I'll have to look for that. Unlike many of you, I enjoyed the Hobbit films. I was skeptical at first, but they worked for me.
The films are currently being re-released in 4k in Spanish cinemas over the next two weeks. We went with our two youngest kids on Friday night to see "The Fellowship of the Ring" (we'll do one a week) as they had each only seen the movies once, and on DVD a few years ago. It wowed us all. I watch the trilogy every 4 or 5 years in the extended editions, yet I was struck, seeing the theatrical cut for the first time in 20 years, by how much I prefer it: it's pacing was perfect and it had less of characters I can only bear in small doses: Elrond, Gimli, Legolas and Galadriel. We were struck again by just how brilliant several performers are in it: it really would be virtually impossible to improve on McKellen, Mortensen, Tyler, Boyd, Holm, Bean and Lee, for instance. The music impressed us even more than ever, as did the Uruk-hai and the physicality of much of it: action, weapons, clothes, towns, etc that felt real withing the context. Truly Jackson did a fabulous job in adapting the material and directing the great work of so many others, too. Roll on next weekend and "The Two Towers".
While I could enjoy the world Jackson created and these films even if they were all 6 hour long, your comment is spot on. And I still consider the first one, the best, and the theatrical cuts are the most accomplished versions of these films. The only bit that really should've been there theatrically, imho, is the demise of Saruman that was missing from the theatrical ROTK.
Yes, I agree with you and Christopher Lee that Saruman's death should have been in the theatrical cut. Tbh, the opening of "Return of the King" with the Smeagol and Deagol flashback to finding the ring is actually quite embarrassingly poorly acted/directed, over and above the fact that audiences did not require it.
One thing I did miss the first time I watched Return Of The King when it was first released to theatres was that part before the gates of Mordor when they deal with Mouth of Sauron. I enjoyed that bit so much in the book that I was greatly disappointed it wasn't in the movie. I was so happy when I later learnt it did in fact exist in the extended version.
I just sold off all of my Lord of the Rings stuff. I'm taking the money and buying a ticket to a rock and roll show.
The Mouth of Sauron was the single best creature in The Trilogy followed closely by the Balrog. Screen time for both was too short.
i'm rewatching for the nth time. when i first saw them i thought the choice of actor for aragorn was terrible, the animated version so much better, but after a few watches i realised what a brilliant choice it was. the casting for the film is neigh on perfect
I've watched it a couple of months ago after many years, I was pleasantly surprised to se it has held up for me.
No. Its way too long. Part 2 bores the shorts (it's summer) off me. Half of part 3 does the same. The action is excellent,as is part 1. I actually prefer the hobbit trilogy. Overall, LOTR is way too long and padded out. I've got the box set but in no rush to watch again.
Irrespective of the quality of the movies, I think the Lord of the Rings trilogy is a story that's meant to be assimilated in small doses over a matter of days or weeks - as one can do with the printed word, or a radio serialisation such as was done by the BBC.
I agree. We watch the trilogy every few or five years in small doses. Usually in the winter. It takes us about a month.
Saw them all once. They were OK Read the books a couple times many years ago. They were pretty good Someone gave me the hardcover of The Silmarillion when it came out. As a kid it took me forever to get through that book, like reading the Old Testament Then got paperbacks of the Lord of The Rings and Hobbit. They were completely different books compared to The Silmarillion but easier to read as well, like Silmarillion For Younger Readers or similar Oh I saw the Bakshi movie at the theaters. Thought it was just Part One but they never followed it up. But it was neat to watch, I liked that animation style
I have a group of friends that gets together and watches them once a year. If anything I may appreciate them more than I did on release.
Cinemark is showing the Extended Editions in XD format starting on Monday, January 1st, one per day. After that, they have listings for the entire trilogy as one lump, in regular projection format on both Saturday and Sunday. Length is 11 hours, 25 minutes, so those are also the Extended Editions. Then they play the Extended Editions one per day again starting on Monday, but in regular projection format. $30 for the full trilogy tickets, $13 for an XD showing, $9 for XD with the Tuesday discount, $10 for a regular showing and $6 for regular with the Tuesday discount. Not sure if this is the same everywhere, but it's like this at the Cinemarks near me.
I had never seen the movies at all before, and caught them in Regal's RPX format when they showed the Extended Editions just like this, on Monday through Wednesday, in 2022. I actually had seen The Hobbit movies in theaters. I had read The Hobbit as a kid, and was more interested in that than Lord of the Rings, which I tried to read as a kid, but couldn't get through the first book. Anyway, the LOTR movies were definitely impressive, but Return of the King was the only great film of the three. The volcano scenes were really good. I thought The Two Towers bordered on being unnecessary filler. Thought it was funny that in both LOTR and the Star Wars prequels, Christopher Lee plays a big part in the second movie but then gets dispatched unceremoniously at the beginning of the third movie. Overall, the movies are very, very heavy on plot, which isn't my favorite type of movie to watch. I prefer Jackson's King Kong to these. It is just much more streamlined and cinematic, efficiently shuttling you from one thrilling scene to another without needing to dwell on any kind of soap opera elements. I do think the LOTR trilogy is better than The Hobbit trilogy, because it does manage to make its story feel more important than those did.
They are great. I enjoy watching the theatrical versions for I and II. For part III, I like the extended version (which includes Saruman's fate) and watch until Aragorn tells the Hobbits they need not kneel before any man. I am not that interested in the (too many) other endings.
