The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy [Extended/Theatrical] [4K Ultra HD Blu-ray]

Let's get one thing out of the way. Positive The 4K bluray discs themselves are a great upgrade. This is the BEST version of the film BY FAR. AMAZING REMASTER! 10/10 Now onto the NEGATIVES: I couldn't believe how underwhelming this edition is compared to the steelbook edition.... You're paying 30 bucks more for a version that has worse packaging that the steelbook edition. Instead of getting an amazing steelbook set, you get a lousy ring and the regular edition... 1) The box includes the regular 89.99 version (nothing special there) 2) The box itself is smaller and lackluster when compared to the steelbook version 3) The entire "collectors edition" box is made out of carboard! (can you believe it?!?!?) Save yourself money and either pay 89.99 for the regular edition, OR get the steelbook and save 30 dollars.

I pre-ordered this The LOTR Collectors Edition, and when I received the box containing it, I could tell without even opening it that I was in for a huge disappointment just by the weight of it. What a rip off! $149.99 for a small cheap flimsy cardboard box that may cave in if enough humidity is in the air with a cheap and poorly made ring that does not even shine as described by other LOTR fans. I had been waiting for years for this trilogy to come out in 4k with a spectacular presentation worthy of the movies themselves. What a disappointment. I have not even opened it because I will be returning, because it is outrageously overpriced. In all honestly, this should be worth much less than the Steelbook edition. Had I known this, I would have ordered the Steelbook edition, which is not only better and will undoubtedly be the "must-have edition" for collectors as opposed to this outrageously overpriced and underwhelming version. The problem is that the Steelbook edition is sold out. That leaves me with just the regular version, but at almost half the price of this "collectors edition," it is a much better deal. So there you have it, folks... Avoid disappointment and buy the regular version. Trust me; you're not missing out on anything spectacular unless you could find this at around a $59.99 price point.

Amazing quality. Great 4K transfer. Good quality casing and the ring is very detailed.

We love the collectors set, it looks like an understated book on the mantle with really minimal markings and some nice artwork, there is an outer peice of paper with all of the technical info and the big 4K branding that is shrink-wrapped onto it and comes off when you open it up, giving it a clean look. The movie set inside the book has the technical info on the back permanently. Just watched the Fellowship last night and it felt like watching the movie for the first time, unbelievable picture quality especially on OLED with dolby vision.

Beautiful 4k remaster, some scenes don't appear to benefit with little difference in resolution compared to Blu ray version, while others are no contest and incredibly better. I do have some personal disagreement with the addition of a brown/golden filter to the ent battle at Isengard and especially the scene in Osgiliath where Frodo almost gives the ring to a flying Nazgul and threatens Sam. The original versions of those scenes were cold, dark and blue and gray and I preferred the older color grading for those on the blu ray versions as opposed to the brown gold filter on 4k.

I have an Xbox One X (not the Series X), which DOES have 4K UHD Blu-Ray playback, however I could only get disc 1 of Return Of The King to play, with disc 2 not playing. Apparently the Xbox has trouble playing certain 4K discs and as far as I can tell it's a software problem. There are troubleshooting steps that can fix some discs, but some, like this one, are doomed. Luckily this comes with a digital download you can add to pretty much all movie download/streaming sites (Amazon, iTunes, etc.) so I could finish watching there, and I do plan on getting something that is better at playing these discs, but that is a bit of a problem people should know about.

I would only give one star for the Collector's Edition. The 4K film discs merit 5 stars. The "Collector's Edition" is $60 more than the regular edition. For that $60 you get a cardboard outer box and a poorly done metal ring that isn't even shiny, though the chain shines. A fabric bag is included to keep the One Ring in. When The Lord of the Rings' extended edition came out several years ago, Best Buy had a similar offer, but the cheap reproduction of the One Ring was a free gift for pre-ordering, and it was at least shiny. The steel box 4K edition of LOTR is $30 less than this collector's edition, $30 more than the regular edition. With the steel box edition you'll get beautiful cases, and you'll save $30 over the price of this "Collector's Edition". Review of the 4K discs: Wow! I couldn't believe the difference in picture quality and sound quality compared to the 1080p Blu-Rays. There is a vast improvement in the 4K discs for color, detail, and clarity in the picture and clarity and richness in the sound. I wasn't expecting to notice much of a difference, but I was pleasantly surprised. It would be hard to watch the 1080p version now. The 4K discs look so much brighter and clearer with better contrast than the 1080p discs. For reference, I use a Sony 4K HDR player with Dolby Atmos, a Samsung 82" 8K QLED television, and a Samsung 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos soundbar with satellite speakers (the soundbar and satellite speakers have up-firing speakers as well as front-firing speakers). The surround sound is richer, but the biggest difference between the 4K and 1080p discs is in the dialogue. The dialogue is much clearer in the 4K version. I used to have to turn up the center channel of my sound systems (I have two set-ups, one Klipsch and one Samsung Harman Kardon) for most movies, including LOTR, but with the 4K discs I leave the center channel at normal volume.

This is a review of the product itself, not the films or 4K remaster. For $150, this simply is not worth the price. It's basically just the standard $90 case inside an outer box with a ring replica. The outer box may seem visually appealing from the advertisements and official images, but when you have it in your hand and can physically see and touch it, you will realize how cheap and poorly made the box is (see unboxing videos online to get a better sense of it). The box is essentially made of cheap cardboard with little to no gloss or embossment, and the cover doesn't close shut. A magnetic cover like the extended Blu-ray set would've been nice. In fact, the extended Blu-ray packaging is better in every way than this 4K giftset. If you're just looking for the movies, go for the standard $90 set. If you wanted a set with pretty packaging, go for the steelbooks (if you can find them in stock) or wait for the ultimate collector's edition in 2021. This giftset could have been so much better than it is, but simply put, it is not worth the $150 and I wouldn't recommend unless you don't care about the sturdiness of the packaging and have the extra money to spare.