Product Details

• Actors: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom, Sean Bean, Alan Howard
• Directors: Peter Jackson
• Writers: Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, J.R.R. Tolkien, Philippa Boyens
• Producers: Barrie M. Osborne, Bob Weinstein, Ellen Somers
• Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, Widescreen, Special Edition, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Number of tapes: 2
• Studio: New Line Home Entertainment
• VHS Release Date: November 12, 2002
• Run Time: 208 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1,289 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000069K5I
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #132,368 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

2-tape VHS special extended edition

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

66 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AWESOME! This is the icing on the cake!!!, June 8, 2002

By 

Marcy Gomez (Kansas City, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Four-Disc Special Extended Edition) (DVD)

AWESOME is the one word I can think of to describe this instant classic.

But I am not here to extol the wonders of "The Fellowship of the Ring" as much as to clarify the confusion some reviewers might have out there. What I want to clarify is this: Yes, New Line Cinema is releasing 3 versions of FOTR.

The first is the theatrical cut (meaning: the exact same movie that you saw in theaters) on August 6. This is a 2-disc set that includes the specials "Welcome to Middle Earth" (by Houghton-Mifflin), "Passage to Middle Earth" (Sci-Fi channel behind-the-scenes special, and "The Quest for the Ring" (Fox special)....

Then you have the 4-disc Special Extended Edition (*which is what this DVD is*) which includes an additional 30 minutes of footage incorporated into the film. The add'l scenes include more Aragorn back story, more "character moments," and a slightly different introduction to hobbits as narrated by Bilbo Baggins. Discs 1 & 2 are the film and commentaries of more than 30 participants including Peter Jackson, Richard Taylor, Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Ian McKellen, Howard Shore and much more. Discs 3 and 4 contain over 6 hours of in-depth behind-the-scenes footage. Disc 3 is "From Book to Vision" which explores the screenplay, design, special effects, costumes, armory, locations, storyboards, etc. Disc 4 is "From Vision to Reality" with features such as "Bringing Characters to Life," "A Day in the Life of a Hobbit," "Principal Photography: Stories from the Set," as well as picture galleries and much more!

The 3rd version is the Collectors Gift Set (also released on November 12th) which includes the Special Extended Edition DVD, 2 collectible Argonath bookends and The National Geographic special DVD - "Beyond the Movie."

So the question is: how big of a fan are you? Casual fans may just want the theatrical version DVD. More avid fans (who could never get enough of The Lord of the Rings) will want the theatrical version DVD (to be released on 8/6) and the SEE. Avid fans and collectors will most likely want the theatrical version and the Collectors Gift Set. The wonderful thing is having choices. The beauty about these releases is that they DO NOT OVERLAP. Meaning: what you get in the theatrical version DVD does not show up again in the SEE DVD. They are completely stand-alone. All I can say is, thanks to New Line and Peter Jackson for such a wonderful (early) Christmas present!!!!

62 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible., November 10, 2002

By 

tvtv3 "tvtv3" (Sorento, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Four-Disc Special Extended Edition) (DVD)

There are DVDs. There are special edition DVDs. There are special edition DVDs loaded with extras. Now, there is THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING SPECIAL EXTENDED DVD EDITION. I don't think there has been anything like this in home viewing ever. It has been suggested that this Special Edition set is the closest thing one can actually get to having been a part of the movie and I would have to agree.

It will take a person about two weeks of 4 hours of viewing each day to get through all the features in this set.

First of all is the film. The movie has been extended by over 30 minutes of extra footage not seen in the theatrical release. Though some of the scenes would have perhaps dragged the film down some in the theatres, they are a great addition here, tying up a few loose ends and making the novel come to life even more.

The movie itself takes up 2 discs. There are four different commentaries to go along with the film. I found the one with Peter Jackson to be my favorite.

The third disc is called "From Book to Vision". It includes six different documentaries ranging from one on Tolkien to one on Weta Workshop. There are also maps, galleries, and slides consisting of over 2,000 images. Besides that there are also a bunch of storyboards which give even greater insight into the development of the film.

The fourth disc has several more documentaries (around seven, if I'm not mistaken), several galleries, and behind-the-scenes photographs.

This special edition DVD set also includes a free ticket for THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE TWO TOWERS that is accepted at just about any chain movie theatre.

There is so much in this set, that I can't discuss it all. I mean, it took me two weeks to just view most of it. Wow. If you are a LORD OF THE RINGS fan, this is a must have, far better than the original DVD release and something to hold onto for life.

46 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars NEVER WATCH THE ORIGINAL AGAIN!, November 14, 2002

By 

"golden-child" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Four-Disc Special Extended Edition) (DVD)

I just finished watching the extended version and it was like watching a whole new film! In every way, this version is superior. The thirty extra minutes are not wasted. The characters are fleshed out, the battles seem more desparate and the agony of the journey both to Rivendale and beyond is made plain. I urge anyone who hasn't already purchased the theater version to skip it and get the extended one instead. Anyone who already has the theater version.....well this one is definately worth forking out the extra dough to get.