ackson does scale back greatly on the aftermath of the final good-against-evil battle, yet he preserves the main events to keep die-hard Tolkien fans happy.
So viewers are treated in some detail to such comparatively passive sequences as the survivors' return home; the ascension of human warrior Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen (news)) to the throne and his wedding to Elf hottie Arwen (Liv Tyler (news)); the mystical fate of runty Hobbits Frodo (Elijah Wood (news)) and Bilbo (Ian Holm (news)), woolly wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen (news)) and Elf top dogs Galadriel (Cate Blanchett (news)) and Elrond (Hugo Weaving (news)); and the domestic bliss of Frodo's Man Friday, Sam (Sean Astin (news)).
That baggage makes "Return of the King" the longest of the trilogy by far, clocking in at 3 hours, 20 minutes.
This is the first "bad" review I have seen!
OK So this guy has issues..... "runty"? "wooly?" "Man-Friday?"
Works fer me...MUD