The Battle of the Five Armies is the third film in the Hobbit trilogy of movies that really has little to do with the story in the book (which was told almost completely in the first two movies). This movie pits Humans, Dwarves, Elves, Orcs, and Wolves against each other, all of whom are trying to claim the Arkenstone. Plus, you have Smaug destroying everything in sight. It picks up directly after the events of the second movie with Smaug attacking Laketown. Gandalf is still imprisoned by Sauron as Galadriel (played by the returning Cate Blanchett) and Elrond (played by the returning Hugo Weaving) attempt to free him. Basically, the movie is a series of long battle sequences, with the final battle being the longest. The extended edition of the movie clocks in at 164 minutes, adding about 20 minutes to the theatrical version. While there are some slight pauses between the action sequences, almost all of the additional material is added to the different battles and is a bit more gory/violent than what was allowed in the theatrical version.
For those who get the blu-ray, the A/V quality is top-notch, as good or better than the Lord of the Rings movies. Most of the CGI is seamless with the practical effects, and it sounds great, especially if you have a good sound system. As with the extended edition of the other movies, there are a ton of extras. Those include a commentary track on the movie by Peter Jackson and his co-writer Philippa Boyens. Then there is part three of the Home to Middle-Earth segments, about filming in New Zealand. The crown jewel of the bonus content are the appendices (parts 11 and 12). Each of them has over four hours (each) of making-of and behind-the-scenes material that goes through pretty much the entire process of making the movie.
Overall, this is good, but like the other extended editions is really only for hardcore fans (or people who really like watching the bonus content). If you are a casual fan of the movies and you don't care about the blu-ray extras you are going to be paying a lot more for something that is not really going to interest you all that much. It is a good capstone to Peter Jackson's series of movies, and while I am one who thinks that the story of the Hobbit could have easily been told in two shorter movies, this is still worth watching.
For those who get the blu-ray, the A/V quality is top-notch, as good or better than the Lord of the Rings movies. Most of the CGI is seamless with the practical effects, and it sounds great, especially if you have a good sound system. As with the extended edition of the other movies, there are a ton of extras. Those include a commentary track on the movie by Peter Jackson and his co-writer Philippa Boyens. Then there is part three of the Home to Middle-Earth segments, about filming in New Zealand. The crown jewel of the bonus content are the appendices (parts 11 and 12). Each of them has over four hours (each) of making-of and behind-the-scenes material that goes through pretty much the entire process of making the movie.
Overall, this is good, but like the other extended editions is really only for hardcore fans (or people who really like watching the bonus content). If you are a casual fan of the movies and you don't care about the blu-ray extras you are going to be paying a lot more for something that is not really going to interest you all that much. It is a good capstone to Peter Jackson's series of movies, and while I am one who thinks that the story of the Hobbit could have easily been told in two shorter movies, this is still worth watching.
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