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One DVD To Rule Them All
Obiwan Kenobi writes "In a gala event last night New Line Cinema revealed their Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring DVD Plans. This includes a 2-disc version on August 6th (in both Pan & Scan and Widescreen, click here for box art), and a special 4-hour, R-rated cut of the film debuting in a 4-disc set on November 12th. While the August release includes some nifty features, it's the four disc version, with the longer cut and three audio commentaries, that really gets the drool flowing."
Now that's what I'm talkin about!
So, do we hate the MPAA this week?
wow. that's a long movie.
Four hours.
I'll say it again, in italics: four hours.
I liked LotR, but am I the only person who would smuggle a cyanide tablet in a hollow tooth just in case I really had to watch that much?
When will it be available in Hong Kong for US $2.50?
I'm trying very hard not to think of either Hobbits or Sir Ian naked. DOH!
I hate the MPAA as much as the next guy but, quoth me: "Oooohh..shiny"
If you can't see the value in jet powered ants you should turn in your nerd card. - Dunbal (464142)
Seriously, in order to earn an R rating, they'll need to introduce a huge volume of profanity, nudity, or extremely graphic violence; none of which will enhance the film.
In my opinion, such additions would only damage the quality of the film. I liked it precisely because it was faithful to the books, without all the traditional garbage (see above) that Hollywood's executives think is necessary for a "mainstream" film launch.
'Tis a shame.
--
Spaz!
Or are movies going from the big screen to DVD faster and faster? I swear that some of the movies seem to hit DVD before they've hardly left the theater!
:-(
In this case the added commentary tracks are going to be great. Nearly every movie I've seen with these has been interesting. Wild Things and the movie with the kid seeing dead people (argh what was the title) had truly insightful commentaries I thought. I'll be interested to see what the commentaries for this one will have.
Looking forward to it and am glad to see it coming out so quickly. Nowadays heading to the theater just isn't high on my list - too expensive too. DVD I can watch anytime I want, unfortunatly it supports the damned MPAA
Build it, Drive it, Improve it! Hybridz.org
That site got /.'ed QUICKLY!!! Has anyone mirrored it yet?
----
WWJD...For a Klondike Bar?
All proceeds will be used to lobby Congress to write more laws to protect you, the Consumer!
This a waste. You can fit everything on 2 easy. And don't make me flip dvds during the movie, that blows.
My brother-in-law received a DVD with LOTR on it on tuesday. It's good quality, has some extra scenes on it a comes with a well photocopied case. This is in the UK mind, he says it comes from the 'far east'. I'll wait until the offical release and by a full DVD player (rather than my laptop) to watch it on.
"My word is my bond" - Cugel the Clever Jack Vance
Other than MPAA's involvement, EVERY movie released in the theatres half half of the footage INTENTIONALLY chopped, so you have to rent the same movie later to see what you have been missing.
Do not get ripped of by MPAA's money extortion schemes. DO NOT WATCH MOVIES ON THEATRES.
Was having trouble getting to the site, so:
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring will be released in no less than four versions this year. On 8/6, separate widescreen and pan & scan versions will be released, each a two-disc set with identical extra features. Disc one includes the film presented in English Dolby Digital Surround EX and Dolby 2.0 surround (sorry, no DTS). Disc two is where all the goodies are at, and retail will be $29.95 for either the pan & scan or widescreen editions. The extras to be found on disc 2 include:
3 in-depth documentaries that reveal the secrets behind the production of this epic adventure, including "Welcome to Middle-earth" in-store special as shown by Houghton Mifflin, "The Quest for the Ring" as debuted on the FBC Network, and "A Passage to Middle-earth" as premiered on the Sci-Fi Channel
15 featurettes originally created for lordoftherings.net, which explore the locales and cultures of Middle-earth and include interviews with cast members Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Liv Tyler and others.
Exclusive 10-minute behind-the-scenes preview of the next The Lord of the Rings theatrical release, "The Two Towers"
Enya "May It Be" music video
An inside look at the special extended DVD edition of The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Preview of Electronic Arts' video game "The Two Towers"
Original theatrical trailers and TV spots
Exclusive online content only available to DVD-ROM users via a special website set to go live on street date
Then, on 11/12, New Line will release a mega four-disc set, with a new extended cut of the film created by Peter Jackson himself, and featuring over 30 minutes of additional footage. This cut of the film will be Rated R due to some extended violence, and no retail price has yet been set for this release. The now nearly four-hour film will be spread over the first two discs and presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen (alas, no sound format information is yet available.) Unfortunately, all the supplements for the 4-disc set are still in production, so final details were not revealed. However, the disc is planned to include 3 audio commentaries and another four hours of bonus material. It is also not yet known if all the features on the "standard" two-disc set edition will also be included here.
Last but not least, New Line is also planning on release a special limited edition gift set of the 4-disc set, with two bookend statuettes by sculptor Sideshow Weta, the National Geographic "Beyond The Movie" DVD, and several collectible Decipher game cards. There were also rumors floating around that after all three films are done and released, a fifth mega-box set of all three with possible additional material may be released, which would be sometime in 2004.
Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.
Does the four disk set have both the Cinematic and the super duper long version or just the sdlv? In other words do I have to buy both?
Cheers,
_GP_
I'm probably going to buy it. Then in a few years I'm going to buy the box set of the series. And then the ultra-gold UVSQVD version the year after that.
Damn you marketers (for doing your job so well)!
Let's not stir that bag of worms...
It boggles the mind to think how much information four properly used DVD discs can hold. Certainly way more than is required by a four hour cut, with audio commentary. There's no reason why one dual layer double sided disc couldn't hold the four hours of video, 5.1 audio in several languages, trailers, stills, menu easter eggs, and a bag of chips.
I know I'm not the only one that keeps my DVD's in a CD wallet. And there's going to be 3 LOTR movies! Crikey.
Do I really need a 12 disc holder just for this series? Bah, humbug, New Line!
Er... sorry. I just wanted to grump. Go Frodo! Rah! Yeah.
Exactly how much of the extra footage is "closeup of ring" or "closeup of Frodo in awe".
Somebody walking out of the movie suggested that a good drinking game would be to take a shot every time there was a closeup of the ring. We decided that any viewer, Boris Yeltsin included, would be dead before a single RingWraith had ever appeared.
I would've much rather seen a Dragonlance movie. The Chronicles would have made a completely awesome trilogy of movies.
heh. better make that 12 hour marathons, once all three come out. i have a feeling that the R rated footage is probably still high quality, but by "high quality", i mean the same quality as the rock troll, as this is just extra footage that got edited out in mid-production b/c they realised it was too gory. still, a 7 hr star wars marathon was long, with eps 1-6 out by the end of 2006 (hopefully), and LOTR done by 03, you could spend an entire weekend watching pure geek vids! (and some Dr. Who to keep yourself entertained in the late night/early morning)
moox. for a new generation.
They'd better not screw it up with edge enhancement like goddamn Fox did with Phantom Menace. I didn't like TPM that much, or Star Wars in general, but by god I was NOT going to buy a disc that looks that horrible!
Pray that they don't do this. Forutnately, New Line has a good track record with making decent looking discs.
Something tells me dvdfile.com's news story was posted five days too early...
I mean you can only look at frodo being shocked for so long.........
Have you forgotten about the DeCSS fiasco? The MPAA? Any of that? Or does it just become easy to ignore your sense of morals when they produce something you want. Mod me down, you know I'm right.
When you look at some of the previous New Line attempts to fit as much as possible onto one DVD (see any Infinifilm title), you will realize this is a good thing! They will have more bits available to make the video and sound quality the highest they can be.
Am I the only one disappointed by the sound getting no better than DD 5.1? I'm all about DTS. And widescreen. I'm still trying to convince some of my friends that you GAIN by watching the widescreen. They always complain that the black bars destroy their viewing experience. Ahh well, a home theater nerd I am. :)
Anyone else reminded of Lucas?
"So yeah we'll release it in a pan and scan version and a widescreen version, and then after you get those, we'll release the extra special edition, and then after that we may release it again in a box set, and of course in 20 years we'll release the LOTR:Special Edition, where the Nazgul shoots Eowyn first, and.."
Heh, at least they're not releasing it on VHS only first.
If I can hold out, I want to just wait for the "mega-box" set, but I'll probably end up buying the 4-disc version when it comes out, sigh.
Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum sonatur.
Of course now would be a good idea to "finaly" release Indiana Jones on DVD ... same for the first Star Wars movies or Back to the Future ... then maybe even more "good old classics to be classified as classics" ... grumble !
-- Martial MICHEL
The theatrical DVD relase should really contain BOTH the pan/scan and widescreen.
..
I guess we are starting to see the limitations of current DVD technology (ie not enough space for both versions when its a long movie).
Back in the day they didn't figure into the equation that interactive features would become so popular / take up so much space. So when the movie is long you run out of room.
Now would be a good time to release HD-DVD
as a ex-employee of a movie store, i've learend that you shouldn't buy a DVD that's going to be in a series right away, sure it'll be great to be able to watch it and have it so soon, but after the box set comes out you'll punch yourself for buying all of them aready and not getting that cool looking box. So then your going to wonder if you should spend the extra however-many dollars to buy the box set jsut for that cool box, and after you do your gonna wonder if it was worth it jsut for the box, cus sure, the box is cool, but now you have 2 complete sets of the DVDs. on te plus side, you can lend out the old DVDs to friends but on the down side, your not gonna want to open the box set and see all the cool new stuff they have included with the box set cuz the new box look is just so spiffy, but then, on the other hand... you REALLY wanna see the cool new fetures, so you end up with a no longer spiffy looking new box set and a..... um... i forgot where i was going with this... anyways, just wait for the box set to come out cuz box sets are always better than getting the DVD's one by one. you get 2 things, a better deal and more stuff.
This message was brought to you by the death of 30 brain cells.
Actually,
LotR was released on DVD before it was released in the theaters. I know someone who's owned video rental stores for about forever and a day (can we say Video Disc? Note: not Laser disc, Video disc) Ah, those were the days.
Anyway, he has dealings with studios to rent their product, yadda, yadda, yadda, and had a special "screener" copy of LotR shipped to him on DVD before the official theatrical release.
So this two disc set is probably pretty similar to the data they already had that was DVD mastered.
Just my two cents.
"Genius may shine aloof and alone, like a star, but goodness is social, and it takes two men and God to make a Brother."
MIRROR!! (Box cover art)
l owship_w.jpg
http://www.uoguelph.ca/~mohanc/lordoftherings_fel
Just think Liv Tyler...We all know she got one good thing from her dad. Open up Liv...
I'd rather you do it wrong, than for me to have to do it at all.
R-rated cut of the film
Naked Frodo?
C'mon, you want to see it too.
We dance to all the wrong songs.
--Refused.
So do we get to see some hawt elfin titties?
Dragging people kicking and screaming into reality since 1996.
LOTR as it was on screen was great, but, still overall a kids/everyone movie. Moving it to R rated, DVD only release will make this the grown up picture that we will all know and love!! THANK YOU PETER!!
You put the disk in your player but being The One Disk it makes your player disappear. You then end up poking blindly at the front panel for the play button(or eject button...which ever comes first) or finding the long lost remote.
Hours more gore that has nothing to do with the books, story, or characters and only serves to justify the public's equation of fantasy films with immature teenage viewers ("Dude, that was the same arrow he just stabbed an orc with! DUDE!"). Drool?
If you want loads of special-effect-ridden gore, Blade II is out in theatres and costs less than a set of DVDs.
FotR was never a real attempt to adapt the book, the editing made it clear that parts had been held back for the DVD (eg, the trolls), while leaving in totally pointless material to pad it out (the long, tedious fight scenes).
What can I say? It worked: this is going to be the biggest grossing crap movie of all time.
TWW
"Encyclopedia" is to "Wikipedia" what "Library" is to "Some people at a bus stop"
... or does the face of Frodo on the box look like the face of Gowron from ST:TNG/DS9 minus the forehead ridges and dark colour? Look at those eyes!
Do I get the theatrical release and hope it fits on one dual-layer DVD or get the extended release and have to swap discs halfway through?
mbbac
Read the subject. Why, oh why, must all "epic" movies fall prey to the Celine Dion/Enyas of the world?
I buy DVDs for movies, not incessant caterwauling. Yeah, I know, I don't have to watch that part of the DVD, but, well, I'll feel dirty just knowing that the music video is on there...
On a side note, I hear that Lucasfilms has contracted John Tesh and Yanni for suitably "epic" songs for Episode 3. *grin*
I wish I had a kryptonite cross, because then you could keep Dracula and Superman away.
One DVD to rule them all
One DVD to find them
One DVD to bring them all
And in the darkness bind them
So, naturally, I'll wait for that one..
I already have LOTR on SVCD... picture is DVD quality or better but sound is only stereo. Problem is, each disc holds only 45 minutes so I already have a 4-disc version :).
-IOVAR Web Dev Platform
now, that would be quite a nerd movie marathon...
SW 1-6, LOTR 1-3, Matrix 1-3...
"Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true." - Homer Simpson
They are an MPAA member and they like to use the DMCA. Also, when you buy DVDs some of the money goes to the DVD CCA which is the entity which caused trouble for LiViD and DeCSS.
Vote with your wallet.
I thought Pan & Scan information could be encoded into it so that it would be widescreen on a widescreen telly, and P+S on a 4x3 one. I've certainly got DVDs that do this, but not sure if it takes a lot of extra space on the disc. Are they just ripping people off by releasing separate versions? Or is there actually a lot more overhead to encoding the P+S information?
If they filmed all three movies at the same time, does that mean that all DVDs will be done in advance as well? T
:)
They could probably finish it up quick and spend two years getting some really nice features
I've been explaining to folks in other threads that this movie was probably aimed at about 4 hours, and most of the "why couldn't they have this" complaints should wait until we know what got cut last minute.
I guess now, I'll get a chance to see.
There's still a lot like Tom Bombadil, the trolls, etc that I understand P.J. having removed. Some great big gobs of the book have to be cut, even if you make it a FIVE hour movie, and everything that he kept is, IMHO, either essential to the story or essential to getting the movie audience to understand the feel/background of the books. Even the expanded love intrest bit was a way to sneak in some info about the elves.
...And if you go to asia, pirated copies of the movie are available on every street corner, complete with closed-captioning and dolby surround sound...
--
Vote for your hopes, not for your fears - Vote Third Party
Is there any way to know if they did pan and scan correctly -- an example of bad pan/scan is Ghostbusters -- it seemed too digital, or something -- not quite sure what
I'll wait for it to come out on Beta.
of "Dead Alive" and "Meet the Feebles" fame. If you haven't checked out "Dead Alive", run, don't walk to your nearest video store. Be sure to get the "unrated" version, the R rated version sucks and completely ruins the humor of the film. Then get a bunch of your friends, get knockered (using your method of choice) wait till 2am and then watch the film. Be prepared to have to change undies a couple of times as you'll be laughing so hard that accidents are almost guaranteed.
"Meet the Feebles" was, well, interesting. If you have fond memories of the Muppet Show and want to keep them fond, then avoid this movie, you'll never look at a muppet the same way again.
If the "graphic violence" is anything along line sof "DA" then sign me up for a copy!
Of course, for Star Wars, all I saw was people crying about what a money-grabbing jerk Lucas was for releasing two versions. Now everyone seems happy that the same thing is being done for FotR.
R-Rated has such potential. Do we get to see Liv Tyler naked?
There's your reason to go see it again.
Did somebody step on your dick today?
--
"I'm don't know exactly what an AS/400 is, but I'm pretty certain I wouldn't want one up my ass" --Lou
Slashdot should stop testing during the day, or learn to test on offline database. :
------ Curiosity killed the cat. {satisfaction brought it back | it didn't die ignorant | lack of it is killing mankind
i'd just like to thank everyone involved with the LOTR project. Not only did you turn out a quality adaptation of fellowship, but you're doing a *DAMN* good job of keeping the fans interested.
:)
you can count on my hard earned cash when these dvds are released
You know that sooner or later, someone in the adult entertainment industry is going to come out with a spoof called "Lord of the Cock Rings".
Personally, I think Ron Jeremy would make a kickass Sauron. He was so darn evil in Orgasmo.
Ergonomica Auctorita Illico!
Does Peter Jackson think he is? Ridley Scott?
Seriously, why do studios have to exploit fans of a particular film? Why don't they release one DVD set with pan and scan AND widescreen AND all the extra footage?
If someone wants to buy some bookend sculptures, send them to a bloody furniture store.
So, go read the Very Secret Diaries. Great stuff.
"Gandalf told me to help poor unconscious Mr. Frodo get out of dirty clothes. So took clothes off him and gave him a bath. And another one. Then gave him another bath. Gandalf came and told me six baths was quite enough, Samwise Gamgee. Poncy old git probably hasn't taken a bath since the Second Age."
GROGGS: alive and well and living in
If they can release Police Academy 4 why not Trading Places? Better off Dead (I waited 8 years for this in VHS)? Pathetic really.
No, that's a long movie if it's dull, stupid, insipid or beyond comprehension (e.g. Cable Guy)
If you sit through 4 hours of gripping epic tale and mayhem and suddenly notice the sun, which was high in the sky is now gone and the stars are out, it's a great movie.
My only concern is when movies span discs. Unless I have a player that switches between them seemlessly, the illusion will be broken and I'll notice I'm watching a movie on a TV, the sun is a bit lower, my chair is uncomfortable, I've got the munchiest, etc.
And if you're still of the mind that it's long, just wait until all 3 films are out and you're juggling DVD discs (unless there's one BlueRay to bind them.)
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
If you've already read the books, than there's no reason for you to be up at night thinking. You did that when you were doing the original reading.
...I suspect there will be nine DVDs...
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
You forgot "Bad Taste", and "Brain Dead".
Two real classics.
Bad Taste in particular, since it is a no-budget-what-so-ever film, made on Peter Jacksons allowance while he still lived with his parents (it took four years). The cast is entirely made up by his friends.
And if you wonder why the aliens have such wierdly shaped heads, it's because they had to fit in his mothers owen...
As I said, a modern classic!
"First lesson," Jon said. "Stick them with the pointy end."
I know there's people out there that still don't quite understand that you can't fit a rectangle shape into a (roughly) square shape without leaving some space at the top and bottom... but sheesh. They spend all that money on making a movie with very dramatic scenery and giagantic battle scenes only to chop off the sides to appease some segment of the Wal-Mart shopping public who just wants the movie "to fit their whole screen".
Obviously I'm quite happy that there will be a version that preserves the original aspect ratio (as well there should be), but I just don't get the need to butcher the artform and release a pan and scan version at all. It's time for said Wal-Mart shoppers to get with the program.
-S
--- What parts of "shall make no law", "shall not be infringed", and "shall not be violated" don't you understand?
- Sundays attitude will be decided via a random number generator. Numbers 1-3 will mean we hate them, numbers 4-6 will mean we like them and numbers 7-9 mean we're flexible: if they put out a good movie, like The Matrix, we like them. If they put out a bad movie, like anything with Leonardo DiCraplio, we hate them.
Milhouse:- Wait...What about 0?
Bart:- Yeah, what about 0?
Martin:--
"Outlook not so good." That magic 8-ball knows everything! I'll ask about Exchange Server next.
Did I miss that? When I saw LOTR:FOTR in the theater, the fights went by awfully fast...so fast I'll have to skip frame to frame on my DVD player to see what's actually happening.
What is your Slash Rating?
TV aspect ratio is 1.33:1. This is also the "academy" ratio that movies used before studios went to wider frame. Some people were upset that Gone with the Wind was released in a "full-frame" only edition -- not realising that the movie was filmed that way (as were all movies of the era).
Widescreen TV aspect ratio is 1.77:1. This is narrower than both of the common movie aspect ratios, however, which are 1.85:1 and 2.35:1. Movies in 1.85:1 are often filmed full-frame or Super35, so usually you can just open up the matte a little bit without introducing complications and thus the movie fills the entire screen. If not, you could just zoom in a bit and the amount of information lost in the sides is miniscule (especially compared to what you get from cropping to 4:3).
2.35:1 movies will still retain black bars at the top and bottom -- they're just smaller than the ones you'd get on a 4:3 screen.
STOP MISUSING APOSTROPHES, YOU MORONS!!!
Actually "Brain Dead" is the US name for "Dead Alive" (don't know why they felt compelled to change the name). Haven't seen "Bad Taste", though if it's anything like DA or MTF, then it must be worth a watch.
"I kick ass for the Lord!" - Father McGruder
doesn't mean it was necessarily worse ;)
What is your Slash Rating?
I can't wait until some of Jackson's earlier work (also from NZ) is released on DVD (if it ever is)... "Bad Taste" and "Dead Alive" are two I would definately own... I did glance a Bad Taste DVD at a video store but it seemed to be of the "Hong Kong" variety.
-- "I kick ass for the Lord."
... "Give me a woman who loves beer and I will conquer the w
People like you and me of course will of course purchase the R-rated, 4hr cut, 16:9 aspect version. However there is nothing wrong with producing a version that caters to the 'Walmart cunsumer'. After all that is where most of the money is. We do want them to make at least SOME money on the dvd
>
I *did* read the book a long time ago. I remember it as being unbelievably tedious in parts. The action was unremitting which is to say the main characters were hurled from one impossibly dangerousd situation to the next with no variation of the pace such that it became monotonous. There was also little or no character development. The reputation of the book - as far as I can see - is built entirely on the fact that Tolkien built a convincing universe for his characters to inhabit.
:-) The three people I saw it with all agreed that it was quite poor apart from the special effects and one of them is extremely resentful of the fact that she took three hours out of her life to see it. I have to admit I did quite enjoy it, but I would not class it as a great or even a good film.
My impression of the film is that it was a faithful adaptation of the book
All I want is a secure system where it's easy to do anything I want. Is that too much to ask ~~ Randall Munroe
Gah. nowadays it feels like i'm working solely to support my DVD habit.
/. bemoaning all the money that the MPAA forces them spend to buy their products. Oh the injustice of it all.
Just since January we have (released or announced):
- Star Trek TNG season 1 (*drool*)
- AbFab, the entire season (ok so this one isnt recent but damn i can't resist the gin-soaked duo)
- Harry Potter - the Sorcerer's stone
- Monsters Inc
And now LotR. What's a lowly programmer to do?
Thank god for birthdays and christmas.
Seriously though, isn't this all a bit of overkill? Do we REALLY need to have THREE seperate versions of a single movie released?
Sure the extra footage is neat, and yes there's probably call for the individual movie and a box set version once all three are released, but do we need the extra release in November?
Things are getting out of hand when they're packaging extra DVD releases just to fit in all the junk that ended up on the cutting room floor. there's a reason it was cut: it was extraneous and unnecessary.
ok i'll probably be crucified for that.. but really.. enough is enough. Give us one version so we don't feel like we have to choose between the rent and DVDs.
The only reason I can see for going this route is to make more money for the already overly commercialized and money-grabbing movie industry. Any die-hard LotR fan (and there's a lot of them) is just GOING to have to have the first version as soon as it comes out. Then, three months later, bang here comes the second release of the same movie with new and improved pretty widgets. And all those same die-hard fans are going to rush out to have the latest shiny new version, complete with extra cutting-room floor bits.
We won't go into the hypocrisy implied by those same people coming back to
Moral indignation is jealousy with a halo - H. G. Wells
If you have to read the books to enjoy/understand the movie then the movie, as a movie, isn't very good.
The DVD's sound great, and I will definitely be getting one on the release date.
The only thing that would be better is a full HDTV 1920x1080i version of this beauty. A few months ago, JVC announced their "D-Theater", HDTV on a digital VHS tape. LOTR would be the ultimate movie to show off this technology & all your HDTV equipment.
Am I the only one finding strange the line:
Obiwan Kenobi writes "[...] New Line Cinema revealed their Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring DVD" ?
So, who will announce the next Star Wars DVD ? Harry Potter ? or maybe Buzz Lightyear ?
McCartney fans pay bus tickets. [...] Lennon fans too, with discretion.
Here's some dialogue they cut from the guy who played Elrod (who also was Agent Smith in the Matrix)
"Mr baggins, you are a man leading two lives."
"In one life are Frodo Baggins, resident of Bag End. You are a respectable hobbit of the shire. You never go on adventures of any sort, never cause any rucus, and you help your landlady take out her garbage. In the other life, you go by the travelling alias 'Mr. Underhill'. You are guilty of pissing of Sauron in virtually every single way we can think of."
"We're willing to wipe the slate clean, Mr. Baggins, if you go to Mount doom and bring a known evil of Middle earth to an end. My colleagues in the Council of Elrond think I am wasting my time with you, but I know you want to do the right thing."
Ergonomica Auctorita Illico!
The kind of malevolent scum who purchase movies in Pan and Scan format should be shot.
Actually, no. They should be forced to wear blinkers for the rest of their lives. The IDIOTS who decide to release movies in Pan and Scan movies should be shot. There should be NO OTHER OPTION than to purchase a movie in the proper format.
What the hell is the POINT of taking a movie with mile after mile of gorgeous scenery, and cutting all the scenery out? What! Why! What kind of FUCKWIT would buy that?
Put the little cracker assholes in blinkers. They don't want to see the rest of the world except that bit right in front of them. And kill anyone who decides to release a Pan and Scan version.
Directors should get it in their contract that not under any circumstances is their movie going to be made available in a pan and scan format.
"Information wants to be paid"
i can see your frustration since you havnt read the book(s) - keep in mind the order and number of books there are - and you can see by my chart below that the movie is number 3 in the list of books had you read the first two (or if they had done movies on these first) you would not have been confuused - the movie was made for fans of the book - not people who have not read it.if you read the books in this order: 1) the silmarilian 2) the hobbit 3) the fellowship of the rings 4) the two towers 5) the return of the king 6) any of the unfinished short stories also i know on the west coast (california) it may not be required reading, but when i went to school in connecticut we had to read the series as required reading so i dont know how you can say its not a popular book(s)
Ave Molech Setting
"This tv has been modified. It has been formatted to fit your movie." PAN & SCAN should be a CRIME!
Am I the only one that would kill for an 'Elvish Subtitles' option?
No, instead, you're junking all of the film by compressing its vertical resolution
Not with anamorphic widescreen, which is stored at the horizontal resolution of letterbox but the vertical resolution of pan-and-scan. The DVD player will let you watch an anamorphic disc in letterbox, pan-and-scan, or (if you have a 16:9 TV) true widescreen, scaling the image to match your display. Most of the recent players have good filters, so the scaling artifacts won't show up as much as you'd think.
Will I retire or break 10K?
Personally, I'm someone that can go either way.
If a movie I want to see isn't on your widescreen format then I will watch it anyways.
I think the solution would be to produce more wide screen televisions. As we move to digital broadcasts the question needs to be asked: Why are our televisions shaped so 20th century?
Get your Unix fortune now!
I predict that the next three Slashdot stories will go as follows:
One DVD To Find Them
Announcement of the The Two Towers DVD
One DVD To Bring Them All
Announcement of the The Return of the King DVD
And in the Darkness Bind Them
Announcement of the entire set on DVD.
[Aside] Actually, I really need to get around to reading the FoTR book so I can see the movie. This may even be one of the things that finally gets me to get a DVD drive (if I can find one that's easy to make RPC-1/region-free)... May...[/Aside]
Withdrawal before climax is very ineffective and those who try this are usually called "parents."
Couldn't this be the solution to the MPAA's nightmares? There's just no way you can leech all the nifty add-ons to these DVDs via gnutella and the likes (yet??). Why don't they just let us check out the movies for free and then have us buy the super-mega-über-bonus-deluxe DVD set with special extras _worth buying_.
I'll buy the super deluxe version if and only if it earned its R the proper way--by giving us some loving filmed scenes with a topless Liv Tyler.
I already spent 3 hours of my life watching it in the theatre. (2.5 hours of it I'm trying to get back)
Now I'm supposed to watch a 4 hour version?
I think I'll just wait for Shrek 2 in 2004 and watch it twice!
"A plan fiendishly clever in its intricacies"- Homer Simpson
"I liked LotR, but am I the only person who would smuggle a cyanide tablet in a hollow tooth just in case I really had to watch that much?"
Yes
The LOTR phenomenom is not new.
Every since Tolkien starting selling LOTR people have been obsessed with it and it has its own culture.
Its wierd, its not a geek thing, it a purely Tolkien thing.
You can run into LOTR fanantics in every career type, from House Wife to doctor to airplane mechanic.
ITs just wierd.
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
I'm holding out for the 6 disc XXX version.
If we keep adding to this list no one will ever leave the house...
Let's see... Buffy, Angel, The X-Files (seasons 1-6), Brazil, etc.
fnord
The last thing you need to do is read FotR!!! You will enjoy the movie much more if you don't know how badly the fucked with the book.
I'm probably in a minority of one on Slashdot for thinking this, but what, exactly, is wrong with Celine Dion? I think she has a great singing voice and I like many of her songs. I'd rather listen to "To Love You More" for the hundredth time than listen to anything on "The Mountain"'s playlist more than once. ("The Mountain" is KMTT 103.7 Seattle, and bills itself as the "Seattle alternative" to top-40 stations like "Star" 101.5.)
hyacinthus.
I said that if it hadn't been based on a popular book, I don't think anyone would have enjoyed it.
I fully appreciate how immensely popular the book was.
I'm not sure I see why your difficulties understanding some of these things matter at all. Saruman turned evil because he was offered a good deal? That's the thing about LoTR: the side characters aren't really important. That's why Legolas, Elrond, Gimli and a few others are cookie cutter stereotypes.
The characters we should be concerned with are developed. Gandalf, Frodo, Boromir and the rest get a lot of attention in the movie.
Oh, and this is fantasy! Evil does evil just because of course! You can get through both the movie and the books with this understanding although it's kind of fun to read the silmarillion and find out the original reason as well (Sauron's master, who's name i can't remember, thinks he's a lot smarter than everyone else basically).
You do know that the MPAA profits from VHS just
as well.
Or are you suggesting boycotting because of CSS/Region encoding?
Why? The best that you can do is buy them and un-css them to watch them in Linux, and disable the region nonsense.
Or are you suggesting a full scale boycott on
watching all MPAA movies?
There never was a DVD boycott by slashdot readers in general.
A DIVX boycott, yes.
*bus drives past*
I am Jack's Valenti. Without me, there would be no price gouging.
* Exclusive online content only available to DVD-ROM users via a special website set to go live on street date.
Wow, thanks New Line, for following in Lucasfilms retarded footsteps! I hope it comes with that awesome windows only Interplay DVD plugin - so I have to reboot to my Windows partition - only to find that it takes over all my video MIME types, only to find that the "exclusive" web link still doesn't work - and try removing it, I _dare_ you. DVD playback was completely broken on my Windows box. I ended up getting the stupid EPI exclusive content through morpheus.
I have my perfectly good EP1 DVD with its worthless web content - and now these guys are doing the same thing. Movie Studios - It's a DVD, you've got PLENTY of room. I paid for the damn thing already, stop making them 'dumb for no reason.' You know I'm going to buy both sets - we're fanatics and want everything, you've got our money already, wtf?
"One ______ to _______ them all"
so creative, thanks, we haven't heard that ONE TRILLION TIMES already.
And we wonder why this site is becoming a laughing stock.
Hmm... so you are too ashamed to even own up to William ("Why does God..... need a... Starship"?) Shatner?
Or... does he... fit into... the... "so bad... it's good... category?"
You either believe in rational thought or you don't
Thank you. I promise, it won't happen
XML causes global warming.
What trolls? The fellowship encounters nothing but the cave troll, and that was included in the movie.
Youe references to "wal-mart shoppers" betray a belief that "the great unwashed" with their pathetic small televisions don't "deserve" to watch this DVD. Speaking as somebody with a moderately sized television, pan & scan does alter the original cinematography, but the increased image size makes up for it in everything but close-up shots. At any rate, I don't see why a single DVD shouldn't offer both, except that maybe they think if I get a bigger TV, I'll buy their DVD again... yeah right!
Freedom: "I won't!"
How is this off topic?
ok then your [sic] infringing on my copyright! Could you as [sic] me next time before STEALING my comments for your own?
A nice 4 dvd set sounds pretty cool.
But what I want is one dvd with all three movies, so I can have a LOTR marathon - 9 hrs stright without getting up.
Been holding out for too long. Time to buy a DVD player...
--
http://www.aikiweb.com - AikiWeb Aikido Information
Right. So now that the elitists are getting what they've asked for, they're now going to petition to get rid of the choice between their preferred format and the format that others prefer? Honestly, does the mere existence of a pan-and-scan version cause you mental anguish?
How can we continue to believe in a just universe and freedom to eat crackers if we have no ale?
Here's some examples from Blazing Saddles, from a great "idiot convincer" site
Oh, and there is also widescreen-o-rama
Here's the list of new scenes in the longer cut of the movie:
-A new addition to the opening sequence in which Bilbo provides background on Hobbits and their history in voice-over as he writes his memoirs.
-A new introduction to Samwise Gamgee, seen in his capacity as a gardener.
-A scene taking place at the Green Dragon Inn, which introduces us to the camaraderie of the Hobbits (we see them singing together) and sets up the geopolitics of the story.
-The Hobbits witnessing the departure of the Elves from Middle Earth on the way to Bree.
-Aragorn watching over the sleeping Hobbits, singing the ballad of Beren and Luthien to himself in the night.
-Aragorn at his mother's grave, in which we learn that he was raised by Elves and that Sauron has long hunted him.
-Two new moments during the departure from Rivendale, one in which we see Arwen's emotional reaction to Aragorn's leaving, and another in which Elrond sees the Fellowship off.
-A scene with the Fellowship in the mines of Moria, in which we learn how the Dwarves themselves unleashed the fire-demon that eventually destroyed them.
-A scene at Lothlorien, where Galadriel bestows upon each of the Fellowship a gift which will play an important role later in the Trilogy.
-And finally, more footage of the battle at Amon Hen. This is not particularly bloody footage, but its addition will likely result in this cut of the film receiving an R-rating.
It seems like the added scenes will add much needed depth to the movie.
I know for a fact that I wont be able to avoid watching Attack of the Clones, even as I know that Ill be making MPAA/Lucas richer while watching a movie that will surely dissapoint me.
I CANT HELP IT... I AM A JUNKIE!!!
No sig for the moment.
I'm looking forward to the director's cut of the merged three movies in 2004. I suspect adding parts from the cutting room floor and revising the three movie scene order will make a smash movie. I'll probably need a lot of Hobbiton weed and Bree beer to watch to it all!
We've got a guaranteed 2 years, at least, of LOTR. Perhaps it should be made into a topic, so those of us who don't care about LOTR can safely ignore it.
Thanks.
"Would it kill you to put down the toilet seat?" -- Maya Angelou
It's still playing at a local Imax (where I saw it in December). If you've got an Imax near you, check it for Friday and Saturday late-night shows (after the Beauty and the Beast crowd are asleep). (Saw The Matrix at the Navy Pier (Chicago) Imax, very cool... :)
I thought this for some time, too, until I noticed that some pan&scan movies actually contain picture that's not present in the widescreen. This isn't always true, but some common films do it. I believe it is referred to as "soft matting" and the picture is filmed at 1.33:1 and cropped for the theatre, while the video version uses the whole image. Some examples: Spaceballs, Silence of the Lambs, Total Recall, Edward Scissorhands.
m at s.shtml
Another combination that produces this is filming on Super-35. This film has a ratio of 1.6:1, rather than the 2.35:1 we're used to. So it is cropped vertically for theatre and horizontally for 1.33:1 video. Examples include: Abyss, Terminator 2, True Lies, Apollo 13, Titanic.
Sometimes this results in you seeing things you weren't supposed to. In Terminator 2 at 1.33:1 (full-screen on a normal TV) you can see the pay phone is already broken, or John Cleese's shorts in the Fish Called Wanda 2 "nude" scene.
http://www.britannia.org/film/support/screenfor
See this page for details:
http://www.cs.tut.fi/~leopold/Ld/FilmToVideo/
Now, you're probably saying to yourself "but we could still use one master stream and crop it differently for the two formats." And you're right, assuming the format supported that. But you still wouldn't want to-- since we're stuck at 720x480, we want the film->DVD transfer to use as much of the available space as possible. So we have an anamorphic widescreen that fills the data area, and we have a separate pan&scan that fills the data area. If we didn't do this, both formats would contain less image data-- something that is already in short supply at NTSC and PAL resolutions.
A cue track and the ability to switch aspect ratios on the fly would be brilliant additions to the next standard, though!!
how come the iPod with all of 5 stories has a logo
starwars has a logo
but LOTR has no LOGO? we got 2 more films.. a Dozen award shows...at LEAST 4 DVD releases (collectors, box set ect..) 6 Reviews (movies, diffrent DVD releases) ect.. ect..
and an addinfinitum amount of hype and rumor postings.
dont you think LOTR should get a logo guys?
The More Knowledge you have the Luckier you Get- J.R. Ewing
Please tell me it is going to have some elf abuse.....
Yes, I am talking about the same books. Books that describe incredibly fierce battles, but DO NOT endulge in the currently-trendy depiction of spurting blood from severed arteries, entrails spilling onto the ground, etc. as I fear an R rated version of the movie may present. That detail (or lack thereof) is left to the imagination of the reader, and is one of the benefits of the book. The grand scope and feel of the book does not suffer from this "deficit" and neither does the film.
You may call it sanitised, but for this viewer, it is not necessary to show every detail. The presentation is more powerful without the "shock value" of gore (which, btw, doesn't shock me as much as it bores me -- it's the mark of a producer that can't adequately convey an emotional or powerful scene).
--
Spaz!
We do want them to make at least SOME money on the dvd
Jesus, why? The more money AOL loses, the better. It's not like they're not going to release DVDs for all three movies.
Actually, mini-series adaptations aren't ALWAYS bad. My fiance got me into the 6 part, 5 hour Pride and Prejudice mini-series, which apparently does the whole book word-for-word. She has loved Jane Austen since she was a kid and she loves the mini-series (I just bought her the DVD. Yay MPAA!), and I must admit that I find it quite enjoyable too.
:)
I'm sure there must be some others that aren't all bad. Of course, as opposed to LOTR, Jane Austen novels don't require a lot of special effects
Chris
Wasn't this movie long enough already? Christ! a FOUR hour cut? gawd
LOL .. talk about being petty ;P
--Ne auderis delere orbem rigidum meum, non erravi pernicose!
`Nearly 4 hours' is good, but wasn't Peter Jackson's original `Dream Cut' over five hours long? Wasn't the extra footage good enough, or is it being saved for yet another money-spinning DVD release in a year or two?
Ceterum censeo subscriptionem esse delendam.
Ok, I know I may be modded down for saying this, but it has to be said. Seeing all the "rah-rah! yea!" posts, from everybody about "yea, the DVD! the DVD!" in a small way makes me sick...
/. is simply paying lip service to the "DMCA is bad" meme - while secretly purchasing DVDs as fast as they can. Maybe you have one of those "grey-market" players (not sure what to call them, but you know what I mean, like the APEX ones that allow you to bypass a lot of the controls) - but as long as you are buying DVDs, you are still supporting them...
Alright, I understand that you have the right to make your own choices, and I support that.
I understand that you liked the movie (hell, even I went to see it on the opening night, and I liked it), and want to watch it again and again.
But all of this - ALL OF IT - saddens and sickens me to no end...
I went and saw the movie - because I have always been a fan of Tolkien's work. I have multiple copies and editions of the book, boxed sets, paperbacks - plus spinoff books and such (such as the solo adventuring "Middle Earth Quest" novels, the "Atlas of Middle Earth" book, and even a funky "divine the future" set). I also have a few copies of Tolkien's lesser known books and works. So, I simply had to see the movie.
I didn't feel good about this. I just know - KNOW - that some of my money went to the MPAA. I try to counteract this by donating to the EFF when and where I can, but I still feel like I have "given to the enemy". And yes, I consider the MPAA, and their members - enemies. I have written many times that I even "agonize" over my purchase of a 19" monitor that has a Trinitron tube, because I know that I have given in some small part to Sony, member of both the MPAA and RIAA!!!
But this is as close as I have gotten to "giving" to these beasts, who seek to enslave us and our rights regarding IP. I will not buy a DVD player. I will not buy DVDs.
Until this gets sorted out, and hopefully the people's rights are restored to their proper place (I constantly hope for a world where copyright goes back to a more sane level as originally envisioned, where works that should be public domain today are, were it not for law. Where the DMCA, and the SSSCA, or whatever they are calling it now - is no more. I won't ramble any more, you know what I mean), I simply refuse.
But the rate at which this is going it seems like a couple more "new" formats will crop up, each with more draconian controls than the last, will pop up, and YOU, YES YOU PEOPLE - will BUY INTO THEM, furthering their control over yourselves.
It seems like a lot of
I tend to wonder if I ever will buy a DVD player, the rate things are going - how long have DVDs and players been out now? Two years? Three years? Longer? It seems longer - but I am not sure off-hand... Still, despite the protests of good people, the laws continue to erode are rights...
I sometimes feel I am destined to become a "crotchety old man" raving in his old age about the people's "right to read" (and damn, I just reread that essay last night), while trying to watch an old videotaped show or something on a duct taped and patched together VCR (or worse, read one of my books), sitting in a darkened, soundproofed and locked basement to keep the neighbors from calling the IP police should they know I have non-subscription IP for viewing...
Seem impossible? Seem like something that could never happen?
OPEN UP YOUR FUCKING EYES PEOPLE - IT IS HAPPENNING...RIGHT...NOW...TODAY!!!
Reason is the Path to God - Anon
Since this wasn't in the theatrical release, I'm wondering how the presence of these items -- which do play an important (read, live-saving) role later in the book -- is going to be explained.
Is the audience expected to believe that the phial of Galadriel in Frodo's jacket just sort of appeared there? Or will the theatrical release of the next two films have an extra voice-over from Frodo, "Oh, hey, check out this shiny thing lying underneath a rock! I'll just keep this, who knows, maybe it'll be useful."
You cannot apply a technological solution to a sociological problem. (Edwards' Law)
which proves them right, yeah we are a bunch of thiefs, but also allows us to get the DVD without giving the enemy any cash.
we should boycott, but if you can't live without it, please DONT pay for it.
I don't own the originals anymore (darned magnets and video tapes), but I'm of the same mind. Then again, I had a time stomaching midichlorians in Episode I. Ah well...
What is your Slash Rating?
November- just in time to Whet our Appetites (tm) for the second movie.
You know, on some level you have to say: Hey, that's good marketing.
WTF? isn't that in the first book.
i coulda sworn it was in chapter 2 or 3. one of my most favorite characters ever.
At least if you're reffering to what horses wear. At least that's what they're called in the us, maybe different elsewhere.
"You're terminated!"
(sounds of a pan flute)
You're not always giving up resolution. Some DVD's contain what I believe is called anamorphic-widescreen, it basically involves using all vertical scan lines to store the image, and then "shrinking" the vertical down to the desired aspect ratio.
Anamorphic Slideshow
More info
an (old) list of dvds using anamorphic widescreen
Assuming you are a patient person, there is a way to have your cake and eat it too -
Buy DVDs second-hand
You get the discs and the MPAA doesn't see one cent of revenue. Plus, you'll have the added bonus of supporting the First Sale Doctrine, which the media and software companies are silently trying to do away with!
We want some answers and all that we get
Some kind of shit about a terrorist threat
- Ministry
Can I say nude here?
lol owell
Then you don't know very far.
autopr0n is like, down and stuff.
Love what they produce but hate that they produce it (and want to get paid for it)
I just noticed the Elvish writing on Frodo's cloak on the DVD box cover. Anyone want to provide a translation?
There were also rumors floating around that after all three films are done and released, a fifth mega-box set of all three with possible additional material may be released, which would be sometime in 2004. That doesn't surprise me, but I'm sure as heck not waiting until 2004 . .. .
There's one atom on Arwen's chin, I want to know if it's a phosphorus or a sodium atom.
This news about LOTR on DVD is way, way cool.
Is there any indication of whether we po' l'il DVD region 4'ers ( Australia, New Zealand, Pacific Islands ) will get the same features and release date?
Quite often we get a reduced extra feature set from the goodies on the Region 1 discs.
I know everyone says, "Just buy Region 1 discs and hack your DVD player..".
That's just a work-around. I would prefer a fix.
Why do all of these karma-whores seem to think that hating a company equates to not buying their stuff? Last summer, when California was in the middle of their energy crisis (I'm a Bay-area res myself), did anybody stop using all electricity to spite PG&E and the energy providers? No. Did they still hate the companies? Possibly.
My point is that there is a HUGE difference between these random 'boycotts' of the MPAA, and actually pushing for change (which, IMO, won't be accomplished by these fickle boycotts). In my eyes, it's perfectly OK to use something you dislike, while still working to change it.
---- I'll take you in a Hunt deathmatch any day.
They could have been on the Fellowship of the Ring soundtrack...
We don't need no water
Let the mutha-balrog burn
Burn mutha-balrog burn
www.timcoleman.com is a total waste of your time. Never go there.
It's offtopic because some dumbfuck ignorant Slashdotter says it's offtopic, damnit!
Why hasn't a less ignorant dumbfuck Slashdotter said it's "underrated"?
ok then your [sic] infringing on my copyright! Could you as [sic] me next time before STEALING my comments for your own?
...no one else here thinks so. I think most hate Enya equaly.
Hollow words will burn and hollow men will burn.
Awesome. I finally got a first post!
Pan & Scan movies aren't cropping, or zooming, or anything: all they're doing is displaying only a "portion" of the screen, and another remaining portion is left offscreen.
When a portion of the image is offscreen, is it not CROPPED? Sheesh.
That that is is that that that that is not is not.
Geeks: "Fuck the MPAA! Fuck the RIAA! Fight the power!"
MPAA: (dangles new DVD release)
Geeks: (digging for wallets) "GIMME!"
-----
PGP Key ID 0xCB8FF658
subject says (er, asks) it all
One man's pink plane is another man's blue plane.
that
I knew I would be modded down, I accept that.
The post (and this one) IS offtopic - so I accept that it was modded down.
But just realize something:
The effects of the moderation to effectively censor what is a viewpoint toward the truth will only further the delitrious effects imposed upon us all on behalf of the MPAA, the RIAA, the DMCA, and the future SSSCA (or whatever the heck they are now calling it).
That is the truth, and NO AMOUNT of censoring will stop the steamroller.
Realise that when your "right to read" is taken away.
- cr0sh
Is this the week we LOVE the MPAA?
Personally, I enjoyed the section on Bombadil. Even as creative as Tolkien is, his world sometimes appears to be a bit cramped. (How is that the Shire was so unheard of when everything was within a few weeks by foot?) The section on Bombadil expands his conception of Middle Earth in both space and time.
:
There is an wonderfully written writeup on Bombadil over here. I quote
"Likewise, Tom Bombadil was originally a Dutch doll also belonging to Michael Tolkien. John, his brother, put the doll down a lavatory. Bombadil was rescued and Tolkien wrote The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, originally published in Oxford Magazine in 1934. Tolkien later offered to his publishers the idea that Bombadil's story could be expanded into a sequel to The Hobbit, but they didn't bite, so Tom appeared anyway in The Lord of the Rings. Tom makes his debut in the form found in this collection.
The author's method reminds me of the ways in which painful losses are explained in many other cultures. Examples include some Native American mythologies explaining the disappearance of American bison, and German legends about the disappearance of magical creatures from the world. Tolkien's explanation also seems similar to stories told about the rise of iron and technology and the passing away of old traditions, or of the disappearance of the unicorn (it missed the ark), and the rise of the dichotomy that rends myth from objective "reality." One can see the theme at work in the poem "The Last Ship," present in this collection, and in Tolkien's later writing -- elves sailing out of Middle Earth forever, making way for the age of men.
Bombadil's Adventures, however, is a heroic comedy in part about his capacity to escape disappearance -- to endure. One kind of disappearance is that of loneliness, where one fades from the view of others, becomes "mythical," alien, other -- larger than life and yet too small to see, casting no shadow. It is the solitude of being attached to other worlds, worlds where story is more than pastime, worlds where real objects have more than one kind of life and significance, and the loneliness of being unable to weave the other worlds and this one seamlessly together, to make everyone understand."
Bob
Science, like Nature, must also be tamed, with a view turned towards its preservation.
...it's just that hardly any discs use it, cause it's a pain in the butt.
It's been in the specs since day one. Have a look at your DVD setup menu, have a look at the part that says 'Aspect Ratio'... now think what difference 'Letterbox' & 'Pan & Scan' make... try them... you'll see nothing change with probably ANY of your discs... you won't suddenly find all of your widescreen movies loose their edges... On the other hand, if you have letterbox chosen, then you don't find those few Pan & Scan documentaries or crap transfer movies suddenly appear in wonderful widescreen do you?
So why are the options there then?
Because the DVD specs CAN have ONE copy of a widescreen movie on the disc, and an information track with the Pan & Scan info on it. I have only one disc that does this, Elizabeth in Region 4. Set the DVD player to Pan & Scan, you get full frame... set the player to letterbox, and you get wonderful widescreen.
It's just that the majority people don't know about the options to set screen size (The amount of times I've seen store display tvs showing a widescreen formatted movie on a 4:3 aspect ratio is ridiculous)... and well... it's just not a feature most people want.
A friend of mine has a 2 CD-R Divx version ripped directly from a New Line screening copy. He got it in February, but it's been around for some time.
It doesn't mean much now, it's built for the future.
In the book, there are hints he's from Over the Sea, as we find out Gandalf is. Think of Gandalf, and Bombadil, as " lesser gods/angels bound in human form ". Gandalf notes in the The Return of the King Bombadil is a moss gatherer,whereas Gandalf is a " stone doomed to roll" as the final book comes near an end.
Sauron is also one of the earlier lesser gods, as is the Balrog of Moria-hence the Council realised they couldnt stand toe to toe with Sauron, the Ringwraiths, and the power of Orthanc to deny them the power of the ring.
As an earlier comment said, simply Bombadil may represent an earlier, idyllic time, that should evil not have arisen, Middle Earth would have appeared as.
" We're all doomed " - Xan - Balders Gate.
... but the drugs like me.
-Hentai [in vita non pacem est]
"The size of a lie is a definite factor in causing it to be believed, because the vast majority of a nation are in the depths of their hearts more easily deceived than they are consciously and intentionally bad..."
--- Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf
"We are on the verge of a global transformation. All we need is the right major crisis and the nations will accept the New world Order. "
---David Rockefeller
Talk about mistitled; by the time they're done, there are going to be about 50 LOTR DVDs, special edition this, boxed set that, wide screen the other thing, etc. Which one is the One DVD to rule them all?
A friend of a friend picked up a bootleg copy in NYC last week and its already made it to the other side of the the world. This is an NTSC DVD that looks like it was made from an analog signal. Its substandard even for a pirate copy quality and had an anoying subtitle saying "new line..." "call the mpaa at 1-800-..."
Remember, though,,, Legolas and Gimli's parts in FoTR are relatively small. Their character development mainly takes place in the Two Towers. The focus is on the unusually close relationiship that forms between the elf and dwarf, who have strong racial bias against one another at the start. This is why, in Fellowship, they seem flat and stereotypical. Hopefully, in Two Towers movie, that aspect of the story will be given the attention that it deserves.
Not with myopic legislation.
First, you have to create things people find value in and want to experience. "Mindless entertainment" is a modern concept. Art used to be entertainment and vice-versa. Shakespeare wrote for the masses and the highborns alike, and managed to please all without insulting anyone's intelligence. When your industry blows itself up to the point where most movies have high budgets and rely on huge opening weekend grosses to succeed, there is a larger issue than internet piracy that you need to deal with. Start making quality films that people form attachments to, and you've got a customer you can sell something to. If you spend the majority of your funds pumping out stuff like Scary Movie 15 or Urban Legend 24 or I Still Am Reasonably Certain I Know Exactly What It Is You Did Last Summer or The Art of War or what have you, relying solely on the Holy (wood) sacraments of Boobs and Explosions to sell tickets to teens with allowances, don't make a stink when the movies stop making money after the first 2 days, and the rentals tank. It isn't because of the wily internet pirates.
Second, you have to outcompete internet piracy. Yes, it's illegitimate competition, but honest capitalists have had to outcompete illegitimate competitors since the dawn of society. With the big studios' resources, outcompeting pirates should be easy to do, and the LOTR DVD sets are great partial examples. Added value is the key. Give people something they want to own forever, that they can only get from you. This isn't the movie, they can see the movie through any theater, second-run theater or rental store; this is the exclusive extras on-disc, artwork, subscriptions, cards, figurines, sexual favors, midgets with rockets, you name it. Since you've followed through with the first step and you've made a good movie, it's done well at the box office for more than a weekend and made a profit already, with further anticipated profit from rentals and merchandising... So use your muscle to outcompete some more. Added value. Don't price a DVD set that cost pennies to manufacture at $40, price it at $20 - or even $15 - and see how many people, even hardcore pirates, can resist. So you might not make as big a profit. So what? Your media cartel has bled everyone dry for decades with your insane price-fixing schemes, but only because people lacked options - are you so used to the luxury of not having to compete that you've forgotten how to sell? Keep that pricing/value system up, and most people will not have a reason to pirate. Problem solved.
All of the above goes for the wealth-mad RIAA cartel and its member companies as well, who have done exactly the same thing with nearly the same sacraments (Boobs and Violence) for exactly the same allowance money. Wow, people aren't buying your $20 Shakiraguilera Britn'sync CDs? You don't say? And it's all home taping, er, the internet's fault, huh? Not the outrageous price or lack of quality/sustainability, right?
I wish Lucas or S/K/G or some other independent person or group with money (Vince McMahon?) would establish a separate distribution company and use it to outcompete the MPAA cartel legitimately. Then what would they do? Run to the government and force every company to join the cartel by law?
...but if no one buys first-hand, where can we find second-hand?
Will I finally get to see some elf nipple?
:-)
We hate the MPAA . . . Ewww look shiney object!
Anamarphic, in fact, actually "splits the difference" between NTSC and HDTV on resolution. Anamorphic discs appear much better under HDTV displays than NTSC ones.
Every HDTV or DVD owner should understand anamorphic DVDs and/or read the DVD FAQ
"It is our blasphemy which has made us great, and will sustain us, and which the gods secretly admire in us." - Zelazny
There is nothing funnier than watching a guy run through a celar full of zombies with a lawn mower.
At least thats what I've been told. Never seen the movie and keep missing out on it.
Meat the Feebles however is probably one of the most disgusting movies I have ever seen which is amazing considering it is pretty much a muppet movie. I remember laughing my arse off and wondering what the hell his mother would think of a movie like this.
Dunno why I should care about this one, actually - chances are the full version with all the wondrous special features will only ever be available to Region 1 players. I know it's all hackable and crackable, but it's the principle of the thing, darnit. I'm in Australia, Region 4, and we don't get any of the good stuff - even on Australian films! We just get crippled versions of everything. Even all-Aussie movie The Dish (which did better here than in the US) is only available in limited form. It's not good enough!
Oh, it is worth a watch, run, don't walk to the video store right now! You won't regret it!
"First lesson," Jon said. "Stick them with the pointy end."
Yes, in a way it does actually. It means that the studio and director copped out. They were willing to sacrifice the artistic integrity of the movie in order to get a few more sales.
Movies are now starting to show up on DVD in Pan and Scan ONLY, and that's REALLY bothersome. Luckily this one was not the case. Here the studio could have taken the opportunity to educate the public on the reasons for preserving OAR (Original Aspect Ratio) on what will surely be a HUGE selling DVD, but instead they took the low road.
Instead of selling a pan and scan version, they could have put in a very short demonstration on the disc that showed the difference between pan 'n scan and OAR.
I've yet to meet someone who, once properly shown what is lost when the sides are chopped off, didn't understand and accept OAR (and yes, that sometimes means "not filling the whole screen").
There's excellent examples of the damage pan and scan does here and here.
-S
--- What parts of "shall make no law", "shall not be infringed", and "shall not be violated" don't you understand?
Here is the evolution of media:
Tape - 1D media
Disk - 2D media
Multilayered Disk - 2Dxn media
Cylinder/Cube - 3D media
Peter Jackson directed the very funny but very gory "Braindead", and the very funny but quite disgusting "Meet The Feebles". Expect lots of blood and entrails - however I don't think we'll see Sam chopping up goblins with a lawn mover.
actually almost 30 years pass in the shire alone, the story starts out with bilbo's 111th b-day and froto's 33rd??? (correct me if i'm wrong) and he doesn't leave the shire until he's of age (55). as the story commenses they spend months in wilderness and weeks in cities/towns. the condensation of the timeline is one of the things which bothers me most about FOtR in movie form, in addition to the shift in viewer perspective robbing the story of much the sense of mystery and marvel so characteristic of the book..
i know this is offtopic, but it's just so damn important i couldn't let it go... ;p
-tid242
With a few exceptions, secrecy is deeply incompatible with democracy and with science. --Carl Sagan
Incidently, for the actual video itself, LaserDisc is still nicer than DVD. You need a decent screen to see the difference, and many older LDs are not made off of digitally cleaned up masters like today's DVDs, but the media itself provides a nicer signal - it's a raw, uncompressed feed, as opposed to MPEG2.
Laserdisc is not an "uncompressed feed." It is an NTSC feed, which is compressed by the very nature of NTSC. NTSC is itself a form of compression, one which DVD neatly sidesteps. As an example, watch the same DVD through a coax cable (composite), then through an S-Video or component feed. The difference in quality between the two is the difference between NTSC and non-NTSC. I'm happier with DVD, just for the lack of video noise alone.
Could people avoid posting spoilers, for those of use who have not finished the trilogy?