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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Kai Lord" data-source="post: 1112326" data-attributes="member: 3570">Oh, you don't need FOTR to know "why" its all happening.  Its quite clear that a really bad guy named Sauron and his minion Saruman are trying to wipe out the good guys, and some of the good guys are trying to stop the bad by destroying the Ring.  That's enough to relate to the majority of the drama that unfolds.You wouldn't know that Sauron is actually a thousands year old dead guy whose spirit dwells within the Ring, but again, you don't need to know that to become immersed in the action.  Its not like the people of Middle-earth all know what's going on; even great heroes like Faramir, Theoden, and Treebeard could only react to their small piece of the drama, with no idea what was going on during those same moments in other parts of the world, or what specifically had set all those things in motion.To compare once again to Star Wars, did it hamper our enjoyment by not knowing who exactly the Emperor was or what he was capable of?  But then you say, "but its important that we saw where Luke came from" and then I say, "but ESB didn't recap Luke's farm life," and then you say, "but like TTT, ESB really can't stand on its own," and then I say, "For me it does."  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f60e.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":cool:" title="Cool    :cool:"  data-smilie="6"data-shortname=":cool:" />Obviously FOTR is necessary to understand the battle with the Balrog at the beginning but TTT sets up everything else on its own, and even recaps the Balrog fight (and expands upon it) when Gandalf the White first reveals himself.We know exactly who is responsible and what's at stake when the Wargs attack, ditto for Helm's Deep, and we're also aware that the Ents move against Isengard in retribution for Saruman's slaying of the trees.  Galadriel spells out just what will happen if Faramir dons the Ring, and Sam makes it clear just how important it is that they be allowed to destroy it in Mordor.Very true.  But the question becomes how much of the story is necessary for maximum enjoyment?  Or to enjoy it at all?  For the maximum, I'll agree and say you'd want at least to see the theatrical cut of FOTR.The arc of Frodo's lost innocence as he carries his burden is poignant indeed.  But I still think that TTT without FOTR is still more enjoyable than ESB w/o Star wars or Aliens w/o Alien or any other sequel minus its predecessor.  But hey I love the movie.  And IIRC its only the second sequel in history to be nominated for Best Picture, after The Godfather Part II, so they're definitely doing something right.  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f609.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)"  data-smilie="2"data-shortname=";)" />He was that old dude who fell in the beginning.  Don't know why, though.  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f61b.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":p" title="Stick out tongue    :p"  data-smilie="7"data-shortname=":p" /> Well I can't say I disagree, but you do make a pretty broad statement.  <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f60e.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":cool:" title="Cool    :cool:"  data-smilie="6"data-shortname=":cool:" /></blockquote>

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