Parents' Guide to

The Return of the King (1980)

By Charles Cassady Jr., Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 9+

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

Movie NR 1980 98 minutes
The Return of the King (1980) Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

See all
age 15+

Based on 3 parent reviews

lovemovies.com
lovemovies.com Adult
July 11, 2020
age 18+

Un-friendly!

moveraterofloveranimal.com
moveraterofloveranimal.com Adult
June 30, 2020
age 10+

Do not watch! It really sucked!

This movie was plain bad!All of the scenes in here are more faked "animation" than any animation movie I've seen ever! This had some intense violence!

This title has:

Too much violence
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

This TV 'toon takes up the plot of J.R.R. Tolkien's dense Lord of the Rings trilogy of fantasy novels via the final volume, The Return of the King. At his 129th birthday celebration, old Bilbo Baggins, hero of The Hobbit, hears, through song and storytelling, the fate of a magic ring he found on his quest through the fantasy realm of Middle Earth. The ring, unbeknownst to Bilbo, was immensely evil, forged long ago by an entity of pure malice, Sauron, dwelling in the dark realm of Mordor with armies of grotesque "orcs," goblins, wicked men on "oliphants" (woolly mammoths), and other unpleasant creatures. Only by melting the ring in Mordor's volcano could Sauron be destroyed. Assigned this task are two hobbits, Bilbo's nephew Frodo and Frodo's friend Samwise, who sneak into Mordor while Sauron's attention is on making war against Minas Tirith, city-fortress stronghold of the race of mankind. But Frodo, weakened by the ring's corrupting force, has been captured by orc guards. While Samwise fights to free Frodo and finish the mission, even the great wizard Gandalf, defending Minas Tirith, begins to despair.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (3):
Kids say (5):

Created by TV-fantasy specialists Arthur Rankin and Jules Bass, who earlier made a fine cartoon version of The Hobbit, The Return of the King is darker and more complicated. Launching right into it like this abandons two earlier bookfuls of backstory and crucial character development. The herky-jerky narrative seems to leapfrog ahead in the storyline, then dawdle over repetitive ballads and juvenile-seeming musical numbers. Some characters, like Aragorn (just the King in the title, that's all) are almost lost altogether in the shuffle. Pluses are some voiceover performances (especially Roddy McDowell as a tough Samwise) and an epilogue that's clearer even than Tolkien about what's to become of hobbits, wizards, and elves in the modern age. Animation (done by Japanese but dissimilar from the general look of "anime") is okay but not exceptionally eye-filling.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about what makes J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy world so popular with readers of all ages. Does this animation do it justice? What about other screen versions?

  • The ending suggests that hobbits will evolve to become very similar to regular humans. Ask kids if they know people who remind them of Frodo or Samwise. Would they want to be hobbits, or other Tolkien characters?

Movie Details

Inclusion information powered by

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended movie lists

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate