LOTR RTK super massive extended edition

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

ok, I did watch disc 2, btw.  

More not-really-spoilers

Peter Jackson dies on screen

The corsair issue is a little closer to the book.

No new content from the fight with Smeagol afterward

The Witch King claiming he will break Gandalf actually means something

The Faramir/Eowyn thing is better developed (which was my third and last remaining major complaint for the film except that Jackson never filmed the Barrow Downs scene in Fellowship). Faramir in general is better developed, and we get to see him interact more with several characters.

The second half additions are also mostly lines here and there.

we get to see the fate of Chunk's buddy

Pippin saves Merry. Yay! Merry has a slightly bigger part too.

More screen time for Miranda Otto. That's always a good thing.

Aragorn has a bigger role in taking care of the palantir.

and a little surprise at the Black Gate that I don't remember from the book. Not sure if I like it or not, I'll have to watch again to see if I do. I think I do, but not sure. It's interesting to say the least

With the potential exception of the last, I'm going to have to say that the bonus material for RotK is the best bonus material of the entire trilogy. Almost all of it adds directly to the story and develops the themes. Yeah, the movie is now significantly over 4 hours long now, but it's even more of a glue your butt to the seat movie. Kudos to Jackson.

[Fellfrosch]

Does the black gate stuff involve the Mouth of Sauron? Because I know they cast that part, and I assume they filmed some of it, but it wasn't in the theater release.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

mmmmmmmmmmaybe.

Ok, yes.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

Just some thoughts as I am watching the SMEE(Super massive extended edition) of LOTR RTK New scene with Christopher Lee, very good, not accurate with the book, but very good, and it really helps the whole movie incredibly.

[Fellfrosch]

It's nice that they followed the Saruman/Grima death scene fairly closely, even though they put it in a different part of the story--it was one of the main reasons I was sad to lose the Scouring of the Shire, so I'm glad it came back.

And man, that Mouth of Sauron was spooky. Hellraiser cenobite spooky.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

Creepier than pinhead anyway...

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

yeah, watched it again. The mouth put my sister-in-law out. but then, her problem with Phantom Menace was not with Jar Jar but that Darth Maul looked like a Pro wrestler. I have to tell her to shut it every time she watches a movie in the same room as me.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

Its too bad you cant watch it at home a lot... wife and all.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

wife will watch LotR with me, surprisingly, though she spends much of it hiding her eyes. THe kids, however....

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

unusual...

[Oseleon]

Not so unusual
My Wife wouldn't let me start the thing w/o her on Christmas day
We had a wonderful Christmas afternoon, Sitting by the Fire at may Parent's house in Williamsburg all cozy and enjoying a 4 hour epic to counter the previous nights sacherine of "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Miracle on 34th Street"

I don't like how Aragorn ends his audiance with the Mouth of Sauron...  I need to rewatch a few times to get enough absorbed to comment fully.  

Part of the problem is that Jackson's vision is so close to my own imagining when I read the books, that I end up rememembering scenes in the movie that were not there!  

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

Is that a fairy stuck in a meat grinder? Righteous.

I liked how he ended it. He's frustrated from what Sauron showed him, and he knows that there's not going to be any real diplomacy going on here, he's not gonna give in because he's just distracting Sauron, and the mouth there is just dispiriting his pals. So... why not vent some frustration and show Sauron you mean business?

[Lieutenant Kije]

** Kije, not yet having watched his copy, drools profusely

[Oseleon]

Is that a fairy stuck in a meat grinder? Righteous.

Yes, Yes it is!  I pulled it from www.ctrlaltdel-online.com

I liked how he ended it. He's frustrated from what Sauron showed him, and he knows that there's not going to be any real diplomacy going on here, he's not gonna give in because he's just distracting Sauron, and the mouth there is just dispiriting his pals. So... why not vent some frustration and show Sauron you mean business?

Good point,  He was, afterall, trying to act with the arrogance that Sauron would expect from one who HAD the Ring in his possesion.  

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

I think the thread should have a spoiler warning now that I double think it... so consider yourself warned.



So I've done the whole thing twice, and watched the appendices for III and I have only one complaint.
The things short 1 full story.

The Hobbit.

I know Jackson said he wouldn't make it,... but it seems so ludicrous to not make the keyest of the key stories and the one that frankly everyone is most familiar with.

Sure the story of the ring was told, and told well, but the discovery of the ring by Bilbo is essential. Plus I'd like to see how WETA would have done Smaug.

Anyhow thats more of a mini rant than a criticism,...

Anyone interested in filmmaking might be interested by the appendicies, but 2 of the Shorts stand out in my mind, The first one on Tolkien, and the Horse lords, which is essentially a documentary on Horses in the movies, and how they performed. Many of the actors and crew bought LOTR horses and the dedication of the actors and the patience of the horses is impressive.

Oh and watching the Scouring of the shire again leaves me with one impression. Christopher Lee was robbed in the theatrical release. Some of his best acting.