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Released by: New Line Cinema
Released on: 4/6/2010
Director: Peter Jackson
Cast: Elijah Wood, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortenson, Christopher Lee, Ian McKellen, a bunch of Hobbits and some CGI beasties.
Year: Various
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The Movies:
Widely, and rightly, considered by many to be one of the finest cinematic achievements of all time, Peter Jackson's adaptation of The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy finally makes its way to Blu-ray in their theatrical cuts only. That's right - there are no extended versions included in this set, though it's a very safe assumption that they will follow.
For those who haven't seen the series, here's a quick rundown of each of the three parts that make up the whole:
Lord of the Rings - The Fellowship of the Ring:
The first film introduces us to the core characters as we jump into the story that centers around a rather meek Hobbit named Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood) who inherits a ring. This isn't just any ring, however - you see, there were nine rings created and given to the rulers of all the lands, and then one more ring that is more powerful and which controls everything else. This ring was thought to be lost after its creator, a wizard named Sauron, was defeated in battle.
At any rate, Frodo hangs out with his uncle Bilbo (Ian Holm) and more or less spends his days doing irritating Hobbit stuff. Bilbo, based on the advice of his wizard pal Gandalf (Ian McKellen), is the one who bequeaths upon Bilbo the aforementioned ring, unaware that evil is afoot in Mordor and that this ring will play a big part in events to come. Bilbo and a few other Hobbits hook up with tougher and less irritating characters like Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), Legolas (Orlando Bloom), Gimli (John Rhys-Davies), and Boromir (Sean Bean) to keep the ring save from the evil Saruman (Christopher Lee) and a bunch of orcs who thrive on chaos.
Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers:
Frodo Baggins and his pals continue their quest to destroy the 'One Ring' and the evil Sauron. The Fellowship finds themselves divided and on entirely different paths but they know they must end up at different two towers - Orthanc Tower in Isengard where Saruman is hanging out and Sauron's tower fortress in Baraddur which is in a scary part of Mordor. While all of this is going on, a slimy creature named Gollum (Andy Serkis) obsesses over the ring and does everything that he can to turn different factions against each other and ruin all that the Hobbit crew has set into motion.
Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King:
The ultimate battle for Middle-Earth is set into motion as Frodo and Sam, with Gollum leading the way, continue their quest which they hope will bring them to Mount Doom where they intend to finally destroy the ring. Aragorn leads his troops, vastly outnumbered as they may be, against an increasingly powerful Sauron to help Frodo do what he has to do with as little interference from Sauron and the evil orcs as possible. A massive battle ensues, the whole good versus evil thing is resolved, and not everyone will make it back to Hobbitsville alive and in one piece.
As revered as this series is, just how much you get out of it will really depend on your tolerance for flighty fantasy creatures. If you're not into elves and hobbits, the sheer radness of the orcs and the giant talking, moving tree creatures may not save it for you. Yes, the battle scenes are epic and fantastic and amazingly choreographed and yes, Gollum did set new standards for how realistic CGI beings could be but there's definitely a sense of goofiness to the entire series. Obviously Tolkien's original stories are considered classics and are very much beloved by the masses, but as a member of a certain minority who found those same novels rather sleep inducing, let it suffice to say that not all of us see what all the hype is about.
That said, in no uncertain terms should this reflect what Peter Jackson has accomplished with this trilogy, the three films that he will doubtless be remembered for. If Heavenly Creatures remains his most impressive picture in many ways, the Lord Of The Rings Trilogy is certainly his most epic. The sheer magnitude and scope of the project is impressive, not to mention all the details that went into the costumes, the weapons, and the set and creature design. The performances are great - Christopher Lee and Ian McKellen in particular seem to have been born to play wizards both evil and noble - with pretty much all involved really and truly fitting their characters well. The film is beautifully shot and does an amazing job of making you believe that Middle Earth could very well exist in rural New Zealand and it's all very pretty and neat to look at.
With no disrespect meant to Tolkien, Jackson, or anyone else involved in bringing this fantasy world into our collective consciousness, this is still a story about short guys with fuzzy feet battling wizards over a ring...
Video/Audio/Extras:
You'd expect, given the success of these films, that the VC-1 encoded 2.35.1 anamorphic widescreen 1080p high definition transfers would be flawless, right? Sadly, they're not. They're good, sometimes even great but the first film looks really inconsistent. Much of this has to do with the way that it was shot and with all of the effects work but it looks noticeably softer and less detailed than the two follow up pictures. There's also some noticeable DNR throughout all three of the films that's definitely going to irritate some people and it pops up frequently enough that those irks are going to be completely warranted. Color reproduction generally looks good and there aren't any compression artifacts to note. Print damage isn't an issue and on that level the image is nice and clean, but yeah, those flaws are definitely there.
On the other hand, there are moments here that are amazing in their clarity and their depth. Certain close up shots show every nook and cranny on the performers faces and all the texture and detail in the costumes. Had the image been like this consistently it would have made a lot of people very happy but even if that were possible, it hasn't happened here. What we're left with is inconsistent, ranging from murky and muddy looking to absolutely stunning and hitting most stops along the way in between, but don't be surprised to walk away from this set feeling that it could and should have looked better than it does.
Each of the three movies in this collection gets the DTS-HD 6.1 Master Audio treatment in English with optional standard definition Spanish language dubs also supplied. Subtitles are offered up in English SDH and in Spanish as well.
While there are very valid reasons to complain about the video quality of this release, you're going to have a much harder time complaining about the audio. The 6.1 tracks included for the three films all sound spectacular, with all the surround activity you'd expect from the trilogy and maybe even a bit more. Bass response is very strong and powerful without burying the performers in the mix while dialogue is always perfectly balanced, clean and clear. Of course, it stands to reason that the battle scenes are going to impress, and they do, but even quieter and more dramatic moments sound great with some welcome and entirely appropriate ambient noise noticeable in the rear channels. The score is as majestic and powerful as you'd want it to be and nicely spread across the sound stage and there aren't any problems with hiss or distortion to note. The trilogy sounds amazing on Blu-ray.
Each of three films appears on a three-disc set enclosed is a sturdy slipcase. The first disc in each set is a Blu-ray and aside from menus, these first discs contain only theatrical trailers (in HD). The rest of the extras are contained on each respective film's second disc, which is a standard definition DVD. The third disc for each film includes a digital copy of the feature.
Here's what you'll find:
The Fellowship Of The Ring:
Welcome To Middle Earth is a sixteen minute segment that talks about the origins of Tolkien's books, their influence and impact, and how that translated many years later in to Jackson's take on the material. Quest For The Ring is a bit more in-depth at twenty-two minutes long and it contains a fair bit more behind the scenes and on set footage, though at times it borders on a glorified advertisement for the film rather than a documentary.
A Passage To Middle Earth is a forty minute TV special that was originally shown on the Sci-Fi Channel and it's considerably more epic in scope and it covers a fair bit more ground than the other two. It's still fairly promotional in spots, but there's more focus on adapting the source material here as well as casting, effects and the like. There's also a ten minute preview of The Two Towers.
Rounding out the extras for this film are six television spots, a music video, a collection of Lord Of The Rings web promos, and a preview for the extended edition of the film.
The Two Towers:
First up is a fourteen minute On Set featurette that was shown on the Starz Encore Channel that looks at the creation of the follow up film, how it adapts the source, and how and why certain locations were chosen. More interesting is the forty-two minute featurette, Return To Middle Earth, that gives us a pretty good look at what it was like literally living life on the set in New Zealand for so long while this project was underway. There's the more standard stuff like interviews and effects shots and what not, but it's the 'slice of life' bits that make this worth watching.
Also included on this disc is a goofy seven minute short called The Long And Short Of It that the cast and crew made while living on the set. It's not LOTR related at all but it's amusing enough and it comes with its own seven minute making of documentary.
Rounding out the extras for this film are six television spots, a music video, a promo for The Return Of The King, a collection of Lord Of The Rings web promos, and a preview for the extended edition of the film.
The Return Of The King:
The extras for the last film kick off with the twenty-three minute A Quest Fulfilled which is a fairly interesting look at what Jackson did to get this project made and how it was essentially his personal vision for a few years solid. It probably could have gone more in-depth but as it stands it's a decent piece. The twenty-eight minute A Filmmaker's Journey that covers the basics of the film like casting, costumes and other standard subjects but which also provides some interesting history into the trilogy, different versions that were at one point planned, and how this final, finished one came about.
The best extra on the disc is the forty-six minute National Geographic Special - The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King, which does a great job of putting the history of the series into context alongside specific events from the real world which helped to shape them. It makes some bizarre and unlikely comparisons from time to time but it's always interesting even when some of the content seems like a bit of a stretch.
Rounding out the extras for this film are a few television spots, a collection of Lord Of The Rings web promos, and a preview for the extended edition of the film.
The Final Word:
Meh. Say what you will about the merits of the theatrical cuts versus the extended editions, there's reasons to appreciate or want to own both if you're a fan. The transfers here aren't as good as many had hoped but they definitely do offer an upgrade from the standard definition releases while the audio is flawless. The extras are fairly promotional and fluffy for the most part but they do offer up some insight into the making of the series even if it's all stuff that has been previously available. It's hard to wholeheartedly recommend this release knowing that New Line will put out the extended editions sooner or later, but if you're a LOTR junkie and need the theatrical cuts on Blu-ray, here they are.