9. The Lord of the Rings (Best of the Decade)

The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Two Towers (2002), The Return of the King (2003)

Peter Jackson’s determination to shoot The Lord of the Rings movies was nothing if not the riskiest, boldest, and ultimately smartest cinematic decision of the decade. He wasn’t the first to shoot movie sequels back-to-back, but he was the first to do it on such a grand scale whilst ushering in a new age of technical breakthrough, making loads of money, and garnering critical and popular acclaim.

The first film in the series was released in 2001, and it is also the best. The Fellowship of the Ring introduces the audience to Middle Earth, a legendary ring, and merry little beings called hobbits. It’s such a wonder entering the world for the first time, meeting Gandalf the wizard (Ian McKellen) and the hobbit Bilbo (Ian Holm), whose nephew Frodo (Elijah Wood) is the protagonist of the story. It’s his job to carry the One Ring to Mordor and cast it into the fires of Mount Doom.

The Two Towers has the dubious distinction of being the middle chapter, and as a result it is the weakest of the three. This film introduces Gollum (Andy Serkis) as a major character. A motion-captured, computer-generated character, Gollum is what convinced James Cameron that the technology had advanced enough to make Avatar. Furthermore, the battle at Helm’s Deep near the end of the film is a grand set piece, and Jackson did a fine job filming a large action sequence while focusing on several primary characters.

                                               

The Return of the King is the final chapter, and it is the largest of the three in terms of story, action, and length. While Frodo inches closer to Mount Doom, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) tries to keep the forces of evil at bay in hopes of providing Frodo enough time to finish the deed. The heir to the throne of Gondor, Aragorn does fulfill the title’s promise. Upon its release, the film became infamous because it had several fade-outs and “end” scenes.

Each film was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards in their respective year, with The Return of the King taking home the top prize and 11 Oscars total.