The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King was the link movie connecting Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Ebenezer.
Linked through Elijah Wood and Ian McKellen.
Both Elijah Wood and Ian McKellen appeared in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.
About The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
"The journey ends."
As armies mass for a final battle that will decide the fate of the world--and powerful, ancient forces of Light and Dark compete to determine the outcome--one member of the Fellowship of the Ring is revealed as the noble heir to the throne of the Kings of Men. Yet, the sole hope for triumph over evil lies with a brave hobbit, Frodo, who, accompanied by his loyal friend Sam and the hideous, wretched Gollum, ventures deep into the very dark heart of Mordor on his seemingly impossible quest to destroy the Ring of Power.
Directed by Peter Jackson
Written by Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens
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Behind the camera
Box office
Awards
At the 76th Academy Awards the film won all 11 awards for which it was nominated, including Best Picture, becoming the first fantasy film to do so and tying Ben‑Hur and Titanic for the most Academy Award wins; it also made the series the second whose entries all won Best Visual Effects.
Soundtrack
Score by Howard Shore
The film's musical score was singled out for praise by critics and audiences as one of the elements lauded in contemporary reception.
Movie trivia
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1
The Return of the King was financed and distributed by New Line Cinema but was filmed and edited entirely in Peter Jackson's native New Zealand, with production carried out concurrently with the other two parts of the trilogy.
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2
The film premiered on 1 December 2003 at the Embassy Theatre in Wellington and was released 17 December 2003 in the United States and 18 December 2003 in New Zealand.
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3
Jackson realigned the films' timelines to follow the book's Appendices, incorporating scenes from the middle of The Two Towers—such as the Shelob attack and the palantír subplot—into Return of the King.
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Several sequences were invented or altered for the film: Pippin's secret lighting of the beacons was created for the movie, and Jackson altered Denethor's pyre scene, adding Denethor's jump from the Citadel.
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The Extended Edition restores additional material and cast: Christopher Lee appears as Saruman (with Saruman's murder by Gríma shown only in the Extended Edition), and the Extended Edition also includes Brad Dourif and Bruce Spence.
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The production features numerous cameos and small appearances — Peter Jackson (plus other crew), Jackson's children, Sean Astin's daughter as Sam and Rosie's older daughter, Royd Tolkien as a Ranger, Christian Rivers as a Gondorian soldier, and Howard Shore as a celebrating soldier in the Extended Edition.
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