Chapter 429: Something Major Has Happened

"Where are the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing? They have passed like rain on the mountain, like a wind in the meadow. The glory of the past has gone down like the setting sun, sinking behind the hills into shadow. How did it come to this!"

King Theoden's monologue undoubtedly deepened the tragic atmosphere of the Battle of Helm's Deep. How could three hundred soldiers of Rohan stand against an assault from ten thousand Uruk-hai?

Where could past glory be found? When would fierce knights arrive to reinforce them? Gimli, Aragorn, and Legolas fought alongside the Kingdom of Rohan in an isolated, desperate struggle!

This was a battle for glory and survival. If tonight was the end of the Kingdom of Rohan, their valor would be written into the annals of history. The noble spirit of humanity shone brilliantly!

Facing a stark disparity in forces, Rohan mobilized every last ounce of strength it could muster.

Women and children retreated into the caves, while the men—anyone capable of holding a weapon—bade farewell to their mothers, wives, and children, stepping up to the walls to prepare for battle.

Brad Miller had his fists tightly clenched. He deeply admired the director, Duke Rosenberg.

The despair and terror on the faces of the Rohirrim were captured vividly. He watched them distribute weapons—old, rusted, and chipped swords—to the elderly and the young. Seeing a ten-year-old child struggling to lift a sword but filled with the resolve to defend his home and family, wearing an expression of determination and fear mingled with despair, almost brought Brad to tears!

When the elves arrived as reinforcements, Brad Miller finally couldn't hold back, gently wiping the corners of his eyes with the back of his hand. Even though the director's adaptations meant everything was the same but the people had changed, he had no complaints, completely immersed in the emotion the film crafted.

It wasn't just Peter and Chrissy who had red eyes. Every viewer around him was profoundly moved, as if they were the ones trapped in that desperate situation. In that long, hopeless night, they had finally seen a glimmer of light!

And that glimmer of light was brilliant indeed. The commanding elven officer was a warrior princess!

Duke had made some changes here. The elves extending a helping hand were from Rivendell, and the officer leading them was Arwen!

The Battle of Helm's Deep was already heavily adapted, giving him plenty of room to unleash his creativity. He completely abandoned the elves of Lothlorien and simply used Peter Jackson's original Plan A.

Duke had initially hesitated, but after the release of The Fellowship of the Ring, Alessandra Ambrosio's Arwen had proven incredibly popular. Since Arwen and Legolas were the two great elven eye-candies, he intended to wring out their maximum value.

Of course, by the time the Battle of Helm's Deep was over, the elven reinforcements would be nearly wiped out. Arwen could then return to Rivendell and wait for her final appearance.

The battle was on the verge of breaking out, and the entire audience stared intently at the silver screen. David Denby, however, felt he had endured enough. He stood up, bypassed the rows of seats, and walked out of the theater toward the restrooms.

Even without watching, he knew what the next scene would be: combat, endless combat, and then those vulgar moviegoers whipped into a state of high excitement by the director's cheap emotional manipulation, some even crying with red eyes. What was so moving about a movie piled high with computer-generated effects?

Yet his disdain didn't stop the rest of the audience from watching in enraptured awe. Arrows rained down in torrents, and Uruk-hai fell in rows. For the sake of survival and their convictions, humans and elves fought side by side, battling to the death.

Just as in the first film, whenever battlefield details were shown, Legolas got a few more shots than Aragorn and Gimli. Here, Arwen had been added, and her combat style wasn't entirely identical to Legolas's. In the previous film, Arwen had merely been decorative eye candy; aside from the horseback chase with the Ringwraiths, she basically had no action scenes.

Duke had specifically instructed the action choreography team to design a combat routine for her that incorporated Alessandra's flexible, slender physique.

Like Legolas, Arwen was first and foremost an outstanding archer. In close-quarters combat, her weapon of choice was a long, narrow dagger. She relied primarily on agile, rapid movements to strike at the vulnerable throats of the Uruk-hai.

A marvelous spectacle also unfolded in the theater. Whenever Legolas bravely slew his foes, a wave of admiring gasps would rise from the female viewers. When it came time for Arwen to shoot arrows and launch rapid strikes, the collective sound of male viewers gulping could be heard.

It was no exaggeration to say that this pair of elves maximized the purpose of having eye candy in a commercial film to the absolute limit.

Although the humans and elves did not lack the courage to fight to the death, courage alone was not enough to turn the tide of battle against such a massive numerical disadvantage. The Deeping Wall was blown apart by the demonic fire crafted by Saruman and swiftly fell to the enemy. The Hornburg was in imminent danger, and humanity was driven to the brink of despair!

Was it all going to end like this?

The audience watched as the remnant forces of men and elves made their final stand in the grand hall of the Hornburg. After a night of brutal fighting, they had arrived at the darkest hour before dawn. The hall was grim and gloomy, as if the entire world was about to be swallowed by darkness!

"Ride out with me!"

Aragorn had never lost his courage. Bolstering the morale of the allied forces, he shouted, "Fight our way out with me!"

King Theoden, who had grown disheartened, mustered his courage anew. He ordered his men to gather the last of the warhorses, preparing to ride out and fight to the death.

Darkness shrouded the land, but the sun would eventually rise!

The Horn of Helm Hammerhand sounded once more, echoing throughout the valley. Using the brief window of time before the hall was breached, Theoden and Aragorn reorganized the remaining human and elven forces. With a final detachment of nearly a hundred knights, they launched a charge against the Uruk-hai siege troops.

The king's horn blared, and the knights led by Theoden and Aragorn charged outward. The other Rohan and elven warriors followed close behind, sweeping through the enemy forces in their path. The Uruk-hai were caught completely off guard by this sudden assault, their front lines instantly shattered. The valiant knights protected their leaders, charging down the slope of the Hornburg in a desperate, death-defying rush even as rider after rider fell along the way.

"Charge! Charge! Charge..."

As if sharing a tacit understanding, accompanied by the score of Forth Eorlingas, the scattered shouts of the audience converged into a unified chant. It was as if the squad of knights on the screen carried not just the hopes of the Kingdom of Rohan, but their own profound emotional investments as well!

"Charge! Charge..."

The collective roar of the chant nearly scared David Denby right back out as he returned to the theater. He didn't head back to his seat. Instead, he stood at the entrance, staring at the fiercely impassioned and uncontrollable audience, his eyes wide behind his glasses and his mouth hanging open. How many years had it been since he had seen a scene like this?

Right at that moment, the viewers in the theater began to stand up one after another. Whether they did it on their own initiative or were forced to because their line of sight was blocked, in just a dozen seconds, the entire theater was on its feet!

Everyone was standing!

Ivanka stood up as well. She glanced back at the towering crowd standing behind her before turning back to the silver screen. The charge was still ongoing, and warriors were constantly falling in battle. But this last hope of humanity never halted its forward march. It seemed no amount of hardship or peril could obstruct their resolve and courage to charge!

This was a battle of courage!

This was a battle of glory!

This was a battle of defense!

This was a battle for survival!

This was a blood-boiling, relentless charge!

Inside the entire Chinese Grand Theater, not a single person remained seated. Even the VIP guests in the front rows were swept up in this fanatical atmosphere!

As long as there was life, the battle would never cease!

Ivanka's eyes gradually turned red. Looking at these knights, she thought of her boyfriend. They were practically the perfect embodiment of his mental fortitude and sheer willpower—as long as he had even a single ounce of strength left, he would never collapse on the path forward!

Brad Miller was already nearly fifty years old. Yet standing there in the Nokia Square Theater, his spirit was euphoric and his blood boiling. He wished for nothing more than to transform into one of those knights, tearing out of this filthy, wicked ocean of Orcs to welcome the rising sun.

Standing at the entrance, David Denby was at a loss for words. This was a very basic emotional manipulation tactic—in his eyes, it was even somewhat crude, lacking any real brilliance. But it was exactly these cheap parlor tricks that whipped the hundreds of audience members in the theater into an uncontrollable frenzy.

"The moviegoers of the world have fallen into depravity!" David Denby left this parting remark, turning and walking out of the theater.

Just like when he had arrived, however, no one even spared him a glance.

The audience's eyes were glued to the silver screen. Who would pay any attention to a film critic long past his prime?

Even the longest charge eventually came to an end. The detachment that broke out of the Hornburg paid a bitter price. Dozens of knights died valiantly on the path of the charge, leaving less than twenty riders to plunge into the valley, only to fall into the heavy encirclement of the Uruk-hai army.

Everyone knew humanity wouldn't lose this war, but they still couldn't stop worrying.

In the Chinese Grand Theater, many people clasped their hands together, praying for Theoden, Aragorn, and their men.

In the New York AMG Theater Chain, quite a few murmured in low whispers, yearning for the moment of light to arrive.

The film would not let the audience down, and Duke would not disappoint the fans. In this darkest of hours, a loud, clear horse's whinny rang out, rousing the spirits of Theoden and Aragorn, and revitalizing the audience's spirits as well!

The sun would rise after all, and light would inevitably drive away the darkness!

On the eastern slope, silhouetted against the rosy dawn light, Gandalf appeared in white robes upon a white horse, instantly capturing everyone's eyes.

"Reinforcements have arrived!"

Someone shouted, throwing the theater into instant pandemonium.

"Reinforcements are here! Our reinforcements have arrived!"

Right at that moment, Ivanka felt a sharp sting in her nose. She bit her lip hard, keeping the hot tears welling in her eyes from spilling over. She had never been a huge movie buff, yet she suddenly wondered—could she actually be moved to such an extent by a film?

Her eyes drifted slightly to the side. Right next to her, two trails of clear tears were already tracing their way down Jane Lauder's face. Jane seemed completely oblivious to them, her gaze fixed tightly on the silver screen.

Was this the magic of cinema? Ivanka looked around. Ever since the audience had stood up, no one had sat back down. Every single person was on their feet, standing and waiting for the film to finish. Their hands were tightly clenched, as if they were waiting to offer the most passionate round of applause the very second the movie ended!