Thiel-a-Vision Review: The Return of the King (1980)

This made-for-TV animated feature was the first adaptation of the conclusion of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings literary epic. Made by Rankin-Bass, the producers of TV specials such as Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer, it was intended to follow-up their successful cartoon version of The Hobbit. 

Unofficially, it also served as a pseudo-sequel to Ralph Bakshi's theatrical Lord of the Rings project, which had stopped midway through the second book of the trilogy. Unfortunately, there's a large gap between the conclusion of that film and the start of The Return of the King, so those seeking closure have to look elsewhere.

Lacking the rights to the first two books, The Return of the King haphazardly attempts to recap the events that bring Frodo and Sam to the borders of Mordor, but skips any real explanation of Sauron or his relationship to the One Ring. It starts in the middle of the story and hits the ground running.

This inability to refer to previous events leads to one of my favorite moments. Sam finds a glass phial among Frodo's possessions, and uses its magic to ward off the guardians of an Orc-infested tower. Later, when he asks Frodo what it is, Frodo can only reply, "The Phial of Galadriel. I can say no more."

This film was misbegotten from the beginning. Whereas The Hobbit was appropriate material for a lighthearted, song-filled kids' flick, The Return of the King is the darkest portion of a complicated storyline. Adding tunes to the bleak trek through Mordor is an absurd notion, though it does result in the hilarious Orc anthem, "When There's a Whip, There's a Way."

While there are frequent references to the pending return of King Aragorn, he plays a very minor role in the film. Meanwhile, important characters from the novels such as Gimli and Legolas are completely omitted, though I believe that Faramir makes a silent cameo near the end.

The voice work, so strong in The Hobbit, is distracting here. Roddy McDowell plays Samwise about as gay as you might expect, though I suppose that's not entirely inappropriate. Casey Kasem, Shaggy himself, is Merry the hobbit, and sounds out of place alongside John Huston's Gandalf. It's also very disconcerting when the Lord of the Nazgul speaks with the very familiar voice of any number of Scooby-Doo villains.

There are some decent moments, including the showdown between Eowyn and the Witchking, as well as the final conversation between Sam and Frodo on the slopes of Mount Doom. On the other hand, there's a dream sequence in which the hobbits exchange pleasantries with Orc soldiers in a flowery meadow. 

Overall, The Return of the King is worthwhile mostly as a curiosity piece, as well as a counterpoint to Peter Jackson's live-action adaptation.

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