Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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122 of 132 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Greatest Soundtracks ever....in a not so great box set, January 11, 2004
Not only are the Lord of the Rings movies the greatest of all time, the music within them is top notch as well. The music's themes are excellent and inspiring, even toppling heavy-weights, such as Indiana Jones and Star Wars. Everything about the actual music is great, but the box set is overpriced. You can buy all three CD's serparatly for much less money or you can buy the first two and then the special edition third CD with extra DVD for around the same price. The included inserts are only for novelty sake; they can be used as actual CD covers, but my feeling is that replacing the inserts is somewhat useless. However, the inserts are of some quality and make excellent tiny posters. If you like the Lord of the Rings, get the soundtracks, but don't be shy to buy the REAL box set with maybe 12 discs with the entire score when it comes out sometime in the near future.
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39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Just listen and imagine the movie, March 11, 2004
By A Customer
I thought this was a fantastic deal. Once again, thanks to Amazon we have a really good deal. I bought this because I'm a big LOTR fan and also because I wanted another excuse to get excited. The "trading cards" that come with these are okay. They are REALLY glossy, though. I also thought they should come in a separate case, because after they are opened they are all loose and are a bit of a mess to put back into the cd case. And if you don't put them back in, there's empty space and the 3 cds rattle around. But otherwise, really nice pictures.The soundtracks are great. While listening to The Fellowship, I could just picture scenes from the movie. And of course, being the first movie, it has the standard music that we come to associate with Lord of the Rings. I really liked the cd booklet, too, and not just because of the pretty designs. It provides the words that are sung in some of the songs in Elvish (which is usually how it's sung) and the translation in English. It also provides the words to Enya's May It Be. The Two Towers is also a superb cd. Emiliana Torrini's version of Gollum's Song is haunting but very catchy. I found myself stuck with that in my head for the rest of the day after I listened to it. I was a bit disappointed with the cd booklet. It still had the Elvish words and translations, but it didn't seem like it had them all. Also, it didn't say which lyrics belonged to which track (since the title of the lyrics is different from the track title it was a little confusing). But the music is great. I wasn't as familiar with Two Towers melodies, but I'm getting there. And finally: The Return of the King. Absolutely wonderful. This cd has more vocal music than the Two Towers. But like Two Towers' booklet ROTK's booklet didn't specify the track of the lyrics. Also, it did not provide the lyrics to The Stewart of Gondor (sung by Billy Boyd who plays Pippin and was featured in the movie). So I just listened to the part where he sings until I knew the words and wrote them down. (I apologize if I got any words wrong) Home is behind
The world ahead
There are many paths to tread
Through shadow
Till the edge of night
Until the stars are all alight
Mist and shadow
Cloud and shade
All shall fade
All shall fade There it is for whomever wants it. I also wanted to remark on "Into the West". It is one of the most moving songs I've ever heard, and if you know the story well and read the lyrics it is the most fitting out of any of the songs written for the movie. Especially the line "The ships have come to carry you home" and "a light on the water/grey ships pass/into the west". I'm not a really big fan of Annie Lennox and her voice, but the song is still good. Now as I've written this review I mostly pointed out things I didn't like (with a few good, but not specific points), and yet I gave this product 5 stars. Well just think for yourself, if the only bad parts are a few instances in the cd booklet, the rest of the product must rock. And it does. If you are a movie fan, buy it. It's worth it. Plus, listened to ROTK's soundtrack can help you wait for the movie on dvd on May 25!!
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38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Breathtaking!, January 8, 2004
I just got this set yesterday and I've spent all morning listening to the soundtracks with my headphones - and they're simply brilliant!The music, mostly composed and conducted by Howard Shore is breathtaking. It would still be magnificent if it stood alone by itself, but as you listen to it, images from the films come back to you and the experience is amplified. These melodies are truly one of the vital elements that have made this cinematic trilogy the masterpiece that it is. The only problem I have with this set is that the soundtracks are for the theater versions of the films, no the extended editions that have appeared on the DVDs - thus, a great deal of additional music is missing (like the funeral song sung by Eowyn in The Two Towers). As for the packaging, it's a simple, elegant yellowish tan box that holds all three CDs and 18 picture cards with most of the characters from the films, which are nice to have. This is an extraordinary piece of music that you shouldn't miss, and part of the best movie experience of our generation. ...as a coda, Howard Shore writes in the notes from The Return of the King CD "and, of course, one holds the dream of a Hobbit's tale"...me too, Howard. Me too.
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