Rating: 
Summary: Not Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings"
Review: Now it's hard to say that a movie based on "the Lord of the Rings" would be a great idea! Yeah! What Tolkien fan wouldn't want that! Me. I belive that all you TRUE LotR fans out there where upset by the Jackson version of this film, (I Mean that even the Bashki version was a lot closer to the books and it took only half the time of the extended version!) But there is something that I must say, it's not Tolkien, this was Hollywood's work. Hollywood has had a long track record of ruining History, not to mention novels. Tolkien would be so upset for he spent 12 years on his work. But to slap it on the screen in tree is so upsetting. I belive that somethings are best to be read and imagined that seen. I know, though, that at any time I can go back to my battered copy of the book and re-live the adventure with Frodo, Sam, Aragorn, Gandalf, and all the others. Not just watch Elija Wood, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, and other actors (some rather horrid [Liv Tyler]) mess up the story of such a gifted author.
Rating: 
Summary: "...The ring wants to be found"
Review: 19 rings were created by the dark lord Sauron. Three given to the elves, seven to the dwarves and nine to the race of men. There was a 20th ring created by Sauron, in which he infused his power. this ring was the master ring of the others. The ring was lost and eventually ended up with the Hobbit Bilbo Baggins. Bilbo gives the ring to his nephew Frodo, played to perfection by former child star Elijah Wood. Gandalf finds out that the ring in the possession of Frodo is indeed the evil ring. He tells Frodo that it must be destroyed because its evil has immense power over mortal men. Frodo ends up wat the Kingdom of the elves where he sets out on a quest with a band of Humans, elves, dwarves and hobbits.Their quest to take it to the place of the ring's creation, the mountain of doom, and destroy it by throwing it into the fire from which it came. An evil wizard, the former mentor of gandalf, is creating an army to retrieve the ring and revive Sauron.This movie is a fantasy of epic proportions. Its is a fine adaptation of the Tolkein classic. The special effects are very good and the Oscar winning cinemetography is fantastic as well as the Oscar winning score that perfectly sets the mood for the movie. The expanded version has 30 extra minutes to the original theatrical release. I didnot see the original so I really cannot compare the two but the longer movie gives a lot of depth to the story. There were many creappy characters and violent scenes that may be disturbing to small children. I had a friends who took their two small boys to see this movie and they said it was border line. They told me that the "Two Towers" is even more violent and darker. The "Two Towers" continues Frodo's quest to destroy the ring.
Rating:
Summary: Best Adventure/Action Movie Since Star Wars
Review: Lord of the Rings dvd collector's edition set has everything you'd want:
MOVIE
-good plot
-suspense
-action
-awesome special effects
-beautiful setting
EXTRAS
-lots of cool stuff
-over 30 hrs
-behind the scenes: the making
COLLECTIBLES + OTHERS
-really cool bookends
-trading cards (awesome)
-free adult movie ticket
Rating: 
Summary: A whole lot of hype...
Review: The first installment of the LOTR trilogy was for me a whole lot of hype and not nearly enough meat. I had just finished reading the novel and was dissapointed with the overall telling of the story. Characters that had such vigor and life in the book, were limp in comparison and others were completely evicted from their places in Middle Earth history. I was impressed by the acting, especially that of Elijah Wood (Frodo), Sean Astin (Samwise), Viggo Mortenson (Aragorn), and Orlando Bloom (Legolas). Each actor made the role their own. The first installment follows the Fellowship (the characters responsible for taking the ring to be destroyed in the fires of Moria) on thier journey to destroy the Ring. This is the Ring that has the power to control everything. If Sauron (the big bad) gets his undead hands on it, he would rule over all of Middle Earth and causse death, destruction and mayhem. It is the responsibility of Frodo Baggins to make sure this never happens. He is teamed up with Samwise Gamgee, Peregrin (Pippin) Took, and Meriadoc (Merry) Brandybuck on this brave adventure through lands that they have only ever heard of in songs and stories. Along the way they are seized with danger and intrigue and nearly meet with the deadly Ringwraiths, Sauraons Dark Riders. They meet Aragorn and are taken to the land of the elves where they are joined by the rest of the Fellowship, and embark on the next part of they journey which could be the deadliest yet. While I was dissapointed with the film itself, the acting and the story it is trying to tell is definitely worth seeing. It can be enjoyed by all ages.
Rating:
Summary: Not a movie person, but I LOVED this movie!!
Review: This film is the best! I'm sure the trilogy is going to go down in cinematic history! It did such a good job of making this story come alive. No home video collection is complete without it!
Rating:
Summary: Much better than I would have guessed!
Review: I bought this movie with reserves as to how goo di thought it would be but it really proved me wrong. There hasn't been a good fantasy series or movie for that matter in quite sometime and the LOTR has filled a much needed void. With Harry Potter also out we have lots to cheer about with good movies. The only reason I gave this movie 4 stars is because I felt some of the casting was a bit weak particularly with Strider. He doesn't do a bad job but he just isn't as convincing of a leathal fighter.
Rating:
Summary: A truly 'precious' DVD set
Review: I really did enjoy the theatrical release of 'Fellowship' and thought that, along with many others, that New Line was doing 2 different DVD releases of the film to 'cash in' on the fans.
I still decided to pick up the extended version, and I feel like it was a good use of my hard-earned money.
First of all, the 30 extra minutes are well used, really expanding on the characters and the world of Middle Earth. I don't really mind the fact that it's on two discs. It's like the intermission that the epic films like 'Lawrence of Arabia' and 'Cleopatra' had. It's a chance to stretch one's legs a bit. It probably would have been impossible to fit the 4 commentaries, the Dolby 5.1 audio track, and a DTS audio track, along with the 3 1/2 hour film without the quality suffering. The picture and audio quality are great because the film is spread out a bit.
The actors that were cast in this film are fantastic. Ian McKellen, Christopher Lee, and Viggo Mortensen are particularly convincing in their roles.
The commentaries are a treasure for the film buff or aspiring film maker. It is facinating to hear 4 different angles on the film.
The two discs of documentaries are superb. I can't recall any DVD release covering the film making process in such detail. Watching the documentaries makes me admire Peter Jackson even more than before. He is a man who genuinely admires Tolkien's work. He is not doing this to 'cash in'. If he truly wanted to cash in, he could have just gone to Australia or England, found a sound stage and done the entire trilogy using sound stages and CGI. He didn't though. He filmed the majority of the films on locations in his homeland, New Zealand, and many crews took many months recreating Middle Earth. Peter Jackson has devoted several years to these films now and deserves the financial rewards that are coming to him.
A truly enjoyable adventure and one that I look forward to reliving many times. This set is one that really exhibits the capablities of the DVD format.
Rating:
Summary: waste of time
Review: Lord of the Rings was a TERRIBLE movie. It was waaay too long, and a complete waste of money...and time! Some long movies are ok because they have a fast pace, which was clearly not the case with this one. There is no way I'm seeing it again or any of the other two. :(
Rating:
Summary: Best DVD EVER MADE!!!!!!!
Review: For once, a studio got the DVD format. The creators of "The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring" used this format to the best of their ability and brought the viewer INTO Middle Earth, through use of top notch documentaries and behind-the-scenes vignettes. Also, Peter Jackson brought out more of the world of Tolkien's book with over 30 minutes of added footage. So, for anyone who enjoyed the movie or those who didn't see the movie at all (All 1 of you out there, yeah i'm talking to you) then go out and BUY THIS DVD!!! and if you don't have a DVD player for some reason, there is now a reason to have one, other than for The Matrix. So DO IT!!!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Movie Becomes Better
Review: The Extended DVD Edition of Lord of the Rings takes everything that was great about the theatrical version and makes it better. The addition of Bilbo's trolls, the trek through the marshes, and the gift giving of Lady Galadriel had me reeling with delight. And the introduction (after the prologue), whew, it's completely redone... and the result is fantastic. Bilbo's voice-over Concerning Hobbits is glorious. The Extended Edition of The Fellowship moves at a much better pace than the theatrical version. The theatrical version just moved a little to fast; like when Aragorn and the hobbits leave Bree, they arrive at Weathertop in no time. There are many other added scenes, and I appreciated all of them.
The technical specifications of this DVD are astounding. The DTS 6.1 sound mix is a work out for my home theater, and since the feature is now stretched over two DVDs, the picture quality is slightly better than the theatrical version DVD. The appendices are a feast. I got lost in endless amount of interviews with cast and crew members, and the insight on the making of the film is remarkable.
It's safe to say that anybody with a DVD player should own this DVD set. The beautiful casing justifies the greatness of The Fellowship of the Ring. I'm sure an extended edition of The Two Towers will be out later this year... I can't wait!
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