Product Description

This critically acclaimed epic trilogy follows the quest undertaken by the hobbit Frodo Baggins and his fellowship of companions to save Middle-earth by destroying the One Ring and defeating the evil forces of the Dark Lord Sauron. With new and extended scenes carefully added back into the film the 12-disc set also includes hours of bonus features.Running Time: 785 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: SCI-FI/FANTASY UPC: 794043734724

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #425 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2004-12-14
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: Box set, DTS Surround Sound, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 12
• Dimensions: 2.90 pounds
• Running time: 681 minutes

Amazon.com
The extended editions of Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings present the greatest trilogy in film history in the most ambitious sets in DVD history. In bringing J.R.R. Tolkien's nearly unfilmable work to the screen, Jackson benefited from extraordinary special effects, evocative New Zealand locales, and an exceptionally well-chosen cast, but most of all from his own adaptation with co-writers Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, preserving Tolkien's vision and often his very words, but also making logical changes to accommodate the medium of film. While purists complained about these changes and about characters and scenes left out of the films, the almost two additional hours of material in the extended editions (about 11 hours total) help appease them by delving more deeply into Tolkien's music, the characters, and loose ends that enrich the story, such as an explanation of the Faramir-Denethor relationship, and the appearance of the Mouth of Sauron at the gates of Mordor. In addition, the extended editions offer more bridge material between the films, further confirming that the trilogy is really one long film presented in three pieces (which is why it's the greatest trilogy ever--there's no weak link). The scene of Galadriel's gifts to the Fellowship added to the first film proves significant over the course of the story, while the new Faramir scene at the end of the second film helps set up the third and the new Saruman scene at the beginning of the third film helps conclude the plot of the second.

To top it all off, the extended editions offer four discs per film: two for the longer movie, plus four commentary tracks and stupendous DTS 6.1 ES sound; and two for the bonus material, which covers just about everything from script creation to special effects. The argument was that fans would need both versions because the bonus material is completely different, but the features on the theatrical releases are so vastly inferior that the only reason a fan would need them would be if they wanted to watch the shorter versions they saw in theaters (the last of which, The Return of the King, merely won 11 Oscars). The LOTR extended editions without exception have set the DVD standard by providing a richer film experience that pulls the three films together and further embraces Tolkien's world, a reference-quality home theater experience, and generous, intelligent, and engrossing bonus features. --David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews

The rings are golden.
In the opening years of the 21st century, J.K. Rowling and Peter Jackson, acting separately, delivered fantasy storytelling out of the shadows to the centre of popular culture. Rowling's "Harry Potter" novels and the films based on them were a new phenomenon, but Jackson's part was the adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's epic "Lord of the Rings" book series for the big screen. This series of three blockbuster films, the last of which captured the Best Picture Academy Award, is here collected in the legendary "extended editions" format, which have much additional footage that had to be cut from the already absurdly long theatrical additions.

I'll not recap the plot, which has been done here many times already, and begin by discussing some points about the films. The main criticism that might be lodged against the Extended Editions of the series is that, with each running circa 4 hours, it is physically exhausting to watch this series. It is seldom dull, but the length takes its toll nonetheless (I generally watched one DVD per night in my initial viewing). This matches my experience with the books to an extent. For all that, the films are a marvelous experience scene-to-scene, and as a whole; just, as I said, long.

The first film chronicles the foundation of the Fellowship of the Ring and their eventual dissolution, at which point they split into three plot plotlines, two of which run throughout the rest of the story, which are of unequal entertainment value:

1) Frodo and Sam's journey to Mordor to destroy the One Ring is arguably the "main" plot of the series. It can be a bit dull at times, since neither character is much of an action hero (or particularly lively), though it features Smeagol/Gollum (Andy Serkis), perhaps the series' most fascinating and iconic character. Actors Wood and Astin generate a powerful oscreen bond (which is important, given how many of the scenes are just them).

2) The two comic relief hobbits, Merry and Pippin, are separated from the others, first by Orcs, and then by Ents. This folds into the third plot by the third film, but the Ent story in the second film is, I must say, sleep-inducing. Until the siege of Isengard, at least. Actors Monaghan and Boyd take their initially comical hobbits into some very dramatic and mature plaecs later on without losing the initial spark of the characters.

3) Finally, the plot that would be a great movie on its own, the story of Aragorn's ascent to the throne of Gondor, and the great battles at Helm's Deep and Pellinor Fields. The trio of Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli are fantastic action heroes; also to be found here are Gandalf, Theoden, Elrond, Eowyn, Arwen, Eomer, and Saruman. The action scenes that Jackson orchestrates here are revelatory, and the martial virtues on display evoke the best of our culture's heroic tales.

One of hte major issues ot consider is the difference in story between the theatrical and extended editions. Some of the scenes added are comic, but the latter two films are very much improved by the things that Jackson adds. Chracter-wise, Eowyn and Faramir, especially, benefit from the extra time. The extended scenes also explain more fully what happens to Arwen in the third film. And, perhaps most significantly, they provide closure to Saruman and his pet quisling Grima Wormtongue.

For any concerns about length, this series is truly the epic of our time.

I love this series of movies...
I'm not much of a fantasy movie watcher but I LOVE these movies. Maybe because the original books by JRR Tolkien or just the quality of the movie. No better movie out in my opinion but in 20 years, I'm sure it will not be so good. Love it...

Tolkeins masterwork finally on film
And it has to be the most unemotional, least gripping and universally badly acted movies I have seen in a long time. Certainly the most overrated. Not a single actor is cast right, the direction is oriented towards showcasing CGI (wow, look what I can do!) and has no narrative momentum built up from scene to scene. What a wasted opportunity. Everything was available to make it right and they could not have screwed it worse if they tried.
Stick to the books. They are brilliant and unforgettable.