Highlights
- Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy is a masterpiece that captivated audiences with stunning visuals, unforgettable music, and outstanding acting.
- The series broke into mainstream culture like no other high fantasy series before it, with scenes that have become iconic among fantasy fans and movie lovers.
- The movies are filled with suspenseful and epic moments, such as the battles at Helm’s Deep and Pelennor Fields, Aragorn’s speech at the Black Gate, and the emotional coronation of Aragorn as Gondor’s king.
Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy is a masterpiece that brought new generations of fans to Middle-earth. The movies are full of breathtaking vistas of New Zealand’s beauty and detailed handcrafted sets. Combined with unforgettable music and outstanding acting, it is no wonder that this rendition of the most famous fantasy books earned so many awards.
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The series broke into mainstream culture in a way that no other high fantasy series had managed before. Some of the scenes featured throughout the trilogy have reached even higher fame to where avid fantasy fans and casual movie watchers alike can recognize them.
10 A Ringwraith Searches For The Hobbits
The Stakes Are Raised For The Unarmed Hobbits
- Takes place in The Fellowship of the Ring
Shortly after leaving the Shire, Frodo and Sam run into Merry and Pippin. The four hobbits end up standing on a road when Frodo urges the group to hide. Moments later a Nazgul, or Ringwraith, shows up on horseback.
The hobbits crouch out of sight under a large root sticking out of the ground as the wraith stops to search for the Ring. The Ring nearly succeeds in getting Frodo to put it on, but Pippin throws a bag of mushrooms to distract the wraith before he gives in. Seeing the Nazgul inches away from the Ring is a suspenseful image so iconic that it was recreated from the animated movie.
9 The Last March Of The Ents
Nature Overtakes The Industrious Saruman
- Takes place in The Two Towers
The Lord of the Rings trilogy is full of inspirational speeches and emotional moments. The ents had remained neutral throughout the conflict between good and evil, stating that nobody was on their side. Pippin, however, had plans to push them into attacking Isengard, which would ultimately help save all of Middle-earth.
Treebeard, upon seeing part of his forest laid to waste by Saruman, roared out in anguish to summon his fellow ents. He gives a rousing speech declaring his intention to fight one last time before leading his people to destroy all of Saruman’s forces.
8 Rohirrim Charge At Helm’s Deep
Victory From The Jaws Of Defeat
- Takes place in The Two Towers
The Battle At Helm’s Deep is one of the greatest fantasy battles to appear on the big screen. Rohan’s mightiest fortress had never been breached before, so it was a natural choice for Theoden to trust in it to keep his people safe from Saruman’s army.
There was no way for him to know that the white wizard had concocted gunpowder bombs in addition to the perfected orcs that served as his foot soldiers. With the outer wall reduced to rubble, the forces of Rohan were forced to retreat to the innermost keep. Just as defeat looked inevitable, the sunlight covered the valley, revealing Gandalf, Eomer, and 2,000 fresh riders. Their triumphant charge down the hill blinded and killed the remaining Uruk-hai and won the day.
7 “That Still Only Counts As One”
Legolas Shows Off His Skills, And Gimli Reminds Him Of The Rules
- Takes place in The Return of the King
Sauron’s armies appeared at the Battle of Pelennor Fields outside the walls of Minas Tirith in several waves. The first wave was the army of orcs with siege towers and battering rams. The second, showing up just as the Rohirrim wiped out the orcs, were men from the East riding giant elephant-like beasts called mumakil.
Platforms with archers rested on the rampaging beasts’ backs, wreaking havoc on Rohan’s line of cavalry. Legolas, seeing the opportunity to take one out, climbs on top of a mumakil and cuts the ropes holding the platforms steady. After killing the remaining riders, he shoots the beast in the head and slides off its trunk only to be met with Gimli’s famous quip, “That still only counts as one!”
6 The Council of Elrond
A Key Turning Point For The Quest
- Takes place in The Fellowship of the Ring
When the Council of Elrond began in Rivendell, Frodo was convinced that his part in the Ring’s story was over. He had only originally agreed to meet Gandalf with it in Bree and had gone significantly further by getting to Rivendell with help from his fellow hobbits and Aragorn.
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It became clear to Frodo that the leaders of the races gathered in Rivendell would never be able to agree on who to trust with the Ring itself, however, and so he volunteered to bear it further. Frodo’s impactful decision, along with many well-remembered lines uttered by the soon-to-be Fellowship members, immortalized this scene for fans.
5 The Fellowship Walking Montage
The Movie’s Anthem Plays As The Fellowship Embarks
- Takes place in The Fellowship of the Ring
The Lord of the Rings is as much about the journey as it is about the eventual destination. No other scene captures this more than when the Fellowship leaves from Rivendell and marches across the Misty Mountains.
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With an iconic and triumphant score, the Fellowship is shown walking up mountains, along the ridges of giant ravines, and past old ruins. The sheer scale and beauty of Middle-earth are on full display here, and the audience gets a sense of how epic the Fellowship’s journey will be if the protagonists have to travel all the way to Mordor.
4 Aragorn’s Speech At The Black Gate
The Final Battle Requires An Epic Rallying Speech
- Takes place in The Return of the King
In the wake of Sauron’s defeat at Minas Tirith, the thousands of orcs under his control remained in Mordor. This seemed like good news to the battle’s survivors, but their only hope of ever defeating Sauron for good lay in the chance that Frodo could get the Ring to Mount Doom. Therefore, goading Sauron into mobilizing his army away from Mordor was the only hope for Middle-earth’s survival.
With such grim stakes, the small army of surviving men from Gondor and Rohan stood hopelessly outnumbered against the orcs at the Black Gate. Aragorn, ever the great leader, rides out front and delivers an inspirational speech to rally the men to fight in this very last battle. Gondor’s new King relates to the soldiers and spurs them on to fight for the fate of everyone they love, ending his speech with a quiet “For Frodo” before leading the charge himself.
3 Aragorn’s Coronation
Emotional Catharsis For The Main Characters
- Takes place in The Return of the King
The Lord of the Rings trilogy is a notoriously long series, with the Ring finally being destroyed around twelve hours after the opening lines of the first movie. However, with so many different characters and story arcs to wrap up, the Ring’s destruction is still not the end of the journey.
The audience gets to witness Aragorn’s coronation ceremony, in which he officially becomes Gondor’s king and finally reunites with Arwen, the love of his life. Aragorn then makes his way to where the four hobbits stand, who bow at him like they are his subjects. With crescendoing emotional music, Aragorn recognizes the merit of his former companions with a soft declaration – “My friends, you bow to no one” and instead bows down to them. The hobbits stand in awe as hundreds of people recognize their heroism and great deeds.
2 Rohirrim Charge At Pelennor Fields
A Triumphant & Hopeful Charge For The People Of Middle-Earth
- Takes place in The Return of the King
Gondor’s army steadily lost ground once the battle for Minas Tirith began. Trolls pushed siege towers to the walls, and the gates were breached with a massive battering ram called Grond. Like in Helm’s Deep, the day seemed all but lost until the riders of Rohan appeared on the horizon.
King Theoden shouted orders to his generals and then gave a rousing speech to the assembled army. The speech grows into a chant, shouted in unison by all seven thousand horsemen. The final shout of “Death!” is accompanied by war horns and majestic trumpets as their horses crash into the back flank of the orc army spread across the fields of Pelennor.
1 Bridge of Khazad-Dum
A Devastating Moment That Shook The Fellowship
- Takes place in The Fellowship of the Ring
The Balrog is a demon left on Middle-earth after the fall of Sauron’s master, Morgoth. Gandalf knew that the Fellowship was not equipped to fight such a foe after journeying through Moria and urged his companions to flee.
The bridge leaving Moria from the eastern side was only wide enough to allow an army to pass through in single file as a defensive measure. Gandalf chose this choke point to stand his ground against the Balrog. After using magic to endure the demon’s fiery blows, Gandalf uttered the famous line “You shall not pass!” and struck the bridge with his staff to destroy it. The courage and power displayed by Gandalf elevated this scene to a level above the rest of the trilogy. Though it initially seemed like a victorious moment, Gandalf was quickly dragged into the depths with the Balrog, leaving the Fellowship to think he was gone for good.
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