Sounds like it was quite a restoration. Read about it here, if you like: http://www.thedigitalbits.com/reviewshd ... 32811.html

To help hype the BD release, the EEs are going to be released to the big screen! They will show exclusively at AMC theaters, one per week, in June.

http://www.theonering.net/torwp/2011/04 ... ig-screen/

Personally, I can't get too excited about this. We don't even have an AMC theater here any more (the one we did have was complete crap) and I don't know that I'd want to see these at the multiplex anyway. Now if they were going to upconvert these for release at IMAX, that would be a big deal.

Maybe that's what the "EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT" will be about....

When you add up all three movies, I've seen them on the big screen for a combined total of ten times and that was enough for me. I don't think I could even be talked into going if they were 3D now because 95% of these post-production conversions are super ultra crappy rush jobs, and I'm not that excited about 3D to begin with.

End result: I didn't even bat an eyelash at these news.

Meh.

I only saw TTT and ROTK at the theater... when FOTR came out I thought it was for big geeky nerds and I wouldnt be caught dead watching a movie like that... and here I am, one of the biggest self proclaimed geeky LOTR nerd there is. I ended up watching FOTR on video about a month or so before TTT came out to theaters.

With that said, I doubt I will see these in the theater again, and besides, there isn't and AMC theater around here.

[quote=""BladeCollector""]when FOTR came out I thought it was for big geeky nerds and I wouldnt be caught dead watching a movie like that...[/quote]



Says a fellow Star Trek fan.


When FOTR came out, I thought it looked pretty cool but it was my brother who had read the books (which actually belonged to my dad a long long time ago) and made us see it. Needless to say, I was blown away. And from then on out, I was hooked. It has forever etched itself as one of my most cherished memories, and I will never forget that. That said, if I had to relive any of the three in the theater in EE mode, it would be Fellowship. But I sure wouldn't mind ROTK again... now that was an e xp erience (usually theaters are full of morons, but that was a very fun crowd... knew most people there, and it was a blast for over 3 hours).

I still rate my top 5 cinematic e xp eriences as follows:

1: The Dark Knight, Imax
2: FOTR
3: ROTK
4: TTT
5: Tron Legacy, 3D Imax


There's an AMC in Seattle where my brother lives. Maybe I'll plan to visit in June.

[quote=""Sedhal""]Says a fellow Star Trek fan.


When FOTR came out, I thought it looked pretty cool but it was my brother who had read the books (which actually belonged to my dad a long long time ago) and made us see it. Needless to say, I was blown away. And from then on out, I was hooked. It has forever etched itself as one of my most cherished memories, and I will never forget that. [/quote]

This was exactly the way I got introduced to the series as well. Except replace brother with dad

Luckily I was proven wrong about LOTR and I found out about some of my favorite movies ever, unfortunately for my bank account, I have spend a small fortune on LOTR related products

I'm with you folks. When I first heard the movies were coming out I thought they were some ridiculous fantasy series that was going to be long, drawn out and pointless. Saw the first movie and was immediately hooked. My bank account still glares at me every now and then for the immense damage this has caused it...

Three weekends in June:

http://www.wetanz.com/the-lord-of-the-r ... s-theatres

Tim

It is tempting to see these extended editions on the big screen, however, I can't help but think I'd have to make two trips to the theater.
The first to get my tickets and stand in a line long enough to equal the running time of the film, only to get what they give me and have no choice of what show time I get.
And then return to stand in a line 3 hours before showtime so I can get a decent seat.

No thanks

Can you say "ZOO".

[quote=""timdp""]Three weekends in June:

http://www.wetanz.com/the-lord-of-the-r ... s-theatres

Tim[/quote]

This was meant to be a new thread since it has nothing to do with BluRay editions and I thought I posted it as a new thread. Did mods move it or am I just getting senile...?

Tim

[quote=""timdp""]This was meant to be a new thread since it has nothing to do with BluRay editions and I thought I posted it as a new thread. Did mods move it or am I just getting senile...?

Tim[/quote]
Probably got moved cuz it's related, and also it's a time limited topic.

I think I probably moved it as the theatrical event is directly tied to the release of the EEs on BluRay.

I moved it.

The topic had already been raised here a week ago and I saw no need for a new thread on a discussion that had run its course.

Here's the Digital Bits review of the EE set. For anyone still waffling on whether or not to get it, or still questioning the splitting of each movie onto two discs, this should provide you with a definitive answer.

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/reviewshd ... 61411.html

I can't wait. I've been dying to watch one of the three the past two weeks or so, but want to hold off until my blu-rays arrive. Then again, part of me wants to see my DVDs off by watching one of them one last time... I'll keep them in the collection forever, but I doubt they'll be watched once the BDs show up. Tough call.

[quote=""Sedhal""]I can't wait. I've been dying to watch one of the three the past two weeks or so, but want to hold off until my blu-rays arrive. Then again, part of me wants to see my DVDs off by watching one of them one last time... I'll keep them in the collection forever, but I doubt they'll be watched once the BDs show up. Tough call.[/quote]

I know exactly what you mean...I could have written this post myself.

I think my EE DVDs are going to migrate into the spare bedroom that I use as a library and take up residence on the bookshelf. That way, I free up some of the dwindling space in my DVD/BD rack yet keep the DVDs and have them someplace where I can still readily admire the package.

I just realized my theatrical editions are still in the shrinkwrap!!! I was so busy during the semester finishing my thesis I never watched them... I need to watch them before the EE BDs come out so I can have a nice comparison!

You should run them all back to back to back for each format, twice over. That would be a blast!

Yeah about my dvd/bd shelf space... I ran out quite a while ago, and I just received BDs of Alien, Aliens, and the Man with No Name trilogy. The Alien movies was one of the rare cases I preferred the individual cases over the set (as beautiful as the set is). Main reasons being: I only really love the first two movies in the series, and the designs look amazing by themselves. I love the common theme of the alien heads with different colors. Fell in love with them at work when an endcap was set up displaying all of them side by side, and man did it look cool! Almost made me want Alien 3 and A:R just for the whole display.

But anyway, back to LOTR... I have no idea where I'll put those.

I was gonna say something about these earlier but some of the preview copies are already being reviewed.

Enjoy.

http://www.darkhorizons.com/news/20886/ ... lor-issues

Well now I'm convinced that I need to get these. Still not going to get them now though. I'll wait until they're cheaper so I can spend my money on more swords.

[quote=""Fingolfin""]Well now I'm convinced that I need to get these. Still not going to get them now though. I'll wait until they're cheaper so I can spend my money on more swords.[/quote]
Have you got your money saved up for Rivendell?

As mentioned by others much earlier on, I also got the first two EE and never came across the third. Now with the nice, lovely, boxed set of BluRay... Well, there's another likely purchase in my future.

[quote=""Thranduil""]Have you got your money saved up for Rivendell?[/quote]

Indeed! Ready for it when it ships. And hopefully I'll snag a job this summer so I can buy some more, save for college, and maybe be able to see LotR in a nice BD box set?

[quote=""Curunir""]I was gonna say something about these earlier but some of the preview copies are already being reviewed.

Enjoy.

http://www.darkhorizons.com/news/20886/ ... lor-issues[/quote]

Hmmm. I had noted in the Bits about the altered color timing. They didn't have a problem with it. In the review you posted, the guy generally seems to think the colors are ok. But the embedded YouTube link looks awful. Perhaps the poster's equipment was off or something. I hope!

A few years ago they released a BD of Bram Stoker's Dracula for which supposedly Coppola oversaw the transfer personally. It's so dark now that a lot of detail is lost. I never bought it.

DVDFile's review. Not quite as glowing as The Digital Bits, but still good.

http://www.dvdfile.com/reviews/blurayre ... -bd-review

I watched FOTR on BD last night and thought it was beautiful... can't wait for the EEs to come in!

It is stunning, so I can't help but think the EE will be moreso. I have to admit, though, that this whole color-timing/make it all green thing has me concerned.

Incidentally Best Buy has an exclusive where you can get the set and get 6 pewter miniatures with it. I have yet to find a good hi rez pic of the miniatures on-line. You can also get a one ring replica with it for free, in addition to the miniatures. The BB version is $120, which is $35+ more than I'm getting it from Amazon, so I think I'm going to stick with Amazon and skip the miniatures.

[quote=""Olorin""]It is stunning, so I can't help but think the EE will be moreso. I have to admit, though, that this whole color-timing/make it all green thing has me concerned.

Incidentally Best Buy has an exclusive where you can get the set and get 6 pewter miniatures with it. I have yet to find a good hi rez pic of the miniatures on-line. You can also get a one ring replica with it for free, in addition to the miniatures. The BB version is $120, which is $35+ more than I'm getting it from Amazon, so I think I'm going to stick with Amazon and skip the miniatures.[/quote]
I suppose it depends on the size of the miniatures, or the quality of the Ring, but that's a good price for those extras.

[quote=""Thranduil""]I suppose it depends on the size of the miniatures, or the quality of the Ring, but that's a good price for those extras.[/quote]

Perhaps, but I hope the Ring is a high enough percentage of gold to keep it from tarnishing. A few years ago a friend bought me a Ring replica, I think from the Noble Collection but I'm too lazy right now to get up and go look at it. While it appeared gold, the alloy did not contain enough gold to prevent tarnish. As a result, it is now a dull, lifeless color. It's unfortunate because I think she paid a lot for it, much more than I e xp ect a friend to spend on me (not that I truly e xp ect anyone to spend anything on me).

Hmmm. I have the One Ring replica from Noble, and it is the highest carat one that was being offered out of three choices by that company (it's either 18 or 22, can't recall right now without looking it up.) Anyway, it cost $450 USD and I've had it on display and in contact with open air for close to six years now and there is not a spot of tarnish to it or any dullness. 18 would make it 75% gold, an 22 would be equal to 83%.

I'm guessing for the price of the Best Buy set, their Ring is probably a very thin gold-plating over nickel.

I just checked my ring and it has no information on it about who made it. I know it didn't cost $450 though; I think my friend admitted it was around $100.

I am going to check with the cheaper Amazon set. I dont think I have any room for a collection of miniatures at the moment. I need my sister to move out so I can turn her room into a display room

So Olorin, just how big are these minatures that come with the set?
I'm kind of thinking that if there at least an inch and a half tall I might want to cancel and spend the extra money.

I don't know; Best Buy's site was pretty vague and I can't find the info elsewhere.

I cancelled my preorder with Amazon (which totaled just under $91) and preordered at Best Buy with the pewter figurines for store pick up; $108 out the door.

Getting those figurines at just under $3 each just seemed impossible to pass up. From the photo I'm guessing they're somewhere around 2" tall.

I'll post some pics next week. Now I'm double excited for this

Just got another $9 off my LOTR BD set.

As I posted previously, I had placed a preorder for this back in April for $73.99 from Futureshop Canada, which is affiliated with Best Buy. Well, they emailed me my shipping confirmation today (with free shipping,) and that's all well and good, except they charged me $73.99 for the set and their website is advertising it now for $64.99, with the offer e xp iring on June 30th. So I sent them an email inquiring about the price reduction and if there was anything they could do, and within five minutes a reply came that my card was being refunded $9 with an apology. Now that's service!

Sounds like everything is going over well with this set, pleased to hear it! If I see a set for under $50 in the coming months I'll definitely be picking it up.

Best Buy sent me an email letting me know I can pick up mine tomorrow at 8:23 AM. They also informed me that there is special parking close to the entrance for store pick ups, which is a big help.
I'll post pics as soon as I get home from work tomorrow afternoon of the figurines.

Digital Bits posted a statement from Warner Home Video confirming that the new color timing on FOTR is correct and that the movie looks exactly the way PJ and Andrew Lesnie (the cinematographer) want it to look. Is it too green? You be the judge!

Mine shipped from Indianapolis today, so I may have it tomorrow.

[quote=""Olorin""]Digital Bits posted a statement from Warner Home Video confirming that the new color timing on FOTR is correct and that the movie looks exactly the way PJ and Andrew Lesnie (the cinematographer) want it to look. Is it too green? You be the judge![/quote]
I'm not sure I like the sound of that. A bit more green in certain parts, yes maybe.
Sounds like Sed will tell us tomorrow, I'm sure he's viewing it 2nite based on chatbox.

Hey no fair... mine still says shipping soon, but I am happy about the 69.99 price, a lot cheaper than what I pre ordered at.

I'm not too sure it was just added green. There are several scenes that are notably greener, most noticeably when Strider leads the hobbits after Bree through the wilderness, and to lesser extents here and there. Moria is definitely greener, though still not green (remember, there was a lot of blue, which is now toned back to more of a blue-green-gray). I think it kind of feels much "tighter" color-wise, and frankly a lot of scenes were just gorgeous. I wasn't too impressed early on during the prologue, as there isn't a whole lot of color there in the first place. But it still seemed different (could be slight TV/setting differences). The reason I say it's not just green is because there are much more vibrant golds and yellows too. In fact, some scenes also had quite a bit of blue that didn't before. I can understand added yellow would result in more green, more prominent gold, and so on, but like I said, it wasn't a blanket change, as the blues seem increased too (which wouldn't happen with a yellow or green filter/adjustment). So I hope to see a screenshot comparison scene-by-scene in the future out there.

If I could compare it to any other blu-ray in the past, I'd say it felt a lot like watching the BD of Last of the Mohicans, where there was both added contrast and altered colors (more warm tones in the case of Mohicans that were not there before). Lots more contrast, it feels. Sometimes I felt like this was obtrusive, however, when LOTR is very rich in value and filming techniques (soft focuses, glowing elven wardrobes, and dated greenscreen can all get a bit muddy with the added contrast). Maybe it was just the TV or setting, however. I usually have it on standard but I remember watching the DVDs recently, there was a huge difference rotating among the three formats.


And anyway, added green is a plus for me. I love green! And it fits with FOTR's consistent green theme packaging. My initial fears were scenes like Amon Hen where there are prevalent gold tones and autumn scenery, but if anything it looked very rich. Some shots felt a lot colder than before though, but overall I'm still kinda processing a lot of it. A comparison would help a ton, that's for sure.

As for the picture quality, it was as great as it could possibly get on my TV at the distance I watch. As with the color, there are some scenes with soft focus and other issues that won't really benefit, but the wide landscapes and focused details are stunning. I can't imagine how TTT and ROTK are going to look. I think I'm going to have a better e xp erience with those just knowing the color wasn't altered, however. It's always bittersweet when one of your favorite films gets altered. Mixed feelings abound. But all I can say is see for yourselves and I'd love to get second opinions on this, as I'm still at a stalemate with much of my impression.



EDIT: Wow...

http://screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/58228

http://screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/58229

http://screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/58250

http://screenshotcomparison.com/comparison/58147

http://img810.imageshack.us/img810/5648 ... hering.jpg vs http://img833.imageshack.us/img833/5648 ... hering.jpg

As I suspected while watching, I read that it's a cyan tint (which would increase both blue and green, obviously). But I'm still not convinced, as some scenes still felt warmer.

Wow, those were some very interesting comparisons. What I noticed, other than that the colors were different, is how much more fine detail the EE BD has. That's the result of splitting the movie onto two discs. As for the color change, I think I will have to see the BDs myself. I suspect that seeing this as screen grabs, as still images, emphasizes the color difference, and seeing them in motion it will not be so prominent.

Someone had posted a screen cap a while back that was a split screen of Gandalf coming into Hobbiton. The sky looked decidedly green in the EE. In the links Sed posted, the difference is maybe not quite so noticeable....a turquoise sky instead of grass-green, LOL.

It will take some getting used to. We all tend to like things to look the way we remember them, the way we've watched them dozens and dozens of times. I'm inclined to take it on faith that because the LOTR movies always had such a clarity, perfect lighting, and so forth, that if PJ and Lesnie say the new look is the correct on, then it's the correct one. However, I think I'd have been happier if they had left the color alone, and not forced us to get used to a new look. Sigh.

That last link double-link, the one with the far shot of the fellowship on the snow field, is terrible. I'm assuming the second link is the new EE version because the sky and snow look green when compared to the first one, which looks natural. I like the enhanced detail and clarity in the other comparison shots, but that last one is just brutal. What were they thinking?

[quote=""Valkrist""]That last link double-link, the one with the far shot of the fellowship on the snow field, is terrible. I'm assuming the second link is the new EE version because the sky and snow look green when compared to the first one, which looks natural. I like the enhanced detail and clarity in the other comparison shots, but that last one is just brutal. What were they thinking? [/quote]
What can I say except, "Ditto".
The Frodo close up and the double link are both YIKES!

Here's a detailed review from DVD file. Its comment on the color issue is that you basically don't notice it while watching the movie (as I had hoped). I'll apparently be putting this to the test tonight, as UPS tracking site says my set is currently out for delivery.

http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/48823/lo ... _campaign=

I know I'll find out in a day or two, but question for Sed: is that stupid blue bar at the top of the boxed set package that says "Limited Edition" still there?

I ask because nearly every website is still showing that photo, and I saw the ad for this set three times on tv yesterday, and it also shows that blue bar and the fact that it's limited edition release. What gives?

Edit: I noticed on the photos of that last link that Olorin sent that the blue bar is not on the box. Yay! So is that blue bar on the wrapping or some paper sleeve that comes with it? I think it's pretty stupid they keep showing it right up to the release day and beyond, but it's nice to know it's not actually printed on the box.

lol, I forgot to address my first pleasant surprise! Yep, it's part of the removable panel they bend around the back. It hangs over the top and front and that's where you get the stupid BD logo. Rip that sucker off and the case is blue-less.

[quote=""Valkrist""]I know I'll find out in a day or two, but question for Sed: is that stupid blue bar at the top of the boxed set package that says "Limited Edition" still there?[/quote]
In my set the blue band is a permanent part of the OUTER box. It also says,"Exclusive at Best Buy". Best Buy being their logo tag. However, in the box there is nothing to peel away on the BD box.

Anyway, I'm pretty thrilled I got these pewter figurines.

http://i1025.photobucket.com/albums/y31 ... ter007.jpg
http://i1025.photobucket.com/albums/y31 ... ter006.jpg
http://i1025.photobucket.com/albums/y31 ... ter005.jpg
http://i1025.photobucket.com/albums/y31 ... ter004.jpg
http://i1025.photobucket.com/albums/y31 ... ter002.jpg
http://i1025.photobucket.com/albums/y31 ... ter001.jpg

BTW, based on the colored bases and their size, my guess is that these are pieces from a new chess set coming. Or is it already out and I never noticed? Lol, that'd be typical of me.
Ah, yep! Their pieces from Noble Collections chess set, sure enough! DOH!