Others say...

"A WONDROUS PRESENTATION OF TOLKIEN'S MASTERPIECE"
If you've only seen the theatrical version of these films you've missed a great deal. Usually the 'extended editions' of films are disappointing, or unnecessary. That is not the case here. In fact the additional two plus hours ( for the three films ) makes the story much more cohesive.

For the Penelope Purehearts out there that can't stand the fact that the Elflord Glorfindel was trashed to give Arwen ( Liv Tyler's ) character more screen time, and thus flesh out her's, and Aragorn's ( Viggo Mortensen's ) romance, or the fact that Tom Bombadil, and Goldberry are altogether missing- all I can say is 'boo-hoo!' I've read the book, THE LORD OF THE RINGS, at least twenty times since the 70's ( when 'Frodo Lives' was appearing on the walls of subways, and viaducts all over the country ), and I was actually thrilled that Peter Jackson did not spend an hour on Bilbo's birthday party in order to be true to the only tedious portion of Tolkien's masterwork.

This is the greatest trilogy in the history of film, and the extended edition makes a splendid theatrical version into something approaching perfection.


"more that five stars"
I like this movie and the book. very good presentation, but I have something to say, the first movie, doesn't have subtitles in Spanish, the other two have had subtitles...

"Make this special extended edition trilogy,your own "precious"!"
This is another of my retro reviews on products that have been out for awhile but I have never written on.I am happy to be writing this one as, so far as DVD box sets go, there are very few past and present that can come up to the standards set by this special platinum series extended edition of the Lord of The Rings Trilogy of movies.
The discs themselves sit in trays in a fold out folder,that extend two folds per side.Each movie has four discs to each pack.The first two discs are for the movies themselves and the second two are for the special features.There are hours upon hours of special features in these packs,many of which are new.You learn everything from the smallest detail from the production of the movie,to the special effects to interviews with cast and crew.Just a phenomenol range of information.
The first film "Fellowship of the Ring" contains 30 extra minutes of footage to extend it to a running time of roughly 208 minutes.The second film"The Two Towers" contains 43 minutes of extra footage which extends its' running time to about 223 minutes.And the third film"Return of the King" has an extra 50 minutes worth of footage which extends its' run to about 250 minutes.
It is easy at first glance to think that the extra time/footage is just culled from deleted scenes and/or other extraneous footage left out in the original theatrical versions.Director Jacksons' approach,so we are told,was to reconstruct the films as if there was no original version and without time constraints.The end result are these wonderful films.It might also be tempting to think that extra footage will equal extra boring.Surprisingly but happily I must say such is not the case and in fact had there been more footage I would have been glad of it.It is a credit to director Jackson and crew that reassembled these new versions that they never strayed from Tolkiens' books and/or their own original thrusts from the first pictures,but instead expanded and fleshed out many back stories,characters,plots and sub plots that take these films to a whole new level.The extra footage and the fleshing out they give us along with the ingenious re-editing here and there of scenes is a plus and NEVER a minus throughout all of the new versions.Along with the new footage comes a new orchestral score and both are integrated seamlessly throughout.
In conclusion I cannot recommend this set enough to all lovers of Tolkien,fantasy and for all of the fans of these films.Each extended film takes itself and the entire series to an entirely new level of creativity from Peter Jackson and his crew and to a higher and better level of understanding for us,the audience.Therefore the impact of each film is just that much greater and more rewarding.A magnificient achievement off screen and off and a credit and standard for good filmmaking everywhere.

"DVD arrived scratched, and item has been discontinued"
I was really excited to get this, and the second disc in the first movie, The Fellowship of the Ring, was unplayable. AND, suddenly the manufacturer has discontinued the item. I wonder why? I'm so bummed!

"The Lord of the Rings - The Motion Picture Trilogy (Platinum Series Special Extended Edition)"
The Platinum Series deserves 5+ stars. Mr. Jackson's only major cinematic losses in filming Tolkien's TLOTR treasures, was the loss of the "Tom Bombadil" and "The Scouring of the Shire" segments. If you're willing to set those aside, this extended version brings the story lines very much to life, conveying the depth of character and values present on the printed page. Unfortunately, that wasn't nearly accomplished in the original theatrical releases. I've read and re-read the entire set, including "The Hobbit", several times since my first read at the age of about 16-17. I only saw the first two releases in theater, and was so very disappointed that I did not go to see "The Return of the King". If you love the Trilogy in print, this is THE version, the ONLY version, to purchase. It's the finest cinematic masterpiece ever created.