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Treebeard's folk seem lazy and naïve, a far cry from Tolkien's magisterial Ents. New villains fail to frighten as the Cave Troll, Balrog, and Black Riders did in Fellowship. (Still, concerned parents should be wary: Towers is more violent and monster-filled than Fellowship.) And purists will grumblingly inquire why Jackson stopped short of such climactic scenes as Gandalf's visit to Isengard and Frodo in Shelob's Lair.

Enough quibbling. These flaws fail to blunt the impact of the story's resonant moral insights. Tolkien made every character's heart a battlefield between desire and selflessness, and Jackson underlines and boldfaces this theme. Call it Soul Wars, Episode Two. Villains give in to greed; heroes persevere through Christlike suffering. Gandalf returns from death's edge, a risen savior. His healing of the poisoned King Theoden, which Jackson gleefully exaggerates, stands as one of the great movie exorcisms. Arwen surrenders her immortality in the name of love. Aragorn wrestles personal demons, preparing to be a messianic king. Samwise, patient and forgiving, helps Frodo carry his cross.

The fiercest struggle takes place in the tortured soul of Gollum. Smeagol — Gollum's original, hobbit-like self — struggles feebly to overcome his ravenous, lustful alter ego like a timid child trying to slay a dragon. It is the filmmakers' most commendable triumph that he gains our sympathies. We come to hope that, by Frodo's stripes, this poor creature can be healed.

In a season when critical favorites (Adaptation, 8 Mile, Gangs of New York) tell fractured tales of heroes with broken moral compasses, it is encouraging to watch Tolkien's triumphs, tragedies, and consolations coalesce in the most compelling adventure film of 2002. If Jackson shows the same focus in The Return of the King (to be released in 2003), it could be the most meaningful of them all.

Jeffrey Overstreet's Film Forum column appears every Thursday on our website. His Looking Closer website features film and music reviews.

Copyright © 2002 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

See also our discussion between the authors of Tolkien's Ordinary Virtues and J. R. R. Tolkien's Sanctifying Myth.

Earlier articles on the Lord of the Rings movies include:

Books & Culture Corner: Saint Frodo and the Potter Demon | The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter series spring from the same source (Feb. 18, 2002)

Film Forum: The Fellowship of the Raves | Critics grope for superlatives for The Fellowship of the Ring. (Dec. 21, 2001)

Film Forum: Gandalf and the Gamblers | As everyone talks about The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, critics also get around to reviewing Ocean's Eleven, In the Bedroom, and The Business of Strangers. (Dec. 13, 2001)

Film Forum: First Looks at a Feature Fantasy | Early reviews for Fellowship of the Ring are in. (Dec. 6, 2001)

Lord of the Megaplex | The onscreen Fellowship of the Ring launches a new wave of Tolkienmania (Nov. 11, 2001)

Earlier articles on Tolkien include:

Christian History Corner: 9/11, History, and the True Story | Wartime authors J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis help put 9/11 in perspective (Sept. 13, 2002)

Christian History Corner: Intro to the Inklings | C. S. Lewis's intellect was stimulated at one of the most fascinating extracurricular clubs ever (May 18, 2001)

Our sister publication Books & Culture asked in its January/February 2002 issue if Tolkien should be acknowledged as the foremost author of the twentieth century.

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December (Web-only) 2002, Vol. 46