calcat91355

The Fellowship of the Ring was a monumentally entertaining film, the Return of the King was an amazing wrap-up to the epic of our times, but the most dramatic moment for me came at the end of the Two Towers. After 3 hours of sweeping vistas, excellent Shakespearean acting, and otherworldly sights and sounds, we are treated to a scene that still sends chills down my back and rouses me like nothing since the final scene in Rocky. A lone rider (we all know who), set against the top of a hill, massing legions of horsemen behind him. He appears just as the heroes are losing all hope. Once he begins his descent down the hill with his army behind him, the camera begins a slow pan over the top and down with them, showing the size and scale of their forces. The evil army below looks up with surprise, a bright light fills the screen, the camera focuses on the lead rider (again, we all know who) who lets out a wrenching battle cry, the music swells to unbelievable heights, and I am swept away like I've never been before.

This is cinema at its very best.

I saw this movie 25 years ago, and my opinion may be slightly skewed. I was the same age as the character "Conrad" portrayed by Hutton and I had some of the same fears and insecurities at the time as his character displayed throughout the film. Although there wasn't any one emotionally devastating event in my life to trigger feelings of guilt, I nonetheless identified with Conrad's lost soul, and the effect on me was powerful. At that stage in my life, I was not one to be moved to tears over emotional drama...until this movie. I fought back the tears over two intensely poignant moments which I would not dare to reveal here.

Suffice it to say that over the years, and subsequent viewings, this film continues to hit me in different spots as I relate events on the screen to what I have come to know about relationships. It hits home on so many levels. It seems to be one of the only films to deal realistically with dysfunction in a seemingly "normal" home environment. The facade is there, but the truth lurks not too deeply underneath the surface. And, when the truth is finally revealed, it is one of the most simultaneously shattering and exhilarating moments I've ever seen in film.

While Conrad's journey to the core of his guilt is the emotional centerpiece of the film, some of the quietly played scenes between Conrad's mom and Conrad are as perfectly played as they are uncomfortable. I cannot remember who won the Academy Award for best actress of 1980 but the Academy made a huge mistake by not bestowing the Oscar upon Mary Tyler Moore. Her restrained frigidity haunted me and had me screaming for her to break through the ice...and at one of the rare moments where she finally does show any depth of emotion, it is a fascinating study of someone who, somewhere along the way, lost her ability to face reality.

So many great moments exist in this film, and apart from the emotional turning point about three-quarters of the way through, one of the most memorable moments for me - and one that I can never forget - is a simple scene of a father and son hugging each other. You'll know it when you see it. I dare you not to weep uncontrollably when it happens.