I've recut my personal copy to remove those two seconds, and it makes my annual rewatch much more enjoyable.
Done right, it's an Achilles Heel moment, a monkey paw twist, a genie's revenge. The armor of immortality has a crack in the wording of its conveyance, and this is an enjoyable twist for the audience, if the reveal is done tastefully.
Taking off the helmet ruins all of that by providing a window of opportunity for the ring wraith to strike back. Cutting straight to the sword thrust instead allows the audience to understand that "no man" is taken literally instead of figuratively, and it turns a bad moment into a good one.
I've recut my personal copy to remove those two seconds, and it makes my annual rewatch much more enjoyable.
Done right, it's an Achilles Heel moment, a monkey paw twist, a genie's revenge. The armor of immortality has a crack in the wording of its conveyance, and this is an enjoyable twist for the audience, if the reveal is done tastefully.
Taking off the helmet ruins all of that by providing a window of opportunity for the ring wraith to strike back. Cutting straight to the sword thrust instead allows the audience to understand that "no man" is taken literally instead of figuratively, and it turns a bad moment into a good one.