Lord Of The Rings Trilogy BD Extended Edition

Lord of the Rings is one of my favorite movie series of all time, and this BluRay version is absolutely gorgeous. First a couple of technical comments about the BluRay version (I have the Extended DVD version of LOTR as well): 1. Each movie is split into two BluRay discs for a simple reason - this allows for a lower degree of compression so that the native resolution and visual quality of the movies can be better maintained. The resolution is especially important if your system has the software to tweak the sharpness and color settings and your screen has a higher resolution than the native 1080p of the BluRay (I watch all my movies on my desktop computer with 30inch 1900 x 1200 native resolution monitor). The result is an outstanding degree of sharpness (without graininess) throughout the movie - better than I can get for my "Avatar" BluRay. I can see every hair and skin cell, it seems, in the close-up shots! 2. Regarding the comments from others about the "green" tint in this BluRay - it must be your BluRay player. I have not had any problems, but then, the video quality of my computer system can be adjusted at three levels - the monitor, the Nvidia graphics card, and the video playing software. 3. Despite the sharp increase in resolution, there are surprisingly few CGI or other glitches visible. Almost certainly, somebody went through this movie with a fine tooth comb to clean up the high resolution details. I only noticed a few minor glitches still - Isildur's scene at the beginning where he puts on the ring and vanishes still looks like it was shot in front of a green screen (there's a subtle mismatch between his lighting and coloring and that of the background), the Army of the Dead move a bit too CGI whenever they ride out in a horde, and at the end, where the pirate ships have an unnatural looking interface with the water. Now for some thoughts about LOTR and this movie series: It has long been apparent that Tolkien based LOTR on the history and mythology of Great Britain and Europe. And so it finally dawned on me one day that Numenor spelled backwards is "Ronemun" a near-anagram for "Roman", and the Numenoreans must indeed have been the Romans who invaded Middle Earth/Great Britain. The serial invasions of Britain by various European peoples and the themes of constant warfare, and of existing people being displaced by new peoples are integral to both LOTR and the history of Great Britain. History is written by the victors and the losers are invariably demonized in those accounts. And so today the Romans are remembered in much the same light as the noble Numenoreans of LOTR and their enemies remembered as savages. It is worth noting that despite their frequent portrayal as the Founders of Modern Western European Civilization, the Romans slaughtered and enslaved millions in their conquests and displaced vast numbers of peoples. It is thus possible to see that buried beneath the themes of good vs. evil in LOTR is the deeper story of human evolution through eternal warfare. Were the Wildmen of Dunland truly evil? Or were they just fighting to regain their lands taken from them by the Numenoreans and Rohirrim? The true story of Queen Boudica and the Iceni versus the Romans comes to mind here. Were the Orcs and Goblins and Uruk-hai truly deformed, evil monsters? Or were they just coexistent species of near-humans, fighting for their right to exist in Middle Earth? We know now that the line that became modern humans evolved alongside many other side branches of near-humans in what surely must have been a Darwinian death struggle. Are the myths of such monsters merely a racial memory from human pre-history? As I watch this wonderful movie series once again, I do see things in a different light. I had just finished HBO's "Game of Thrones" series, which also featured Sean Bean, in a another role as a sword wielding nobleman. Both stories are set in similar fantasy worlds based on Medieval-era Europe, but their story themes are quite different. LOTR has a simple linear plotline detailing the triumph of good over evil. You know the good guys will remain good guys, the bad guys are utterly evil, and then there are those few in between who struggle with being on one side or the other. The good guys win in LOTR, those in between who fail to overcome the temptations of evil are destroyed, evil is destroyed, and everybody who is good goes on to live happily ever after, although not all stay in Middle-Earth. Having created such powerful forces of evil in his tale, to accomplish that happy ending, Tolkien had to resort to several deus ex machina plot devices to save the overwhelmed good guys - the charge of Eomer's Riders straight into the long pikes of the Uruk-hai to save Helm's Deep (not likely to be successful in the real world), the Great Eagles to save Gandalf and Frodo/Sam, and the Army of the Dead to save Gondor. "Game of Thrones" is very different, none more so than the character of Sean Bean, who plays a thoroughly decent, honest, and good man, and yet comes to an untimely end. Who is good and evil in this tale cannot be so easily sorted out, as everyone has a different agenda, and it is just a mass free-for-all struggle for power and survival. The few who appear to be truly good in this tale get crushed in the struggle. History and life are indeed more like "Game of Thrones" than LOTR. But in my heart, I still love LOTR more than something like "Game of Thrones", which although fascinating to watch, makes me squirm. LOTR remains closer to an idealized fantasy myth world. There are some things I wish for, though. I wish Saruman could have had a chance to tell his tale, of why he chose the path of science and industrialization (which after all is what produced technology like this BluRay movie), why he chose to ally himself with these species of near-humans and breed the Uruk-Hai. I wish the Wildmen and the Easterlings had a chance to tell their tale, for surely they had reasons to ally themselves with Saruman and Sauron. There are hints of this back story in the Appendices and other works of Tolkien, but only hints. There is another tale to be told there, I'm sure. Read more

This is what I have been waiting anxiously and impatiently for such a long time. It has seemed like an eternity at times, but the precious is here! I was little worried about the quality of Fellowship of the Ring after reading and seeing some of the comments and screen caps floating around the internet, especially in regards to the "green filter" being applied to Fellowship of the Ring. I should have known it was just nitpicking and closet movie dullards trying their very best to create a wave a controversy. People, there is absolutely zero reason to be worried. The Extended Edition of Fellowship of the Ring is the most pristine and dazzling that I've ever seen the movie, including multiple times at different theaters in the past. It's much ado about, well, nothing. As I was watching Fellowship of the Ring, my eyes kept gawking and gazing at the fine details and rich colors on the screen. This is the best you will ever see the Fellowship of the Ring look, there is no bones about that whatsoever. I was dancing around like Smeagol at Mount Doom when he captured the ring from Frodo - the Extended Edition Blu-ray of Lord of the Rings delivers in spades. The main gripe that the internet kiddies are harping over is director's intent, and in this case Peter Jackson signed off on these and Warner Brothers has already released an official statement. I haven't the foggiest notion what people are expecting, but this Extended Edition of Lord of the Rings looks absolutely phenomenal on my 55" Sony HX701, using either a PS3 or Samsung BD-P1600. I think in some cases, people are using inferior displays or just joining up with the loud-mouthed minority to be "e-cool". Whatever the reasons or motives, I find it to be a pathetic collective of lemmings. At any rate, that's enough for me about that nonsense and the war band of wannabe Hollywood directors up in arms. As I said, Fellowship of the Ring looks completely pristine, with rich and varied colors, and the fine details that capture your imagination. In regards to The Two Towers and Return of the King, they were already "ok" with the theatrical versions on Blu-ray - but the Extended Edition of all three movies was given extra TLC and it shows. I found The Return of the King to be a reference quality disc on the Extended Editions, as in one of the very best movies that Blu-ray has to offer in order to showcase a high-definition movie. Your jaw will be slack and your eyes wide open when you watch this trilogy of extended editions on Blu-ray. The new transfers and changes are sublime, and worth every penny. I'm in Peter Jackson and Andrew Lesnie's camp and have found their vision and presentation of the Extended Editions to be a visual smorgasbord of pure euphoria - especially to the Lord of the Rings fans out there. In terms of the visual palette: rich, deep blacks are apparent, the colors are saturated and 'pop', contrast is spot on, the details from top to bottom will be like watching these movies for the very first time again. I'd liken it to a religious experience if you're a Tolkien fan (which I very much am). Audio: Be ready to make your eardrums bleed - seriously. With a nice or adequate sub and speaker setup, the sound, music, and dialogue of this Extended Edition will make your chair and mind rumble. They knocked it out of the park with the audio quality as well. Overall: a stunning high-definition trilogy. Kudos to Peter Jackson and Andrew Lesnie, Middle Earth has never looked so amazing and vivid. For any Lord of the Rings fans out there, put simply, this is something that you must own. Read more