DVD Review HTF REVIEW: Return of the King Extended Cut - Absolutely Recommended (1 Viewer)

[Gary->dee]

I've had the chance to watch the movie twice already and just as I suspected it's a much better movie than the theatrical cut. Not that the theatrical version was that bad but I walked out knowing I was missing quite a bit and I hate having that feeling.

They could have kept Saruman's confrontation with Gandalf, it wasn't that long but it resolved the important roles of Saruman and Grima in the story. Likewise the Witch King's confrontation with Gandalf could have stayed in the theatrical cut- it was very short. They also could have kept the Mouth of Sauron in the theatrical version. I could go on but I think you get the point.. oh glad that Faramir's role was much more fleshed out in the EE. He essentially had a cameo in the theatrical cut.

The scope and scale of the battle of Minas Tirith(is that correct?) is AMAZING, colossal and vast.

Oh and I get a little teary-eyed at the end too. Who doesn't? It was kinda funny watching this in the theater and in the dark at the end it seemed like a lot of the audience either caught a cold from all the sniffling I was hearing or were moved to tears.

Last thing, I absolutely love the use of the drawings of the characters for the actors for the closing credits. Not a lot of movies could get away with something like that because frankly I don't think a lot of movies deserve that kind of rich treatment for the closing credits, but in this case it was the perfect touch along with Annie Lennox's beautiful song.

 

[Scott Weinberg]

Oh jeez. I just watched the disc 1 easter egg and it's one of the funniest things I've seen in months. Dom's a funny guy! That bit about Elijah wearing wigs had me giggling like a lunatic.

 

[Sam Favate]

One of the funniest easter eggs I've ever seen. Great stuff. The one with Dom and Elijah is much better than the one with Stiller and Vaughn.

 

[Haggai]

The Dom/Elijah easter egg is classic, definitely the better of the two, but I thought the Stiller/Vaughn one was better than advertised. "Hold me, Fredo"...heh, that was great, a little Swingers reference there, to Trent's line in the Vegas casino about "pulling a Fredo," a hilariously dirty Godfather reference.

Finished the cast commentary last night, which was great. Dom and Billy have some really funny suggestions about what they might have whispered to Frodo as he hugged them at the Grey Havens. I'll be extra-dorky and spoiler tag them in case anyone doesn't want to hear them second-hand:


"You owe me 30 quid."

"Can I have your bike?"

 

[Ray Chuang]

Joseph J.D, you wrote:


I agree, but not because of the picture and sound quality of the movie discs (the sound and picture quality of the Spiderman 2 Superbit release is superior), but because of the two Appendices discs that are VASTLY superior to the Supplemental discs from just about all other DVD sets.

 

[rich_d]

Quite true.

I notice people chiming in with the opinion that ROTK EE cut is their preferred cut of the two versions. Which is fine. However, our view is biased as we already saw the theatrical version and were left wanting more.

My guess is that if we had seen the EE first we would not have been as happy with it as we are now. That's because we have already processed what was delivered and now are ready for 'more more more.' Directors edit out very good scenes all the time because ultimately they do not advance the story well (critical for maintaining the focus of first time viewers). Perhaps one of the hardest things to do as a director is determining what ultimately is cut.

My guess is that the better directors are the ones that don't get caught up with providing too much thus leaving the viewer wanting more (whether that is a scene trim or removing a scene altogether). Probably a tougher trick than we imagine - particularly when the film is based on a well loved book(s).

With the two versions available, Jackson is providing viewers with two terrific experiences.

 

[Grant H]

Watched mine Saturday. I didn't have any trouble hearing the dialogue on the DTS-ES track. Seemed about the same as the others to me.

I don't think I'd want the bass to be any boomier. It was awesome overall.

Very much how I remember the DTS mix sounding in theaters, except for the new scenes of course.

 

[Ravi K]

I'm not a huge fan of the LOTR series, but my girlfriend got the EE of Return of the King and the extras are pretty impressive. I have a feeling that I will have watched the extended cuts and all the extras of all three films by the end of 2005

 

[TonyDale]

I watched the two Easter Eggs last night, following the emotionally charged film itself. Honestly, I thought I was going to wet my pants with laughter during Elijah's interview. Definitely the funnier of the two; the Vaughn & Stiller piece only had me howling during the "Frodo and Sam" pitch
.

 

[DaveGTP]

I managed to watch half of ROTK. I'll have to finish the rest of it later this week. Wow is the movie long (even longer now). Here I was thinking I was through a majority of the movie and suddenly the screen went black asking for disc 2. Oh well. I'd watch the movies no matter how long they are

I did notice the minor amount of edge enhancement when I looked for it, but overall I was happy with the disc. Some scenes have seemed a bit unecessary (the skulls scene in the Paths of the Dead, for example). I originally thought the same of the brief Eowyn's Dream sequence until I found out it comes straight from Tolkien, from Tolkien's nightmares (See one of the special features on disc 3).

I started watching in Dolby EX and then remembered to change over to DTS-ES. I too lack the rear channel speaker but now I have room for it at my new house (hopefully I will get it next month). I can't comment much on the mix because these days my system is mainly used for Babylon 5 and stereo sources (TV on DVD, a lot of anime) but it sounded excellent to me.

 

[Jack Shappa]

Had a ROTK:EE party last night. All I can say is WOW. Had my Denon 3803 at -05 and the place was rocking. The surround sound was some of the best I've heard. And the musical score just swept you away in it.

Had a question though...

Anyone notice 1 or 2 "crackles" from the rears during a couple scenes? Pretty sure its not my speakers.

- Cryo

 

[Bill Williams]

Maybe my wife will come through and get this for me for Christmas! This one is a MUST-see for me

 

[Andrew Bunk]

I watched the EE version of each film this past weekend, all with the DTS tracks. I also found the dialogue to be less prominent on ROTK EE than the other two films. I also felt like the score was lower in level than in comparable scenes in the other two films. Nothing horrible, but there did seem to be a difference. I may check out the DD track next time, but the DTS still rocked during the action scenes.

 

[Gregory E]

I finally got to watch it today (since I'm snowed in). I really like the extended cut. I was a little disappointed by the Mouth of Sauron character. For some reason I just thought he'd be cooler. The confrontation between the Witch King and Gandalf was good. I'm guessing they cut it from the theatrical version because it made Gandalf look sort of....weak.

And I think the Saruman scene could have stayed in the theatrical cut.

 

[Larry Sutliff]

Awesome review, David!

Just a quick little review of my own: I really liked the extended cut overall, though I was disappointed with a few scenes that were highly touted(Saruman, Mouth of Sauron, Witch King). But the rest of the added bits were good and helped the characterizations; I also seem to be one of the few who finds Gimli genuinely amusing. He may be my favorite character.

A great film, and the transfer is a vast improvement over the theatrical cut.

 

[DanielKellmii]

Great Review and thank you for
I was wondering about that for all three disks. I did a quick calibration of my RPTV, so I was VERY confused why the flesh tones didn't seem to "match" with everything else. It really bugged me!

By the way, did you know that your last name means "meatball" in French?

 

[Tim Glover]

Yes I did too. During the extended Paths of the Dead Sequence was one time. Only heard this crackling or distortion on the dts track though. There was another time when the volume just skyrocketed way up and it sounded unnatural.

 

[Rob Tomlin]

Thanks Dave!

This one should be sitting under the tree for me already!

 

[Gary->dee]

Me too, Larry. While all the Tolkien purists may decry his role in the movie as mere comic relief, I not only find him funny at times but also think he adds a much needed sense of perspective and reality, for lack of a better word. He's down to [middle]earth and not as sophisticated and serious as the others. I haven't read the books so maybe my opinion of Gimli would change if I did, but in the movies I find him to be a rather refreshing character when compared to the rest of the fellowship. He provides the most contrast.

 

[Larry Sutliff]

Couldn't have said it better myself, Gary!