Rating: Summary: get those 6.1 amps now Review: There have already been so many reviews and discussions about this vervion of LOTR that I have nothing else to add. I mearly want to point out that for those of us who purchased 6.1 receivers for our home entertainment systems, this is the movie to get. Under sound selections you will find DTS EX. And that is what you want to be able to find each and every movie you purchase (naturally you won't). But if you ever wanted to show off your sound system, this is the movie to do it with.
Rating: Summary: Long, but worth every minute. Review: There have been a number of attempts to bring The Fellowship of the Ring to the big (and small) screen. All previous attempts included some form of cartoon/animation to tell the story. All wound up being dumbed down for children or couch potatoes. All were b-grade at best.Now comes a bold new attempt to bring Tolkien's legacy to the big screen. This time, thanks to technology and a director who wanted to be as true to novel as possible. The Fellowship of the Ring is a long but lush and vivid trip into Middle Earth. Peter Jackson succeeded where the others have miserably failed. This movie actually makes you believe that Middle Earth is a REAL place, filled with real hobbits, elves, and men. To be sure, the Fellowship of the Ring doesn't cover every aspect of the novel, but the changes are hard to spot, except by the most die-hard Tolkien fan. You can see that New Line Cinema didn't "ride" Peter and force him to dumb down the movie so that people with an 8th Grade reading level could grasp it. Things happen in this movie that aren't always "explained" by some character or narrator, which is truly refreshing. I look forward to this trend continuing through the rest of the trilogy. The Fellowship of the Ring is a movie much like Lawrence of Arabia, Harry Potter and the Sorcer's Stone, Frank Herbert's Dune, and Titanic in that it is a long but ultimately very satisfying film. A masterwork that is already on its way to becoming classic in the truest sense of the word.
Rating: Summary: Ultimate Lord of the Rings Review: There is more information here on just the making of this one movie than I ever though possible or even desirable. If you should ever completely finish viewing all of the discs, you will probably know enough about Lord of the Rings and epic filmmaking to make your own movie about any of Tolkien's other classic books. But there are better reasons to shell out thirty bucks than that. First, there is thirty minutes of extra footage (like this wasn't long enough already topping out at three hours). Most of the deleted scenes were scenes that, in one way or another, were important to the books but were deemed unworthy of the theatre audiences. Throw in the fact that there are four different commentaries to listen to and that means you're going to be watching LOTR until you think you're in Middle Earth. Good reason number two: there are more commentaries than you can shake a stick at. The first DVD (the "regular" two disc set) was so big you needed a map to guide you. This one should come with its own atlas. Each disc contains a labyrinth of information so vast that six months after buying it, I'm still wading through everything it has to offer. And, of course, you'll get the trailer for The Two Towers, which was released in theaters a month after the set hit store shelves. This set has probably made someone, somewhere a very wealthy person, and with good reason. It's a superior product that won't easily be matched in November when The Two Towers Platinum Series comes out.
Rating: Summary: History became legend, Legend became myth Review: There is no need for me to rehash the story line. Judging from the number of reviews I'm probably the last person to even see this movie. I never read the book, so I was not sure if I would be able to follow the film. After hearing so many people talk about the film I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.
I was very surprised at how much I really enjoyed this film. You really get sucked into the story. This movie kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next. I laughed when the mischievous hobbits were made to wash dirty dishes for their prank with the fireworks. You have various characters, the bad guy trying to do evil, the good guys willing to sacrifice their lives to save their world. Different types of wonderful monsters, how can anyone not enjoy this film?
When Gandorf stood up to that monster I just knew he was a goner. The characters could not let their guard down in this film could prove detrimental. The characters in the film never knew when the enemy would strike and they had to stay prepared at all times. Amazing how one little ring can cause such a major ruckus!!! This movie is the type of film you can find your self watching over and over again and see something new each time. This is an excellent, excellent film that is well deserving of the hype it received!!!
Rating: Summary: Yes Virginia, there IS a Santa Claus! Review: There is no other word for the Lord of the Rings saga that has finally made it to film than breathtakingly awesome. Sure some plot deviations are made in the interest of keeping the time down and the number of characters introduced on screen reasonable, but all in all it is a very faithful reproduction of the books. Tolkien was probably responsible for the massive volume of fantasy literature that has since copied his elves and orcs. Deservedly so. I dont know how anyone could not give this the highest rating.
Rating: Summary: Bored of the Rings Review: There is no point in trying to compare novel to film. First, I haven't read any of Tolkien's works and secondly the movie exists in its own right and must be judged as such. In that sense the film fails as a cinematic event. What is presented here is essentially ACT ONE of a three act film, so how can one say that the film is great or not based upon a fragment. Despite its great length the film does seem to skip past characters with ruthless efficiency. There is little in the way of character development and in some instances suitable introduction for them. Liv Tyler is a perfect example. Obviously she will feature prominently in future instalments but there is scant introduction here and, remarkably, she quickly vanishes from the scene. This is puzzling filmmaking. It seems that the director has read the novels and is so familiar with them that he has forgotten that his audience is largely uninitiated. Much has been taken as common knowledge. Notwithstanding the special effects, which are admirable, much of the movie progresses in such a hurry that names are meaningless (most are unpronouceable in any event)and the "what's his face" game rules the day. You can hear the buzz going around the theatre as people whisper "Who's he again?" The overscored track doesn't help either. The music gets quite deafening through much of the film and dialogue gets drowned out. Let's hope the DVD has a good subtitle track. I won't comment on the acting as there's not much to fault there. I was however let down by the makeup particularly on the goblins and orcs. It is not much of an improvement on what one saw in LEGEND (the Tom Cruise flick)and that goes back about ten years. Also much of this film is cast in such a gloom that to use the overused adage "one may as well be wearing night-vision goggles". Its hard to see a bloody thing at times. Then the director uses an editing process straight out of the rock video school of filmmaking and action sequences flash by in such rapid succession that your eyes go into spasm. This film would be much better if the director could just hold the camera on a scene long enough to let your eyes focus on it (and remember what I said about the gloom). Overall, not bad but not great either. I hope the next two films don't repeat the same style otherwise I shan't be along for the ride.
Rating: Summary: Absolute Must Have Review: There is no point renting this set from a video store. There is simply too much information in it and you only scratch the surface by watching the DVDs. The third and fourth discs have a such a wealth of information on how the movie was made and how Middle Earth was brought to life that you will want to dedicate a lot of time to watching. Peter Jackson and his team clearly do this as a labor of love and I cannot stress what a valuable asset this is to your DVD collection. I purchased this after buying the original DVD and I am very glad that I have both. The original DVD is simply the cinema version of the movie. This set contains all the extra stuff and the extra 30 minutes of movie that is added fill in many of the gaps that the books refer to. Definite MUST BUY.
Rating: Summary: Everyone knows how terrific it is already. Review: There is not much more to say about this masterpiece,except with regards to the dvd release,there will actually be 3 seperate offerings. Version 1:Everything already listed on this site,plus a Dolby Digital surround ex sound transfer. Version 2(release date Nov 12,my birthday is the 13,must be a sign):6 hours of original behind the scenes footage not contained on the 1st edition,30 minutes of additional footage(not just a supplement or rough cut extra,but actual scenes that had to be trimmed for it's theatrical release due to time constraints),and my favorite part,an honest to goodness DTS 6.1 discrete sound mix(A Dolby Digital EX 6.1 mix will be included also).This will be a massive 4 disc set,with the first two discs consisting of what will be a 3 hour and 30 minute film,and the last 2 discs will contain the 6 hours of extras. 3rd Release(also Nov 12th):a special collectors edition box set with Argonath bookends,and all the extras contained in the 2nd edition plus additional extras to be announced at a later date.This is the one i fully expect the fans to snap up.How could'nt you,if you call yourself a true fanatic of this film.To the casual admirers i would suggest the first edition,to the average admirer who considers sound important the 2nd edition,to the obsessive,the box set is a must. Thank You,the studios are finally embracing the DTS 6.1 discrete technology(matrix is servicable also,but still not as effective),and this is a film that should'nt be experienced any other way.
Rating: Summary: Brilliant, nobody could done it better than Peter Jackson ! Review: There is nothing left to say as this is what we hoped for. The intensity of the first film was great, the characters are portrayed as they just jumped out of my mind during reading the father of all modern fantasy literature ! I heard people saying at the cinemas that the books are much better, but keep in mind that we all have a different imagination when we read a book and the epic comes to life in our minds. So i say again, well done Mr. Jackson and thank you giving me such an overwhelming visualisation of the beloved epic. I had more than once tears in my eyes through watching it, i have seen it 4 times now, and i m going to see it again ! Mr. Jackson i honor you Richard "the Icewulf" Fischer
Rating: Summary: A Captivating Journey of Emotions! Review: There is only one way to describe this movie: breath-taking. Even if you have never heard the name "Tolkien" before, you should see this movie and be sucked into his world of Middle Earth. I have seen the movie 9 times in the theater because I loved it some much! A must buy, for anyone!
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