubt my favorite is the Two Towers. I love the battles, the interchange between Legolas and Gimli is priceless. Many extremely likeable and engaging characters are introduced in this movie….the only thing I like less in all the movies is Frodo, admittedly I have not yet read the books, but I find him weak and less than appreciative towards Sam and more than a little arrogant. Sam, who is my most favorite..due to his bravery, loyalty, and tender-heartedness. In spite of how I feel about Frodo, I love, love, love these movies and have probably seen them about ten times each, actually I have seen the Two Towers twenty times!!! I have seen them so much that my children tease me.
March 26th, 2012 at 03:06
i will always think that the fellowship of the ring is the best of the 3. it may not have many battle scenes, but the ones that are shown are really well done, like the nazgul pursuing arwen, gandalf vs the balrog, and boromir’s death. they are all well shot and well directed. i found the overall presentation to be more “poetic” and beautiful than the other 2, which in my opinion were mostly war scenes.