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Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, already this year's most nominated Oscar film, has become the second movie ever to break the $1 billion box-office mark worldwide, and did so in record time, distributor New Line Cinema reported. The conclusion to director Peter Jackson's fantasy trilogy, based on the books of J.R.R. Tolkien, now ranks as the second-highest-grossing film of all time after the 1997 sea-going romance Titanic, which cruised to $1.8 billion in global receipts. But Return of the King crossed the 10-figure threshold in less time, getting there in fewer than 10 weeks from its...

The Return Of The King director Peter Jackson has won the Directors Guild Of America (DGA) award - regarded by many as a pointer to success at the Oscars. The New Zealand-born director said he "had the most amazing time" making the final part of his Tolkien trilogy. The film has raked in $925m (£504m) at the box office worldwide since its release late last year. In the 56-year history of the DGA awards, the winner has gone on to win the Oscar on all but six occasions. Jackson became the first director to be nominated three years in a...

Perhaps the most surprising thing about Hollywood is not how debauched, depraved and decadent its stories are — considering how untouched this area of American culture is from Christian influence, we could hardly expect different. No, what is most surprising is how many films still manage to capture brief flickering lights of truth in an industry that feeds almost solely upon darkness — a darkness that disguises itself as “tolerance” (when it is in fact a refusal to acknowledge any moral law) and “self-empowerment” (that is in reality little more than self worship). True, our silver screen icons celebrate fornication,...

Welcome to The Hobbit Hole! And Whither Then? I Cannot Say... First thread: New Zealander builds Hobbit holeSecond thread: The New Hobbit HoleThird thread: The Hobbit Hole III - Journey to the Cross-roads! (Congratulations, we filled it up!)Fourth Thread: The Hobbit Hole IV - The Road Goes Ever On...Fifth Thread: The Hobbit Hole V - Where Many Paths and Errands Meet... The Road goes ever on and on Down from the door where it began. Now far ahead the Road has gone, And I must follow, if I can, Pursuing it with eager feet, Until it joins some larger way...

Italian fashion label Etro unveiled its own little and large show in Milan yesterday as two hirsute models hit the catwalk to show off its latest collection. Sporting checked suits, the models looked more like they had stepped off the set of a Lord of the Rings film than the glamour fashion houses of Milan. The Etro label was created in the 1960s and is characterized by a Paisley motif, which is its hallmark.

Also in CULTURALHigher-quality fare?Translation problemsGaining ground CULTURAL The free folks vs. the Orcs The Lord of the Rings trilogy parallels Western civilization's current fight against radical Islamic terrorists By Gene Edward Veith EACH EPISODE OF THE LORD OF THE RINGS, AS IT came out year by year, resonated in an eerie way with current events. The Fellowship of the Ring showed terrifying Dark Riders breaking into the peaceful, complacent world of the Shire only a few months after Sept. 11, 2001, when ordinary hobbit-like Americans had to face up to the reality of terrorism. The next year, The Two Towers...

Politically Incorrect Movie Reviews Lord Of The Rings Return Of The King By RadioFree Rocky D Cast: Elijah Wood (Frodo) – weepy Hobbit. Sean Astin (Samwise) – weepier obbiHoHobbit. Andy Serkis (voice of Gollum) – wacky Hobbit. Ian McKellan (Gandalf) – big white Ian and his big white stick. Orlando Bloom (Legolas) – um … was he in this one? John Rhys-Davies (Gimli) – dwarf with a ‘tude. Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn) – King want smoochy-lips hottie. Liv Tyler (Arwen) – smoochy-lips hottie want King. Hugo Weaving (Elrond) – hey look … it’s the Matrix guy again. Want to make a...

It's not often that a linguist becomes a celebrity. But for a roomful of die-hard "Lord of the Rings" fans, language expert David Salo merited as much awe as movie stars Liv Tyler or Orlando Bloom. The man whom filmmaker Peter Jackson hired to translate Middle-earth languages spoke about his experiences working on the movies at Lisle Library on Monday. Sporting an Elvish brooch on his vest, Salo spent a little more than an hour showing his listeners how he translated parts of the screenplay, explaining how he filled in the gaps for some of the languages and entertaining them...

The following column, which first appeared in February, 2002, is modified and republished here because of the recent release of the third movie — "The Return of the King" — in Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy.In monumental scope, the big screen is introducing many to J. R. R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings." The movie versions of "The Fellowship of the Ring" (vol. I) and "The Two Towers" (vol. II) were overwhelming, and generous representations of the book. As movies go, they chalked up some of the biggest global box-office sales ever. Tolkien groupies picked nits about the "Fellowship"...

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hobbits held sway at movie theatres around the world over the Christmas holiday weekend as the final instalment in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy powered towards $500 million after less than two weeks. According to studio estimates issued on Sunday, "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" has grossed $492.1 million (278 million pounds) from North America and 38 countries elsewhere. The epic fantasy is outpacing both its predecessors and should reach $1 billion, said Rolf Mittweg, president of worldwide marketing and distribution at New Line Cinema which is a unit of...

The lesson on evil in real life in the Lord of the Rings trilogyThree minute audio.

There is one very real sense in which the Dark Ages were the brightest of times, and it is this: that they were times of defined and definite duties and freedoms. The king might rule badly, but everyone agreed as to what good rule was. Not only every earl and baron but every carl and churl knew what an ideal king would say and do. The peasant might behave badly; but the peasant did not expect praise for it, even his own praise. These assertions can be quibbled over endlessly, of course; there are always exceptional persons and exceptional circumstances....

Albright: 'Rings' Sequel Timed to Benefit Bush (2003-12-21) -- Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright suggested today that the Bush administration influenced the timing of the release of the blockbuster movie 'The Return of the King' to boost the economy before the 2004 elections. "In the first five days that movie has raked in $125 million," said Ms. Albright. "And that doesn't include popcorn, beverages and Sno-Caps. This is a major shot in the arm for the economy, and I find the timing suspicious. All three of these movies have been released during the Bush administration, and this one may...

I went to see "Return of the King" today for the second time and instead of really watching, I wrote down quotes (in the dark!) and thought I could share a few of them here and ask if anybody knows who said them and to whom they were said.

Beyond the Movie—The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Premieres Friday, December 19, at 8 p.m. ET/9 p.m. PT We may not have elves, orcs or hobbits, but find out how the imaginary land of Middle-earth is surprisingly much like our world. Join John Rhys-Davies ("Gimli" in the Lord of the Rings trilogy) for a fantastic journey inside the mind of J.R.R. Tolkien, and see how heroes and villains inspired a literary genius. 8 p.m. Friday : December 19, 2003 Also airs: Saturday, Dec 20, 12 a.m. Saturday, Jan 31, 3 p.m.

The Women of Middle EarthIn the midst of piles of Lord of the Rings merchandise on every shelf, Tolkien’s wisdom is applied to just about everything — Tolkien and industrialization, Tolkien and communism, Tolkien and religion, etc. What’s surprising, especially in today’s hypersensitive post-Gloria Steinem world, is the dearth of commentary on Tolkien and women. The Bittersweet Complexities of True Womanhood Even as I researched this article, the only writings on Tolkien and feminism I found were on websites for freebee high school essays. Why is there seemingly so little written about Tolkien and women? Tolkien critics have accused the...

Good and Evil in Middle-earth The characters are mythic, but the epic sweeps across a Christian moral landscape. by Ralph C. Wood J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings is a profoundly Christian book. Like the anonymous seventh-century author of Beowulf whose work he had mastered, Tolkien infuses his pre-Christian epic fantasy with Christian convictions and concerns. He also confronts evils altogether as great as the horrors of our own time. Rather than fleeing oppressive evil, Tolkien enables his readers to escape into the freeing reality of Good. The inhabitants of Middle-earth do not know God as triune,...

Return of the King boffo at BO: $100m take in 24 Return of the King, the third installment in Michael Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy, has racked up a stunning $US57.6 million (NZD $98 million) opening day box office take. In the US alone, the film earned $US34.1 million with the balance coming from 19 international markets, including New Zealand. The film broke opening day records in many market territories -- including Great Britain, Germany and Scandanavia, according to Hollywood Reporter>. Global opening day records set by the film include biggest Wednesday and biggest December day. The film is...

<p>Elijiah Wood, currently starring as Frodo in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, was named King of Bacchus for the 2004 parade.</p> <p>Wood, 22, is the youngest Bacchus ever. A special "Rings"-themed float will be created for him.</p> <p>Bacchus, one of the city's super krewes with about 1,100 members on 27 floats, rolls on Sunday, Feburary 22 at 5:15 p.m. The theme of this year's parade is "Bacchus' Magical Mystery Tour."</p>