The Lord Of The Rings – The Motion Picture Trilogy (Widescreen Edition)
This critically acclaimed epic trilogy follows the quest undertaken by the hobbit, Frodo Baggins, and his fellowship of companions to save Middle-earth by destroying the One Ring and defeating the evil forces of the Dark Lord Sauron.As the triumphant start of a trilogy, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring leaves you begging for more. By necessity, Peter Jackson’s ambitious epic compresses J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic The Lord of the Rings, but this robust adaptation maintains reverent allegiance to Tolkien’s creation, instantly qualifying as one of the greatest fantasy films ever made. At 178 minutes, it’s long enough to establish the myriad inhabitants of Middle-earth, the legendary Rings of Power, and the fellowship of hobbits, elves, dwarves, and humans–led by the wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen) and the brave hobbit Frodo (Elijah Wood)–who must battle terrifying forces of evil on their perilous journey to destroy the One Ring in the land of Mordor. Superbly paced, the film is both epic and intimate, offering astonishing special effects and production design while emphasizing the emotional intensity of Frodo’s adventure, and ends on a perfect note of heroic loyalty and rich anticipation. After the breaking of the Fellowship, Frodo and Sam journey to Mordor with the creature Gollum as their guide in The Two Towers. Meanwhile, Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Legolas (Orlando Bloom), and Gimli (John Rhys-Davies) join in the defense of the people of Rohan, who are the first target in the eradication of the race of Men by the renegade wizard Saruman (Christopher Lee) and the dark lord Sauron. Fantastic creatures, astounding visual effects, and a climactic battle at the fortress of Helm’s Deep make The Two Towers a worthy successor to The Fellowship of the Ring, grander in scale but retaining the story’s emotional intimacy. With The Return of the King, the greatest fantasy epic in film history draws to a grand and glorious conclusion. The trilogy could never fully satisfy those who remain exclusively loyal to Tolkien’s expansive literature, but as a showcase for physical and technical craftsmanship it is unsurpassed in pure scale and ambition, setting milestone after cinematic milestone as Frodo and Sam continue their mission to Mordor to destroy the soul-corrupting One Ring. While the heir to the kingdom of Men, Aragorn, endures the massive battle at Minas Tirith with the allegiance of Legolas, Gimli, and Gandalf, Frodo and Sam must survive the schizoid deceptions of Gollum, who remains utterly convincing as a hybrid of performance (by Andy Serkis) and subtly nuanced computer animation. Jackson and cowriters Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens have much ground to cover; that they do so with intense pacing and epic sweep is impressive enough, but by investing greater depth and consequence in the actions of fellow hobbits Merry (Dominic Monaghan) and Pippin (Billy Boyd), they ensure that The Return of the King maintains the trilogy’s emphasis on intimate fellowship and remains faithful to Tolkien’s overall vision. By ending the LOTR trilogy with noble integrity and faith in the power of imaginative storytelling, The Return of the King, like its predecessors, will stand as an adventure for the ages. –Jeff Shannon and David Horiuchi
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(out of 3615 reviews)
Review by C. BURNS for The Lord Of The Rings – The Motion Picture Trilogy (Widescreen Edition)
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Some confusion among other reviewers that somehow we’re obligated to post a five star recommendation for the movie. This is an incorrect understanding of the review process. If I were reviewing the movie itself it would get a five. This review is for the product, as listed–in other words, I DO NOT RECOMMEND BUYING THIS PRODUCT/DVD. This product is being created FOR NO OTHER REASON than to dupe people into buying this movie twice…again. Those of us who were huge fans bought the original DVDs of the theatrical releases. THEN the studio FINALLY released the extended editions, even though they could have released both at the same time. Now that Blu Ray has won the High Def battle, the studios are salivating at screwing us all again the same way!
Please do not let them get away with pretending that Blu Ray can’t hold both versions on one disc–it certainly can! A simple menu option would let you watch the Extended Edition when you have time, or Theatrical Edition when you don’t.
Their other argument, that “Peter Jackson is busy working on The Hobbit and will work on Extended Editions later” is 100% total BS. He’s ALREADY DONE THE WORK–just copy what he did for the regular DVDs onto a new Blu Ray master!
BOTTOM-LINE: The studios will make whatever argument they think will fly to convince us they can’t put both versions on one disc, because they want to double their income on this movie. Which has ALREADY MADE THEM A BILLION DOLLARS. Don’t play along–let friends know not to buy ANY LOTR Blu Ray that doesn’t have BOTH versions on one disc.
Please do not let them get away with holding the extended edition hostage until everyone buys the theatrical versions. If you agree with my review, you can do your part to exert influence on the studio by doing the following:
Review by Mark Wilson for The Lord Of The Rings – The Motion Picture Trilogy (Widescreen Edition)
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I love LOTR, especially extended versions. This is simply double dipping. It’s insulting and distasteful.
Review by Nicholas Carpenter for The Lord Of The Rings – The Motion Picture Trilogy (Widescreen Edition)
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pure double-dip(x2). i’ve already bought both reg. dvd versions. now, they want me to buy both blu-ray versions too? no way! the reg extended version looks good enough for me to hold out and wait until new line does it right. this kind of business practice has to stop. hey, LOTR is on TNT in HD almost once a month anyway. that’ll keep holding me over…..
Review by Amanda E. Phillipps for The Lord Of The Rings – The Motion Picture Trilogy (Widescreen Edition)
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I was so excited when I saw they were finally releasing LOTR on Blu-ray now I am just bummed that it is not the extended addition!!! What a waste of time and money!!!
Review by Graham Van Ginkel for The Lord Of The Rings – The Motion Picture Trilogy (Widescreen Edition)
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They could get my money when they offer the extended. Some bean counter is going to be upset when they see the theatrical edition inventory staying on the shelf. I dam you to the bargain bin!