The Return of the King (1980 TV Movie)
4/10
One of the Worst Adaptations Laid Upon One's Eyes...
27 August 2008
Warning: Spoilers
The Hobbit gave a brief glimpse at what could be expected for this version of The Return of the King. What it really is, is one of the worst adaptations laid upon one's eyes. Absolutely dreadful.

The thing's that lost me were the asides made by some of the characters, especially the vision Sam has with and without the Ring -- he has a vision of playing with the Orcs in a merrier time than the current predicaments at hand... dear me, seriously?! Also, the time-line of this film is ALL OVER THE PLACE. Frodo's capturing is so rushed, that they had to reduce it to a few lines of dialogue voiced by Sam. The dialogue itself is cringe-worthy. For an example of complete over the top lines would be "Eowyn am I" or "You lost the very finger upon which it rode?!" As much as it is an interesting idea to use the events of the War of the Ring in flashback, its execution literally is execution. It's terrible the way they utilized the story into such a lackluster and unfaithful version of Tolkien's tale.

The acting is wretched. Credit which can go to the screenplay.

The music... makes one want to put a gun to their ear. It's completely sleep-inducing.

Overall, this is one terrible adaptation. Rivaling the equivalent of what the Sci-Fi Channel would've done had they adapted The Return of the King into an animated feature, Rankin Bass's version is one many people wish they could get out of their heads. This is one HUGE disappointment.
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