LotR: RotK Extended Edition Preview Available

Topoimagery writes "After months of speculation and a few low-quality bootleg video clips, we finally get some official video from New Line. The Official Lord of the Rings Site has a preview of the upcoming Return of the King EE in Quicktime format. Here are direct links to the small version (4 MB) and large version (9 MB). Highlights include Voice of Saruman, Mouth of Sauron, Houses of Healing, and Aragorn confronting Sauron. Released date is December 14, and you can pre-order now. (For those of you who can't get enough spoilers, here's a site describing all anticipated new scenes on the DVD)."

Comments

Super Box Set?

[TheAntiCrust]

Does this mean soon we get to buy the super box set with all three of the extended editions?? I hope so =)

Re:Super Box Set?

[GrAfFiT]

Maybe they should put the DVDs in a spindle, or it just won't fit in the box..

Re:Super Box Set?

[Karzz1]

You know, it is funny, when they announced the latest extended version it would have a list price of ~$40.00 rather than the previous two extended versions list price of ~$30.00. My first thought was "Is that how they are going to justify $100 for the boxed set?". Seriously though, why the price hike for this one?

Re:Super Box Set?

[TomHandy]

You might want to check again. The MSRP price of the previous two extended editions was also $39.99. Go and check Amazon.com if you don't believe me. But most retailers seemed to sell the previous two for around $30..... and in fact Amazon.com seems to have it on special for $23.99, which is pretty damn nice.

Re:Super Box Set?

[Quixotic]

yup, you can order the entire extended edition trilogy from amazon.com. it should be released at the same time as the standalone extended edition rotk.

Re:Super Box Set?

[kjones692]

Am i the only one who read that as "Super Sex Bot"?

Re:Super Box Set?

[nizo]

So they can offer the boxed set for $94.99 and you will feel like you are getting a good deal?

Endings?

[Anonymous Coward]

How many more endings does it have?

Re:Endings?

[NeoSkandranon]

Did you see the credits run? What was that? Once? Then it had one ending.

Re:Endings?

[hsa]

I personally would like to see the ending where they attack Shire and do some killing.

That ending was probably removed, so they could have half an hour of that cheesy stuff..

Re:Endings?

[Anonymous Coward]

Did you hear that? That was the sound of a joke flying over your head.

Re:Endings?

[travdaddy]

Oh come on. Tell me you didn't completely expect to see the credits during the movie, and yet there was more movie to see. If this happened to you any less than two times, then I would be surprised.

Re:Endings?

[Anonymous Coward]

No, I didn't because while the scouring of The Shire doesn't absolutely need to be there to tell the story; the departure from the Grey Havens is ABSOLUTELY necessary to tell the story. I knew it couldn't be over until that scene was shown...

Re:Endings?

[NeoSkandranon]

It happened to me exactly zero times. Sorry to dissapoint you.

Re:Endings?

[the gnat]

WTF? It ends where the book ends. Blame Tolkein for this if you must, but those of us who read the books got pretty much what we expected, minus "The Scouring of the Shire" (which is one of my favorite parts, but wouldn't really have fit well with the rest of the movies).

Re:Endings?

[Anonymous Coward]

Hopefully they'll do a modified version of the Mount Doom scene at the end-

You know, more like the book...

Re:Endings?

[curunir]

I'm hoping they include the Scooby-Doo ending:

<The victors, returning to the Shire from Gondor, encounter Saruman and Grima on the road home>

Gandalf: Saruman, look where your path of evil has led you. You've been defeated.

Frodo: But there's still one more mystery to reveal.

<Frodo pulls off Saruman's mask to reveal, to the amazement of everyone looking on, Boromir>

Merry: But how is that possible?

Frodo: When his plan to take the ring failed, he faked his own death. They were his orcs, remember. It was the only way to cover up his attempt to steal the ring.

Gandalf: But that makes no sense, Boromir isn't old enough to have posed as Saruman for the hundreds of years that I have known him. He would have been no match for me in the Wizard's duel featured prominantly in the first film.

Frodo: Do these endings ever make sense? No, you simply pull off the mask revealing the least likely suspect possible and then pull some explanation out of your ass as if you knew who it was going to be ahead of time.

Boromir: That's right, I did it. I needed the ring to defeat Sauron and decided on a needlessly complicated scheme rather than just stealing it from Frodo when he was sleeping one night. And I would have gotten away with it if it hadn't been for you meddling kids!

Pippin: Hey! We're Hobbits!

<Everyone Laughs>

Re:Endings?

[SFBwian]

How come I never have mod points when I can really use them? :)

Re:How many times more?

[BeeRockxs]

The director intended the movie to be seen two ways. One version is for the cinema, one is for the home theater, because sitting through a 4 hour movie in the cinema just is not feasible for the average guy, while that is possible in a Home Theater setting.

Pete Said...

[Kid Zero]

There won't be a boxed set of all the Ext Editions until the next High Def DVD format is finalized. I guess it means you won't be buying it on a spindle. :)

Re:Pete Said...

[Kjuib]

yah... I guess the 8760 hrs of extended features takes a little room on dvds...

Re:Pete Said...

[geighaus]

How come Amazon.com have got it listed then? Will be released on December 14th according to them.

Scouring of the Shire

[Xpilot]

I'm sorry Peter Jackson didn't film The Scouring of the Shire. It would have made a nice addition to the Extended DVD, even if it didn't "work" for a box-office feature. The Voice of Saruman, and Shelob's attack are both in The Two Towers, and personally I think Jackson should have filmed it that way, removing the unnecessary Arwen scenes to compensate. But that's just me.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[JaredOfEuropa]

I'm sorry Peter Jackson didn't film The Scouring of the Shire.

Same here... it would also have made for a better winding down of the story. As it stands now, many people complain about the way the movie seems to end 3 times or so. Although personally, I would have hated this movie to end with a bang, say, with the celebration and coronation thingy on top of Minas Tirith.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[gustgr]

I belive he didn't film The Scouring of the Shire because if he did the movie would have two climax. The first would be The Battle at the Pelennor fields, and the second would be the Hobbits' battle at the Shire. The audience would get [even more] tired IMHO.

Tough it would be very interesting to see that scenes screenplayed.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[Anonymous Coward]

The book (which the movie is supposed to be based on, remember) was NOT an 'action flick'. It was the story of a group of people (the Hobbits) who... grew up. They went from a carefree life to participating in a year-long adventure (even if the movies only seem to cover a few weeks). They went from never leaving their local town to crossing the better part of the known world.

And, they went from being children, to being adults.

The Scouring of the Shire IS the climax of the books. It shows that they have, in effect, grown up and are able to stand on their own two feet and take care of themselves. (I'll stop now before the cliche police bust my door down.)

BTW- did you know the entire battle at Pellenor Fields took only ONE chapter in the book, but almost an hour in the movie?

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[gustgr]

I know how many chapters the battle at the pellenor fields takes at the book, I have read it.

The point is that the movie needs to make money. If the audience don't like it or gets bored with it, the movie will not be profitable. That's all about Hollywood.

I don't agree with the movie in several aspects, but I will not mourn or cry because the movie is crap compared with the book. I am just glad I had the chance to read the book before the movies were released, so my visions and imagination were not interfered or messed up by Jackson's point of view.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[UpnAtom]

The Arwen story provides a lot of relief from the endless stuggle and angst about Sauron destroying Middle Earth. It also explains the Elves' (lack of) involvement and the Last Ship scene.

I'd also suggest it adds a subtle magical side to the film, which would otherwise be restricted to Galadriel's mirror, The Ring effects & Gandalf's charge at Helm's Deep.

Oh yeah, Arwen is also stunning...

I'd have cut the Aragorn nearly drowning scenes, although they say Viggo nearly did drown. They are utterly useless to the plot.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[jdbo]

Actually, the Aragorn almost drowning scenes fo accomplish several things relevant to the plot:

1. by separating Aragorn from the larger refugees party, he is able to encounter the Uruk-Hai army before Theoden does - this sets up the conflict between him and Theoden, as Aragorn (apparently) sees a greater threat than Theoden does.

2. Eowyn's belief in his death dramatizes her feelings for Aragorn (something that's much harder to accomplish in cinema than in text).

3. provides an opportunity to shift away from the Rohan story and reflect on what happening with the elves (otherwise the appearance of the elves would not have made as much sense/had as dramatic an impact.

While it's certainly acceptable to state that these elements are uncessary changes to the book, they are all set-up and supported by the Aragorn-nearly-drowning "twist". Despite the obviousness to the audience that Aragorn will survive, this plot device actually sets up the second half of the Helm's Deep storyline very well.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[btlzu2]

The point is that the movie needs to make money. If the audience don't like it or gets bored with it, the movie will not be profitable.

There were already tons of whiners with the few fades at the end besides. Jackson had to cut back because people don't care if it's complete, they just don't want to be "bored". It's a shame IMO because I think Jackson would've done a great job on the scouring.

I thought the movies were pretty damn good and got quite a bit of the essence of the the books.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[quantax]

While I see your point, I felt that the ending to RotK movie was more sad than it needed to be, and that The Scouring would have helped make it less sad overall. I dont know about anyone else, but I cracked a tear or two at the very end, which is rare. From the point where the hobbits are honored at Aragorns crowning on, its all 'downhill' emotionally. The Scouring would have helped offset that 'awww, im so sad that its all over now' feeling. I agree though they a massive battle or anything like that would be too much, but spending 10 - 15 minutes on the scouring portion would have made a difference in the feeling of the ending of the movie. As well, they could have focused less on the little human vs hobbit show down and more on the showdown between Saruman and the hobbits as well as wormtongue's final deed. No need to do a massive confrontation, more of a personal reckoning.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[Anonymous Coward]

I agree, but would take it even a step further. The fact that she shire needed scouring in the book showed how EVERYONE was affected by this war. Nobody escaped, even the idyllic Hobbiton felt the press of the dark lord. And Frodo and Co. returned as heros who retake the shire.

In the movie though, the shire was never really aware of the war. And we see how it's difficult for the hobbits to readjust to living once again in their isolated, idylic home.

They really are two very different conclusions. I think they both make valid points, but it's the one place where the movie really failed to be faithful to the themes of the books.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[Anonymous Coward]

The point is that the movie needs to make money.

And cutting back 5 (or, god forbid, 10) minutes of battle scenes and Arwen dream-sequences to insert the Scouring would have made all the three movies flops that lost money, right? I mean, no one would EVER go see the third movie if it actually contained a scene from the last quarter of the book, would they?

If the audience don't like it or gets bored with it, the movie will not be profitable.

Personally I watched and liked the movie, even though I was... what was the word? ...BORED with the Arwen dream-sequences.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[danila]

I'd have cut the Aragorn nearly drowning scenes

Check out the Purist Edit. They (and other useless scenes) are cut there.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[Jugalator]

The point is that the movie needs to make money. If the audience don't like it or gets bored with it, the movie will not be profitable. That's all about Hollywood.

But isn't these EE's intended for the true fans of this series?

The cinematic release is, on the other hand, produced by cutting together the action parts better to hopefully not bore the audience. I thought Peter Jackson even said something like this himself -- that the EE's are intended for the different kind of viewing you can do at home.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[Lethyos]

Your points are all absolutely correct. You could even go so far as to look at the whole journey taken by the four hobbits as being a trainer for dealing with the Scouring. From the perspective of Frodo and friends, it is still something as a periphery matter when considering the well-being of the Shire.

did you know the entire battle at Pellenor Fields took only ONE chapter in the book, but almost an hour in the movie?

In my edition of The Two Towers, the battle of Helms Deep took a little over 6 pages yet it was more than half of Peter Jackson's rendition. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but Tolkien's interest in battles was not much more than "...and they fought."

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[Ungrounded Lightning]

The Scouring of the Shire IS the climax of the books. It shows that they have, in effect, grown up and are able to stand on their own two feet and take care of themselves.

Hear hear!

My gripe is that one of the points of Tolkien's book is that evil was pervasive and had to be rooted out everywhere. The perversion of the Shire was what brought it all home, and the Scouring is where it was set right through great effort.

Without the Scouring, the movie makes it look like the hobbits came back from their tremendous struggle to a shire that had sat out the whole war without a blade of grass touched.

The Switzerland of Middle Earth? Even Switzerland didn't fare that well in WW II. (And they got off as lightly as they did because every last one of them was trained, armed, and prepared to ambush and repell anybody who tried to come through THEIR mountains - quite unlike the carefree fuzzy-footed little villagers portrayed in both the book and the movie.) "Switzerland doesn't HAVE an army - it IS an army."

By omitting the Scouring but showing the companions drinking together at a pub in an apparently undamaged and uncaring homeland, the movie commits extreme revisionism on the original work.

Which is not to say it's trash. It's AMAZING that so much of Tolkein's work made it so well to the silver screen. But even if it made the movie "impossible" for the theaters I really think at least some tiny bit of The Scouring should have been filmed and included in the extended edition. (Isn't that what extended editions are for?)

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[jdhutchins]

Making films and writing books are two different things. Like it or not, a movie has to keep an audience more or less paying attention. It's interesting to watch the movies with the director's and screenwriter's commentaries. They explain many of the changes they made and why they made them. You can't just take a book and translate the text straight into screenplay. It doesn't work.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[Lethyos]

removing the unnecessary Arwen scenes to compensate

Yes, how perfectly Slashdot-nerdesque: remove the hot, busty chick with the sheer top so that we can see a bunch of short, fat, hairy hobbits run around and beat up on old wizzards. Sheesh man, get your priorities straight! ;)

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[Simon Michelmore]

Unfortunately - it wouldn't have worked.

I admit that I also missed the Voice of Saruman sequence (although something akin to it may be in ROTK EE), but having Shelob in TTT would either have not worked, or would've had to have been changed so much that it wouldn't resemble what was in the book.

The reason being that having 2 climaxes of that nature (Shelob and Helm's Deep) would simply be unsustainable. In a book it can work, especially as the two stories are seperated into individual books, rather than interwoven as they are in the film. But in a film they would simply undermine each other. This is why they added the scenes of Frodo and Sam being taken away by Faramir - it introduces a new tension, but one of a completely different nature to that of Shelob.

I know this has been said many times before, but it is quite important - these are the film versions of LOTR, not the books. The rules for what will work in a film, as compared to a novel, are vastly different. Sometimes unfortunate, but it has to be lived with.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[beowulfcluster]

The ending of the book is sad too and I think it's great they let the movie end the same way. It's a lot more touching and leaves a more lasting impression than yer typical 'yay us, we rock *crowd cheers* -> end credits' Hollywood ending, I feel.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[virtual_mps]

1. by separating Aragorn from the larger refugees party, he is able to encounter the Uruk-Hai army before Theoden does - this sets up the conflict between him and Theoden, as Aragorn (apparently) sees a greater threat than Theoden does.

Yes, another of Jackson's mistakes. Theoden isn't supposed to be incompetant. Aragorn is the greater hero, but Theoden should have been portrayed much stronger than he was.

2. Eowyn's belief in his death dramatizes her feelings for Aragorn (something that's much harder to accomplish in cinema than in text).

Hmm. For me it was less dramatic than sappy and irrelevant. Eowyn should join Faramir's character-assassination lawsuit.

3. provides an opportunity to shift away from the Rohan story and reflect on what happening with the elves (otherwise the appearance of the elves would not have made as much sense/had as dramatic an impact.

Ah, of course. You need one useless scene to set up another pointless addition to the story. Legolas should have been the only elf at helm's deep--that's the way the book was written, and it was essential to the plot that the elves were no longer going to play a pivotal role in the events of middle earth.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[jdbo]

> Theoden isn't supposed to be incompetant.

It's an oversimplification to say that he was portrayed as incompetent; he was protrayed as a leader coming back into his own, with moments of weakness.

The major departure from the books's characterization was a shift from Tolkien's iconic approach to dramatic motivation by drawing out the arcs of the character's personal transformations. In the case of Aragorn, his arc in the book essentially ends at Rivendell; in Theoden's case, with release from Wormtongue. The films drew these out to the ROTK, which many people feel was necessary for the story to work on film (Tolkien's iconic characterizations would come across as terribly static in film storytelling, something which both J.R.R. and Christopher Tolkien have acknowledged).

BTW, you missed the "(apparent)" in my description; Theoden and the Rohan refugees had nowhere else to go, hence Theoden's decision to stay and fight. Aragorn, meanwhile, made foolish outbursts that seriously threatened the refugees' morale (their only real asset at that point, something that Theoden recognized). While not original to the book, it's easy enough to recognize this as dramatic conflict between motivated characters with multiple layers of meaning; the scenes leasing up to the battle demonstrate the failures of both Theoden and Aragorn (movie versions).

Feel free to disagree with these choices, but dismissing them out-of-hand doesn't give anyone much to think about, and gives the impression that you didn't bother to consider the other side of the story.

Re:Scouring of the Shire

[virtual_mps]

Feel free to disagree with these choices, but dismissing them out-of-hand doesn't give anyone much to think about, and gives the impression that you didn't bother to consider the other side of the story.

What other side of the story? LOTR was written to the classic heroic epic model. The characters are bigger than life, and the heroes aren't like ordinary people. Trying to eliminate that to fit a 20th/21st century idea of a novel turns LOTR into something else. The "iconic approach" is essential to what makes LOTR the story that it is. If I wanted yet another book about "character transformation" I'd check out the latest literary award winner--I wouldn't rewrite a perfectly good story from a different genre.

Re:How many times more?

[EvilFrog]

This is the movie as the director intended it.

There have only ever been two versions of each of the Lord of the Rings movie- the theatrical release and the extended release. The extended release reincorporates scenes that were cut out due to time constraints. This has always been the plan, and they've been pretty upfront about it. We all knew this release is coming, and I've specifically held off of buying the theatrical release because of it.

I'm sure that if Peter Jackson were able to get away with releasing the extended editions in the theatre he would have, but even the theatrical releases clock in at about three hours each. Theatres like to get as many showings in as possible, so there's an (unwritten yet present) time limit as to how long a theatrical release can be.

I myself enjoy the extended editions- the first two added scenes that I think added to the film. But I can understand that not everyone wants to commit four hours to watching a movie, and thus those people would prefer the theatrical release.

Pathos for Borormir

[ronobot]

Can't resist... spoiler... video--

I managed to tear myself away half way through.

oh boy oh boy oh boy!

[ilovelinux]

oh man, I can't wait! I'm so exited I think I just pissed myself! Extended edition 3 movie marathon coming up!

This is going to be awesome!

Re:oh boy oh boy oh boy!

[The Snowman]

oh man, I can't wait! I'm so exited I think I just pissed myself! Extended edition 3 movie marathon coming up!

This is going to be awesome!

I picked up a widescreen HDTV a few months ago, and this last week I picked up a surround sound system. Oh yes, there will be lots of Lord of the Rings, lots of beer, lots of fatty fried food, and ten hours with my friends... I cannot wait until December 18th, the Saturday after the extended edition comes out.

Re:oh boy oh boy oh boy!

[ilovelinux]

hey I was thinking. That's pretty much what we had planned out here.

Wouldn't it be interesting if we had a massive BBQ/campout for all the geeks on slashdot? Organise it a year in advance put it somewhere central in the US, and have a massive geekout /starwars/lotr/video game/beerfest.

It might be a pile of fun to meet new geeks from all over.

How about it Rob?

Re:oh boy oh boy oh boy!

[piquadratCH]

I'm so exited I think I just pissed myself! Extended edition 3 movie marathon coming up!

I bet you'll piss yourself a few more times if you watch all three EEs nonstop ;)

Re:oh boy oh boy oh boy!

[Anonymous Coward]

I've actually been planning the same thing. I've got a 50" DLP, a DVD player with 720p upconversion and DVI output, and a great surround setup. I'm going to build a platform so I can put another couch behind the current one for a bit of a "stadium seating" thing in my living room.

Re:oh boy oh boy oh boy!

[malex23]

Don't sweat it... The Ultra Extruded Warchest edition comes with a pair of Depends adult undergarments.

Re:oh boy oh boy oh boy!

[ewe2]

By "exited" I assume you mean you've more than pissed yourself?

Re:oh boy oh boy oh boy!

[tonymus]

I think we're all going to need this to watch the damn thing...

http://www.stadiumpal.com/stadiumpal_what.htm

Re:oh boy oh boy oh boy!

[mikechant]

You mean you haven't got an armchair with built-in commode for just such occasions? No interuptions and no nappy rash!

Re:wtf

[tajmorton]

See the OpenQuicktime Project. They have a bunch of codecs. Or, use CrossOver office.

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[The Snowman]

It seems like every other friggin' month they're releasing another special edition of one of these flicks. The movie studio is playing you all for fools, and treating you like mindless sheep who happen to have money.

Actually, they release a new special edition each year, not every month. Just one per film, no more.

Any 'Rings' fan who was stupid enough to buy each and every DVD that was put out for this trilogy is too dumb to be allowed to reproduce. Fortunately, anyone who is that rabid a fan of this stuff probably wasn't going to be reproducing anyway, so the universe balances out.

I bought the first two special editions and plan on buying the final one too, but not any of the "normal" editions. I do not know of anyone who bought all of the versions, that is a stupid waste of money. Some of my friends bought the regular editions, some like me only buy the special editions. That is not stupid. Oh, I did reproduce, sorry universe.

Re:How many times more?

[vondo]

Exactly. And, the added scenes are usually intended for the readers of the book more than for the general public. Maybe the best example of this is Galadriel's gift giving scene in the first movie. It was abbreviated in the theatrical release since the whole "Gimli hates elves and turns around to almost worship Galadriel" sub-plot adds nothing to the real plot. But, any fan of the books would be really upset to see this left out.

Re:Super Box Set? YES

[hype7]

Here's the proof

These guys won't ship outside of Australia, but the "super box set" exists.

-- james

yes but...

[m0RpHeus]

Yes, but does it include the very important character and scenes?

Re:yes but...

[Anonymous Coward]

Gorgeous!!!

Re:wtf

[gaj]

The audio codec doesn't like mplayer or totem.

Works for me with MPlayer 1.0pre5-3.3.4. Perhaps you either need to build a newer version of mplayer, or you need to dload updated codecs?

God I hate proprietary BS.

Can't argue with that.

Extended Trilogy Boxed set...

[kikensei]

has been available for pre-order for weeks.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000 654ZK0/qid=1098030658/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-701367 5-2021468?v=glance&s=dvd/
Not a very savvy group of LoTR geeks on Slashdot... ;)

Re:Extended Trilogy Boxed set...

[robkore]

Does anyone know if there is any reason to get the extended trilogy boxed set over the three seperate extended editions (other than any price differences)? I looked at the description from the link to amazon and couldn't see any differences, other than a slip case to hold all three movies...

Re:Extended Trilogy Boxed set...

[Anonymous Coward]

Thank-you kindly for the link. I have been waiting far too patiently for this set to come along. I told myself a long time ago (a year or two) that I would buy this even if it cost $100. Needless to say, at $77.98 this looks like a STEAL to me, and I've pre-ordered.

Thanks again!

(And no, I'm not affiliated with Amazon.com, Peter Jackson or anything affiliated with LOTR).

One ending...

[Anonymous Coward]

Or rather, one real ending and several false ones.

Fade-out... more. Fade-out... more. Fade-out... more. `

50 more minutes!

[UnknowingFool]

Note to self:
1)Clear out 1 day to watch LOTR:RTK extended edition
2)Get those adult diapers that I used last year for LOTR:RTK movie edition out of storage.

I knew those would come in handy again.

Re:50 more minutes!

[thellamaman]

Umm.. Not the used ones, I hope?

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[gaj]

I don't normally feed the trolls, but since you already did, I'll reply to you, thus maintaining plausable deniability. ;P

I mostly agree with your response to the troll, but have to differ with you on the stupidity of buying both sets of DVDs. For the record, I've only purchased the extended versions. However, I can certainly understand why someone might wish to own both. If, for instance, they enjoy having friends over to watch movies, but not many of their friends are big enough fans of the trilogy to sit through the extended cut, it'd be nice to have the theatrical release to show instead.

As for the whole reproducing thing, I am rabid enough a fan to have read the trilogy more than 15 times (I've lost count), to have compiled an pair of Elvish dictionarys back in my early teens by pouring over the text and appendixes of The Hobbit, The LOTR and Silmarillion, I spent a day of PTO to see the theatrical releases on their first day (not quite rabid enough to do the midnight thing, I suppose) ... and yet I have a son. Go figure.

Novel quote from Sauraman:

[Tandoori Haggis]

"You are all going to.."

buffering 1%

Where is buffering? :-)

Re:Novel quote from Sauraman:

[Anonymous Coward]

Buffering is over at the 1% land.

Looks like someone has side-tracked him then..

[tolan-b]

http://www.ezydvd.com.au/item.zml/229861

Re:Looks like someone has side-tracked him then..

[Anonymous Coward]

Anyone can take three packages and tie a ribbon around them. Doesn't make it an official release though.

Cannot be destroyed?

[apocamok]

From the linked site http://www.rotk-see.de.vu/ :

If www.rotk-see.de.vu one day suddenly does not work, try http://home.datacomm.ch/betaversion/index.html . If this site is can not be visited, try alternatively the following URL (this is an other server and can not be destroyed): http://www.hdr-see.de/ - Webmaster Indrid Cold E-Mail

Cannot be destroyed? Never underestimate the Slashdot Effect...

Re:Cannot be destroyed?

[jolyonr]

Maybe this 'other server' server needs to be dumped into Mount Doom?

Re:Cannot be destroyed?

[malex23]

This URL cannot be destroyed, Apocamok, son of Armageddaman, by any craft that we here possess. The URL was made in the servers of Mount Doom. Only there can it be unmade. It must be taken deep into Mordor, and cast back into the fiery WYSIWYG from whence it came. One of you must do this.

Re:Coming soon

[foreverdisillusioned]

1) It was specifically said AHEAD OF TIME (though I cannot find the link offhand) that there would be two versions, regular and extended.

2) The LOTR extended editions have so far proved to be worth the money. I could care less about the behind-the-scenes stuff, but the added scenes are long (50 additional minutes for Return of the King!) and add to the story immeasurably. I particularly liked the extended edition of the Two Towers. The scenes like the flashback with Faromir and his father and the ents at Helm's Deep are so good/important you'll wonder how they ever got cut in the first place.

Not /.'ed ?

[gustgr]

Before I click on the link to the .mov I tought: "The site will be down for sure, after all, it is LOTR, it is a movie, and it is a DVD preview. The nerds will not forgive". For my surprise the site is still up.

Are the nerds losing their power to slashdot sites?

Re:Not /.'ed ?

[Aero Leviathan]

Did you not see 'AOL.com' in the URL? They will handle your pitiful 'Slashdot effect'.

Oh, I'm afraid the web site will be quite operational, young Skywalker... heh heh he--oh, er, wrong movie.

Re:Not /.'ed ?

[imroy]

You obviously didn't look at the URL. It's an AOL host, FFS. Those are some very fat pipes indeed.

Re:How many times more?

[ALeavitt]

Is it just me, or does this argument/rebuttal happen every single time there is a story posted about one of the LOTR movies. Seriously, go back to the beginning, since Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition was announced, and go back through those posts... I guarantee these will be there, word for word.

Zen

[chill]

What is the sound of ten thousand geeks updating the Amazon.com wish list all at once?

Re:Zen

[Anonymous Coward]

Would that be the sound of /.?

Re:NO GODDAMN SPOILERS GODDAMMIT!

[Anonymous Coward]

ouch! I tried, and it hurt :'(

Re:Super Box Set? YES

[yofan]

Amazon is taking pre-orders... http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000 654ZK0/qid=1098032871/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-014815 8-6872921?v=glance&s=dvd $78 USD. Which is low all things considered. You get 13 DVDs.

How about...

[memodude]

Matrix of the Rings? :-)

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[TomHandy]

I agree. I also only bought the extended versions, but I can understand some valid reasons for buying the normal releases too. First off, with various coupons and deals, they could be had very cheap. Secondly, for people who wanted to also have the theatrical cut, it's the only way to get it. And I believe that the regular editions had their own unique extras, etc. - so a real completist might want them for that reason. Again, given how cheap it was/is possible to get the regular versions, I don't think it is totally nuts for someone to go that far. I'm personally more than happy with the Extended Editions though.

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[Anonymous Coward]

You compiled your own elvish dictionary, you have a 4-digit UID, and you've gotten laid? You sir, have the life.

Re:wtf

[Anonymous Coward]

Works for me with totem as well

Re:How many times more?

[anakin876]

From what I've read these "extended editions" are not being called "Director's Cut" for a reason. Jackson is happy with the Theatrical Versions, but he is doing these releases for the fans, for those who wanted more. Back when the first Extended Edition came out I read, in several places, that He wasn't doing this because he didn't like the Theatrical cut. Anyone have a good quote to the contrary?

Another reason to buy both...

[Shivetya]

Buy the theater version to satisfy your LOTR fix and then pawn them off as gifts (Christmas and the like) after you obtain the extended cut version.

Now, I am curious if I can rip this new extended cut version and get it down to ONE DVD with just 5.1English Audio + film.

EXTENDED version?

[micradigitalis]

How about a CONDENSED version?! I think that all three movies could be condensed into a single 2.5-3 hour film that would actually be GOOD. Then they can edit together all the shots where the camera is slowly zooming in or out on Elijah Wood's face on a separate special edition 1.5 hour disc for all you LOTR suckers.

Re:EXTENDED version?

[Anonymous Coward]

Why the heck is this considered a troll? I'm a huge geek and found only the first movie to be in any way appealing. The Two Towers and The Return of the King were needlessly long and could have been shortened down considerably.

The worst offender is ROTK where I simply wanted the damn movie to end about 2 hours in. I couldn't believe how damn long the "multiple endings" turned out to be.

I own the Fellowship DVD, and that's it; that movie can stand on its own. Maybe one day I'll rent the ROTK DVD just to see the killer compression algorithm they had to use in oder to fit the longest and most contrived movie of all time on to an 8.5 GB disc! (CCE at 55 passes anyone?)

We are not alone..

Re:EXTENDED version?

[Anonymous Coward]

How about a CONDENSED version?! I think that all three movies could be condensed into a single 2.5-3 hour film that would actually be GOOD. Then they can edit together all the shots where the camera is slowly zooming in or out on Elijah Wood's face on a separate special edition 1.5 hour disc for all you LOTR suckers.

Ah, the money making venture:

1. LOTR 1 of 2
2. LOTR 2 of 2
The Miramax cut, editted along the original lines of planning, 3-4hr each.

1. LOTR 1 of 1
The Disney cut, editted to be 4.5 hours

And squeeze more money out of each of the enthralled.

So if this is a preview

[Laebshade]

Does that mean this preview is the original theatre release of LOTR:ROTK? ;)

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[Whispers_in_the_dark]

I bought the first two special editions and plan on buying the final one too, but not any of the "normal" editions. I do not know of anyone who bought all of the versions, that is a stupid waste of money.

I bought both editions of the first two and am planning to complete the extended set in December (already have the theatrical ROTK of course). Call me stupid if you must but I am willing to shell out the cash for one simple reason: I belive in sponsoring the things that I particularly like. Hollywood doesn't send me a ballot to let them know that I want more LOTR quality stuff, so I vote with my wallet. I don't buy many DVDs, but I felt this series was worthy of an exception. YMMV.

Oh, and BTW (from grandparent post):

Any 'Rings' fan who was stupid enough to buy each and every DVD that was put out for this trilogy is too dumb to be allowed to reproduce. Fortunately, anyone who is that rabid a fan of this stuff probably wasn't going to be reproducing anyway, so the universe balances out.

My wife of five years and I are happily expecting our first child in January and we both have enjoyed the trilogy thoroughly. So, I guess that's just one more moronic theory out the window -- or else the universe is about the end -- I leave it to the reader to judge.

Re:NO GODDAMN SPOILERS GODDAMMIT!

[mrscorpio]

All the spoilers you need are right in the book, and have been available for over a half-century....

One word:

[pommiekiwifruit]

Intermission!

After all, Wagner's ring cycle makes LotR look like a cartoon short by comparison...

Re:One word:

[Bloomy]

It's probably not so much the average guy that doesn't like it, but the movie industry and theaters like shorter showtimes so they can get more showings in per day. I didn't pay any more for the 3 hour LotR movies than I did for films that run 1.5-2 hours.

Re:Coming soon

[sakusha]

Right, and soon LOTR will be like Lucas' films with 3 different versions of the early Star Wars films. I've seen about 5 or 6 different packages of the Star wars films. And there are about 4 different editions of Terminator.
What the person who modded my remark as -1 Troll does not realize, is that this is now Standard Operational Procedure in the music and video industry. They have deliberate plans to get customers to repurchase their favorite products over and over, to maximize profits. The music industry was the first to catch on, they frequently release remastered albums, or extended editions with outtakes or unreleased tracks. But they never release an ultimate edition right off the bat, they dole it out over time, so the truly demented^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^Hdedicated fans will purchase the same product several times, first the remastered edition, then the extended edition, then the Ultimate edition. Why settle for just ONE CD purchase when you can get customers to buy it 3 or 4 times?

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[The Snowman]

Hollywood doesn't send me a ballot to let them know that I want more LOTR quality stuff, so I vote with my wallet. I don't buy many DVDs, but I felt this series was worthy of an exception. YMMV.

This is a very good point, basic economics: dollar vote. Unfortunately it is not that simple, but you do only what you can do. By this point I think Hollywood realizes that LOTR is a cash cow, but much like geeks buying Linux software off the shelf, the extended editions are niche products and need our support. That and products such as Family Guy, Firefly, Farscape, et al. all need our help. Family Guy showed the suits that geeks are willing to put our money where our mouth is -- give us what we want and you will be even richer than you already are. By supporting LOTR extended editions, we tell Hollywood that we want good movies even if they are over four hours long.

They weren't children!

[FatSean]

Frodo was in his early thirties by the time he finally left the Shire with the ring.

Re:They weren't children!

[Anonymous Coward]

As someone else pointed out, Frodo was actually older tham 30.

Besides, FOR A HOBBIT, he was still young.

Sheesh, literalists.

Re:They weren't children!

[violajack]

Keep in mind that Hobbits "come of age" at 33, which Frodo had just passed when things started. The other hobbits were all younger than he was. This is the equivilent of an 18 year-old leading some mid-teens across the country with the fate of the world in their hands. For them, it really is a "coming of age" story.

Re:How many times more?

[el-spectre]

I seem to recall that being in the audio commentary for Fellowship. And it makes sense... while some of the extra stuff seems critical (boromir/faramir/denethor thing in TTT), some of it was just for fun (i.e. Merry and Pippin goinf nuts after finding the pantry at the end of TTT).

In any well made, long movie, some 'good stuff' will have to be trimmed to make the time limit (not just an arbitrary 3 hour mark, but short enough that the audience won't get bored). A good director knows this and is willing.

Bad directors (quentin, I'm looking at you...) don't know how to edit their own stuff down.

Come not between the Slashdot and his prey...

[mav[LAG]]

If this site is can not be visited, try alternatively the following URL (this is an other server and can not be destroyed): http://www.hdr-see.de/

Or he will not slay thee in thy turn. He will bare thy server away to the Houses of Lamentation, beyond all darkness, where thy processes shall be devoured and thy shriviled configs be left naked to the lidless eye."

Incorrect!

[Anonymous Coward]

Frodo was in his thirties when he took custody of the ring, and fifty when he set off on the quest: Gandalf was off researching for many years.

The film glossed rightly glossed over that.

Re:NO GODDAMN SPOILERS GODDAMMIT!

[Anonymous Coward]

You mean like Saruman's fate?

What about VHS?

[whynotme]

And how about a release date for the extended edition "super" box set on VHS? :-)

Not good enough

[ballpoint]

I'm waiting for the extended edition box set in WMVHD 1080p.

Please don't mod me Funny: I mean it.

Re:Coming soon

[Anonymous Coward]

Jackson has done a good job with these so far and has been comletely honest as to what is happening and why (well, there is no evidence to the contrary, anyways). So, until he makes the fookup that Lucas has with Star Wars, let's give him the benefit of the doubt.

Note, EU copyright has "Moral Rights" for the author so that they can always block something being done with their work theydo not like. These rights are non-transferable. Jackson could use these to nix any fannying around with his work, even if they are OK in the US.

Re:wtf

[Anonymous Coward]

Worked fine for me. You just have to download the latest codec pack for mplayer to use.


Opening audio decoder: [qtaudio] QuickTime Audio Decoder
External func COMCTL32.dll:16
External func COMCTL32.dll:17
QuickTime6.3 DLLs found
QuickTime.qts patched!!! old entry=0x6693c3e0
theQuickTimeDispatcher catched -> 0x6693c3e0
WARNING! Invalid Ptr handle!

### Searching for QuickTime plugins (*.qtx) at /usr/lib/codecs...
### FindNext: BeHereiVideo.qtx
### FindNext: AvidQTAVUICodec.qtx
### FindNext: QuickTimeEssentials.qtx
### FindNext: QuickTimeInternetExtras.qtx
theQuickTimeDispatche r catched -> 0x6693c3e0
theQuickTimeDispatcher catched -> 0x6693c3e0
AUDIO: 44100 Hz, 2 ch, 16 bit (0x10), ratio: 7989->176400 (63.9 kbit)
Selected audio codec: [qdmc] afm:qtaudio (Quicktime QDMC/QDM2 audio decoders)

Two boxed sets

[thellamaman]

We're talking about two different things here. The link you posted contains just the EEs you can buy individually, plus a box. Nothing extra. Whereas Peter is talking about a "super" EE set, possibly with bloopers and other cut scenes. This will likely come come out on the new HD format in several years.

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[jdbo]

I always find it interesting that there's so much fuss about the Star Wars changes (i.e. the unavailability of the original/last versions's footage w/ each new edition); meanwhile, people complain about LOTR's production company making both the theatrical (i.e. original) and EE versions available.

Somehow, I doubt that the /. population of SW complainers (lack of choices) includes none of the LOTR complainers (too many choices)...

For those who feel "tricked" into buying the theatrical cut when they could've bought the EE, you're frankly in the wrong. This is one of the few cases where the film producers have been entirely upfront w/ the public about the differences between editions, including pre-announcing release dates for the different releases so that customers could plan ahead. So, if a few people buy the movie twice by mistake - too bad for them. And if you "couldn't wait" for the EE, then clearly the theatrical cut was worth the twenty bucks and there's nothing to really complain about.

As for those fools (myself included) who deliberately seek out both versions, we're a particular strain of film enthusiast that enjoys watching different versions of the same movie; this can be incredibly educational about the editing process (for example, the studio re-cut of "Brazil" entirely belies the plot and meaning of the original cut of the film, though it uses no different footage; the special edition DVD includes both these cuts plus an alternative European cut).

Furtheremore, we get a kick from being able to view the movie "the way that audiences first saw it" - at the least this makes later viewing the most updated/remastered/restored/extended version of the film a fresh and more interesting experience.

So there is a reason to own/view multiple versions of a movie; it may not appeal to some, but there's enough of "us" out here that the DVD market will often cater to this irrational and unnatural desire. ;)

Royal Blue

[jlebrech]

If its not royal blue, i dont want it. no matter how pressssssious it is, and i'll put the my 2 extended editions on ebay. Might still buy if its gold tho. :D

Saruman Kills The Lone Gunmen

[bill_mcgonigle]

For fzck's sake, some of us are trying to avoid spoilers

Welcome to Slashdot.

Fortunately I've avoided seeing the "edited to run in the time alloted" version, waiting for this DVD release so I really don't know what they're talking about.

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[danila]

Another reason is that bonus materials are different. There are materials on the theatrical DVDs that are not included with the extended editions.

It sounds like this:

[contagious_d]

"LotRRotK" (pronounced "lahtarrghootkh", like a wet fart from someone sitting on a plastic chair in a quiet classroom.)

Re:Super Box Set? YES

[Poietes]

You DO realise all these guys have done is taken the three extended edition DVDs, had a big cardboard box made up at the printers, and slapped an extra $20 bucks on the RRP of the total price of the extended edition DVDs? It's not the official box set. That won't be out for at least another year.

As Terry Pratchett said

[pommiekiwifruit]

I won't reveal the working title of my next book since otherwise amazon will be taking pre-orders for it by tommorrow...

Re:How many times more?

[AvantLegion]

>> Is it just me, or does this argument/rebuttal happen every single time there is a story posted about one of the LOTR movies. Seriously, go back to the beginning, since Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition was announced, and go back through those posts... I guarantee these will be there, word for word.

And your point?

If something is true, it SHOULD remain constant.

It only bears repeating because people repeatedly fail to get it.

LoTR:RoTK

[pawnIII]

My Grandma will be happy hearing this. She's been waiting for the EE since they released the original dvd. It's amazing how much of a Star Wars/LoTR nut.

Super Bonus Ultra Extended Director's Cut Edition.

[Nom du Keyboard]

And for Christmas 2006 they will release the next new, extended, bonus, ultra edition that includes all the characters (*cough* Tom Bombadil) still missing from the original trilogy.

Pre-orders being accepted now. Comes with its own bookcase to holds all the DVD's.

[OT] "Could care less"

[Anonymous Coward]

What is it with that Americanism? It clearly doesn't make any sense! Think about it - what you actually mean is "couldn't care less"...

How to connect up with the previous EEs?

[Flyboy Connor]

I am very interested to see how Jackson manages to connect up with the previous EEs. There are scenes added to the previous two EEs, which are not in the theatrical releases, which will have an impact on scenes already shown in the cinemas. I am thinking, for instance, of the scene where Merry and Pippin drink the Ent's stuff that makes them grow. At the crowning, the four hobbits are standing next to each other. In the theatrical release, the hobbits are of equal length. In the EE, Merry and Pippin need to be at least a head taller than Frodo and Sam! Will new special effects do the trick here?

Re:How to connect up with the previous EEs?

[Anonymous Coward]

I haven't seen any of the EE's yet, but one question:

the scene where Merry and Pippin drink the Ent's stuff that makes them grow.

Does this stuff come from the Ent's wood? If so, I think I'm fine with just seeing the theatrical releases.

Re:Coming soon

[HumanTorch]

In the two biggest examples of multiple releases so far, LOTR and Star Wars, they have been worth my money. LOTR added enough extra footage to make it a different movie, and the excellent restoration job on Star Wars makes makes it a new experience. These are not merely 'extras' tacked on a second disc, they are woven into the fabric of the movie. Some movies I can tolerate multiple viewings so of course I am willing to pay for any improvement. This can be done humorously as well.. for instance check out the ultimate edition of Monty Python and the Holy Grail - comes with a full 7 seconds of extra footage!!!

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[mrhartwig]

I've bought the theatrical release of all 3, have bought the EE for the first two, and will have the RotK EE long before the end of the year. I wanted to be able to see both the released movies in the future and the additional scenes & features on the EEs.

For the record, I've been reading Tolkien since Jr. High (early 70s), have 4 kids, a granddaughter, and a grandson on the way.

Oh, yeah. My wife, who's never read any Tolkein and is clearly not *any* kind of geek, has been to all 3 movies with me. On opening day....

What About Critical Scenes Cut From TTT?

[Lethyos]

I'm very disappointed that Peter Jackson has decided not to include a very important scene in The Two Towers. One day I hope that future generations will get to see these movies with the badger scenes fully restored...

Re:wtf

[DashEvil]

Doesn't like mplayer?

AUDIO: 44100 Hz, 2 ch, 16 bit (0x10), ratio: 7989->176400 (63.9 kbit)
Selected audio codec: [qdmc] afm:qtaudio (Quicktime QDMC/QDM2 audio decoders)

Re:NO GODDAMN SPOILERS GODDAMMIT!

[Anonymous Coward]

All the spoilers you need are right in the book, and have been available for over a half-century....

Yeah, Thats why I refuse to read the book. No-one's gonna ruin my movie enjoyment.

OH DEAR GOD!

[Anonymous Coward]

An Extended Version?! This movie was way too long already!

Cue "Extended Edition" jokes--IMPORTANT

[Anonymous Coward]

In every ROTK:EE article, people make "Super Extra Ultra Mega Super Expanded Combo Edition" jokes, as though the more adjectives you throw into your little phrase makes it funnier.

The intent is to somehow draw parallels to marketing strategies like Lucas', even though:

1.) There are only two editions. The normal one, and the one with extra footage.

2.) Peter Jackson and New Line Cinema have been open about this release schedule since before the first film was even out on DVD.

3.) To be even more decent to the fans, each DVD is packaged so that the extras on one don't overlap the other (i.e., they don't share any of the same extras), so if you decide to buy both you're not getting ripped off. This was done on purpose, as stated by Peter Jackson some three or four years ago.

Despite this, it is vitally important that someone, somewhere, post a "Superduper Extra Mega Reflex Platinum Edition" joke--the more random adjectives, the "funnier" it is. The idea is to distract from the fact that there are only two editions, and it's been this way since 2001.

Re:They are really milking it with all these DVDs

[Anonymous Coward]

My wife of five years and I are happily expecting our first child in January and we both have enjoyed the trilogy thoroughly. So, I guess that's just one more moronic theory out the window -- or else the universe is about the end -- I leave it to the reader to judge

Well, as long as you don't call your child Damien, we should be okay.