Customer Ratings & Reviews

I was very excited to pick this up because I love the trilogy and I love HD so it was a match made in heaven. Like one of the reviews above mine I should have read the box more carefully before buying it. I had assumed (I know that's dangerous) that the blue ray copies of these movies were taking so long to come out because they wanted to take advantage of all that blue ray had to offer and were going to do it right. I was wrong. there is zero commentary to watch along with the movies. no pop up menu in the movie. it lacks entirely uncompressed audio or any audio options at all other than language. The special features disc is not blue ray and only contains a few TV shows about LotR and a trailer for Two Towers. To put it simply the release of these movies on blue ray should have had a lot more effort put into them because it was a great opportunity to continue the high standard set by these movies and please their very loyal fan base.

It is about time that we get the Lord of the Rings trilogy released onto blu-ray. The picture quality is amazing, and so is the sound. This could vary from person to person based on your home theater set up, but I think that most people would be pleased with the quality of this release. My complaints: I was disappointed that all of the extras were put on dvd instead of blu-ray. I think that this kind of takes away from the blu-ray experience. Like many other people who have reviewed this box set, I too am disappointed with the fact that the extended version of the films were not included. I personally own both the theatrical and the extended versions of this trilogy on dvd, and looks like I will have to hold out now and hope to get an extended version release on blu-ray later. Overall if you are a huge fan of the Lord of the Rings franchise then this blu-ray box set is probably going to be right up your alley if you can over look the couple short comings in what should have been an awesome set. I'm really glad that I did pre-order this box set and was able to snag one of the sweet steelbook cases for the box set.

I went to my local Best Buy in Las Vegas and saw the boxed Blu Ray Lord of the Rings trilogy priced at around 84 dollars. Adjacent on the shelf were the 3 episodes (in Blu Ray) individually boxed but at the sale price of 15 dollars each. Each episode has a separate special effects disc apart from the main feature. At around 48 dollars plus tax for the 3 episodes, this represented much better value that the box set.

It was great for the eigth time. Really liked the picture quality. This is the third time I have purchased "The Lord of the Rings". The original DVD, the extended version and now Blu-ray. To bad it wasn't the extended version in Blu-ray. Understand that will be out in 2001 or 2012. What a rip.

First off let me say I should have read the box a little more closely to begin with before making this purchase. The only thing I am upset about is that there is no extended versions of the movies included in this set. I just assumed that since there are DVD versions of the extended movies that the BR versions automatically come with them. I saw not reason why they wouldn't be which in my opinion is what they producers were counting on. Had I read a little closer and saw there was no extended versions I would have held off on this purchase. Unfortunately I had already opened the package so returning the set is now out of the question.

I have been waiting a very LOOOOOOONG time for its release on Bluray and i was hoping they would do it up right the first time around. But alas, they were wrong again for bringing out the PARTIAL, CUT DOWN, THEATRICAL versions of the movies on Bluray first. Surprise, surprise. After I purchased all of the Extended versions and watching them all, i then saw all the very important, key scenes that they removed to be able to put it in the theatres. I grew up watching the animated versions of them and reading the books, so believe me when I say that I have watched the Extended Editions of the greatest trilogy ever to be put on film so many times that my wife has grown sick of seeing them. As for me, I'm holding out for the Extended "20 disc" version on Bluray..........(jk on the 20 discs, then again, it might be!! Who knows?!!!)

I was VERY disappointed to discover that this Blu-Ray version is merely the theatrical version, not the extended version previously released on DVD. So, you don't get the additional several hours worth of extra scenes, which are really worth having. The producers are just trying to get you to buy two Blu-Ray versions--this one and the extended one that will be released at some future date. If you don't already have the extended version on plain old DVD, you would be better off getting that one now and/or waiting for the same thing on Blu-Ray later.

I just picked up this set from my best buy and 3 discs are digital copies, 3 discs are the Blu-Ray Movies and then 3 discs are the Special Features for each movie in regular DVD format.... WTF? I paid for a 9 disc blu-ray set, not a 3 disc Blu-Ray, 3 digital versions and 3 DVDs combo.... this is upsetting, but it's not like you can return it for an all Blu-Ray set and I can't watch the movies on DVD anymore, I need the Blu-Ray version.... this sucks.

Im not to enthused that i have waited this long to finally see this epic movie i feel like this and the starwars trilogys should come out blu ray but lotr expecially and now i have to wait agian jus for extended scenes nope i waited long enough im gonna get the regular version and jus not even bother with the extended for all i know who knows if they will even release it. I mean it took em long enough to jus release em now so i wont miss my chance of gettin these 3 epic actions films i have a few blu rays that have came out and got put out on a discontinue for not sellin what they had hoped i know u guys seem dissapointed that there not extended but if u act like this and they dont make theyre money what makes u think they will even release the extended versions ? EIther way lookin forward to finally adding the 3 movies to my blu ray collection and for everyone else enjoy the 1080 P 240 hz or 24 p if yall have it

First off I'm sick of the 1 star this movie is getting due to personal preferences by other reviewers. Oh no its not the extended editions. The man is just trying to take your money and rip you off. Please review the movie!!! The picture quality, sound, story etc. The sound and story is the amazing part of this box set. If you have a great 5.1-7.1 sound system you will be fully immersed in the movie. Now the bad part... the picture quality in the first film is not the best. With black level issue and pixelation in certain scenes it is something to complain about with a highly regarded film. Luckily the last two films do not have these issues. Finally the lack of special features will bother some but not all. So if you love the lord of the rings movie and don't mind a flawed first film then go ahead and buy. I personally will be buying both this and the extended editions.

For those who can live without the Extended editions of Lord of the Rings, the Blu-ray Theatrical Feature set rocks. I personally enjoy these because since the movies are so long already, and I've seen the extended scenes, I don't necessarily need an extra 1/2 hour per movie. I feel the pace is much quicker than the EE's. The picture quality is very good (but don't expect it to look like Avatar, Benjamin Button, or I, Robot). Though it's not the best of the best for picture, the cinematography helps. The vibrant scenes in Rivendell and The Shire are a good example of this. I would give it a solid 4 out of 5 for video. For audio, this gets 5 out of 5 from me on each movie. The sound is enveloping, fills out the room, and never disappoints. The score (from Howard Shore) is thrilling on DTS-HD, and undoubtedly sounds better than ever before. Even if you do buy the extended editions down the line, keep in mind that they won't be coming out for another 2 years (later on in 2012). If you can't wait, or are just happy with the theatrical editions, this set is highly recommended!

Don't be deceived by those giving this movie an overall 5 star rating. No doubt the theatrical version is terrific, but it is not even remotely as good as the Extended Edition which features an additional 125 minutes not seen in theatres! The extended version is better in every way possible. It is a much better version to those who are not familiar with the books in that it gives the viewer a much greater understanding of the overall story. and it is a much better version to the "seasoned veteran" in that in provides many important scenes either added or extended not present in the theatrical release. The EE is not going to be available until late 2010, but it will contain both the theatrical and extended versions so why would anyone want to put out this kind of money now, when you will be able to get so much more "bang for your buck" by simply waiting another 6 month's? If you have "money to burn", by all means buy this version. If you don't, ingore the bad advice of those telling you to purchase this set and wait another 6 month's for the superior version.

WARNING! Do NOT purchase this set! This release does NOT include the extended version. That one has a tentative release date of 2011 or 2012. The studio releasing this actually expects everyone to buy this version and then to re-buy the movie when the extended version comes out later. It's the same thing they did with the DVD releases. They actually hope people will keep buying it over and over. Do not give in and let them get away with this!! Refuse to buy this version and the extended version may come out sooner. While I really enjoy the movie, this review is of the product listed, and in no way can I suggest that anyone buys this. Wait for the extended version, and please feel free to share this info and look it up to confirm.

Peter Jackson lovingly created a masterpiece of film nearly 10 years ago that is so respectful of the source material and so respectful of the fans who have loved Tolkien for so long. So, I have to wonder how much say Peter Jackson had in the development and marketing of this product. My guess would be none. As in, he probably heard about the blu-ray version at the same time the fans did. I would also imagine that he - a fan of movies that he is - was probably as appalled as the fans were that this collection included only the theatrical releases of these movies while the far superior extended cuts were nowhere to be found in high definition. New Line could have easily included those extended cuts on blu-ray and jumped the price up by at least $20 and had legions of loyal and happy fans flocking to buy the product. Instead, they became greedy and thought that they could pump the fans for far more money by releasing both versions at separate times. I'm just very disappointed in this collection, despite the high quality of the individual products that make up this collection.

Could it be possible that even in the Blu-ray format we are still not getting the best quality audio/video possible? Are we still being munipulated by the movie studios giving us variable quality "Blu-ray" audio/video in cheaper movie packages as oppose to what we would get paying a higher price for the same movie title which the quality of the video and sound seem to be better in my opinion. Studios did it with CD and DVD packages over the years without many people realizing this practice. I work in television so I know when there is a change in video/audio quality. I wish the studios would give us a label providing a scale of the video/audio quality of each CD or DVD package so we won't have to repurchase the same product for better quality. Think the studios would be unselfish enough?

I was skeptical,after reading SOO MANY negative comments.I'm glad I went out and purchased.Looks better than SD DVD.And it's just the plain fact I like LOR,but I have not watched in a long time,as I'm soo accustomed to Blu Bay,this version is a step forward to a better quality picture. Also,none extended version is better for I,as the extended version I find too long.Excellent! I have to a agree with you Nephew!

This is an obvious Rip Off to try and get you to buy the theater version so that when the extended version comes out you have to buy it all over again. Wait till extended version comes out. Its bad enough that if we own the DVDs that we have to buy it again to start with. If you've already purchased this product then I'd return it for a refund until a proper product has come out. Eventually these companies need to learn that this sort of tactic is not popular with the public. I hope the Blu Ray version also doesn't have a half hour of commercials before the movie starts. Keep commercials on DVDs since I'm spending that extra money for a quality disk when buying BluRay.

I love these movies. They are my favorite films of all time. I watched all of these in the theater and was thrilled from the beginning to the end of each film. If this was the SW trilogy everyone would be excited and pleased to have the original theatrical versions. Releasing theater cuts not only honors the films but the makers of the films as well. I feel this way for the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and any other film for that matter. I am getting this set (with steelbook) and can't wait to see these films in HD. However, I am unhappy that this version does not include the extended versions of the films via seamless branching. It is something that could have been done and, in my book, it should have been done. Once they are available, I will get the extended versions as they are the best way to watch these films. BUT, to pay for the trilogy again for the extended cuts and the rest of the extras that should be included with this set is just plain greedy. Shame on the people behind this. Also, shame on those who post little to no stars for this film trlogy just because it is only the theatrical versons. Rate the films for the films and its extras and not what the powers at be are doing to our pocket book. Then give your personal opinion and thoughts on what you think as I have done above.

Peter Jackson and New Line decided to NOT release the extended version. These same people released King Kong with both the theatrical and extended version on the same disc, so the technology is there to do it. They have chosen not to do it, apparently in the hopes that I will buy 2 more versions of the trilogy. I bought the original dvd's, then the extended version dvd's. I will not buy this version of the blurays. I will wait for the extended version blurays. At that point I will raise my rating to 5 stars. Shame on Peter Jackson and New Line.

They don't offer the extended edition (like the 4-disc DVD boxed sets). This is the regular cinematic edition. For that amount of money, I expect the option of watching the normal or "extended editions". Sorry. Mine is going on ebay.