EFL Movie Study Guide for:
The Return of the King
Full title:
Lord of the Rings--The Return of the King
Story: Movie adaptation of JR Tolkien’s
timeless novel, winning 11 Oscars, including Best Picture. Frodo, Aragorn,
Gandalf and their friends are engaged in a classic struggle between good and
evil, and more importantly, the struggle we each face in doing what is right
for our friends, our countrymen, and ourselves. Lots of thrilling action,
great New Zealand scenery, CGI evil creatures, enchanting music, and
unforgettable characters. (Lord of the Rings III; 2003, New
Line Cinema; Peter Jackson, Director; drama, adventure, romance; 3:15 hr)
Warning:
Lots of ugly creatures appear in this film, lots of people (and creatures)
die in extended battles, severed heads are shot back at their countrymen, a
finger is bitten off, flying dragons pick up horses and men and throw them
down to their deaths, and one of the dragons has its head cut off; you see
dead people (ghosts) who are not dead, and you’ll see a battle with a huge,
evil spider. Therefore, this movie is not for people with a weak stomach or
who don't like war movies!
More detailed introduction:
The story centers on a “ring of
power,” which had been created by an evil creature (Sauron) to give himself
power over all Middle Earth. The evil ring makes the wearer invisible,
heightens his senses, and also stops the aging process for its owner; in
Sauron’s hands it also had destructive power.
Centuries before, in a great
battle, a human king (Isildur) cut the ring off Sauron’s hand. He should
have thrown the evil ring into a volcano (Mount Doom), but he “was weak” and
decided to keep the ring. His descendents, and all the creatures of Middle
Earth, have suffered ever since. Then the ring was lost, and many years
later it was accidentally found by a Hobbit, and another Hobbit (Smeagol)
murdered the finder and stole the “precious” ring (you see this as a
flashback at the beginning of movie #3). Years later, Smeagol loses the
ring, and another Hobbit finds it (Bilbo Baggins). This is the subject of an
earlier book by JR Tolkien (The Hobbit).
A good wizard (Gandalf) figures
out that this is the long-missing evil ring. He and other “wise” creatures
(men, elves, a dwarf) won’t even touch it, fearing that they cannot resist
its power. But the race of Hobbits are simple folk who are very humble.
Bilbo doesn’t seem to be affected by the ring’s evil power, and when he is
old he gives the ring to his cousin (Frodo Baggins). At this point, the evil
power of the ring “wakes up,” and a council of wise leaders decides to let
Frodo try to destroy the ring—with the help of eight brave companions (the
Fellowship of the Ring; movie #1).
Of course, the evil Sauron does
not want his ring destroyed—he wants it back so he can rule Middle Earth.
He, too, has helpers—an army of evil creatures, Nazgul, a bad wizard, evil
men, pirates, etc. Frodo doesn’t have much hope of succeeding in his task,
but the “good” folks of Middle Earth really don’t have much choice. They
must let him try. So, the story is about Frodo trying to get to the volcano
to destroy the ring, while Sauron and his evil army try to destroy Middle
Earth (and if possible, capture the ring too).
Isildur’s heir (Aragorn) is the
rightful king of one of the countries in Middle Earth, but because his
ancestor chose not to destroy the ring, the family has been hiding in shame
(and Aragorn is afraid that he would be just as self-centered as his
ancestor). Meanwhile, the people wait for the “return of the king”—who they
hope will free them from Sauron’s evil power and bring peace to Middle
Earth.
Aragorn is in love with an elf
princess (Arwen), and she loves him so much that she is willing to give up
her elfish immortality to become his wife. (This does not make her father,
the elf lord, very happy!) Most of the love story is in the first two
movies.
Mixed into this story are smaller
stories about friendship, sacrifice, love, power, fear, hope, leadership,
shame, good vs. evil, the deep influence “evil” has to make “good” creatures
into “bad” creatures, and the equally great power that self-less acts of
“goodness” have to change the lives of others.
Hints as you watch
(especially for English-learners):
There are a lot of words that
don't really mean anything (or are no longer used), but you can tell by the
actors' tone of voice that they are there for their derogatory value (i.e.,
to show criticism or displeasure).
There are some Old English
words (that aren’t used much anymore): e.g., forth=forward, ere=before,
nought but=in nothing except, aye=yes, my old Gaffer=an old man or boss, or
possible father?
From time to time they quote
prophecies about what would happen one day.
Gollum uses non-standard
English (like someone who has forgotten his mother tongue), so don’t try to
“learn English” from Gollum! E.g., he says “Orcses” instead of “Orcs” as the
plural of “Orc,” and he misuses verb tenses. Perhaps the author does this
because he wants us to pity Gollum. Remember that he owned the ring for a
long time, and his life is “bound” to the ring’s evil power.
Remember that Frodo and Sam
(Frodo’s best friend) don’t know what is going on with Aragorn and the
people with him. They went in separate directions at the end of the first
movie. Frodo thinks that Gandalf is dead, so their reunion at the end is a
big surprise. You also see a Bilbo Baggins at the end (he is about 125 years
old).
There are a lot of names. When
you see a capitalized word, remember that it is a name so you won’t waste
mental energy trying to figure out what it means. (Aren't you glad English
capitalizes names?)
Unfortunately, many of the
characters in the movie have several names. Perhaps this list will
help you figure out who everyone is.
Characters
Smeagol (the Hobbit) is also Gollum (a
former ring owner), and Gollum has a split personality--a frightened side
and an evil side—and these two “sides” sometimes talk to each other!
The Precious=the ring
Merry=Meriadoc (a Hobbit)
Pippin=Pip=Peregrin Took (a Hobbit)
Hobbit=Halfling=Shire folk
Gandalf=the White Wizard=Mithrandir=Gandalf
Grayhem (you should also remember that giant eagles are Gandalf’s friends)
Aragorn=the heir of Elendil=Isildur’s
heir=the Ranger from the north
Gondor is the human kingdom which Aragorn
is the rightful king of
Denethor is caretaker or steward of
Gondor’s throne—acting as king while they wait for the king to return
Boromir and Faramir are brothers (Denethor's
sons—and thus destined to inherit leadership in Gondor if the rightful king
doesn’t come back soon)
Sauron is the bad thing/spirit who created
the evil ring
Nazgul are sort-of-dead former kings who
“no man can kill”—their job is to help Sauron find the ring (and do other
evil things at his command); they fly on Fell-beasts (black dragons)
Mordor is the evil kingdom of Sauron (just
remember that the name sounds like “morbid,” which means having an unhealthy
interest in gloomy things like death or serious accidents)
Orcs are evil, ugly creatures, created at
Sauron’s command to be his army.
Elves (plural of Elf) are good beings who
can only die in battle; their “time” in Middle Earth is ending, as is the
“time” of wizards. The battle in the film will decide if it is the “age of
men” or the “age of orcs.”
Arwen, an elf, is Aragorn’s fiancé, and at
one point she sees a vision of the son she might have if she marries the
human Aragorn (against her father’s will).
King Theoden’s daughter is Eowyn (and she
wants Aragorn to love her; she is human, so don’t get her confused with
Aragorn’s elf fiancée, Arwen)
Even swords have names and unique
properties! Narsil was the broken sword that Isildur used to cut the ring
off Sauron’s hand; the re-forged blade is called Anduril, and it is given to
Aragorn, Isildur's heir.
Frodo’s small sword is called Sting, and it
glows blue when there are Orcs nearby.
A few terms
(vocabulary):
flashback: a scene or event in a story or
film, shown out of its normal time-order (e.g., going back to show the
audience how something happened)
beacon: a large fire, lit on a hill or
tower to warn others of trouble or war (the “beacons of Gondor” remind me of
signal fires that were used on the Great Wall—remember that this movie was
shot in New Zealand)
diversion: distraction, especially military
action that takes the enemy’s attention away from a more crucial part of the
battle
villain: evil character or one who deserves
our disgust or hatred
glimpse: a short experience of or peak at
something that helps you to begin to understand it
mercenaries: a soldier paid to fight for an
army other than that of his or her country
garrison: a military post or fort
renew/re-forge the blade: to take the
broken pieces of a sword and make a new sword
supplant: to take someone’s place of
leadership by force or deception
“Authority has not been given you to deny
the return of the king, steward.” Gandalf says this to the rebellious
caretaker of Gondor’s throne, trying to remind him that the caretaker’s
position is temporary.
“the stars are veiled”: something is making
it hard to see the future (assuming the speaker has the power to see the
future!)
“a sleepless malice”: something (a power)
that continually works to cause harm
“as the Nazgul flies”: a “Middle Earth”
expression similar “as the crow flies,” meaning in a direct line instead of
by roads
“to have one on your tail”: to have someone
following you, esp. someone you don’t want following
Discussion
1. Put yourself in the place of some of the
main characters. Would you have done what they did? Why or why not?
For example: Knowing that the ring is
totally evil and has a "will of its own," would you (like Frodo) have
volunteered to take it into the enemy's camp to try to destroy it? Would
you (like Sam) have stayed with Frodo, even after he told you to go away?
What would you (like Pippin) have said to the father of the man who died
to save your life? Would you (like Aragorn) have risked your life to go
see the "dead" army, seeing that you desperately needed extra help? Would
you have risked the destruction of your army to "give Frodo a
chance"--even though you weren't sure he was still alive? Would you, like
Gondor's caretaker Denethor,
have told everyone to "abandon your posts and flee for your lives" when
your situation looked hopeless? Like
Arwen, would
you have given up "immortality" to marry a human for the sake of love,
even if you knew it meant living alone for centuries after he died?
2. The description above says this movie is about friends who "are
engaged in a classic struggle between good and evil, and more importantly,
the struggle we each face in doing what is right for our friends, our
countrymen, and ourselves." Explain that description, using examples from
the movie.
3. Why is history filled with "the struggle
between good and evil"? Where do "good" and "evil" come from?
