Who rules whom?

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Rating: 14A: Intense epic battle sequences and frightening images. Parents strongly cautioned.

It is a time when all hope seems lost, when all friendships seem uncertain and when success seems impossible.

In the conclusion of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, evil forces attack Minas Tirith in an effort to wipe out the race of Men. Frodo (Elijah Wood) and Sam (Sean Astin), still trying to determine if Gollum (Andy Serkis) is a friend or a foe, pursue their daunting task of casting the final ring into the fires of Mount Doom. And Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen) must answer the call to be king if there is any hope of defeating the enemy.

This epic picture, the finale to what could be considered the trilogy event of the decade, presents us with at least two key themes: the courage to pursue a calling and the problem of sin.

“Courage is your best defence now,” Gandalph (Ian McKellen) says as the armies prepare for war. The dwarf Gimli, always reliable for courage, commitment and comic relief, considers the situation and remarks: “Certainty of death. Small chance of success. What are we waiting for?” The Fellowship demonstrates that courage is not based on whether success is possible, but rather whether that courage is rooted in the validity of the cause for which they are fighting.

Frodo, Gollum and Aragorn would be the front-running candidates for central figure in Lord of the Rings. But it could also be said that the ring itself best embodies the story’s theme and purpose. In part one, Boromir was so fascinated with the ring that it led to his demise. In part two, Gollum’s history with the ring made it impossible for him to return and become Sméagol even though that side of him desperately wanted to. And in part three, we see that even the very best struggled with casting the ring into the fire. The ring, like sin, gives the possessor the illusion of power while deviously robbing the possessor of the will to refuse it.

It presents us with a paradox. If we know sin is poison, why do we engage in it? After Pippin foolishly takes a look into a seeing object his friend Merry scolds him by asking him: “Why did you look?” “I can’t help it,” Pippin responds which echoes a similar theme by Gollum who blamed the ring for his evil when he says “The Precious made us do it.”

The trilogy investigated the battle of good versus evil in terms of friendship, commitment, courage and the desire to be free from bondage. It showed how Frodo and the ring each struggled to be master over the other. And to the victor went the right to be lord of the rings.

Paul H. Boge is a writer and an engineer. His novel The Chicago Healer will be available Easter 2004. He attends North Kildonan MB church in Winnipeg.