The Return of the King

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The Return of the King

1980

1h 37m

Kids & Family

Fantasy

Animation

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

67%

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15 Reviews

39%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

A Hobbit faces the powers of darkness as he tries to destroy the Ring of Doom. Based on J.R.R. Tolkien's novels.

Steven D. Greydanus

Decent Films

Jan 30, 2004

C

Works even less well than The Hobbit, which really is a children's story… overbearing folk-ballad soundtrack doesn't even gesture lyrically to Tolkien's poetry.

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Tim Brayton

Antagony & Ecstasy

Dec 2, 2012

4/10

A joyless failure which has only the latent strength of Tolkien's fantastic imaginings to give it any merit whatsoever.

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Charles Cassady

Common Sense Media

Dec 15, 2010

3/5

Cartoon tale is darker, more complex than others in series.

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Caffeinated Clint

Moviehole

Feb 3, 2009

3/5

McDowall is terrific

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Christopher Null

Filmcritic.com

May 6, 2006

3/5

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Oct 14, 2005

3/5

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mikey K.

@mikey201 Feb 14, 2026

I like it one of my favorite

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Adam N

@RT93209334 Oct 3, 2025

Not quite as charming as The Hobbit, but still rather enjoyable. I only wish Rankin/Bass had been able to make all three books into films, rather than just this one.

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Andre K

@AndreKnoxArt May 27, 2025

Rankin & Bass Animated Classic!!

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Doug D

@RT61707944 Mar 23, 2025

I've always held a soft spot in my heart for Rankin/Bass, so that's where the second star comes in. But this one pushes the limits of my loyalty. Who decided that a folk-singing troubadour was the missing element that would complete this film? The songs work against the movie and make it cumbersome to finish watching.

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Leprechaun K

@LeprechaunKing Mar 11, 2025

Animation wasn't great. The storytelling is intact but just too many songs along the way.

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Bobby B

@RT43764831 Feb 21, 2025

Not bad but... not good. Just kinda forgetful. But when a character says something and then a song starts playing with that sentence as the first line and im just like🙄

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Jules Bass

Director

Arthur Rankin Jr.

Director

William Conrad

Lord Denethor

Orson Bean

Frodo Baggins

Theodore Bikel

Aragorn

Paul Frees

Orc

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Synopsis

A Hobbit faces the powers of darkness as he tries to destroy the Ring of Doom. Based on J.R.R. Tolkien's novels.

Director: Jules Bass, Arthur Rankin Jr.
Genre: Kids & Family, Fantasy, Animation
Original Language: English
Release Date (TV): May 11, 1980
Runtime: 1h 37m

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