***Official 'Fellowship of the Ring' DVD Announcement Thread (1 Viewer)

[WilliamJI]

This quote from AICN's Moriarty who was at the New Line Announcement Party this week...

"She also showed us a Collector's DVD Box Set that will be out in limited numbers near Christmas.

Basically, it's the Special Extended Version, the Nat'l Geographic special that was put out recently on DVD,

and a few packs of the collectible game cards.

The packaging is designed by Alan Lee, and comes with bookends for this whole set, carved replicas of

Argonath."

I really hope this info. is wrong, as I am planning on buying the basic edition in August, and I REALLY want to

get that Extended Edition too.

I want the Special Box 5 disc set, but I don't want to wait a whole extra month + when the 4 disc set is out in November!!

Ughhh.....

 

[David Lambert]

From the official press release:

A collector’s DVD gift set will also be released on November 12 in time for the holiday season. This gift set will include the “Special Extended Edition” with box art packaging conceived and designed by famed Tolkien illustrator Alan Lee. Included with the DVD are custom bookends designed and sculpted by Sideshow Weta, the artists that crafted the astonishing theatrical visual effects for The Lord of the Rings. The gift set will also include the National Geographic “Beyond the Movie” DVD, containing two previously unreleased featurettes and a photo gallery. These extras are topped off with a set of exclusive, collectible Decipher game cards.

The gift set "near Christmas" will be November 12th, same day as the 4-disc set, okay? Cheers!

 

[Dan Brecher]

If anyone here is confident about buying the R2 release of the expanded cut, check out this interesting tid bit from DVD Debate;

Some disturbing news from the BBFC today could lead to problems with the November announced 4-disc set of Lord Of The Rings. A recent policy decision at the British Censorship Board means that two versions of the same title may not be on sale at the same time with different certificates. Some high profile titles have fallen foul of this ruling in the past and only after a sufficient period of waiting have titles like Terminator 2 and Die Hard 2: Die Harder been allowed to be re-released uncut.
The reason this affects Lord Of The Rings is due to the proposed 4-disc Special Edition which contains an additional 30 minutes of footage. There has been some speculation that additional footage, particularly of fight sequences at the battle at Amon Hen, could be sufficiently bloody enough to earn the US release an R-rating, the equivalent of an 18 certificate in the UK. If this is the case, then the BBFC will insist that these violent scenes are cut from the film to maintain parity with the previously released PG version.
A BBFC spokesman told us today: "Under "current" policy [the UK distributor] couldn't have a higher rated version. Of course, policies can change but we don't foresee any change to this particular policy in the near future. Basically, our position is that any alternative version would have to be suitable for a 'PG' certificate. But we haven't seen anything that leads us to believe the extra footage proposed is likely to be more violent - just 'extra' footage."
This assurance will come as cold comfort to those unsure of which version to buy and it remains to be seen whether Entertainment In Video themselves have thought this far ahead. With the second 'extended' version still in post-production, it will be a long time before EiV get to see a copy, let alone submit it to the BBFC for approval. We could be in for a long wait to hear the definitive answer to this one.

Another highlight of the farce many R2 DVDs can be reduced to. Obviously the certificate would not be upped to an 18, but 12 is likely, with a 15 possible. Either way if they up the certificate, as the BBFC state, they'd have to cut it back down to PG because of the oh so precious issue of having 2 versions of the same movie out at the same time with different ratings. Pathetic!
Dan

 

[Jim_C]

Man, sorry to hear that Dan. I don't suppose you have the capability to play R1 DVD's? Probably not but if you did I'm sure that it wouldn't be a problem to pick one up and mail it to you.

If this comes to pass and you can't get the R-rated version in England then maybe there's a way to get a hold of it in another R2 country and have it sent to you? I don't know anything about non-R1 DVD's so I don't know if what I just said is impossible.

I'd be unbelievably pissed if it was me.

 

[Dan Brecher]

Jim, actually all I buy are R1 DVDs. I got into DVD (importing titles from the US) long before the format even existed in England, so I've sat back and observed how domestic releases are handled and have rarely been impressed with what the general British public here are given with DVD in comparison to the US.
I highlight EiV (who distribute new line stuff on home video in the UK) as a good example of some of the crap it looks like R2 owners are made to put up with.
EiV were stupid to tout the DTS ES track on the press release for the region2 4 disc Fellowship release when its inclusion is still tentative. They're essentialy quoting a feature that may not even be there, hence why New Line had the sense not to announce it for the R1. EiV know how to destroy a good cover design too, their releases resulting in what look like bootlegs.
Recently it was said New Line were so unimpressed by the way EiV handle their movies on region2 that they wanted to hand all new line product to Warner Bros for DVD distrubution in the UK. Obviously this desire fall flat, possible due to contract issues with EiV I don't know...
I can't stand region2 for various reasons, the problems with the BBFC being just one of them (add to that god awful box artwork, logos plastered all over the discs, PAL speed, delayed releases and other issues)... However, while I don't like R2 for various reasons and never intend to buy a movie on R2, I still do care somewhat about the way R2 owners are treated, which is why I felt the want to highligh the ridiculous Fellowship issue the BBFC have spoken out on.
Dan

 

[MatS]

had to pop in the 'Rush Hour 2' dvd tonight to watch the 2 trailers in anticipation of this release

 

[Jon Robertson]

Dan - I do think you're foolish to tar all R2 releases with the same brush.

Personally, I always try and get the best DVD release of any film I buy, regardless of region or format.

There are R2 discs that I doubt will ever come out on R1, too numerous to list here.

As for your point over logos on the disc - you see a disc for all of, what, five seconds before it gets put in the player? Packaging and artwork has always come very, very low on the scale for me in terms of importance. It's what's inside that counts.

Digital patriotism will get you nowhere - getting the best for each individual film in your collection most certainly will.

 

[Dan Brecher]

Jon, I'm not putting down every R2 release, I think many are fine, they've certainly got better in recent years too, but again, the delays, the PAL speed up, the box art, the certificate logos not only plastered on the discs but the boxes too, and above all the COST just never inspire me to even think of owning an R2 movie title. I often fail to get the impression great time and care was put into various aspects of an R2 DVD release...
These are just the personal feelings I have of course, I don't want anyone to get up in arms about my personal thoughts, I rarely speak out about my feelings toward R2 discs so much (unless a PAL speed up thread appears ) but I just wanted to give Jim a little background on my situation...
For overall value and presentation, R1 just can't be beat in my opinion. But believe me, despite my lack of interest in Region2, I still don't like to see R2 fans/owners get messed around as they continue to be. I don't wish to throw this thread off track, but this possible R2 Fellowship issue with the BBFC would be just the latest in a long line or many pointless and stupid incidents...
It frustrates me there is no set standard across the board, for all 6 regions to meet the same standards of care and production. Like you say, you just go for whichever one offers the best quality, but this results in a mish mash of purchasing discs from one region to the next which really shouldn't be asked of people, and it's also not something many people are even lucky enough to take advantage of. To me, overall, R1 meets the best standards at the end of the day. I can continue this in pvt messages or e-mail if you wish...
Back to fellowship!
Dan

 

[Heinz W]

I will spinelessly be purchasing the Aug. 2 disc set and either the 4 or 5 disc set depending upon final specs.
Hey Dan, I just gotta ask you man, where is Rob Gillespie? He's not posted for some time and I seem to recall that you, him, and a few other HTF members there in the U.K. went to one of the premieres of Fellowship back in December. That coupled with the fact that he posted prolificly in prior LotR threads but now nary a peep makes me wonder what happened.
In fact, I don't think he's posted since the films' release. I just thought it odd that his posting stopped right around that time; I really would like to know what he thought of it.

 

[Dan Brecher]

Rob's a very busy chap, but yes, I'll have to give a quick blast on my horn of Gondor to get him to post his thoughts on the DVD release and in fact the Two Towers footage now added to the theatrical relase of Fellowship (which I caught Friday and was thrilled with btw).

Dan

 

[Jon Robertson]

Fair enough, Dan. I do agree that, overall, R1 is the tried-and-true best.

 

[Jim_C]

>>Jim, actually all I buy are R1 DVDs. I got into DVD (importing titles from the US) long before the format even existed in England, so I've sat back and observed how domestic releases are handled and have rarely been impressed with what the general British public here are given with DVD in comparison to the US

 

[CamiloCamacho]

and no foreign language options.

And then no release in Zone 4 (At least Colombia) OR a Highly compressed 1 disc edition. No matter, this is no kiddie movie, so no need of spanish subtitles / track.

 

[David Lambert]

Interesting 2-page-spread ad that appears in the latest issue of Video Store Magazine (3/24-3/30):

Text reads:

$770,000,000 Worldwide to Date and Still Rising. The Journey Comes to DVD and VHS This Summer.

 

[Andrew_Sch]

Damnit, why can't it be August 6 RIGHT NOW?!?!

 

[DavidBL]

Hi all, first post ever here. I've been following developments on the 4 disc set with the "extended don't- call-it-a-director's cut" because I would much prefer that it stay with a more family friendly PG-13 rating. Just for kicks I looked at www.mpaa.org (also www.filmratings.com --uses the same search engine/database) and was quite surprised to find this when I searched for "fellowship":
Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring Special Extended Edition, The (2002)
New Line Home Entertainment
PG-13
Rated PG-13 for epic battle sequences and some scary images.
This is a distinct entry from the theatrical movie, specifically the release dates(2001/2002) and the studio name (New Line Cinema/New Line Home Entertainment).
Is this real?? Has the MPAA really reviewed the extended cut already and applied the rating?