[mormegil]

We might be given the elves a bit too much credit. One could also say that if all men there were even a quarter as lethal as Aragorn then the battle would have been different. Well that would be true but all men, and elves, are different in their abilities.

If memory serves me, most of the elf archers were removed a bit from the wall when they were firing their volleys of arrows into the uruks. This is of course due to the finite wall space and the fact that you need some non-archer units repelling the ladders and grappling hooks. So we have archers in the back who are more or less randomly shooting into armored uruks. That would greatly diminish their effectiveness.

In regard to the elves even being there I think it was well done in the movie. It was at a point when men's case was hopeless and there seemed no way out. After you feel their despair, we see a small band of fair elves arrive and everybody's spirit improves. I felt like Aragorn did at the time. Complete despair to sudden gladness and a new found hope. I loved that part in the movie and found it very emotional and vitalizing.