Battle of the Sequels: The Tolkien Saga.

By Adam Ray Palmer
 
Battle of the Sequels returns once again! This time we are focusing on two film series, a decade apart… we are calling it the ‘Tolkien Saga’.
 
This battle royale will pit the three Lord of the Rings films and the three Hobbit movies against each other to see which epic comes out on top!
 
Which movie will be the one true film?

BYE #1

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Plot:
While Frodo and Sam edge closer to Mordor with the help of the shifty Gollum, the divided fellowship makes a stand against Sauron's new ally, Saruman, and his hordes of Isengard.

BYE #2

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
Plot:
Bilbo and company are forced to engage in a war against an array of combatants and keep the Lonely Mountain from falling into the hands of a rising darkness.

QUARTER-FINAL #1

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Vs.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Verdict:
For me, this is one of the easiest battles in this edition. In Return of the King, Gandalf and Aragorn lead the World of Men against Sauron's army to draw his gaze from Frodo and Sam as they approach Mount Doom with the One Ring. The Return of the King is an elite movie - it has it all. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey follows Bilbo Baggins who sets out to the Lonely Mountain with a spirited group of dwarves to reclaim their mountain home, and the gold within it from the dragon Smaug.
 
An Unexpected Journey had the hype of 2012 in abundance, it was destined to be a colossal movie. 10 years earlier, The Return of the King had the same excitement, but this film in particular met expectation. The main reason the climatic Lord of the Rings movie progresses is because I felt the first Hobbit instalment was just a basic start. It has very little meat on its bones and is utilised more as a set up film to The Desolation of Smaug.
 
WINNER: THE RETURN OF THE KING

QUARTER-FINAL #2

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Vs.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

Verdict:
In the second quarter-final, this battle is a little closer. Both these films are up there in their respective series. The Fellowship of the Ring follows a meek Hobbit from the Shire and eight companions who set out on a journey to destroy the powerful One Ring and save Middle-earth from the Dark Lord Sauron – deep plot already! With The Desolation of Smaug, the gang of dwarves continue their quest to reclaim Erebor, their homeland, from Smaug.
 
Both these films have similar traits… from the outset they are very much “quest movies”. They both also have a climax which is where An Unexpected Journey lacks. For me, these are more ‘complete films’ rather than being just instalments. They both have brilliant standalone sequences too throughout, but on the whole, The Fellowship of the Ring pips The Hobbit 2 over the line.
 
WINNER: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING

SEMI-FINAL #1

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Vs.
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Verdict:
This can be billed as the battle of the climaxes (so to speak!). And for us, there is one victor! They both have the support of being set up to be epic last movies in their respective sagas, and both have the backing of brilliant action set pieces – but one just simply does it better than the other.
 
The Battle of the Five Armies follows Bilbo and company who are forced to engage in a war against an array of combatants and keep the Lonely Mountain from falling into the hands of a rising darkness. To be honest, it sounds a lot more epic on paper than on screen. Apart from a few standalone sequences, it’s all a bit modest. And then in the opposing corner we have The Return of the King, a blueprint on how to create hearty battle scenes with such emotion to pack a punch as a big as the psychical ones that are thrown. ROTK progresses to the final!
 
WINNER: THE RETURN OF THE KING

SEMI-FINAL #2

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Vs.
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Verdict:
In this semi-final, it’s definitely the closest battle so far. We know all about the brilliance of the first instalment, but did the sequel match it? Well we think so just about. The narrative is slightly meatier, but quite clearly a set up for the climatic epic. Frodo and Sam edge closer to Mordor with the help of the shifty Gollum, and then the divided fellowship makes a stand against Sauron's new ally, Saruman, and his hordes of Isengard.
 
The anticipation of the first film, the performances throughout it and the whimsical magic that the initial instalment conjured up is unrivalled in this battle. I think The Two Towers suffers from “middle film syndrome” because you just know, like The Desolation of Smaug, it’s a steppingstone film. Yes, I can hear you arguing to me about certain scenes and stellar moments, but it never gets away from the fact that it doesn’t have the complete fulfilment. As I said with The Fellowship of the Ring, it just has that instant warmth and the will for everyone to succeed. It was fresh and thrilling.
 
WINNER: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING

THE FINAL

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Vs.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Verdict:
And now we are here, the big one. There will be so many Tolkien die-hards either agreeing with me so far or hating on many choices I have made. But for me, these final two are definitely the best movies out of the six.
 
They both top the bill for similar reasons, but in fact also very different – let me explain. The approach to both movies is why they are here, but they both differ in their method. In ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’, it’s all about the naivety throughout. The audience follow the group like we are one of the pack. When the cast find out what’s happening, so do we. With ‘The Return of the King’, the approach is more holistic. The narrative development and character arcs are what make this movie perfect. Over the series, you have invested so much into it. So, when the final instalment comes, it’s an experience and not just a film. It was an emotional rollercoaster and it just personifies the textbook Tolkien movie.
 
WINNER: THE RETURN OF THE KING

Do you agree with my thoughts? What would your final look like? Which film would be your number one? Let me know in the comments below, and let’s discuss on the socials!