Part 1- NAME A BETTER TRILOGY! The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (2003) Movie Reaction 

MAKE SURE YOU WATCH PART 2: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-BAljthkQLxY.htmlsi=UWRJo1o6JxLBG2qY Thanks for the experience everyone this was one of a kind and we couldn't have loved these movies anymore! Thanks for watching them with us! What's your favorite part of the movie? www.patreon.com/theoctobers

Pippin touching the Orb is the best thing that could have happened for the Fellowship. It made Sauron think he had found the hobbit he was looking for, and that he was in a completely different location than Frodo and the Ring were.

Fun fact: The actor Billy Boyd(Pippin), is also a musician, he is in a band. He wrote and performed the song he sang for Denethor.

Deagol and Smeagol were Stoors, a sort of prehistoric hobbit, who liked rivers. The Brandybucks, one of whom is Merry, are descended from the Stoors and like boats. Other hobbits are generally deathly afraid. Frodo's parents were killed in a boating accident. Sam doesn't want anything to do with boats, hence his extraordinary bravery in jumping in the river after Frodo at the end of FOTR.

Honestly, Pippin being a walking disaster is pretty beneficial for the Fellowship. Had Pippin not made noise in Moria, then the Balrog wouldn’t have woken, which means Gandalf wouldn’t have died and have been resurrected as Gandalf the White. Without Gandalf the White, chances are likely Gandalf couldn’t have freed Theoden from Saruman - which essentially means the fall of Rohan.

I like the comparisons of king thoeden vs denathor, both lost their sons, but one is consumed one overcomes, both tragedy but theodens arc is so satisfying to see how he rises above his own issues to become a hero.

This trilogy set new benchmarks for cinematic excellence. It really is one of the greatest of all time.

That whole sequence of the beacons being lit is still one of the best moments in the whole movie/series. Hope was indeed kindled there and then, not only for them, but for us viewer as well. Anything feels possible after watching that scene, and you feel so inspired. It's pure magic!

So a fun fact that isn’t mentioned often is when making chain mail for the movie the cut 2km worth of pipe and two men sat for 3 years linking millions of chain link’s together. They did that every day and to the point where they wore they’re finger prints off

I like watching reactors that are open and involved like yourselves. No being smart and trying to be witty, just enjoying one exceptional movie ride.

Some clarity about Pippin: Pippin is the youngest member of the Fellowship at 29 and still in his "tweens" among his own people (the irresponsible 20s before they "come of age" at 33) so he is basically still a teenager, Frodo is 50 when they set out, Sam is 46, Merry is like 36, so Pippin is actually pretty mature for his age and his mistakes of judgement are more understandable when you know he is still basically a teenager

Liv Tyler loved the Elvish language, she studied the books, there is a lot of Elvish speech and song in the books. She became fluent in JRR Tolkien's Elvish. She can still speak it today. She plays an awesome part in the movie Armageddon. Her dad Steven Tyler of Aerosmith wrote a love song for her part in the movie. That's another awesome movie.

A tiny cool detail is in the Aragon and Elrond scene a little backstory When Aragorn was a child his mom took him to Rivendell to be raised by Elrond after Aragorns farther was killed. Until he became 20 years old Aragorn was called "Estel" which means "Hope" in elvish. Before Aragorns mom died she said "I gave Hope to the dúnedain i have kept no hope for myself" In this scene in the movie 50:38 Elrond said Elrond: I give hope to men Aragorn: I keep none for myself a cool little tribute to his mom hiden in the movie

"I give Hope to men. I keep none for myself." The epitaph of Gilraen, Aragorns mother. Aragorn's elvish name is Estel, which means Hope. He visits her graver right before leaving Rivenedell in FOTR.

Gandalf absolutely does not hate Pippin. He just hates his actions.

The Riddle of Strider by Bilbo Baggins All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king.

The actor who played Pippin, Billy Boyd, really wanted to sing a song in this movie so he went through the books and found a song in The Fellowship of the Ring that he liked so he took it, changed a few words to darken the tone to better fit this movie, and figured out the whole tune, and then went to Peter Jackson with his proposal. Without even hearing any audition or anything Peter Jackson agreed and included it in the movie. The scene of Pippin singing to Denethor while he was eating was filmed in a single take because everyone knew that it could not be improved upon.

The creatures the Nazgul ride are called Fell Beasts. You're right they aren't dragons. There are dragons in Middle-earth, but few if any are still alive at that time. Also, another fun fact about the deformed orc commander: the face was modeled after Harvey Weinstein because of his meddling in pre-production, which almost sank the movies.

One thing to understand about why Elrond is so resistant to Arwen taking mortality. Elves are tied to the lifetime of the world essentially. They are immortal and join the valar when they leave, but if they're killed, their spirit goes to the halls of mandos and they can be reborn or have an afterlife in Aman. But mortals, their soul goes on, we don't rightly know where. So he isn't just saying goodbye for now, it is forever. Elrond is half elven, descended from all 3 of the original house of elves, and all 3 of the original houses of men. His twin brother chose immortality, and his line forms the line of kinds of men, of which aragorn is part of. He's already lost one person to time, his daughter would be a great loss forever. Only the half elven line can select one or the other. So it is a rare thing. Hopefully that gives some context to him struggling to let go.

I love how the central message of mercy and second chances are spread throughout LotR. It's more notable when they are extended to those beings who really don't deserve it, yet still receive it, such as in the cases of Smeagol and Wormtongue. Because granting mercy to them actually ended up serving the cause of good, even though they themselves were "evil." It's a great lesson to carry into our real lives. Show mercy to others even if they don't deserve it. It may end up saving you (or the whole world) in the end. For as Gandalf said in Fellowship, "Even the very wise cannot see all ends"

I dunno what scared me the most about the first half of this movie - the reveal of Gothmog (Popcorn Face or Tumor Head) or the sight of Denethor eating tomatoes like a pig. LOL When Eomer was talking to Eowyn about the horror of battle - his comments were indirectly aimed at her - he knew her purpose in escorting the men to the camp.

I love that you called out Hugo and his acting in the sword presentation. "They will answer to the KING of GONDOR!" That might be the most perfectly delivered line of dialogue in cinematic history.

When Legolas tells Gimli "I fear war marches on their own lands" he was referring to the fact that Sauron had sent an army to the North to attack Erebor. If you watch the Hobbit trilogy, it will explain why

The Hobbits of this time are a mix of what was originally three groups: Stoors, Fallohides, and Harfoots. Smeagol and Deagol, being from five hundred years ago in an isolated colony, are Stoor through and through. Merry and Frodo have a good bit of Stoor in them too, though, along with some Fallohide, and in Frodo's case, some Harfoot. Pippin is mostly Fallohide, while Sam is basically all Harfoot. So yes, Smeagol and Deagol are Hobbits, pretty much like any others, at least until the Ring gets involved. The little Elvish exchange between Elrond and Aragorn, "I gave Hope to Men; I have kept no hope for myself," was Aragorn's mother's last words to him before she died. The Hope she was referring to was Aragorn himself, whose childhood name was Estel, meaning Hope. She was saying she wasn't going to live to see the end of the war, but she had brought Aragorn into the world, and that was enough. With him, the world had hope of better days, even if she personally did not. As best I can figure out (considering that Elrond's visit to Rohan is not in the book, so there is no further detail about it than what shows up on screen), Elrond and Aragorn are saying the same thing as Gilraen, really, but with Frodo and his Quest, which they set in motion, as the hope. It almost doesn't matter how dangerous the Dimholt Road is, or even whether Aragorn makes it through at all, as long as Frodo succeeds in his mission. "I give hope to Men; I keep no hope for myself."

When Gandolf was seen sleeping with his eyes open, he reminded me of my father. My father used to sleep with his eyes open and talk in his sleep, but then he had a lot of inner demons.

There are a few things in the movie that are different from the books which is just how it is but one thing hurts a bit. Jackson really did Denathor dirty in this movie. In the book he calls all of Gondors armies, he bolsters the defenses and does everything he can to defend the city. Yes he is also a A hole who treats his son like dirt and loses his mind but there is a reason for that. Denathor had been using one of the seeing stones (the stone Pippin was obsessed with). The stone drove him crazy with fear and grief because he was being poisoned by Sauron. Just wish they had done more for the character and the reasons he did what he did.

"And they doesn't taste very nice does they precious.." 😂😂

Tolkien got the idea for the beacons from King Alfred the Great, King of Wessex (southern England) who used a beacon system to warn the countryside when vikings were raiding/invading. This would give time for the people to retreat to one of the burhs (fortified towns) he'd created and for the fyrd (militia) to gather.

It's nearly 1am here in Melbourne, Australia when I suddenly thought to myself that something was missing... I hadn't seen you watch the last LOTR installment... I jumped to your channel and you only just released it!!... Late night for me it is!... enjoy your vids, thank you..

I love these reactions! Doesn’t hurt that they are long and we get to see a lot for the RU-vid cuts. This movie is definitely the most emotional of the 3. I like to think they all build off of each other though. They’re all amazing.

Nice to see your reaction to this stunning film! On a side note: When Eowyn gives Aragorn the chalice during the victory celebration what she says isn't Elvish.... she says "Westu Aragorn hál" which is Anglo Saxon from roughly the 8th - 9th century (actually a simplified variation of it, but effectively this, it's in-universe Rohirric) and means "Be thou well, Aragorn" given as a toast. The subtitles sometimes are written by idiots with a severe lack in education... Best regards Raoul G. Kunz

There are 3 kinds of hobbits. Harfoots, Fallowhides and Stoors. By the time of The Hobbit and LOTR these groups had intermingled to a great degree. Bilbo and three of the four principal Hobbit characters in The Lord of the Rings (Frodo, Pippin, and Merry) had Fallohide blood through their common ancestor, the Old Took. Sam has more Harfoot ancestry. Smeagol and Deagol were Stoors who were river people. Of course that was 500 years before Bilbo found the ring and 560 years before Frodo got the ring. Denethor is the Steward of Gondor. He knows he only rules the kingdom until the King appears. That's why he doesn't want Aragorn to show up. It doesn't help that Denethor's mind has been warped by twisted visions from Sauron that he's been seeing in his own palantir (orb like Saruman had) for years. I can tell you now that, in the books, neither Sam *nor* Frodo ever trusted Gollum because there was no cute little Smeagol like in the movies. Any part of Smeagol had been killed off by the ring over the 500 years that Gollum had the ring. It grossed me out in the books when I read that Aragorn had trailed Gollum for Gandalf because of animals and babies disappearing. There is a very large inference that Gollum stole babies from their beds and ate them. Yuck. Frodo and Sam never split up in the book because they were never fooled into trusting Gollum.

Lord Denethor is not the King of Gondor, he is only the steward. Protector and overseer of Gondor. Remember that Gandalf addressed him as steward, and he could not deny the true King.

The guy wasn't referring to Merry necessarily when he was talking about him, That's why he got so close to her when he said 'war is the province of men Eogwyn' which is why it's so significant when she ends up killing the witch king and she says 'I am no man' right before she does so

I love these movies. And there are always changes they have to make when adapting the stories. The two that bother me the most is that at no point do Frodo and Sam “break up”. The second is that Faramir doesn’t send the ring to Gondor. He just sends them on their way.

Every time I hear Treebeard say "Young master Gandalf" I get amazed by how much Treebeard must be old to call Gandalf young... Maybe the Ents are older as Tom Bombadil... Amazing! How would he speak to Galadriel?

What we need to remember regarding the interactions between Aragorn and Eowyn, is that Aragorn believes Arwen has left for Valinor (the Undying Lands) with the other elves never to return.

In the lore that I have read Smeagol and Deagol were cousins and river folk, somewhat like hobbits but only by remote connection to the Stoors. So they had no problem swimming, for example.They mostly kept themselves well to the East and South of the Shire.

The Swords that Merry,Sam and Pippen were from the Barrow Downs in the North they were given to them by Tom Bombadil not Aragorn. They came from the grave of men of Arnor. It was Merry’s Sword of Westernese that broke the sinew of the Witch King of Angmar making it possible for Aowen to deal the killing blow. In the Final Battle of Gondor it was Pippen that killed the giant Troll with his barrow sword which he named Trolls Bane. The troll fell on Pippen and Gimli found him when he saw his hair foot sticking out. Merry didn’t go to the Gate of Mordor as he was recovering from stabbing the Witch King.

At 2:35, what are Smeagol and Deagol? In the Prologue to FOTR, Tolkien explains that in the past Hobbits had been divided into three different breeds: Harfoots, Stoors, and Fallowhides. The Harfoots were the most numerous and typical type of Hobbit, living in holes in the ground. The Stoors were broader in build and lived near water. The Fallowhides were least numerous and somewhat taller than the others; they were more adventurous and lived in woods. Over the years the three breeds had interbred, so the tendencies at the time of the story weren't as pronounced as in former times. Merry and Pippin were probably of Fallowhidish descent; they were the heirs of the leadership of the Brandybuck and Took families, so young gentry (to the extent that Hobbits had social classes). The Baggins family might have been similar, or it might have been Harfoot. Sam was a Harfoot; Farmer Maggot was a Stoor. Gandalf tells Frodo about Gollum's ancestry, "I guess they were of hobbit-kind; akin to the fathers of the fathers of the Stoors, for they loved the River, and often swam in it, or made little boats of reeds."

OMG just started up, been waiting on this one. And no cap, I'm so glad I'm not the only one who cried at the opening credits when the title song started in

Merry,pippin and Frodo are cousins, they are close but not inseperable, popping is actually the youngest and not even an adult in hobbit years. He levels the heir to the theign of Tookland, slightly to the East of the shire.

Truly the best trilogy of all time. I remember going to the midnight showing when this was first in theatres, I literally couldn't wait then went back like 15 hrs later with my boyfriend to see it again with him. I ❤ this trilogy! So glad I found your channel...gonna have to marathon your other reactions. Thank you Octobers!😊💚

Great reaction to the best trilogy I've ever seen! The Palantir, having been corrupted by Sauron, can exert an influence over the . . . shall we say the more impulsive (instead of unwise or weak willed) who see it. Poor Pippin, with his impulsive nature, is entranced by it. And thus just has to see it, much to his regret. Now, don't be so hard on poor Pippin. Remember that, without Pippin, the Ents never would have attacked Isengard and Saruman never would have been defeated. Pippin was responsible for Treebeard finding out what Saruman had done to Fanghorn Forest. As I probably said in a previous dissertation, Denethor has been driven mad because, though it is not shown nor mentioned in the movie, he too has a corrupted Palantir that he has been trying to use to spy on Mordor so he knows what his enemy is doing. But since his enemy has corrupted and controls the Palantiri, all Denethor sees is what Sauron knows will drive him to madness and cause him to lose hope and to feed his anger at everyone who he feels isn't as dedicated as he is. He deserves pity more than anger, but the movie was going to be very long without including Denethor's story, so they didn't make it even longer by including it. And, really, spending all his time on the front lines against an implacable foe would wear anyone down. Gondor has been constantly fighting against Mordor and the price Gondor has paid is much higher than Mordor as Sauron cares nothing about the troops he sends to kill and die. Gandalf doesn't hate anyone. He, like many of us, just finds Pippin very frustrating sometimes. Which is a deserved opinion since Pip is very frustrating at times. 😀 As far as the power of Gandalf is concerned, he is basically forbidden to use it except for defense, as in Moria against the balrog, as the Wizards were sent to give the free peoples of Middle Earth counsel and not to fight for them. The free peoples need to become self-reliant instead of always depending on a powerful wizard to save them. Thus the Wizards must act as men, fighting with sword or staff, instead of blasting their foes to oblivion. People who rely on someone else for their strength become weaker instead of becoming strong by fighting their own battles. The green glowing City of the Dead is Minas Morgul, the home of the Lord of the Nazgul, the Witch King of Angmar. The Ring can feel that he is near, so it is basically pulling Frodo towards Minas Morgul, which is why he seems to be trying to hold back though he keeps stumbling forward. "They probably don't even know what they're fighting for." Basically true, but they don't even care. Orcs live to fight, either fighting others or fighting among themselves. They'll slaughter anyone if angry enough, including their own. Sauron focuses their anger on his enemies, but they'll still cut each other up. "Stupid orcses." True statement there. 😛 Theoden is a great king. Once the beacons are lit, he gives up his ego and mounts up. The man who the fugly orc general stabs with the spear in Osgiliath was Faramir's second in command. "Boromir was loyal to me! Not some wizard's pupil!" In the book Faramir's youth was spent trying to learn more from Gandalf since, as the younger son, he wasn't going to be the next steward so he apparently didn't matter and he was not the one his father doted on. Faramir made a sideways comment to this in his scene with Pippin where he said that he was more the dreamer while Boromir was the doer. So many great actors in this. When Aragorn drops to his knees outside after escaping the avalanche of skulls, one look at his face and you can feel how he is feeling, the despair and sorrow. Then that "We fight." Just pure awesome. Like so much of this trilogy.

I must make sure you get to read this guy’s awesome comment - Nice to see your reaction to this stunning film! On a side note: When Eowyn gives Aragorn the chalice during the victory celebration what she says isn't Elvish... she says "Westu Aragorn hál" which is Anglo Saxon from roughly the 8th - 9th century (actually a simplified variation of it, but effectively this, it's in-universe Rohirric) and means "Be thou well, Aragorn" given as a toast. The subtitles sometimes are written by idiots with a severe lack in education.. Best regards - Raoul G. Kunz

The creature the Witch King rises is simply called a Fell Beast. Also in theaters, that scream the Witch King did when he pooped out of his lair, was EAR-PIERCING LOUD!! WE all felt Frodo's pain.

Sméagol is a hobbit.. or at least of a close related race.. as for the elf ears.. all hobbits have those ears in the movies

I guess Saruman really "stuck" that landing, eh?!?

That fall of Saruman onto the spike was a homage to Christopher Lee’s roles in cult films as Dracula.

33:29 Absolutely Right Brother ! *That's a Damn Good Tradition !*

I saw that this was only an hour long and that made me sad and shocked. I didn’t read that it was part 1. I was so confused and thought the other ones were longer and this is the longest of the three. I am pleasantly surprised that it is a two parter and thank you for that!

The commentary and the jokes during this reaction were ABSOLUTE gold! Hands down one of my favorite reactions to this film. 👌🏾

Those orcs fighting each other reminds me of soccer hooligans 😂 also, I see how you’re confused when the Witch King of Nazgûls was stabbed, a dark force was released that almost kills Eowyn and Merry. Aragorn heals them with his Kingly powers. Only Pippin, not injured Merry is supposed to be in that FINAL/ final battle. But I’m glad they were together for movie purposes.

3:19 Gollum saying that he forgot the taste of bread, etc, echoes with Frodo saying those same words when they were at the foot of the volcano. That's what happens when the Ring over a person.

One thing you may not realize is that WW1 was a poison gas war, and the gas was green. That's very likely why the City of the Dead glows a sickly green. On a separate note, spirits of a similar kind tend to magnetically attract one another, even if their fates are not that intertwined. So Aragorn and Eowyn orbit each other, though they don't understand why. Eowyn assumes it is love. Aragorn is puzzled at the tug of fate, but understands it is not love. Gandalf and Pippin also have gravitational pull. What Tolkien is describing is a sort of wholesome, good chaos that may seem unlucky, but it is ultimately lucky because of the innocence and purity. Essentially, it's God working through fools, but in mysterious ways. Being wise, Gandalf sees a little further than most, but can still be surprised. And this purity is what attracts Gandalf to the Hobbits.

Smeagol and Deagol were precursors to Hobbits. You could say they are part of the same family tree. Many fans enjoy this movie the most because it pays off all of the previous setups. Pippin and Merry rescued, Frodo and Sam making it to Mordor and destroying the One Ring, Aragorn made King of Gondor and he and Arwen Evenstar wed. 😊 In the book Saruman survived the fall of Isengard. Escaping the tower after Gandalf and company left. He eventually made it to the Shire where he became known as The Boss and Sharky which in orc speech means Old Man. He makes the lives of the Hobbits there miserable until his murder at the hands of Grima Wormtongue. The fellowship Hobbits arrive just in time to set things right with them and their kin. 😊 A Palantir is a seeing stone. The Lords of Gondor used them for communicating over great distances. Most were lost. Saruman apparently located one in Orthanc the tower of Isengard. Sauron apparently also acquired one which is what made it dangerous to touch one. Sauron's will was such that he could overpower and read the minds of lesser beings and bend them to his will. 😮 Osgiliath was the city that was destroyed. It lies near to the border of Mordor and Gondor. Up to this point Minas Tirith had not seen a direct assault. 😮 The Nazgul are riding what the books refer to as Great Fell Beasts. They are closer to Drake's which are smaller cousins of Dragonkind. There are nine Nazgul for the nine kings of men who accepted rings of power, now they serve Sauron as undead minions with the Witch King of Angmar as their leader. 😮

I have never understood why the ghosts balked even for a second to take Aragorn up on his offer. They are already dead so there is nothing to fear going to battle. Win win. But that king seems to love drama (why else would they have sorted their bones after death to decorate with only skulls) so maybe he had planned to go all along, but wanted to have the big reveal moment.

I like the scene with Aragorn and the King of the Dead... Aragorn had already proved his courage by daring to enter the Dunharrow; he had proved his lineage by being able to use the reforged sword of Isildur to block the Dead King's attack; he was made to prove his ability to survive when they tried to drown him, Legolas and Gimli with skulls, which then lead him out of the mountain to see the corsairs burn a small village, at which point his despair at failing his people proved that he was a king who truly cared about his subjects and their lives. And that is when the Dead finally recognize him as worthy of being followed in battle.

In the books, Saruman escapes and heads to the Shire, where as a villain named "Sharkey" he orchestrates the subjugation of Hobbiton and enslaves the hobbits there, so once the Fellowship returns home, they have to fight him and succeed in driving him out. This was alluded to in the first film when Frodo looks into Galadriel's Mirror and sees the Shire burning and Sam being whipped in a line of slaves. Smeagol and Deagol were cousins, and of one of the three breeds of hobbits known as Stoors; a plains and river dwelling folk who were most like Men in appearance, owing to their large hands and feet and taller stature. Smeagol's degeneration came about thanks to the Ring and his dwelling under the mountains to hide from the Sun (something he and Goblins share). The palantiri are called the Seeing Stones, and were made by the Noldorin Elves, likely Feanor himself (the creator of the Silmarils) to communicate with each other when separated. These were then gifted to the Numenoreans, and taken to Middle-Earth when Numenor was destroyed. When aligned properly they could be used to speak with anyone using the other stones, and to survey the lands surrounding them. Only 3 stones of 7 yet remain in Middle-Earth: The stone of Minas Anor, which Denethor uses to safeguard Gondor; The stone of Orthanc, which Saruman used to his detriment when he aligned it with the final stone, that of Sauron's at Barad-dur, and contested with Sauron's will, ultimately losing. The others were either lost in various battles or taken with the Elves back to Aman. There is a Master-stone, that can connect to any of the others, housed on Tol Eressea, an island just off the coast of Aman, in the stronghold of the Teleri Elves, Avallone. The White Tree that Pippin saw when he accidentally aligned the Palantir with Sauron's, is one of the last surviving cuttings of Galathilion, the offspring of Telperion, the Silver Tree of Valinor. Before the First Age, before the Sun and the Moon, there grew the Two Trees in Valinor: Telperion the Silver and Laurelin the Golden, who shone with a beauteous light that at times would commingle. Morgoth was jealous that he could not control this light, and so with the dark spirit Ungoliant (who had taken on the form of a giant spider), he conspired to strike down the trees. Ungoliant desired their light, but was at the same time repelled by it, until Morgoth struck the trees, spilling forth their sap, of which she drank greedily until both trees lay dead. Yavanna managed to coax a single fruit from each, which were housed in vessels that traveled across the sky: the Sun and the Moon. From a seed of Telperion's fruit she grew Galathilion in Tirion-upon-Tuna in Valinor, and from this tree cuttings were made and gifted to the Teleri on Tol Eressea, and to the Edain of Numenor. This is the thousands-year-old lineage of the White Tree of Gondor, and why it is such a special tree, as it is one of the last of the line of Telperion. All of the Half-Elven lineage, such as Arwen, are given the choice of which branch they wish to follow; that of the Elves and immortality, or that of Men and mortality. Elrond and his brother Elros were also given this choice owing to that heritage on both sides of their family, stemming ultimately from Tuor (a Man) and Idril Celebrindal (an Elf) who were their paternal grandparents, and Beren (a Man) and Luthien (an Elf) as their maternal great-grandparents. Elrond chose the way of the Elves and built Imladris, called Rivendell by Men, while Elros chose that of Men and became the first of the line of Numenor, and ultimately a very distant ancestor of Aragorn's. Denethor is bitter towards Faramir because he blames him for his wife's death, as she passed only a few years after giving birth to Faramir. Finduilas, a princess of Dol Amroth was her name, and most beautiful she was. Denethor loved her and sought to protect her, but became a bit overzealous in this as she ended up feeling like a bird in a gilded cage, and longed for her seaside home. Faramir's birth weakened her, and that combined with her growing depression led to her passing, which Denethor laid squarely on his young son. John Noble's portrayal, however, was superb, such a great actor :) In the books, Denethor is not as incompetent a leader as he is portrayed in the films, but he does eventually give in to the despair and the seemingly impending doom of the invasion of his realm. He was more of a paranoid about defending his kingdom, wearing chain armor even while he slept, and calling in every last soldier to defend the city at the expense of everything else. His usage of his own palantir was his downfall though, as he also accidentally aligned his with Sauron's and was forced to contend with the will of the Dark Lord who sought to dominate his mind. He succeeded in breaking Sauron's attempts, but the future events shown him weighed very heavily upon his mind and pushed him to this state.

Fun fact: While filming this scene, Peter Jackson wanted Saruman to scream when stabbed in the back. Sir Cristopher Lee had to lecture Peter Jackson about it kinda: "Do you know what a sound a man does when he's stabbed in the back? 'Cause I do!" and he explained that a man does not scream, instead he inhales air as if in a surprise. And that was the scene in the movie.

Love how you guys pickup on all the small details. Most first time watchers miss a lot of details in most movies and miss the big key points that make the movie.

Omggggg 2 parts of 1 hour!!!!! This is beyond greatness guys!!! Im so hyped!!! Lets gooooo!🇵🇷

01:42 All Hobbits have pointed ears. Haven't you noticed? 02:50 YES they are HOBBITS! 19:51 They have been waiting for the right time to reforge this sword, which is powerful and ancient. It was made in the First Age, by one of the greatest Dwarven smiths to ever live, as a gift for an Elven King, who in turn gave it to Aragorn's ancestor. 19:56 There is this long backstory. Elrond is the child of the first two marriages of Men and Elves. He and his family have the choice of belonging to either the Elves or to Men. Once Arwen made the full choice to be mortal, there's no going back. This was a VERY simplified version. 35:08 There are Nine. You've known that since the first movie.

Gollum was a member of the hobbit race known better as a "stoor." They are more stout in size and frame, while able to swim, wear shoes and live in houses instead of hobbit holes.

great way to start the day. love how passionate you guys got about this story. it's actually legendary. love you both

one thing i love about lord of the rings is the more you know the history of the world the better the you enjoy the story. for example the poem elrond and aragorn say at 50:38 was the last words aragorn heard from his mother and the word for 'hope', Estel, (used twice in the poem) was elrond's nickname for Aragorn.

Those stones sticking out the ground are sculptures of the druedain, a different looking race of men who are masters of the forests. One of them, Ghan-buri-ghan actually helps them through a shortcut while avoiding an orc ambush on their way to helping the siege at Gondor

Faramir doesn't have a chip on his shoulder, like he has to prove himself to everyone, you can see everyone respects him, he just wants the approval of his father.

I hope you get the chance to watch the documentaries of the making of and behind the scenes of these movies. It’ll blow your minds many times!

This trilogy will still be watched 100 years from now...

Anybody else cheered when she told him that Sauron is not Saruman? 😅

Pippin is my favorite. Everything he did wrong was actually an advantage for them.

My uncle got burnt really bad when he was a kid and it fucked his eyelids up and when he slept his eyes were always open.. I remember he stayed at our house once when I was a kid, he was sleeping on our couch, I seen him laying there with his eyes open, I went screaming to my mom saying he's dead!! I was only like 6yrs old or something. Scared the crap outta me, I'll never forget that. Gandalf always brings that memory back.. haha

If I remember correctly this movie won 11 Oscars, that's pretty insane, fully deserved though.

An interesting thing, did you know that Aragorn and Arwen are actually distant cousins? Aragorn is a descendent of Elrond's brother, Elros.

20:55 If Gandalf had really been smart, he would have told Pippin to stay outside and watch the horse. (Then told the horse he was really watching the hobbit!)

👍🙂❤ The Memphis Zoo has an ACTUAL New Zealand Fellbeast. They are HUGE. Their wings are made to look larger in the movies with CGI, but still impressive to see in person. they are on loan for 2 more years and then have to be returned to New Zealand. Some kind of "cultural exchange". 👍🙂❤

I don't think yall realize how hilarious you both are!!!

28:53 Right! That is NOT a dragon that the Witch King rides (and the other 8 Nazgul too). It is called a Fell Beast and not a lot is known about them. 31:09 Yes the attack is at Osgiliath, once capital and jewel of Gondor. It straddles the Great River Anduin and is Closer to Minas Tirith than to Minas Morgul. 33:07 Only 350 miles lay between Minas Tirith and Edoras, so less than 50 miles between beacons (there are only 7 in the book but more in the movie). 35:40 sorry 🤣 POPCORN FACE! I LOVE IT!

The scene where the Witch King and Gothmog (popcorn head orc) have a conversation is always funny to me since they are played by the same actor 😃

Fun fact..... The song Pippin sang was done in one take.

28:54 , while that thing may resemble a dragon, it couldn't be any more different. it's called a fell beast and supposedly no one knows their origins but it may be possible Sauron bred them. but I wonder if we'll ever see Sauron's master in future movies or shows because Morgoth, Arda's first Dark Lord, isn't quite dead and I imagine it would be a hell of a war considering Morgoth's the one that invented the world's orcs, dragons and probably more.

Loved your reactions to these movies!! ❤ ty 🫡 two of my favourite, smaller details about rotk: Theoden showing genuine empathy and mercy for Grima, speaks to his growth as a character and king, and of course Gandalf wrapping his arm around Pippin when Mina’s Morgul is poppin’ off 🥺

John Noble who plays Denethor never gets enough credit I feel like: he played the character so well that the film needed. And while I wish he had been more like the books and shown that he could be kind and noble before his curruption via Palantir, it was still such a well done and well acted character

"Fell beasts, also called hell-hawks and Nazgûl-birds" "Fellbeasts are monstrous, wyvern-like creatures that were bred by Sauron to be steeds for his lieutenants, the Nazgul. They were not truly dragons, but rather creatures from an older time long past in Middle-Earth. Sauron bred them as a challenge to the Great Eagles, their good-aligned counterparts."

Yeah the vision of Boromir was part of the uncut version you could tell easily. Also by this point Boromir and Faramir's father had already gone mad, he wasn't always like this the darkness drove him mad also Denethor (Boromir and Faramir's dad) wasn't King of Gondor he was it's Steward, a title that meant chief counselor, he took an oath to protect the throne until the king's return that's why Gandalf tell him that he does not have the authority to deny the return of the king. Also I think the other races wouldn't allow it specially the elves knowing there was always a true heir in this case Aragorn was alive and kicking

A quick note on casting...It's has always given me a mild chuckle to know the actor who played the Witch King is the same actor who played Gothmog, the Orc who declared, "the age of Men is over." While he was, of course, dead wrong, it does mean what when the Witch King ordered Gothmog to move in all the forces, he was essentially talking to himself. :D The same thing also makes it sad there was no direct dialogue between Gimli and Treebeard. And while this is more relevant for the second part of the movie, there mare be a few people out there unaware that Sam and Rosie's kids, as seen in the very last scene, are the actor's actual kids. Eleanor is played by Sean Astin's daughter, and young Frodo was played by Sarah "Rosie" MacLeod's daughter Maisy. Lastly, the crew on the Corsair ship Aragorn, Legolas and Gilmi threaten, are crewed by the some of the film crew; costume designers, assistant producers, I think some VX people. The pirate that get shot by Legolas is actually Peter Jackson, director of the trilogy. And sorry for the correction, but that was not the same Orc that commented on how Merry and Pippin's legs were "fresh", as the orc band was wiped out by Eomer and his company.

When Eowyn says "Westu Aragorn ha" she is speaking the native tongue of Rohan, not Elvish.

A note - there are two countries here. Denethor is the Steward of Gondor, with the white city of Minas Tirith their capitol [not the horse people]. Theoden is the King of the Country of Rohan next door. Aragorn is the next in line to be King of Gondor, not Rohan.

Back off my boys (Merry and Pippin). 😉 But seriously, they were key in securing success in the war of the ring. Merry: Helped kill the Witch-king (head of the Nazgul). Pippin: Got the Ents to take out Isengard, started the beacon relay to bring Rohan to Gondor, helped learn where Sauron was attacking and gave him a "red herring" on where Frodo was with the ring, and saved both Gandalf and Faramir in Minas Tirith.

The LOTR trilogy will always be number one. Everybody else can fight for second place.

Octobers. You guys do an excellent job of editing these. You know what to leave out. And what to include. So many of your competitors lack this talent.

"We forgote the taste of bread, the softness of wind." Remember that at the end of ROTK when Frodo nears Mount Doom.

32:52 "And Rohan will answer!" BIIIIG "Let's fuckin go!" moment

The winged mounts of the Nine are closer akin to a wyvern. A dragon-like beast with just two legs and with wings and arms melded together. Brego the horse was played by Uraeus, and Mortensen bought him after the filming wrapped. He passed in 2015. From The One wiki Mortensen, "Aged 28, but a timeless presence in the minds of those who had the honour of knowing this proud, handsome, and supremely intelligent being, mighty Uraeus has finally come to rest on the physical plane. Thank you, Jane and Ray, for helping him do so with dignity. Dearest friend and teacher, I hold you and keep you."

The city that Faramir took Frodo and Sam to is called Osgilliath - it USED to be the capital of Gondor but was overrun decades ago and mostly had fallen into ruin by the time Denathor ruled, in the Book this NEVER happened, Faramir sent Frodo and Sam and Gollum on thier way after restocking thier supplies, in the Movie he says "The Ring will go to Gondor" but in the book he says "Not if it were lying on the roadside and I alone could save Gondor using the Weapon of the Enemy would I pick it up" , Jackson felt he needed to hype up the corruption of the Ring. Also in this "ext" scene Denathor says "Elrond of Rivendell has called a meeting- in the book the meeting was , first and foremost, a SECRET, and the finding of the Ring most DEF was a secret, and wouldnt have been mentioned to anyone , for any reason

Everyone played the exact part they needed to for the quest to succeed. Remember what Galadriel said the quest stands on the edge of a knife spray but a little and it would fail.

Denethor wasn't the King of Gondor. He was one of a long line of Stewards, appointed to run Gondor until the Return of the royal line of High Men. Aragorn is so long lived because he's of that line, descended from the High Men of Numenor. Most of the Rangers are also men of Numenor, scattered after the last great war with Sauron, when Aragorn's ancestor, Isildurl, used his father's (Elendil's) broken sword to cut the ring from Sauron's hand but then succumbed to the power of the Ring and it betrayed him, sinking to the river bed for two thousand years, befor being found by Deagol/Smeagol. It gave Smeagol/Gollum long life but twisted him. He kept the ring for 500 years before he lost it and it was found by Bilbo Baggins! Sauron, despite his overwhelming power, fears Aragorn, as the heir of Elendil and wielder of Narsil (reforged as Anduril - The Flame of the West). Denethor, as Steward, doesn't sit on the throne. He sits on a chair at the feet of the throne. The Stewards are meant to relinquish power to the King upon his return but the wait has been so long, that some, including Denethor, had come to see Gondor as rightfully theirs to rule. Btw, the King of Gondor is basically the High King, ruling most of Middle Earth, except for the Elven and Dwarven kingdoms. Places like Rohan, although largely autonomous, were vassal states. There used to be a great Northern Kingdom, with the Shire sitting along it's southern border. Arnor, twin kingdom to Gondor and also ruled by the King. It was destroyed in an even earlier war, with Morgoth, Saurons master and mentor, although Sauron kept his allegiance secret. The first rangers came from the ranks of this fallen kingdom of High Men. In the millennia since, they have striven to keep places like the Shire, Bree etc safe, unbeknownst to the inhabitants, while working closely with the Elves. That was longer than I intended but hopefully it fills in some of the background. :)

You forget, Pip is the one who got Tree Beard to go to Isengard. So he came in handy.

Just a little bit of love for this series. Thanks for sharing your journey with us.