LotR: TTT EE DVD

[druidGirl]

Not one real word in that title. heh.

So, what's the opinion on the EE DVD? I still don't think this movie holds up to Fellowship. Fellowship was a better theatrical release, it was a better EE.

Some of the extra scenes were helpful and added to the story, but not the majority. Most of the the scenes were just more movie. Unlike with Fellowship were a lot of the extra scenes helped flesh out the story. Basically, most of the extra scenes in TT just made the movie longer. Not necessarily better.

That doesn't lessen my excitement over Return of the King, though.

[Lissa]

Some of the stuff in TTT EE I'm glad they cut. The stuff with the Ents does tend to drag on the screen. The stuff with Faramir and Boromir I really wish they'd left in, and really enjoyed seeing. Makes that comment about Faramir proving his worth make a LOT more sense- I thought it had to do with him resisting the lure of the ring.

Speaking of Faramir, has anyone seen Molok'ai: The Story of Father Damien? I'm going to rent it one of these days (David Wenhem plays Damien), but was just curious if anyone had seen it.

[Head Mutant]

Actually, my mom recommended that one (or one of the many films made about that guy) to me a while back. Let me know how it is. The leper missionary, right?

[Al]

The extended Fellowship is, without a doubt in my mind, the superior version of the the first film, but I don't know if I can say the same for the extended Two Towers. I loved the first EE because it gives so much more substance to Middle Earth without really weighing anything down. TTT I simply like better because, as Druidgirl said, it clarifies many of the plot points I had an issue with.

**SOME EE SPOILERS HEREIN**

A glaring example is Brego, the horse that finds Aragorn washed up on the river bank. I always thought it was silly that the Rohan just happened to leave a horse behind. But by introducing him at an earlier point in the film, there is at least some kind of plausibility as to why this happens. The razing of Fangorn was always another minor quibble. By establishing that it had not been touched prior to this film, it makes more sense that Treebeard would not have known of it's destruction.

My problem with TTT:EE is mainly that it falls into the same trap as many director's cuts: every restored scene was cut for a reason, and it many cases it was right decison. In the Fellowship, the new scenes (more or less) blend seamlessly and really add the quality of the movie. In the Two Towers, new scenes will undercut existing ones. Gollum's argument with himself, for example, is forshadowed by a tiny exchange between personalities when he first becomes Sam and Frodo's guide. This is in itself fine, but when he has his climactic blowup midway through the film, the surprise and novelty of it is gone because we have seen inklings of it beforehand. Similarly, "We could let... her... do it" simply doesn't have the same impact when Faramir has been babbling on and on about 'the great terror in the caves' that they may encounter.

**END YE SPOILERS**

I also agree that the Boromir/Faramir scene was fantastic (but I would have cut it too, simply in the interest of time). The family dynamic makes Faramir a much more likeable character to me, and really builds interest in Denethor's character for the third film. On the subject of Faramir, by the way, Lissa's spotting of David Wenham in her Moulin Rouge mutant viewing made me laugh out loud. Hadn't noticed that before. Good form.

Sadly, both the good scenes and the less-good scenes of the EE (there really are no bad ones) add to the time of the movie, and turning a three hour movie into a four hour movie really hurts. It is because of that, I think, that given the choice, I'd still go with the theatrical cut of the movie, even if I like the other better. The extended edition is nice to own, nice to look at, and probably something I'll watch again a few more times, but I do like to pretend I have other things to do with my day.

Um, so, yeah, looking back at the first post of the thread, I probably just could have written 'I agree with Druidgirl', but I felt like typing at length tonight. I have no ending for this, so I shall take a small bow

::bow::

Al

[Lissa]

Head said:

Actually, my mom recommended that one (or one of the many films made about that guy) to me a while back. Let me know how it is. The leper missionary, right?

Yup. That's him. Actually, part of the reason I want to see it (besides the fact I was really impressed with David Wenham's versitility) is because when we were on our honeymoon, we took a tour of Molok'ai. It sounds like an odd thing to do on a honeymoon, but it was really, really fascinating. The scenery was GORGEOUS, and the tour guide was a former patient. (Not of Damien's, but regardless). It's quite curable these days and extremely hard to catch- you have to be in the 5% of the population genetically predisposed to catch it and you have to be in constant physical contact (Damien didn't come down with the disease until he'd been on Molok'ai for years). But the tour guide was the most knowledgable tour guide I'd ever had- I guess he'd won some huge award just before we arrived. (Another true story. I also ran into someone I went to high school with there, on the same tour. Halfway around the world, in a town of less than 100 people, and I run into the guy who was the best friend of my first "real" crush.)

ANYWAY. The tour guide said that that was one of the most accurate retellings, so I've been meaning to check it out for a year now.

And back to the subject, I do agree about the 4 hour movie being painful. Confession time- we still haven't made it through all of the extended edition. We will, but we have had other stuff to do and we were pooped that night. Don't know how we're gonna manage the LOTR party next year, when we watch all three EEs in a row.

A sure sign we really need lives.

Liss

[druidGirl]

This makes me sad, but I can't find any info on the Return of the King Easter Egg preview on the TTT DVD. What the hell is that about? All they have listed is the MTV Movie Awards speech. But no site has any info about RotK. You'd think it'd be on there just like TTT was on Fellowship's EE. But nooooooo. At least, I can't find it anyway.

Anyone have any luck with it?

[DARTHMADLER]

Well I for one liked the additions. I found they clarified a lot of points. The only scene I felt wasn't totally necessary was the funeral for Theoden's son.

[Head Mutant]

My feelings on the EEs are that they turn wonderful movies into a really excellent miniseries. Considering that the books were originally written as just one big tome and that the three movies were shot as such (more or less), I feel a lot less pressure to have to sit down and watch the whole honking thing now, especially since they are so long. Instead, I would catch a half hour here and there, and ended up really, really enjoying TTT, more than I thought I would.

Some of the scenes were cut due to repitition or lack of impact (I agree Madler about the funeral, although how they end that scene is a nice punctuation mark, all of the sudden), but most had to just be cut for length. Thus, we're restored to a richer and fuller version of the movie.

I especially loved the addition of a lot of scenes at the end of the movie, many of which (such as the orcs fleeing into that deadly forrest, Legolas and Gimli at the end of the battle, Merry and Pippin at the ruination of Isengard) I'm baffled were cut at all. They built up and up and up to the major confrontation of Helm's Deep, then it was over lickety-split with very little resolution.

Faramir's plot was welcomly expanded, as was the return of Boromir. A lot of things made much more sense now with just a bit of extra explanation, and I'm all for that.

I think a good question to start pondering is, with the EEs selling as good as they do and the extended versions shown in the theater this year (and probably will be in future years), will the EEs become the accepted standard versions? My thought is, yes, moreso as we move away from the years of the theatrical releases.

Still, my favorite, favorite moment in that movie is when Gandalf convinces the Rohan guard to let him keep his staff, and he gives Aragorn the tiniest of winks. Goodness, but I love funny old men.

[PoolMan]

Personally, the time for the EE flew by for me, even as it encroached on 4 hours' worth of film. I LOVE sitting through these movies. This isn't like watching Dances With Wolves, where you beg for death as Kevin Costner has wood faced debates with his socks. Every moment of the Lord of the Rings (yay, no acronym!) for me is either filled with action or meaning, with precious little being wasted. For that reason, and that reason only, I still don't think I've EVER watched either of the released movies in parts, always just taking them in in single sessions.

Regarding Justin's comment on funny old men... my blushing bride made the comment that she really, really missed the Gandalf of the first movie, a comment which I initially sort of agreed with, but have since come to realize how true it really is. In the first movie, he's so warm and grandfatherly in the non-action scenes, which is very true to the book. In the theatrical release of Two Towers, he's much changed and colder (not cold, just not himself anymore) due to his "death" after the fight with the Balrog. This is also very true to the book, but it carries the disadvantage of turning a beloved character from the first part of the story into something of an automaton... I'm exaggerating, but I think you get what I mean. And I agree, when Gandalf throws that tiny wink at Aragorn, I clung to it, because it's just about the only moment in Two Towers (theatrical) where he seems to be the Grey version of himself, not the White.

The EE of Two Towers really put a lot more feeling back into Gandalf's character. Granted, it's not quite so close to the source book anymore, but I really liked the adjustment. Ian McKellen has done such a wonderful job making Gandalf so very, very likeable in Fellowship that it's a shame to waste those characteristics in the next movie.

Anyways. My two bits.