'Return of the King' grabs 4 Golden Globes

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. - "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" and its mythical creatures are poised to go where no fantasy film has gone before -- the winner's circle at the Academy Awards.\nWith a leading four Golden Globe trophies, the final chapter of Peter Jackson's adaptation of the J.R.R. Tolkien trilogy appears ready to steamroll its way to the best-picture Oscar. Nominations come out Tuesday.\nA box-office juggernaut heading toward $1 billion in ticket sales worldwide, "Return of the King" took the dramatic-picture prize at Sunday's Globes, along with the best-director award for Jackson and the song and musical score honors.\nVoters in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences historically have been reluctant to even nominate fantasy films, and nothing as otherworldly as "Return of the King" -- with its epic battles among hobbits, wizards, elves and orcs -- has been named best picture.\nThe first two "Lord of the Rings" flicks -- 2001's "The Fellowship of the Ring" and 2002's "The Two Towers" -- were nominated for the top Oscar but lost. The sense in Hollywood has been that Oscar voters might reserve their top prize for the final chapter.\nJackson himself has said the rousing finale is the best of the three films, but he sidestepped speculation that the Oscar momentum was with "Return of the King."\n"I don't really want to think in such competitive terms," Jackson said backstage at the Globes. "I'm a filmmaker. I'm very happy to entertain people and very happy to receive awards. I'm really just very happy to be a participant and turn up at the shows and see what happens."\nNo other film appears to have support to challenge "Return of the King" at the Oscars. The Civil War saga "Cold Mountain" led the Globes with eight nominations but came away with just one win, and the film has not drawn the sort of widespread admiration that typically spells a best-picture prize.\nMeantime, "Return of the King" has been embraced by critics and fans. Even the normally snooty New York Film Critics Circle chose the populist Tolkien finale as last year's best movie.\nThat all bodes well for the film's chances at the Feb. 29 Oscar ceremony, even though the academy generally prefers more down-to-earth dramas or epics rooted in history.\n"It's one of the great mysteries of Hollywood that people in the business of make-believe don't have a great appreciation for fantasy," said Tom O'Neil, author of the book "Movie Awards."\nBut with the Globe wins for "Return of the King," Oscar voters "have just received permission to do what they've never done, to crown a fantasy film as best picture," O'Neil said.