[BradyLS]

Man, I gotta get me that extended DVD! :-D

I'll finally get to see what the latest fuss is about in a little over three hours!

[BradyLS]

Alright, "I've seen the elephant," as they used to say.

Strong: Opening scene, Gollum, Eowyn (Miranda Otto, hubba-hubba!), and Gandalf's reinvigoration of Theoden... Basically, whenever the film sticks to the book.

Weak: Jackson's surprising changes, whole-cloth inventions, and decision to end his second film in the same place where Bakshi ended his first.

A stunning fantasy movie well worth the price of admission-- but Tolkien's The Two Towers it ain't.