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..

Endings?

[Anonymous Coward]

How many more endings does it have?

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.

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

[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

[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: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.

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!

[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:wtf

[tajmorton]

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

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: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.

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: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.

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.

Re:Pete Said...

[geighaus]

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

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....

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: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.

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."

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.