I like both speeches from a linguistic point of view. What always bothers me in scenes like these is that I keep wondering how many men actually hear the speech. Fifty? Or is that optimistic? I wonder what effect a speech has on men. Does it rouse the men nearest to the one delivering the speech and is it a kind of 'vibe' that resonates through the men who can hear it and spreads to those who can't? Is that the way a speech can affect every man on the battlefield? I have the same questions concerning the speech Queen Elizabeht I gave at the battle of Tilbury. How does a speech like that work? (And her speech is a good deal longer than the ones mentioned above.)

I preferred Theoden's as well. Looking at the size of the opposing army would would drain the confidence of the most seasoned warrior. Yes they pretty much didn't expect to come out of it alive. But when Theoden spoke you want to go with him.

I've always liked Gibson's Braveheart. Where was it on that list you saw?

WALLACE
Sons of Scotland, I am William Wallace.

YOUNG SOLDIER
William Wallace is 7 feet tall.

WALLACE
Yes, I've heard. Kills men by the hundreds, and if he were here he'd consume the English with fireballs from his eyes and bolts of lightning from his arse. I AM William Wallace. And I see a whole army of my countrymen here in defiance of tyranny. You have come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What would you do without freedom? Will you fight?

VETERAN SOLDIER
Fight? Against that? No, we will run; and we will live.

WALLACE
Aye, fight and you may die. Run and you'll live -- at least a while. And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our freeeedom!!!

@seven_houses7 said:

I like both speeches from a linguistic point of view. What always bothers me in scenes like these is that I keep wondering how many men actually hear the speech. Fifty? Or is that optimistic? I wonder what effect a speech has on men. Does it rouse the men nearest to the one delivering the speech and is it a kind of 'vibe' that resonates through the men who can hear it and spreads to those who can't? Is that the way a speech can affect every man on the battlefield? I have the same questions concerning the speech Queen Elizabeht I gave at the battle of Tilbury. How does a speech like that work? (And her speech is a good deal longer than the ones mentioned above.)

Scenes like this require my suspension of disbelief. In reality, those positioned towards the back and those on the either ends of the cavalry wouldn't hear a thing. (Depending on the size of the army) I choose to think they had better hearing in these times.

I do like your theory that such speech give off a vibe that spreads through the men who can't hear it. It's certainly more acceptable than me thinking they had excellent hearing. Lol.

I shamefully admit I have not seen any portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I and her speech at Tilbury, so I cannot comment on this. I will add it to my list of things to do.

@lantzn said:

I preferred Theoden's as well. Looking at the size of the opposing army would would drain the confidence of the most seasoned warrior. Yes they pretty much didn't expect to come out of it alive. But when Theoden spoke you want to go with him.

I've always liked Gibson's Braveheart. Where was it on that list you saw?

WALLACE
Sons of Scotland, I am William Wallace.

YOUNG SOLDIER
William Wallace is 7 feet tall.

WALLACE
Yes, I've heard. Kills men by the hundreds, and if he were here he'd consume the English with fireballs from his eyes and bolts of lightning from his arse. I AM William Wallace. And I see a whole army of my countrymen here in defiance of tyranny. You have come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What would you do without freedom? Will you fight?

VETERAN SOLDIER
Fight? Against that? No, we will run; and we will live.

WALLACE
Aye, fight and you may die. Run and you'll live -- at least a while. And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our freeeedom!!!

It was actually first on the list. Well deserved. I love this speech as well. Most of the men were doubtful of their cause. He changed their minds.

I shamefully admit I have not seen any portrayal of Queen Elizabeth I and her speech at Tilbury, so I cannot comment on this. I will add it to my list of things to do.

If you're going to watch anything about Elizabeth I, watch "Elizabeth R" the BBC miniseries from the 70s. It can't be beat. https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/130931

My answer to the original question: For me it's Aragorn's speech hands down. It's one of the very best parts of the movie in my opinion. I think it has something to do with the horse. There's a nervousness to it, because the horse is pacing back and forth across the front line, which also suggests that Aragorn is attempting to make eye contact with as many different men as possible.

To get their battle speech to everyone, maybe they had a bunch of leaflets printed up and when the speech was finished, they had those in front pass them back.

Those are all pretty good speeches but they don't hold a candle to the speech in the bar in Team America: World Police.

@seven_houses7 said:

I like both speeches from a linguistic point of view. What always bothers me in scenes like these is that I keep wondering how many men actually hear the speech. Fifty? Or is that optimistic? I wonder what effect a speech has on men. Does it rouse the men nearest to the one delivering the speech and is it a kind of 'vibe' that resonates through the men who can hear it and spreads to those who can't? Is that the way a speech can affect every man on the battlefield? I have the same questions concerning the speech Queen Elizabeht I gave at the battle of Tilbury. How does a speech like that work? (And her speech is a good deal longer than the ones mentioned above.)

That's precisely what I always think in these scenes.

Does it distract you from the intensity of the scene, too?