The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is a 2002 epic fantasy film directed by Peter Jackson from a screenplay by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Stephen Sinclair, and Jackson, based on 1954's The Two Towers, the second volume of the novel The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien. The sequel to 2001's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, the film is the second instalment in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. It features an ensemble cast including Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davies, Bernard Hill, Christopher Lee, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Brad Dourif, Karl Urban, and Andy Serkis. Continuing the plot of the previous film, it intercuts three storylines: Frodo and Sam continue their journey toward Mordor to destroy the One Ring, now allied with Gollum, the ring's untrustworthy former bearer. Merry and Pippin escape their orc captors, meet Treebeard the Ent, and help to plan an attack on Isengard, the fortress of Sauron's vassal, the treacherous wizard Saruman. Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli come to the war-torn nation of Rohan and are reunited with the resurrected Gandalf, before joining king Théoden to fight Saruman's army at the Battle of Helm's Deep.
The Two Towers was financed and distributed by American studio New Line Cinema, but filmed and edited entirely in Jackson's native New Zealand, concurrently with the other two parts of the trilogy. It premiered on 5 December 2002 at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City and was released in the United States on 18 December and in New Zealand on 19 December. The film was acclaimed by critics and audiences, who considered it a landmark in filmmaking and an achievement in the fantasy film genre, with praise for the visual effects (Gollum), performances, action sequences, direction, and musical score. It grossed $923 million worldwide during its original theatrical run, making it the highest-grossing film of 2002 and, at the time of its release, the third-highest-grossing film of all time behind Titanic and Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Following subsequent re-releases, it has grossed $944 million.
Like the other films in the trilogy, The Two Towers is widely recognised as one of the greatest and most influential films ever made as well as one of the greatest sequels in cinema history. The film received numerous accolades; at the 75th Academy Awards, it was nominated for six awards, including Best Picture, winning for Best Sound Editing and Best Visual Effects. The final instalment of the trilogy, The Return of the King, was released in 2003.
Plot
Awakening from a dream of Gandalf fighting the Balrog in Moria, Frodo Baggins finds himself, along with Samwise Gamgee, lost in the Emyn Muil near Mordor. They discover they are being pursued by Gollum, a former bearer of the One Ring. Capturing Gollum, Frodo takes pity and allows him to guide them into Mordor, despite Sam's reservations.
Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli pursue a band of Uruk-hai to save their companions Merry and Pippin, entering the kingdom of Rohan. The Uruk-hai are ambushed by a group of Rohirrim, allowing Merry and Pippin to escape into Fangorn Forest. Meeting Aragorn's group, Rohirrim leader Éomer explains that he has been exiled with his men by Rohan's king, Théoden, who is under the control of Saruman and his servant Gríma Wormtongue. Éomer believes Merry and Pippin were killed during the raid but leaves the group with two horses. In Fangorn, Aragorn's group confronts Gandalf, who, after killing the Balrog at the cost of his own life, was revived to help save Middle-earth.
Gandalf leads the trio to Rohan's capital, Edoras, and frees Théoden from Saruman's control. Aragorn stops Théoden from executing Wormtongue, who flees. Théoden evacuates the citizens to Helm's Deep as Saruman sends an army of Uruk-hai to intercept them. Gandalf seeks Éomer and his followers to urge them to support their king. Aragorn connects with Théoden's niece, Éowyn, who becomes infatuated with him. When Saruman's Warg-riding Orcs attack the refugees, Aragorn falls and is presumed dead, but he has visions of Arwen before being found by his horse, Brego. He rides to Helm's Deep as Saruman's army approaches the fortress.
In Rivendell, Arwen is told by her father, Elrond, that Aragorn will not come back. He reminds her that if she remains in Middle-earth, she will outlive Aragorn by thousands of years, and she reluctantly departs for Valinor. Elrond is contacted by Galadriel of Lothlórien, who convinces him that the Elves should honour their alliance to men, and they dispatch a company of Elves to Helm's Deep.
In Fangorn, Merry and Pippin meet Treebeard, an Ent. Convincing Treebeard that they are allies, they are brought to an Ent council, where the Ents decide not to participate in the coming war. Pippin asks Treebeard to take them toward Isengard, where they witness the deforestation caused by Saruman's war effort. Enraged, Treebeard and the Ents storm Isengard, flooding the deforestation operations and trapping Saruman in his tower.
Aragorn arrives at Helm's Deep, warning Théoden of Saruman's army. Théoden prepares for battle despite being outnumbered. A company of Lothlorien Elves arrives to aid Rohan just before the attack. The Uruk-hai breach the outer wall with explosives and kill the Elves' commander, Haldir, in the charge. The defenders retreat to the keep, where Aragorn convinces Théoden to make a final charge. At dawn, Gandalf and Éomer arrive with the Rohirrim, turning the tide of battle. Gandalf warns Sauron will retaliate.
Gollum leads Frodo and Sam to the Black Gate but recommends they enter Mordor by another route. Frodo and Sam are captured by Rangers led by Faramir, younger brother of the late Boromir. Frodo helps Faramir catch Gollum to save him from being killed by the Rangers. Learning of the One Ring, Faramir takes his captives to Gondor to bring the Ring to his father, Denethor. As they pass through the besieged city of Osgiliath, Sam warns Faramir that Boromir was driven mad by the Ring's power. A Nazgûl nearly captures Frodo, but Sam saves him and reminds a disheartened Frodo that they are fighting for the good still left in Middle-earth. Impressed by Frodo's resolve, Faramir releases them. Feeling betrayed by his capture, Gollum decides he will reclaim the Ring by leading Frodo and Sam to "her" upon arriving at Cirith Ungol.
Cast
Like the other films in the series, The Two Towers has an ensemble cast, including:
Viggo Mortensen as Aragorn: The heir-in-exile to Gondor's throne who has come to Rohan's defence. Elijah Wood as Frodo Baggins: A young hobbit sent on a quest to destroy the One Ring, the burden of which is becoming heavier. Sean Astin as Samwise Gamgee: Better known as Sam, Frodo's loyal hobbit gardener and companion. Andy Serkis as Gollum : A wretched hobbit-like monster originally known as Sméagol, who owned the Ring for 500 years and now guides Frodo on his quest. Ian McKellen as Gandalf the White: An Istari wizard who fell fighting a Balrog and has now returned, more powerful than ever, to finish his task. John Rhys-Davies as Gimli: A dwarf warrior and one of Aragorn's companions. Also voices Treebeard: The leader of the ents, who is roused to anger after seeing that Saruman had decimated a large part of Fangorn Forest. Orlando Bloom as Legolas: An elven archer and one of Aragorn's companions. Christopher Lee as Saruman the White: An Istari wizard waging war upon Rohan and devastating Fangorn Forest, who allied himself with Sauron in the previous film. Bernard Hill as Théoden: The King of Rohan, who is under Saruman's spell until Gandalf heals him so he can lead his people once more. Kevin Conway was offered the role but he declined. Billy Boyd as Peregrin Took: An extremely foolish hobbit who is a distant cousin of Frodo and travels with the Fellowship on their journey to Mordor. Dominic Monaghan as Meriadoc Brandybuck: Better known as Merry, a distant cousin of Frodo's who is mistakenly captured along with Pippin by the Uruk-hai. Brad Dourif as Gríma Wormtongue: An agent of Saruman at Edoras, who renders Théoden incapable of decisions, and desires Éowyn. Miranda Otto as Éowyn: Théoden's niece, who is in love with Aragorn. Uma Thurman was offered the role but turned it down and later regretted it.Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: David Wenham as Faramir: A prince of the Stewards of Gondor and captain of the Ithilien Rangers, who captures Frodo, Sam and Gollum. Karl Urban as Éomer: Théoden's nephew and previous Chief Marshal of the Riddermark who was exiled by Gríma. Liv Tyler as Arwen: An elven princess of Rivendell and Aragorn's true love. Hugo Weaving as Elrond: The Elven-Lord of Rivendell who expresses doubt over his daughter's love for Aragorn. Cate Blanchett as Galadriel: The Elven-Queen of Lothlórien, who discusses Middle-earth's future with Elrond. Sean Bean as Boromir: Faramir's older brother and a fallen member of the Fellowship who appears in flashbacks since his death, more prominently in the film's extended edition. Craig Parker as Haldir: The leader of the Lórien Elves sent by Elrond and Galadriel to defend Helm's Deep. John Leigh as Háma: The loyal doorwarden of the Golden Hall and a majordomo of Théoden. Bruce Hopkins as Gamling: Théoden's chief lieutenant and a skilled member of the Royal Guard of Rohan. John Bach as Madril: Faramir's closest aide, who informs him of battle preparations. Nathaniel Lees as Ugluk: The leader of the band of Uruk-hai who abducted Merry and Pippin.
The following appear only in the Extended Edition John Noble as Denethor: The Steward of Gondor and the father of Boromir and Faramir.
In the Battle of Helm's Deep, Peter Jackson has a cameo appearance as one of the men on top of the gate, throwing a spear at the attacking Uruk-hai. His children and Elijah Wood's sister cameo as young refugees in the caves behind the Hornburg, and Alan Lee and Dan Hennah also cameo as soldiers preparing for the battle. The son of a producer's friend, Hamish Duncan, appears as a reluctant young Rohirrim warrior. Daniel Falconer has a cameo as an Elvish archer at the battle.J.W. Braun, The Lord of the Films (ECW Press, 2009).
Comparison with the source material
Screenwriters did not originally script The Two Towers as its own film; The Lord of the Rings trilogy was initially written as a two-part series to be produced by Miramax, with parts of The Two Towers written as the conclusion to The Fellowship of the Ring.
On the way to Helm's Deep, the refugees from Edoras are attacked by Wargs, similar to a scene in The Fellowship of the Ring where the Fellowship battles a group of Wargs. Here, a new subplot is created where Aragorn falls over a cliff, and is assumed to be dead; Jackson stated that he added it to create tension.