Glad I'm With You
I love the first fade-to-black at the end. Or rather, I love it and the entire scene. Frodo's relief and grief at the Ring being gone. And then he can see the Shire again. That part always hits me so hard - he can finally see all the joy and beauty that the Ring had blinded him to.
Sam... now that they're both about to die and he doesn't have to worry about Frodo being further lost to the Ring, Sam letting himself grieve for what he's lost. Frodo's grief as he realizes what following him has cost Sam. And he reaches out to comfort Sam, places himself at Sam's side, instead of Sam at his side. And he reaches out to touch Sam, a tear slipping from his eye, then a moment passes and Sam returns the clasp. Their hands tighten on each other... and we fade to black.
And miraculously enough, they are saved. But Frodo already gave up on life - gave himself up to the blackness. And he can't quite find a way to return to the world of the Shire.
Twice Frodo cries in Return of the King (and he's close to tears in Shelob's cave, afraid and alone), and both times, it's because he's letting go - giving up. The first time is when he finally and truly knows that he can't destroy the Ring - that he can't finish what he swore to do. He runs into Mount Doom, part of him, I think, desperately hoping that he can get there and drop it in before he loses the ability to.
But he never had that ability. None do. He's fighting himself so hard - without food, without water, without rest - always fighting the darkness and the fire. And in the end, he stands before the very fires and he can't let it go. He can't take that last step. He's failed and he knows it and the Ring takes him with a whisper and a tear.
And then he's saved - by Gollum and by Sam. By mercy and by love. There's that moment, when we can see in his eyes that he would rather fall, would rather burn - but because of Sam, he doesn't. And it's significant that this happens before the Ring is finally consumed by the fires.
And Sam saves him. And Frodo can close his eyes and see the Shire. He can see green meadows and fireworks instead of black rock and flaming pain.
The Shire was saved - but in Frodo's mind, it was not saved by him and not saved for him. He lost himself to the Ring - nevermind that he did what no other could in getting the Ring to Mount Doom in the first place - he did lose himself to the Ring. He's been naked in the dark and his wounds won't heal.
He couldn't return to the Shire because he wasn't of the Shire anymore. He gave up that part of himself to the quest. The Shire couldn't be home again because the Shire wasn't his anymore - he'd given that up and didn't know how to get it back.
Elijah Wood's a smart guy - he said the reason that Sam could go back and Frodo couldn't was because Sam never gave up what made him Sam, whereas Frodo did give up what made him Frodo.
There's a reason that I think of Frodo as a martyr instead a hero.