These are, of course, the movie adaptations of the popular series of novels written by J.J.R. Tolkien and directed by Peter Jackson about a group of Hobbits, Elves, and Humans in the fictional realm of Middle-Earth work together to destroy the one ring to rule them all to prevent an evil lord named Sauron from ruling Middle-Earth. The movies starred many recognizable actors and actresses, including Elija Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Andy Serkis, Karl Urban, Miranda Otto, Liv Tyler, Ian McKellen, Sean Astin, Christopher Lee, John Rhys-Davies, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, John Noble, and Cate Blanchett, to name a few. The books and movies have been around long enough that I will not do a detailed review of the movies themselves. Still, for those who have not seen them, they are iconic fantasy stories that are a mix of medieval-era kingdoms and magic and were the precursor to Dungeons and Dragons, Game of Thrones, and anything like it.
This set has the extended editions of the movies (which were already long) in which Peter Jackon inserts many of the deleted scenes into the films and extends many existing scenes. And these are not additions that just add a few minutes to the movies. They are substantial additions that add a lot of material (Return of the King gets an additional 50 minutes added to it, making the run time over four hours). On top of that, there are a TON of extras. Each movie has four separate commentary tracks, one that includes Peter Jackson and the writers, one that includes cast members, one that includes members of the production team, and one that includes members of the design team. Then, there are seven different appendices, each containing hours of making-of and behind-the-scenes material that can be played in individual segments or all at once. There are 15 discs in all, and even if you watch each movie once, you are looking at over 11 hours to watch the movies. Then you have hours of the appendices material. So, as my headline says, this is just for someone who is a die-hard fan of the movies (or really loves watching bonus content). If you are just a casual fan of the films or the fantasy genre, this is likely overkill and more than you will ever want to watch. But, if you are a die-hard fan, this is definitely worth getting and devoting multiple days to watching.
This set has the extended editions of the movies (which were already long) in which Peter Jackon inserts many of the deleted scenes into the films and extends many existing scenes. And these are not additions that just add a few minutes to the movies. They are substantial additions that add a lot of material (Return of the King gets an additional 50 minutes added to it, making the run time over four hours). On top of that, there are a TON of extras. Each movie has four separate commentary tracks, one that includes Peter Jackson and the writers, one that includes cast members, one that includes members of the production team, and one that includes members of the design team. Then, there are seven different appendices, each containing hours of making-of and behind-the-scenes material that can be played in individual segments or all at once. There are 15 discs in all, and even if you watch each movie once, you are looking at over 11 hours to watch the movies. Then you have hours of the appendices material. So, as my headline says, this is just for someone who is a die-hard fan of the movies (or really loves watching bonus content). If you are just a casual fan of the films or the fantasy genre, this is likely overkill and more than you will ever want to watch. But, if you are a die-hard fan, this is definitely worth getting and devoting multiple days to watching.
