Hear you now...
...a story of good against evil.
An epoch that has its beginning
at an ending...
...and ends at a beginning.
Listen, as we speak of the fall
of a lord of darkness...
...and the return of a king of light.
Concern yourselves
with armies and wizards...
...phantoms and emperors...
...cloud-capped towers
and bloodied fields of horrendous carnage.
Consider no less...
...than the cataclysmic transformation...
...of that ancient world
of wonder and magic...
...to the world we know now, of Man.
What mighty lord, you may ask,
is hero enough...
...to evoke such cosmic metamorphosis?
Why, no lord at all,
but the littlest of fellows...
...Frodo the Hobbit...
...and his faithful squire, Samwise.
Who, beginning at the ending,
now approach Rivendell...
...the Elvish home of Elrond...
...there to help celebrate
the 129th birthday...
...of Frodo's aged kin...
...Bilbo Baggins,
renowned tormentor of dragons.
Bless my soul!
You're a match for Smaug himself.
All of us, Frodo and Samwise...
...their Hobbit companions,
Merry and Pippin...
...Elrond the Elf-Lord, and I, Gandalf...
...wished Bilbo only the best.
But as we celebrated
far into the Elvish night...
...we found it difficult
to keep our aging guest of honor awake.
Nay, Pippin. Not till Bilbo has cut it.
Blast. What a time to fall asleep.
Who's asleep?
Just resting my eyes...
...and remembering.
There And Back Again...
...and what happened after.
Remembering, sir?
So many things.
Old Smaug...
...dear Thorin...
...that terrible Gollum chap...
...the Ring of Invisibility.
What's become of my ring?
That ring I gave you and you took away.
Yes.
I've lost it, Bilbo dear.
I got rid of it, you know.
Pity. I should have liked to see it again.
But...
...now, how silly of me.
That's what you went for, wasn't it?
To get rid of it.
But why destroy a thing
of such wondrous magic?
It was an evil thing, sir.
Nay!
Without its powers...
...I could never have faced
the worm, Smaug.
You unwittingly used its
evil forces for good, dear Uncle.
Your innocence protected you.
But had you continued to wear it...
...instead of keeping it
above your mantle as a trophy...
...its ever-growing malignancy
would have consumed you...
...as it almost consumed Samwise and me
and the whole of Middle-earth.
But this is all so confusing.
So confusing.
- Will he never cut the cake?
- Patience, Merry.
Me for a good smoke, while we wait.
- What say, master?
- Good notion, Sam.
Bless my soul!
You are missing a finger!
You not only lost my ring...
...you lost the finger on which it rode?
Frodo, you must explain.
We have brought with us someone...
...who has written a ballad
about the adventures of Frodo:
The Minstrel of Gondor.
"Frodo of the nine fingers
"And the Ring of Doom"
It has its beginnings two ages past...
...when Bilbo set forth to reclaim
the Dwarves' gold...
...from the dragon, Smaug.
While on his quest,
Bilbo stumbled into a deep, dank cave.
This part I remember.
"When Bilbo found that shiny ring
"In Gollum's cave of gloom
"He never thought
"That it would turn into a ring of doom
"The dragon Smaug
The spiders too
"The Goblins, the Elven-king
"They came to know the power
"Of the Hobbit and his ring
"Frodo of the nine fingers
"And the Ring of Doom
"It started with a Hobbit
"In Gollum's cave of gloom
"The power of the Ring, it grew
"And Gandalf sat in thought
"He knew that it must be destroyed
"In fires where it was wrought
"For if in evil hands it fell
"The Earth would know its end
"No force of arms would win the day
"No army could contend"
For evil flourished everywhere...
...and lay on the land
like a festering malignancy.
There was one hope, though:
In a distant land, the noble Aragorn...
...heir to the empty throne of Gondor...
...awaited with a small band
to return and become king.
But he could not triumph
until the Ring was destroyed.
So went the prophecy.
"Frodo of the nine fingers
"And the Ring of Doom
"Accepted a heavy burden
"For the fires to consume"
Frodo and his gallant
companion, Samwise...
...had many brave adventures...
...until finally they reached
the rocky border of Mordor...
...domain of the Black Lord, Sauron.
There, Frodo was captured and imprisoned
in the Tower of Cirith Ungol.
Samwise vowed to enter
the Orc-infested tower alone...
...to save him.
The Ring of Doom was missing...
...from 'round Frodo's neck!
"Frodo of the nine fingers
"And the Ring of Doom
"Why does he have nine fingers?
"Where is the Ring of Doom?"
One tiny Hobbit against all the evil
the world could muster.
A sane being would have given up.
But Samwise burned
with a magnificent madness...
...a glowing obsession
to surmount every obstacle...
...to find Frodo, destroy the Ring,
and cleanse Middle-earth...
...of its festering malignancy.
He knew he would try again,
fail perhaps and try once more...
...a thousand, thousand times, if need be.
But he would not give up the quest.
You cannot die, Master Frodo!
I'll get to you somehow!
You. I can feel you
throbbing with excitement!
You know the gates to the land
of Mordor and your dark lord, Sauron.
Now I must bear your loathsome weight.
But I do it for he who lies
in that accursed tower...
...Cirith Ungol:
My sweet master, Frodo.
And, 'tis Sting...
...Master Frodo's sword.
And his hero's cloak!
Lost 'em with the Ring
while doing battle, he did.
They're safe with me
till I find you again, master!
He can't hear.
Half dead, behind walls of stone.
Serve me, Sting, till I can return you.
Here now.
What's this?
Dank and foul-smelling...
...but it may be a way in.
I've got through!
So I've finally crossed into Mordor.
Orcs in the tower!
Old Bilbo called them Goblins.
But whatever the name,
I loathe the vile creatures.
Fighting among themselves?
I could get in!
They wouldn't notice me!
The Ring holds me back?
True.
Once the Orcs saw me...
...they'd forget their own arguments
for the head of an enemy!
Useless to face such odds.
Don't take any chances.
Destroy the thing yourself.
I do it for you, Frodo!
I must be ring bearer now!
"The bearer of the Ring
"The wearer of the Ring
"Stands on the very brink of fate
"Staring into eyes of darkness and despair
"That rise and shrink with hate"
I can feel you change
as we draw near the great furnaces...
...where in the depths of time,
you were shaped and formed.
Mount Doom!
I could claim you, Ring!
I would be Samwise the Strong!
"The bearer of the Ring
"The wearer of the Ring
"He hears a voice compelling him
"Filling him with thoughts
That echo in his mind
"It should be telling him
"Beware the power
is a power never known
"Beware the power that was simple
"Now has grown
"Beware, bearer of the Ring
"The final power has yet to be shown
"The bearer of the Ring
"The wearer of the Ring
"Through forces tempting to resist
"Must recall the quest
"To end this darkest age
"That mortal death has kissed
"The bearer of the Ring
"The wearer of the Ring
"Beware who wears the Ring"
Hail Samwise the Strong!
Hail the Conqueror!
Hail the War-King!
Hero of the Age!
To the Dark Tower!
To Barad-dur!
I claim thee, Barad-dur!
You are Sauron's no more!
Hail Samwise the Strong!
The sun shines for thee alone!
And now I claim all
of the Vale of Gorgoroth!
Now let this foul desolation...
...this cursed plateau
of the Dark Lord, Sauron...
...this Orc-infested,
desert of nameless horrors...
...let it blossom forth, and live!
Let it live for Samwise the Strong!
Samwise the Strong!
Behold!
The gardens of my delight!
So I shall transform the world!
All could be mine...
...if I but claim thee, Ring!
No!
What brought me back?
Plain Hobbit sense.
I know in my heart I'm not
enough to bear such a burden.
One small garden of a free gardener...
...is all my need and due.
My own hands to use...
...not the hands of others to command.
No, such a quest is not for me.
Frodo lives.
And only he knows
how to destroy the Ring...
...in the Cracks of Doom.
Only he can find the fire.
Dear Master Frodo.
I will find you.
Somehow.
An ancient world of towered fortress cities.
Cirith Ungol...
...guarding the entrance
to the lands of Mordor.
Barad-dur, palace of the Dark Lord, Sauron.
And now, look you to yet another.
Minas-Tirith, chief city of Gondor...
...last bastion of hope
for the powers of light and good.
From the battlement atop the citadel,
like a mariner in a mountainous ship...
...one could look sheer down
upon the gate 700 feet below.
And still this was not the top.
Behold! The White Tower.
At the top, the banner of the stewards
who governed the city...
...its silken arms embracing
a domain more fitting Gwaihir...
...Lord of the Eagles
than those whose emblem it bore.
All this, Minas-Tirith was.
But now, under siege,
the sparkling gem of Gondor...
...had become dull and flawed
with the hell of war.
The once-lush fields of Pelennor,
now a wasted battleground...
...upon which Sauron's forces of evil
celebrated their victories.
Far superior in number
to the battle-ravaged Gondor forces...
...they mounted their monster oliphaunts...
...to ride in the rocking, armored towers,
to their almost certain victory.
And in the heavens,
where no living thing dare now venture...
...Sauron's phantom lieutenants,
the Nazgul, astride their devil steeds...
...scream battle cries
of vile encouragement.
High in the White Tower, Lord Denethor,
Chief Steward of Gondor...
...his mind broken
as his city crumbled about him...
...had succumbed
to an eerie fire of the brain...
...and, in his madness,
ordered his own execution.
- You must stop him!
- His word is law!
I'll find Gandalf!
The Hobbit, Pippin, who had proved
a most valuable assistant for me...
...rushed to the battlement.
Where I, Gandalf...
...and the Gondor generals searched
the distance in vain...
...for a sign of our rescuers.
For we awaited Theoden...
...a valuable ally,
lord of the friendly nation of Rohan...
...for whom we had dispatched
Pippin's Hobbit friend, little Merry...
...to inform him of our perilous condition
and to beseech his aid.
For we wondered, would he
and his armies come to our rescue?
Forward! To Minas-Tirith!
Forward!
For only Theoden could save our city...
...and make it safe
for the return of Aragorn.
But we feared he would come too late.
- What? Denethor?
- He's gone loony, I tell you!
Come quickly.
You cannot do this!
Soon all shall be burned.
The West has failed.
It shall go up in a great fire...
...and all shall be ended.
Ash and smoke blown away on the wind.
All shall not be ended.
Theoden's forces are on their way!
Pride and despair!
Pride and despair!
Didst thou think the eyes
of the White Tower were blind?
I have looked inside my palantir.
- What is that?
- Palantir. The stuff of wizards.
A crystal ball to see the future.
I have seen more than thou knowest,
gray fool.
Thy hope is but ignorance.
Even with the forces of Theoden,
there is no hope.
Go forth and fight!
Vanity!
For a little space you may triumph
on the field...
...for a day.
But against the dark power...
...that now rises, there is no victory.
To this dying city,
only the first fingers of its hand...
...have yet been stretched.
All the East is moving!
And even now,
the wind of thy hope cheats thee...
...and wafts up an enemy fleet
with black sails.
Up the Great River, Anduin they come,
even now.
The river which leads to the edge...
...of the Pelennor Fields.
A black fleet? A devil's armada?
- Do those palantir things ever lie?
- Never!
The West has failed!
It is time for all to depart this life...
...who would not be slaves!
Servants, come hither!
So passes Denethor, son of Ecthelion.
And so pass also the days of Gondor.
For good or evil they have ended.
You must take charge, Gandalf.
You must lead our forces now...
...until Aragorn returns
to claim the throne of Gondor.
If he returns.
Gandalf, you...
I saw the vision in the palantir.
A dark fleet.
- Is there no hope?
- None.
Unless the Ring be destroyed.
But alas, it is lost with its bearer, Frodo.
All is gone.
I, Gandalf was without hope.
For I did not know
that at that very moment...
...at that other towered fortress...
...the future of all good in the world...
...rested upon the wits
and the tiny shoulders...
...of poor little Samwise...
...who, still undetected
by the Orcs within...
...approached the gates
of the Tower of Cirith Ungol.
But to get through those gates...
...he would have to pass
the Two Watchers.
Though carved
from huge blocks of solid stone...
...some dreadful spirit of evil vigilance
abode in them...
...and they were aware.
My imagination's running away with me.
They're made of stone.
What harm can they do?
Don't get too cocky, Samwise.
Orcs aren't made of stone,
and they have ears.
Though where the blazes are they?
I thought the tower was full of them.
But they give me the shivers.
Forget about them.
Get past as quick as I can!
Bless my soul.
Like some invisible gate.
That's how the Watchers keep guard.
Blast!
How do I get through, or climb over,
or under something I can't see?
How?
Ouch!
Something's burning me.
What's this? A phial?
And what magic is in it
to make it glow so?
They're opening up!
Thank you, old boys.
It was bad manners you showed me before.
Handy, this thing.
An alarm! That's done it.
I'm ready for you.
Tell your captains
that a great Elf warrior has called...
...with his Elf blade!
They're all dead.
Why?
The tower was crawling
with them just a few hours ago.
Looks like they were
fighting among themselves.
But what for?
There's a lot less of you left
to attack Minas-Tirith!
Goodbye and good riddance!
The whole tower climbs backwards-like.
I'll follow these lights.
This must be the entrance to the top tier.
Frodo can't be far away.
An Orc! They're not all dead!
Kill him! Bone him! Boil him!
There's a sweet one for you!
Split him in two!
Can't let him have the Ring!
No!
What the blazes made him do that?
Come back here!
No!
The great Elf warrior is loose! Stop.
Stop, or I'll skin you alive!
Mercy!
I'll think about it!
I have some questions, filthy one.
Yes? I'll tell you anything.
The Hobbit, Frodo, is he still alive?
If anything still lives here, he does.
What happened here?
Why all this carnage?
Our captains made battle
and ordered us to fight also.
What was in contest?
The Hobbit's pretty coat...
...when he reveals its hiding place.
You killed each other
for that blasted cloak?
Well, I have it! Not Frodo.
You?
You're just a Hobbit.
- Give me the coat.
- Get back!
This must be the top.
Anything above?
Yes.
There is something!
Frodo!
Stop that, you pig!
Frodo.
Dear master. Frodo.
You live.
You live!
- Am I still dreaming?
- No dream, master.
It's real. I've come.
Sam. Dear Sam.
I feel like a child at rest.
When night fears are driven away.
By some loved voice.
Come, Mr. Frodo.
I still must get you out of this place.
Please, dear master, wake up.
They hovered over me.
Gloating, fingering their knives.
The whips, their claws, their eyes...
Don't think about it.
Let me help you to your feet.
Oh, dear. The quest.
The quest has failed.
Failed? No, sir.
Yes. The Ring is gone, dear Sam.
Even if we could get out of here,
we can't escape.
For evil is everywhere.
And only Elves can escape Middle-earth.
They board the white ships
at the Gray Havens...
...and sail off to the lands beyond.
Don't even think of passing on!
The quest has not failed, master!
You don't understand.
The Orcs took everything!
Not everything. Look.
You've got it? You've got it here?
You must have lost it in the struggle.
I found it.
Samwise, you are a marvel!
I'll keep it 'round my neck...
...for it's too heavy
for you to bear in your condition.
Give it to me at once! You can't have it!
All right, Mr. Frodo. Here it is.
"Beware the power
is a power never known
"Beware the power that was simple
now has grown
"Beware"
You filthy, slimy thief!
- I have the power now.
- Master, no.
Don't say such things. Please don't.
It's the Ring.
Sam. What have I said?
What have I done? Forgive me.
I'd forgotten its malevolent trickery.
I'm fine now. Fine. Sam, forgive me.
I must carry the burden to the end.
It can't be altered.
You can't come between...
...me and this doom.
As you wish, master.
I also have found Sting.
Might I keep it with me a little longer?
I have the strength to use it.
And you, with your wound and all...
Yes, of course, dear Sam.
And your cloak which I wear.
In a pocket I found this.
It has powers.
It got me past the Watchers. What is it?
The Phial of Galadriel! I can say no more.
If I betray the trust and give the secret,
its powers will die.
- I understand.
- But now we must get out of here quickly.
I know the chain mail's heavy for you.
But we may need it.
And I can't leave anything behind,
so I'll wear the Orc garb over my own.
Don't we make a fine, matching pair.
Now, off to Mount Doom.
Hope you've made inquiries
about inns along the road?
- Inns, master?
- For food and drink.
Only the best for two fine Orcs.
There's nothing, master,
and you know it well.
Save for the few crumbs of cake
and drops of water left in my pack.
Courage, Sam. That's enough to start on.
The food we might manage,
but the water's going to be bad business.
We'll make it.
But we'd best start,
or a whole lake of it won't do us any good!
No, I'm all right. It's the mail.
I'll get used to it. Come.
I'm going to faint, Sam.
I don't know what's come over me.
It's that invisible gate.
There's some devilry there.
But I got through once.
Now for it!
It's still there!
This is not working.
They were expecting it!
Their will is strong.
It needs helping.
We've broken the Watchers' will!
We've still a chance, Samwise.
There's still a chance to destroy the Ring.
- A Black Rider. The Nazgul.
- Run, Mr. Frodo.
Not that way! There's a drop, follow me.
Careful, Mr. Frodo.
I can't. Not another step.
We must keep going, master.
The Nazgul is in charge of the Tower now!
A Black Rider is not
so easy to fool as the Orcs.
Just give me a moment.
Begging your pardon, sir,
but there's no time.
Listen as the foul flying demon...
...gives alarm
to the whole Vale of Gorgoroth!
He's rallying the dark forces
to defend the Tower.
Soon they'll be upon us.
We've got to get away and hide!
Yes, of course, dear Sam.
Listen.
We'd best get across the bridge,
while we've still time.
If Sauron himself was to offer me
a glass of water, I'd shake his hand.
Don't say such things.
It only makes it worse.
Sam.
A spot of dizziness there. I'm sorry.
'Tis a long time, Mr. Frodo,
since I had a proper sleep.
Come, Sam, we shall support each other.
It's no good, Sam.
I can't manage
the weight of this mail shirt.
It's of no use anyway.
We shall never get through by fighting.
We may have some to do.
We won't take on armies.
Who knows
what's down here in this canyon...
...slithering behind the rocks?
No, Sam, it must go.
What about that Gollum creature,
for instance?
The Gollum isn't dead,
and he's still after that ring!
I'd hate to think of you
with naught but a bit of leather...
...between you and a stab in the dark.
This hellish Mordor.
First it sears you, then it freezes you.
Mr. Frodo...
...maybe we could rest just a little.
My eyes are fair closing by themselves.
Not here.
I didn't want to say anything...
...but there's a black rider,
a Nazgul, over us.
I can feel it. We must keep moving.
Only a little more
to climb out of the canyon.
Then we'll take a look...
...and see what the Vale of Gorgoroth
holds for us.
I told you, you'd see it, Mr. Frodo.
Just look at it.
God help us.
Behold Gorgoroth!
I don't like the looks of things at all.
Pretty hopeless, I call it.
Yes. And these dark armies
are not only of Orcs.
There are Men, too!
We just can't cross all that open country
crawling with enemies.
Still, Sam, we shall have to try.
It's no worse than I expected.
I never hoped to get across...
...but I've got to do the best I can.
I think we can make it
to the next boulder, master.
No one is about.
Blasted moonlight.
Traveling by night's
almost as bad as by day.
Come now, sir. I'll help.
Got to rest.
If you please, sir. Me too.
Just for a few minutes.
"Where there's a whip
"There's a way
"Where there's a whip
"There's a way
"Where there's a whip
"We don't want to go to war today
"But the Lord of the Lash says,
'Nay, nay, nay'
"We're gonna march all day
"Where there's a whip, there's a way
"Where there's a whip
"There's a way
"Where there's a whip
"There's a way
"Where there's a whip, there's a way
"Left, right, left, right, left
"Where there's a whip, there's a way
"Left, right
"A crack on the back says,
'we're gonna fight'
"We're gonna march all day and night
"And more
"For we're the slaves
of the Dark Lord's war
"Where there's a whip
"There's a way
"Where there's a whip
"There's a way
"Where there's a whip
"We don't want to go to war today
"But the Lord of the Lash says,
'Nay, nay, nay'
"We're going to march all day
"Where there's a whip, there's a way
"Left, right, left, right"
Mr. Frodo.
- What is it?
- Now we've gone and done it.
Slept through till daylight.
With only this fool rock between us
and them armies.
Look out.
What have we here? Two deserters?
Up with you! Get in line!
We're in luck.
- He thinks we're Orcs.
- Luck?
Good sir, we're gonna be marching
with the whole blinking army...
...back to Cirith Ungol
where we started from!
Come on, you slugs!
"Where's there's a whip
"We don't wanna go to war today
"But the Lord of the Lash says,
'Nay, nay, nay'
"We're gonna march all day
"Where there's a whip, there's a way"
I can't continue.
I'd rather be singing
a good old Hobbit song myself.
At least they gave us
provisions for our packs.
But Orc food is enough
to turn a rodent sick.
Samwise, we have got to break ranks.
Not while old whipper there is watching.
Don't worry, master.
The opportunity will come.
Halt.
What do you mean, "halt"?
I have a battalion of Men
to move across your road.
Well I've got a battalion of Orcs
to move across yours.
You wait!
Men come before Orcs. Get back.
I think this is it! You stay right here, sir.
You going to stand for that, sir?
Get back in line!
You mean you're going to let a pack
of filthy Man-creatures go before us?
And you call yourself an Orc?
You're right.
Kill them, bone them, cut them to bits!
Smash them, bash them!
Skin them alive!
Not an inch.
Not an inch further can I move.
Come, Mr. Frodo.
One more crawl and then you can lie still.
A bit further.
This way, sir.
No use. Going to die. Can't see a thing.
Mr. Frodo.
Don't die, Mr. Frodo.
You can't die. Please, master.
If any power of good can hear us
in this accursed land...
...give us help.
Help us.
Power of good?
Indeed, was there none left
in all Middle-earth...
...with strength to aid our dying cause?
At that moment, the forces of darkness
made ready to break the main gate...
...with a mighty battering ram
which they had named Grond.
Long had it been forging
in the dark smithies of Mordor...
...and on it spells of ruin lay.
- The gate will never stand up to that thing!
- Like the arm of the devil himself!
When the gates break
I shall be there to greet it!
Have my steed, Shadowfax, made ready!
- Farewell, Pippin.
- I go with you, sir.
Then we leave this life together.
Come, little one.
On, Shadowfax!
The Lord of the Nazgul...
...Sauron's second-in-command.
A creature of the super-natural...
...and so no living Man could hinder him...
...nor bring him harm in any way.
He was invulnerable!
You cannot enter here!
Go back to the abyss prepared for you!
Go back! Fall to the nothingness
that awaits you and your master. Go!
Old fool!
This is my hour.
Do you not know Death when you see it?
Die now and curse in vain!
And, as from some courtyard of the city,
a cock crowed...
...recking nothing of wizardry or war...
...welcoming only the morning...
...that in the sky far above
the shadows of death...
...was coming with the dawn.
For as if in answer there came
from far away, another note.
Horns! Horns! Horns!
Over the fields of Pelennor,
they echoed from the distance.
Great horns in the north, wildly blowing.
Theoden and the rescuing arms of Rohan
had come at last.
Ride now.
Ride now, to Gondor.
Victory was slipping
from the grasp of evil...
...even as he stretched
out his hand to seize it.
And the strength of goodness
began to be felt once more...
...throughout the lands.
Had a prayer been answered?
Water. Give me water.
Master! Thank heaven!
Here, not too much now.
Not all at once.
He's weakening.
I feel it. Sauron is weakening.
But he is still in command.
His arm is long, and it wields great power.
No, master. You must rest.
I must still destroy the Ring.
I've more of a chance now...
...but there's still such a long way to go.
That's tomorrow, Mr. Frodo, tomorrow.
And as the battle raged anew
on the fields of Pelennor...
...the carnage continuing endlessly
through the days and nights...
...the real victory still lay
in the hands of Frodo and Samwise...
...and the terrible weight
they bore closer and closer...
...to the destruction,
which was our only hope.
And finally, almost dead...
...without fully realizing
they had reached the roots...
...of the accursed Mount Doom.
Come, Sam. Dear Sam.
For the rest of the way we shall crawl.
And so foot by foot...
...like small gray insects...
...they crept up the slope...
...ever closer to that which lay
inside the mountain...
...the fire, and the Cracks of Doom.
"Doom
"The Cracks of Doom
"The chambers of fire
"The fires of doom"
Who causes the minutes to fall dead...
...adding up to no passing hour...
...bringing no change from day to night...
...as the unseen sun fails to filter
into the ever-present shadows?
Who is this dark lord who turns
starless nights into sunless days?
How does his piercing eye
see through the ever-present darkness?
Seeing all and nothing.
The Restless Eye, in his dark tower...
...wearing a veil of protective shadow
he has woven from fear.
And yet he fears, too.
In the security of his protective realm...
...he fears the winds of the world
are turning against him.
Tearing aside his veils and troubling him...
...with tidings of bold spies
that have passed through his fences.
"Doom
"The Cracks of Doom
"The chambers of fire
"The fires of doom"
- Did you see when the clouds parted?
- Yes.
He's spotted us!
It's all up, or will soon be.
This is the end of ends!
Still have a chance.
Bless you, sir, for your bravery!
Give me the strength.
I ask you:
Give me the strength to try once more.
Wicked master.
- God help us.
- Gollum.
Wicked master cheats us.
He mustn't go that way!
He mustn't hurt Precious.
Away, you scum.
What do you want of us?
Give it to Gollum, yes, give it to us!
Give it to us!
My Precious, my ring.
Soon it will be mine...
...all mine!
Precious, my Precious.
Precious.
Precious is mine.
You foul, reeking scum!
I'll kill you!
I can't strike! I may hit Mr. Frodo.
Let me get hold of the Ring.
"The bearer of the Ring
"The wearer of the Ring
"Stands on the very brink of fate
"Staring into eyes of darkness and despair
"That rise and shrink with hate"
Be gone and trouble me no more!
If you touch me ever again...
...you shall be cast, yourself,
into the Fire of Doom.
Look out! He'll spring again.
Quick, master, no time to lose.
Go on! I'll deal with him!
Now I can deal with you!
Don't kill us. Don't hurt us.
Let us live, please.
Let us live, just a little longer.
Live.
Lost.
We're lost!
And when Precious goes...
...we'll die, yes.
All of us die into the dust.
How can I kill such a pitiful
and cringing abomination?
I have come to know the strain of bearing
the Ring for even a little while.
But this miserable creature
enslaved to it for years...
Curse you, you stinking thing!
Be off! I don't trust you,
not as far as I could kick you.
But be off or I shall hurt you
with nasty cruel steel. Yes!
Now to find Mr. Frodo again.
And here it is. Sammath Naur!
Doorway to the gut of the mountain,
and to hell itself, for all I know.
Dark, hot, reeking.
Frodo! Master!
There's no choice.
I have to go in.
And at the Battle of the Pelennor Fields
the tide had turned...
...with the arrival of Theoden
and the armies of Rohan.
- Hail proud Merry!
- Hail Pippin.
Bless you for a sure eye, old friend.
How good to see you!
Bless you for bringing Theoden
and his army.
You've won the day for us!
In the midst of Theoden's glory,
his golden shield was dimmed.
The new morning was blotted
from the sky. And the dark fell upon him.
Fear no darkness, Snowmane.
No, Snowmane!
And the Dark Force had claimed
our savior, Lord of Rohan.
Lord Theoden! Nay.
Oh, my dear master. Oh, the horror.
No, my friend. He is gone!
You can do nothing.
Hear me, O Darkness!
I will avenge my lord!
And what event...
...at just that moment
caused evil to enlist such power?
Nothing here, surely.
But in the bowels of Mount Doom...
Master! Mr. Frodo.
Master, where are you?
Behold! The Crack of Doom!
- Master.
- Hold. Get back!
Master, it is me, Samwise!
And if that be the Crack of Doom...
...at last do what you've come
all this distance to do!
Now!
I have come. But I do not choose
to do now what I have come to do!
"The bearer of the Ring
The wearer of the Ring
"He hears a voice compelling him
"Filling him with thoughts
that echo in his mind
"It should be telling him"
No, Mr. Frodo.
Don't let the Ring claim you!
"Beware the power
is a power never known
"Beware the power
that was simple now has grown
"Beware, oh wearer of the Ring
"The final power has yet to be shown"
Get back! I am not the Ring's!
The Ring is mine. Look!
Master!
No!
Please!
He had come again, bringing ruin...
...turning hope to despair,
and victory to death.
Be gone, foul Dwimmerlaik,
Lord of Carrion.
Leave the dead in peace!
Come not between the Nazgul
and his prey!
Or he will slay thee in turn.
Do what you will. I will hinder it, if I may!
Hinder me? Thou fool.
Dost thou not know the prophecy?
"No living man may hinder me."
But no living man am I!
You look upon a woman. Eowyn am I.
You stand between me
and my lord and kin.
Be gone for living or dark undead
I will smite you if you touch him!
A woman? Eowyn?
'Tis Lord Theoden's niece!
She wanted to ride with us, but he forbade.
She disguised as a knight
and she came hither!
A foul, putrid wind!
How does she bear the stench of it?
Strong she is, and brave.
I must to her aid!
No!
It's empty!
Uncle, I have avenged thee!
Theoden was borne
from the field with honor.
And we wondered if, when our own lord,
King Aragorn, returned...
...would his fate be the same?
With the death of the Nazgul lord,
Sauron's forces lost heart...
...and began a retreat of abysmal disarray.
And then, as if our triumph
were but a child's toy...
...a game with which Sauron
was playing and taunting us...
...the tide of battle suddenly changed.
For from the wretched forces of evil,
a new cry of hope went up.
The Black Fleet!
That which I dreaded had happened.
For if enemy-laden ships had come
from this direction...
...it meant that the black forces had
already conquered Ethir and Lebennin...
...lands we had thought safely ours.
The tide had turned still one more time...
...and this time, against us!
But behold!
As the flagship's standard broke the wind...
...it displayed the sign no lord
had borne for years...
...and which only one lord could bear:
Aragon! He who would be our king...
...had returned!
And the hosts of Mordor
were seized with bewilderment...
...and they fled.
That night we held council.
While Aragorn had the enemy on the run...
...he decided to pursue them into Mordor...
...across the Gorgoroth Plateau...
...and to the bastion of Sauron himself,
the Dark Tower of Barad-dur.
The shortest way would be
through the pass at Cirith Ungol.
But that is narrow and dangerous
to move an army through.
And so he decided to march
along the mountains, north...
...and then west...
...to the haunted pass of Cirith Gorgor...
...and the untold legions of the Black Lord.
Why so glum, Wizard?
Does the mere thought of Sauron's
vast forces overwhelm your spirit?
This war is without final hope.
Victory cannot be achieved
by force of arms...
...whether you sit here to endure
siege after siege...
...or march out to be overwhelmed.
You have only a choice of evils!
Then, if the choice be mine...
...I choose to march!
And for days and nights march we did.
But my spirit was leaden.
"Win the battle, lose the war
"Choice of evils lie before your feet
"Retreat, retreat, retreat"
And finally, the pass.
Guarded by The Towers of the Teeth.
And inside, the Orcs made song
to match my spirit.
"If you win then you will lose
"Choice of evils yours to choose
"Retreat, retreat, retreat
"You are standing in the eye of the storm
"Move an inch and you'll be dead
"You are standing underneath
"The Towers of the Teeth
and the Eye blazes red
"Win the battle lose the war
"Choice of evils lie before your feet
"Retreat, retreat, retreat"
Silence!
Come forth!
The King of Gondor...
...demands the Black Lord to come forth...
...atone for his evils
and depart them forever!
Come forth!
I am the mouth of Sauron!
His emissary, you mean.
For you be no wraith,
but made from flesh and blood...
...beneath that mask
and those robes, even as I!
Is there anyone in this rout
with authority to treat with me?
Not thou, Aragorn.
It needs more to make a king
than a rabble such as this.
We shall see!
Be warned.
You are hopelessly outnumbered here.
Our decision is made.
Be gone!
We did not come here to waste words
in treating with the likes of you...
...one of Sauron's slaves.
Be gone!
We will meet your armies!
"You are standing in the eye of the storm
"Move an inch and you'll be dead
"You are standing underneath
The Towers of the Teeth
"And the Eye blazes red"
As I faced my own, almost certain death...
...I wondered, "Has he the Ring?
"Has Sauron really got the Ring?
"Where is the Ring?"
Had I but known that deep
in the bowels of Mount Doom...
...Samwise had been searching
these many days for his master...
...until he himself had reached the core,
the fiery forge itself.
And this, at last, is it...
...the end of Frodo's quest.
But instead of his triumph,
it ends with his madness.
What's that?
Gollum!
Here?
Fighting with something that is not there?
Mr. Frodo!
Invisible!
"Frodo of the nine fingers
"And the Ring of Doom
"Why does he have nine fingers"
Mr. Frodo!
"Where is the Ring of Doom?"
Precious! Precious!
My Precious!
My master! Your poor hand!
My master!
'Tis better this way!
'Tis better than that madness!
Look!
Mine!
Precious!
Gollum has completed our quest.
The Ring is destroyed in the fires
where it was wrought!
At last...
...the Ring exists no more!
She's erupting!
Quick, master,
back through these cracks, run.
All Mordor is being destroyed!
How?
How? There is but one answer.
The ring bearer has fulfilled his quest.
The realm of Sauron is ended!
And with him, us!
For the quake cannot tell good from evil.
Look! See ye!
The Lord of the Eagles and his legions!
Our armies are saved!
It's no use! The lava will have us!
I am glad you are with me
here at the end of all things, Sam.
And you with me, master.
I don't want to give up yet.
It's not like me somehow,
if you understand.
Maybe not, Sam.
But it's like things are in the world.
Hopes fail.
An end comes.
There is no escape.
Die well, Samwise!
Yes, once again...
...as he had so many times in the past...
...Gwaihir, the magnificent Lord of
The Eagles, had come to our rescue.
The mighty war birds
returned us to Minas-Tirith...
...where months later...
...our dead buried, our wounded healed...
...the fields of Pelennor
green with springtime...
...the city cleansed and rebuilt...
...the standard of King Aragorn
was raised finally...
...to the top of the White Tower.
And down below,
the restored Great Gate swung open...
...and King Aragorn officially
took possession of his capital city.
Behold! The return of the King!
"The end of the Ring, the return of the King
"A new age has come to the land
"The end of the Ring, the return of the King
"He shall rule with a true healing hand
"The quest is done
"The battle won
"And all have lost in the winning
"Oft hope is born
"When all's forlorn
"And there's a new beginning
"He who had the courage not to fail
"The bearer of the Ring we hail
"Praise them
"Praise them
"Praise them with great praise
"Praise them with great praise
"The end of the Ring, the return of the King
"A new age has come to the land
"The end of the Ring, the return of the King
"He shall rule
"With a true
"Healing hand"
"Frodo of the nine fingers
"And the Ring of Doom"
And now we all know.
But alas, look.
Just resting my eyes.
Sweet Bilbo, you will return with us
tomorrow to Hobbitown...
...where you may rest your eyes
as much as you wish.
Return?
Nay.
On the morrow...
...I depart with Elrond and Gandalf.
Depart?
From the Gray Havens.
On the white ship.
What means this?
We are old, our job is done.
The Third Age of Middle-earth is over...
...and as we pass on to the lands
beyond the sea...
...the new age of Man begins.
I shall miss you.
But I thought only Elves departed thus.
How can Bilbo join you?
Bilbo has served us well.
There is always room for a friend.
Have I served thee well?
Need you ask such a question?
I have grown weary of this world.
The weight of the Ring all of these years...
...has worn me far beyond my age.
I would, if it pleases you...
...set sail with you on the morrow.
Good friend,
savior of all we hold precious...
...of course thou might join us.
Mr. Frodo.
We cannot be parted.
But, must I go, too?
Nay, dear Sam.
You are still young in spirit.
You and Merry and Pippin.
A good life awaits you back in the Shire.
With plump Hobbit wives...
...good Hobbit meals...
...Iong leisurely smokings
of good Hobbit pipes.
And laps filled
with bouncing Hobbit babies.
Now you must keep the book
of the Hobbits up to date.
I will.
The Orcs and Trolls have gone to dust...
...the Elves are slowly departing.
Dwarves have disappeared
into their misty mountains...
...and there have been no dragons for ages.
Right!
What troubles you, Sam?
Will there be no room for Hobbits
in this new age of Man?
I think so. For of us all,
Hobbits are the closest to Man...
...the most human.
And one day they will be as Men are.
Look you.
Frodo is a bit larger than Bilbo,
just as you are larger than Frodo.
And younger still than you,
and larger are Merry and Pippin.
And, if you keep the book
of the Hobbits as Frodo asked...
...ages from now,
when your stories are still told...
...there will be those humans who might
well wonder, "Is there Hobbit in me?"
Is there?
"Roads go ever, ever on
"To the lands beyond the sea
"On a white ship will I sail
"Watching shadows part for me
"Leaving havens gray with rain
"Now that years have slipped away
"Leaving friends with gentle pain
"As they start another day
"Roads I traveled I must leave
"For I've turned the final bend
"Weep not empty tears but grieve
"As the road comes to an end
"It's so easy not to try
"Let the world go drifting by
"If you never say hello
"You won't have to say goodbye"
And lo, as foretold...
...the epoch of The Return of the King
ends at the beginning...
...of the new age of Man.
"If you never say hello
"You won't have to say goodbye"