“We come at last,” intones Gandalf, “to the great battle of our time”. It sounds like the worst kind of marketing hype dressed up as a stirring morale booster. But with Return Of The King, Peter Jackson delivers on that promise – and has 11 Oscars to show for it.

Hurtling forwards from where Two Towers left off – Helm's Deep, lest you forget – King continues to skip between characters and plotlines as our fractured Fellowship scrabbles towards Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring. Their paths are littered with monumental dangers (ghostly warriors, super-spider Shelob, the ferocious battle at Pelennor Fields), but, through it all, Jackson never loses sight of the smaller moments, the minor tragedies. How else could Sam materialise as the true hero, Sean Astin emerging from the wringer as the proud owner of an award-worthy (though sadly overlooked) performance?

Yet for all the poignant musings on greed and sacrifice, heroism and friendship, this final instalment to a historic trilogy will be most remembered for its awe-inspiring, enormous battle. Gigantic Nazgul-ridden beasts pluck horses from the ground. Mumakils stamp on men and orcs, splattering them into the hard mud. And thousands upon thousands of armed warriors clash with enough force to shake Middle-earth all the way to Wellington. It's a triumph of computer effects, Weta's groundbreaking CGI throwing us straight into the heart of the bloody combat. Well, as bloody as you possibly can be with a 12A rating...

If there are any nits to be picked, it's that Aragorn's victory, via the help of some spook supporters, comes just a little too easily, and the ending (or endings) feels overstuffed as Jackson crams as much as he can into the final 20 minutes. These are mere minor mis-steps, however, in a film that takes incredible strides.

DVD Extras: The extras feel like they're placeholders, leaving you waiting for the inevitable four-disc set to come lumbering over the horizon like an Oliphaunt.What's here is serviceable, though. The Quest Fulfilled: A Director's Vision is notable as it traces the origins of the project right back to eight years ago, with Peter Jackson (then busy making The Frighteners) realising that computer technology had finally caught up with his imagination. The next part of the story has been told many times before – how the movie started as a two-film pitch to Miramax, before subsequently being reborn as a trilogy – but the added detail from Jackson and various execs makes it worth hearing. Best of all are the glimpses of the test reel that the Kiwi director shot to convince nervous studio bods he could pull it off.In comparison, A Filmmaker's Journey feels seriously under-researched and is reduced to cribbing whole chunks of The Quest Fulfilled in its interviews and behind-the-scenes footage. And National Geographic pitches in with a doc that links events in the books with various historical figures. It's strictly watch-once stuff, more a history lesson than an interesting feature.The internet featurettes, on the other hand, hold much more value, providing plenty of insight despite being short and previously viewed on the Lord Of The Rings website. The best is the look at the digital horse doubles, where the filmmakers explain how they achieved various impressive shots without endangering real gee-gees. The only problem with the docs is effects fatigue – once you've seen one nerd explain the process of melding CG with real footage, you've pretty much slept through them all. Otherwise, it's promo guff territory as we're treated to every TV spot and trailer, including the ominous-sounding `supertrailer' for the entire trilogy. Which you most likely own already. Okay, so it's nice to revisit the best bits, but honestly... Why?A release to tide most people over, but unless you're a rabid completist, best wait until the four-disc set...