Review of "LORD OF THE RINGS: FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING (2001) -- Extended Edition"

Lights Out Entertainment ^ | November 6th, 2002 | Brian Balchack

[sourcery]

" A complete masterpiece that stands alone as the single greatest film adaptation of a book, ever. "

Pure magic ensued on a screen in Universal City last night. The excitement was high, and the crowd was eager to experience an extended edition of one of the only films in the world worthy of such treatment. Ladies and gentlemen...the extended edition of Lord Of The Rings: Fellowship Of The Ring. We sat down in our seats just before the picture hit the screen. The theater was to digitally present one the greatest films of all time to a batch of lucky viewers who were highly anticipating seeing a version of a film which more closely portrayed the greatest fantasy novel of all time. Lord Of The Rings: Fellowship Of The Ring started right on time, and with only one trailer preceding the film, The Two Towers trailer was previewed for a welcoming audience. Then it hit. Fellowship Of The Ring, the way no one had ever seen it unfold on screen before.

I want to say that Fellowship Of The Ring is the perfect movie in many ways. A film like this is why guys like me love movies enough to take magic into other parts of life. It's a feeling of escape and imagination. It's a huge effort of art by so many people, it inspires the legions of movie goers that watch it. Lord Of The Rings is the movies. You watch. You care about the story. You feel for the characters. And when it's all over...you want more. That's what the movies are all about.

All I can say is that I absolutely LOVED this extended version of the film. I couldn't have asked for more as a fan of the books, and a fan of the movie. It was complete in so many ways.

I won't go into crazy details about the extra scenes themselves because I feel that the only true way to experience this new version of the film is do it yourself. I will however rehash a small list of added scenes I feel purists of the book will fall in love with:

- Bilbo's intro into the world of Lord Of The Rings. Bilbo narrates us through the beginning of the first sequences in Hobbiton. I personally found this to be the most enchanting part of the extended scenes. Bilbo opens the door a lot wider into world of Hobbits. The tons of the music changed the mood of the beginning of the film which portrayed the Hobbits as a more serious, but lovable underground creature inhabiting Middle-earth.

- The extended Cave Troll sequence. You see more fighting with the Cave Troll, and being that the Cave Troll was such a popular character in the film, I feel that fans will love to see anything extra involving Mr. Cave Troll.

- There are many extended scenes which add a comedic value as well as a bigger quality in storyline to the film:

Fans will love the gift giving sequence as it is one thing that sticks out in the book that the original release never addressed.

The back and forth murmur of taunting between the elves and Gimli. Great humorous breaks from the seriousness of the mission.

The screen time given to Pippin & Merry. I think people are going to be able to connect with these characters more in The Two Towers if they see the extended edition of Fellowship Of The Ring first. Pippin and Merry receive a lot more screen time, which in turn makes you care about these characters more. I feel that the extended edition of the film gave these characters more life then just being some dumbfounded side kicks.

- The extended final fight sequence. I think people will love ending a lot more now. The changes at the end make you care more about each individual personality in the Fellowship. Especially that of Boromir and Aragorn, and the well being of human kind and the leadership that Boromir so desperately, secretly, and unknowingly yearned for.

- One thing I fell in love with was the change in music in certain scenes. Personally, when I first saw Fellowship Of The Ring I could not stand the music every time we saw Saruman at Isengard. What bugged me was the fact that Howard Shore repeated the same musical theme every time we got updated on Saruman's doings through out the film. This felt like the theme wasn't being latched onto to make the connection to the part of the story we were seeing, as probably originally intended, but rather that the theme was being exploited and played out. It would be like hearing Darth Vader's theme song every time we saw Darth Vader on screen in any of the Star Wars movies.

This is one thing that changed a slight bit in this extended edition, for which I was very greatful. Certain scenes which contained the overused theme before now have a carry over of music from an extended scene preceding. Though the theme is still a bit overused, it's exploitation wasn't as annoying for me this time around.

Overall the added music that Howard Shore went back and scored is amazing, especially in the Bilbo scenes at the beginning of the film. The tone that gets set with the music at the beginning faithfully recreated the felling I personally had while reading the book.

Technically speaking, I can now say that I am now a 100% bonified lover of digital projection. As Fellowship was presented digitally on the screen I could not believe my eyes at times. The picture was so crystal clear, filling every corner and crevice of the theater's screen, which normally doesn't happen with film projection. The colors were more vibrant then ever, leaping into your lap at times as the ring bearer and his companions traveled the depths of Middle-earth.

The sound of the digital transfer is absolutely amazing as well. When the sound is so good and so crystal clear it hurts, you know this was what was originally intended for you to see, and makes for a much better engulfing experience.

Tolkien fans. Lord Of The Rings novel fans. Lord Of The Rings film fans. This is the version you want to see!

After experiencing the film with these extended scenes, you come to understand why the original release of the film was released the way it was. People who haven't the experience of reading the books might not get this edition. They might find it too long at parts and boring and at others. But, if you know Lord Of The Rings in anyway, you will LOVE this version of the film. I personally, don't know if I could watch the film any other way, ever again. It's too perfect this way. So many scenes which seemed rushed in the original version now seem more complete and not as chopped together.

When I first saw Fellowship Of The Ring in theaters I was fresh off a reading of the book. I wanted more from the film. I wanted to spend more time in certain areas of the story. But, there's a reason why a lot seemed rushed. And no one can blame New Line or Peter Jackson for doing their absolute best to keep this film under 3 hours even if it is only by 2 minutes.

Now, we have this extended edition. This is it. A complete masterpiece that stands alone as the single greatest film adaptation of a book, ever.

[Grig]

I want this, with the cool Amon Hem bookends too.

[sourcery]

FYI

[marajade]

How did you get your hands on it four days early?

[sourcery]

There have been special in-theater showings over the last few days. But I have not yet seen this version myself--I'm just bringing you the words of someone who has.

[ecurbh]

Ring Ping!!

Order The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Special Extended Edition

Order The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Collector's Gift Set

[snopercod]

" A complete masterpiece that stands alone as the single greatest film adaptation of a book, ever."

That was my impression, too. The video captured the essence of the book, completely.

Whoever did the screenplay should tackle Atlas Shrugged, if they have the gumption.

[Varda]

Oh Gosh, this is great. Can't wait and maybe now is the time to get that fabulous home theater system.

[Pookie Me]

Yeah, but did they bother to even do the scene with Tom Bombadil? and his sexy significant other! (I can't recall her name).. Tom was the one character over whom the ring had no power.

THE ANIMATED VERSION DIDN'T BOTHER TO DISCUSS IT..

NEITHER DID THE LIVE ACTION..

I guess it just would have confused everyone.. I'll probably buy this edition, just for the gifts from Lorein. I was REALLY bummed out about that...

Pookie & ME

[marajade]

Yeah I realized that after I posted...

[Ranger Drew]

"Yeah, but did they bother to even do the scene with Tom Bombadil? and his sexy significant other! (I can't recall her name).."

Her name was "Goldberry".

[Ronaldus Magnus]

Is this the version to buy on DVD or should we wait for the director's cut?

[2Jedismom]

A film like this is why guys like me love movies enough to take magic into other parts of life.

I love the movie too...but I don't understand this sentence.

[sourcery]

The article is in reference to the "extended version" that will be available for purchase on DVD as of 12 November. There is no "director's cut," as such--Peter Jackson likes neither the concept nor the term.

The "theatrical version" was for general audiences. The "extended version" is for LOTR fans/geeks.

[Snake65]

Either way, I'm glad there's an extended version. Getting rid of the gift-giving sequence in Lothlorien seemed strange...the gifts do come in handy later and it showed character development on the part of Gimli.

I preordered from Best Buy (I had a digital coupon) and got a message in the mail that it shipped today...when o when will it arrive? I wants my Precious!

[tjg]

"I wants my Precious!"

Thief! It's mine!

[Snake65]

The new TTT preview is making me nuts for the second film...especially the music that plays in the end as the Uruk-Hai ladders are going up to the walls at Helm's Deep.

Dec 18 is just too, too far away. I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas morning.

[SauronOfMordor]

Thief! It's mine!

Who's is it?

[HairOfTheDog]

Dec 18 is just too, too far away. I feel like a kid waiting for Christmas morning.

We all do.... we all do!

This extended edition will satisfy for awhile though! Looking forward to the new scenes blended in, and new extras to browse through for a few days!

[sneakers]

I can understand why they left out Tom Bombadil and Goldberry, but part of that was the Barrow Downs, and that's where they got their weapons. I wish they had been able to work that in some how. I do believe, however, that PJ did a great job of picking what stayed and what had to be left out. It must have been difficult choosing.

Hearing about the extended version is making me drool! Can't wait to see it!