Ranking the Franchise - The Lord of the Rings

When I was visiting some friends, we started talking about “The Lord of the Rings” and ever since that evening I’ve been wanting to rewatch the trilogy. So I did and also found the opportunity to rank the three films. And there is simply no bad movie in this series. Here is my ranking of the films, and it was very hard to do, since it comes down to very little details.

3. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
After the fellowship fell apart, our heroes go their own way in this dark sequel to the first film. Frodo and Sam are accompanied by the ambiguous Gollum. And the genius behind Gollum is born in the incredible performance of Andy Serkis. The themes of the trilogy become much more explicit and moving, because the countries of Middle-Earth realize that they have to stand together to defeat this great evil. The film is most memorable because of the impressive battle of Helm’s Deep.

2. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
Frodo and Sam finally complete their journey to destroy the One Ring in the conclusion of “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy. For some, the film may take a little too long, after all it is over 3 hours long. But you can’t blame Peter Jackson for taking the time to find the right note to finish his magnum opus. Moving and emotionally driven, “Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” is a perfect finale to an amazing fantasy film trilogy.

1. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
The film that started a phenomenon. This first “Lord of the Rings” film introduced moviegoers to iconic characters such as Gandalf, Frodo Baggins and Aragorn. A group of nine companions embark on a dangerous search for Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring before the dark Lord Sauron takes control of Middle-Earth and director Peter Jackson imbues the story with enough atmosphere, sharp images and epic stories to have created a film that can easily be considered the “Star Wars” of his generation, in terms of cultural impact. The first film is, and always will be, my favorite in the series.