MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

The second film in Peter Jackson's series of screen adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien's internationally popular Lord of The Rings trilogy, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers literally begins where The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring ended, with the Fellowship splitting into three groups as they seek to return the Ring to Mordor, the forbidding land where the powerful talisman must be taken to be destroyed. Frodo (Elijah Wood), who carries the Ring, and his fellow Hobbit Sam (Sean Astin) are lost in the hills of Emyn Muil when they encounter Gollum (Andy Serkis), a strange creature who once carried the Ring and was twisted by its power. Gollum volunteers to guide the pair to Mordor; Frodo agrees, but Sam does not trust their new acquaintance. Elsewhere, Merry (Dominic Monaghan) and Pippin (Billy Boyd) are attempting to navigate Fangorn Forrest where they discover a most unusual nemesis -- Treebeard (voice of John Rhys-Davies), a walking and talking tree-shepherd who doesn't much care for Hobbits. Finally, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Gimli (John Rhys-Davies), and Legolas (Orlando Bloom) arrive in Rohan to discover that the evil powers of Saruman (Christopher Lee) have robbed King Theoden (Bernard Hill) of his rule. The King's niece Éowyn (Miranda Otto) believes Aragorn and his men have the strength to defeat Saruman, his henchman Wormtongue (Brad Dourif), and their minions. Éowyn soon becomes infatuated with Aragorn, while he struggles to stay faithful to the pledge of love he made to Arwen (Liv Tyler). Gandalf (Ian McKellen) offers his help and encouragement as the Rohans, under Aragorn's leadership, attempt to face down Saruman's armies, but they soon discover how great the task before them truly is when they learn that his troops consist of 10,000 bloodthirsty creatures specially bred to fight to the death. Most of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers was shot in tandem with The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King during a marathon 18-month shooting schedule, overseen by Peter Jackson. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 4
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 (Cinemascope)
• Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS-ES 6.1, Dolby Digital Surround
• Screen: Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV
• Subtitle: Spanish, English
• Features:
  • • cc Over 43 minutes of new and extended scenes
    • Four feature-length audio commentaries by the director and writers, the cast, the production and design teams, with over 40 participants including Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Phillippa Boyens, Barrie M. Osborne, Richard Taylor, Andrew Lesnie, Howard Shore, Jim Rygiel and Joe Letteri, and cast including Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, John Rhys-Davies, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Christopher Lee, Sean Bean, Miranda Otto, Brad Dourif, Andy Serkis, Bernard Hill, and more
    • Five original documentaries covering adapting the book into a screenplay, the origins of Middle-earth, designing Middle-earth, a visit to the Weta Workshop, and an in-depth look at creating and bringing Gollum to life
    • Two interactive maps: Middle-earth Atlas and New Zealand as Middle-earth
    • Galleries with audio commentaries (includes an archive of over 1,500 images)
    • Eight original documentaries covering the filming of The Two Towers, the visual effects, editing, music and sound, stunts and fight training, and a visit to Weta Digital
    • Interactive sound demonstration of The Battle of Helm's Deep
    • Galleries with audio commentaries (includes an archive of nearly 300 images)

AWARDS

• Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

•     Won Best Sound Editing - 2002 (Michael Hopkins, Ethan Van der Ryn)
•     Won Best Visual Effects - 2002 (Alex Funke, Jim Rygiel, Joe Letteri, Randall William Cook)
•     Nominated Best Art Direction - 2002 (Grant Major, Alan Lee, Dan Hennah)
•     Nominated Best Editing - 2002 (Michael Horton)
•     Nominated Best Picture - 2002 (Barrie M. Osborne, Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh)
•     Nominated Best Sound - 2002 (Hammond Peek, Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges)

• American Film Institute

•     Won Top Ten Movie of the Year - 2002

• Broadcast Film Critics Association

•     Nominated Best Picture - 2003
•     Nominated Best Score - 2003 (Howard Shore)
•     Nominated Best Composer - 2002 (Howard Shore)
•     Nominated Best Picture - 2002

• Directors Guild of America

•     Nominated Best Director - 2002 (Peter Jackson)

• Hollywood Foreign Press Association

•     Nominated Best Director - 2002 (Peter Jackson)
•     Nominated Best Picture - 2002

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Director:

  Peter Jackson

• Producer:

  Peter Jackson, Barrie M. Osborne, Fran Walsh

• Screenwriter:

  Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Stephen Sinclair, Philippa Boyens

• Book Author:

  J.R.R. Tolkien

• Cinematographer:

  Andrew Lesnie

• Composer (Music Score):

  Howard Shore

• Editor:

  Michael Horton, Jabez Olssen

• Production Designer:

  Grant Major

• Art Director:

  Philip Ivey, Joe Peter Bleakley, Rob Otterside, Mark Robins

• Co-producer:

  Jamie Selkirk, Rick Porras

• Executive Producer:

  Robert Shaye, Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein, Mark Ordesky, Michael Lynne

• Set Designer:

  Dan Hennah, Alan Lee

• Costume Designer:

  Ngila Dickson, Richard Taylor

• Sound/Sound Designer:

  Michael Hedges, David Farmer, Hammond Peek, Christopher Boyes, Ethan Van der Ryn, Michael Semanick, Michael Hopkins

• Makeup:

  Peter Owen, Peter King

• First Assistant Director:

  Carolynne Cunningham

• Casting:

  Liz Mullane, John Hubbard, Victoria Burrows, Ann Robinson, Amy MacLean

• Visual Effects:

  Joe Letteri

• Hair Styles:

  Peter Owen

• Stunts Coordinator:

  George Marshall Ruge

• Visual Effects:

  Randall William Cook

• Hair Styles:

  Peter King

• Second Unit Director:

  Geoff Murphy

• Visual Effects Supervisor:

  Jim Rygiel

• Visual Effects:

  Alex Funke

• Supervising Sound Editor:

  Mike Hopkins, Ethan Van der Ryn

• Makeup Special Effects:

  Richard Taylor

• Model Effects:

  Richard Taylor

• Creature Effects:

  Richard Taylor

• Digital Effects:

  Weta Digital

• Second Unit Director:

  John Mahaffie

• Conceptual Design:

  John Howe

REVIEW:

• Co-writer and director Peter Jackson continues his Oscar-winning, box-office blockbuster adaptation of the classic fantasy novel from author J.R.R. Tolkien with a second installment that plunges the fictional setting of Middle-earth into a vicious war. Welcome additions to the action in the sophomore adventure include the CG-created Gollum, moving front and center as a major character who is simply amazing in his ability to entertain and move the viewer emotionally. The most pathetic creature in the trilogy, he's a schizophrenic nightmare but heartbreakingly human and poignantly, dazzlingly realized by a combination of actor Andy Serkis's physical skill and Jackson's special effects experts. Gollum puts the similar Jar Jar Binks character of the second Star Wars trilogy to shame. Also thrilling are a climactic battle between Ents (living "trees") and the evil wizard Saruman (Christopher Lee) that brings to mind any number of breathtaking sequences from The Wizard of Oz (1939), and the final clash between humans and invading enemy forces at Helm's Deep, a lengthy but thrilling clash of bows and shields that recalls the superb fight sequences from Braveheart (1995). Less persuasive are some storytelling elements that fall victim to the filmmakers' effort to condense the story into a three-hour running time: several gaps in the action occur and a few developments are left unexplained or vague, such as how the forces of Éomer (Karl Urban) grow from a few dozen to thousands, how the defenders of the realm of Gondor manage to defeat their attackers, why the Ringwraiths have suddenly switched mounts from horses to dragons (why did they use horses at all in the first film?) -- and why Tolkien felt the need to give every location, character, and object in his work at least three utterly confusing names (those who haven't read the books may be left wondering what the difference is between Éomer and Faramir or Gimli and Grima). However, the simple fact that a novel as dense and detailed as this one hasn't been turned into a labored bore is a miracle; that Jackson has fashioned such a triumphant success is a real artistic achievement. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) may be imperfect in its occasionally frustrated effort to squeeze every significant plot element into the mix, but it's a visual marvel and a definite raising of the artistic bar for its entire genre. No filmmaker will ever be able to create a sci-fi or fantasy epic again without comparison against it. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi