ROTK EE DVD Information (spoilers)

[vandal]

From http://www.thetolkienforum.com/showthread.php?t=14335

• This one isn’t going to come as a surprise, but for the record: we’ll be seeing Gandalf and his Power Rangers confronting Saruman after the Helm’s Deep battle, followed by the multi-coloured one falling to his death.

• Merry will pledge his allegiance to Theoden in a scene similar to the Pippin/Denethor bit. Toss points out that shots from this scene have appeared in an early ROTK teaser, as well as a very early LOTR teaser from way back in the beginning.

• Following his acceptance of Anduril from Elrond, Aragorn uses the Palantir to reveal himself to Sauron. Sauron shows him a vision of Arwen’s sickness. This stuff was used instead during the dream sequence just before Elrond arrives at Dunharrow in the theatrical cut.

• From the horse’s mouth: ‘Remember the scene in which the Witch King is asked what he’s going to do with Gandalf, and he says I will break him? This pays off big time in a battle between the Witch King and Gandalf as Gandalf and Pippin ride to save Faramir from the pyre. At the end of the battle, the Witch King breaks Gandalf’s staff and then the Rohirrim turn up and the Witch King gets distracted. The beginning of this confrontation is one of the $$$ shots in the ROTK trailer: the Witch King’s fell beast landing on the ramparts in front of Gandalf and Pippin on Shadowfax.’

• ‘We see Gamling die on the Pelennor Fields theres a quick shot of Eomer bawling in the ROTK trailer.’

• ‘In the Houses of Healing, Aragorn heals Faramir, who then meets Eowyn and they fall in love. Aww.’

• ‘A disguised Frodo and Sam join a column of marching orcs on the way to Mt Doom. Their master is a ferocious orc captain with a whip. Remember the line heard over the sweeping shot of the orcs marching down through Mordor right after the Cirith Ungol sequence? That’s him, yelling Come on you slugs!.’

• ‘The Mouth of Sauron scene changes the emphasis of the entire final battle between men and orcs at the Black Gates. In the theatrical cut, Aragorn and Co. ride up to the gates, they open, and orcs come out to fight. In the extended version, they are greeted by the Mouth of Sauron (played by the Matrix’s Train Man, Bruce Spence), who has pointy teeth and a pointy helmet that covers his eyes (he doesn’t need them, see? He’s just a mouth). He rides out to show the heroes Frodos mithril vest, recently stolen by the orcs at Cirith Ungol, and to let them know that Frodo is dead and the ring is on its way to Sauron. Aragorn believes him, and the heroes despair. Going into battle at the Black Gates, the heroes have no hope at all it’s their last stand for sure, and Aragorn’s line for Frodo refers to his sacrifice, not to buying time.’

I’m already salivating.

[Lobsang]

Homer: Mmmm EE DVD! Glrhhhlaghhh!!

[fluiddruid]

They put in Mouth of Sauron on the extended! And Frodo and Sam with the orcs? froths at the mouth

[BuckleberryFerry]

WHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

[Hanna]

Three words about something else I’m hoping for:

Bill the Pony.

[Mama_Tiger]

Oh, I cannot WAIT!!!

[Little_Wing]

Only one thing I want to know: Is Jackson (or the powers that be) going to make us wait until NOVEMBER 2004 for the extended edition??

[Baldwin]

That all sounds fine, except – Saruman falls to his death? What kind of bullshit is that?

[Tarrsk]

I’m sure it’ll be more spectacular that Saruman just going “oops” and falling off Orthanc. Don’t forget that the charge of the Rohirrim, one of the theatrical ROTK’s best scenes, could be described in as mundane a fashion by saying that “a bunch of Rohan cavalry run over some orcs.”

Personally, I can’t wait. Five hours? Bring them on, I say!

[vandal]

Here is a picture of Merry pledging his allegiance to Theoden.

And, here is a picture of Aragorn in, what looks like, the House of Healing.

Finally, a picture of Gandalf’s encounter with a ringwraith.

[RikWriter]

*Originally posted by Baldwin *
**That all sounds fine, except – Saruman falls to his death? What kind of bullshit is that? **

I believe Wormtongue pushes him, IIRC. They aren’t including the Scouring of the Shire, so Saruman has to be dealt with SOMEHOW…

[Archergal]

Sounds promising!

[squeegee]

*Originally posted by vandal *
And, here is a picture of Aragorn in, what looks like, the House of Healing.

Actually, that looks to me like Edoras. Note the carved pillar in the background, definitely a Rohan motif there.

[John_Mace]

*Originally posted by squeegee *
**Actually, that looks to me like Edoras. Note the carved pillar in the background, definitely a Rohan motif there. **

I dunno. Eowyn looks bed-ridden (ie, ill) and the bed has a ram’s head on it. If it were Rohan, it would’ve been a horse’s head.

[Super_Gnat]

squints

Gamling? Who is that?

[Munch]

Gamling is one of the captains of Rohan.

[Ludovic]

I believe Wormtongue pushes him, IIRC. They aren’t including the Scouring of the Shire, so Saruman has to be dealt with SOMEHOW

No, no he doesn’t. Some things are better left to the imagination. Like imagining we didn’t make a 95% perfect movie.

[Avalonian]

A bit of dismaying rumour, from the link in the OP:

**Word is that New Line are balking at the price for another Extended Edition, and may be farming out the FX to El Cheapo American FX House Inc rather than the high-quality excesses of WETA… our scooper (Toss the Dwarf) pointed out that this is strictly rumour-mill stuff, but remember who told you first. **

I hope that bit is just a rumour… I’ve so far loved the fact that the work done exclusively for the Extended Editions of the film was pretty mich just as good as the work done for the theatrical releases. And they have to know they’ll get their money back!

That said, all the added scenes sound great. There’s a couple more I’m hoping for…

• Sam confronting the Watchers (?) at the gate of the Orc guard-tower. I could almost feel the jump in the theatrical version, when the movie cut from him outside the gate and hearing the orcs fighting, to him inside with all the orcs dead. Something more should be there, I know it.

• Sam and Frodo abandoning their Orc-disguises in Mordor. I remember Sam’s relief in the book well: “No more orc-gear for me!” Again, in the theatrical release, there was no explanation for their orc disguises suddenly being gone – slight jump of continuity.

• Legolas and Gimli just sort of disappear… it’d be nice to have a little more of a farewell with them, as in the book.

Still, I’m glad to hear that the marching with the orc company is in, and the Mouth of Sauron. Excellent!

[CaptEgo]

*Originally posted by Munch *
**Gamling is one of the captains of Rohan. **

Eh, what the heck. Just to pick nits…in the Novel, Gamling is just a tough old guy at Helm’s Deep who makes some pithy comments and hangs out with Gimli when his group of fighters are forced back into the caves. In the film he gets upgraded (it seems) to the role ‘Hama’ actually has in the books (Hama being made dogmeat in the Two Towers film). Alas…

[Munch]

That’s right, CaptEgo - thanks. But who’s the captain that comes behind Theoden and Eomer? I’m thinking of right before the charge, Theoden is giving instructions on where each company is to charge (it’s both in the book and the film). He takes the middle, Eomer the right, and someone else leads the left.