I just finished watching the extended edition two and a half times (once normal, once w/Jackson & writer commentary, and then with cast commentary until I got pissed off). Here’s my take:
I could readily tell the differences between FOTR’s theatrical release and the extended edition. For Two Towers, the only scene that seemed “new” was the Faramir/Boromir/Denethor flashback. Everything else seemed perfectly natural; this was the way the movie was meant to be seen. And note that I loved the theatrical release and don’t feel it was “chopped up” at all.
I liked Eowyn’s singing, and thought it was perfect for the scene, very real-sounding, very heartfelt, and a great addition to the movie.
John Rhys-Davies comes off sounding like a total pompous ass. (Which is why I only got partway through the cast commentary). In a few scenes, as Aragorn & crew are running through the fields of Rohan and talking to Eomer, Sallah’s going on about how it felt to be running, or what his motivations were for a certain scene. In the special features & director commentary, Jackson had already revealed that that was Rhys-Davies’ double doing all the running and standing, and with a dislocated knee no less. R-D himself was back in a trailer somewhere until he was needed for pick-ups. Busted!
I think the points where I disagree with Jackson et al.'s take on the story all have one thing in common: they make the story more broad than it is in the book. And the book isn’t exactly subtle, either. But the “exorcism” of Theoden, while very dramatic and supernatural and all that, just didn’t impress me as much as the same scene in the book. It was a lot creepier and more interesting for Theoden to realize not that he’d been literally under a spell, but that had been too trusting of his advisor and had led his people into ruin.
Also, I still don’t agree with the change to Faramir, and that remains my biggest beef with the movie. I still understand exactly why the filmmakers chose to do it, and I do think that they do a great job presenting their take on the character and why he makes the choices he does. Dismissing it as “Evil Faramir” is just nonsense – the movie makes it absolutely clear that the character isn’t evil, he’s just different than in the book. But, I still think they could’ve shown Faramir refusing the ring without diminishing the ring’s power. In fact, with the new footage it would’ve been even more dramatic, because he would have been tempted by the ring’s power itself and his desire to prove himself to his father.
I’m even more impressed with the crew and most of the cast behind these movies; it was just a phenomenal amount of effort involved. And even with all the BS getting slung around during the documentaries and commentaries (they’re still movie people after all; you have to expect a level of that), it comes through that this was a “labor of love” for everyone involved. Yes, it had a massive budget, and yes, they wanted to make (and are making) a ton of money from it, but it’s clear that they went above and beyond on just about every level. Even if you’re not a fan of the movies, or not into “fanboy gushing” in general, you just have to acknowledge the work that went into them.
And I’m most impressed with the attitude Jackson, Walsh, and Boyens take to the whole production. It’s abundantly clear that they’ve done their research – I’ve seen it implied several times that they “don’t get” the book, or that they’re doing a dumbed-down Hollywood-ized version of the book because they have no respect for it, both of which are just patently false. I don’t agree with all the changes they made, but I understand why they made them and I totally respect the amount of effort that went into making those decisions.
And that’s the key point: throughout the commentaries and the documentaries and all the special features, they’ve shown a level of respect for the fans (and for the source work) that is impressive. It’s definitely more respect than they get back, as people will go out of their way to call their changes “idiotic” or just make dismissive, insulting posts. But it’s clear from hearing Jackson & Walsh & Boyens talk about the movie that they love the book, they listen very closely to what fans and critics have to say, and will go out of their way to explain why they did things they way they did. Walsh was very candid about the changes to Faramir, and to the addition of elves at Helm’s Deep, saying something along the lines of “if we’d had more time to re-think these things, we might’ve done them differently.” And most of all, they’re having fun with it. They love the book, but they don’t treat it as a Holy Work, and they still realize that they’re just making movies. They point out continuity errors they read about on the Internet, and they make jokes or readily admit that some stuff they just put in because it looked cool.
Of course, what the self-proclaimed “purists” never seem to realize are that: 1) these movies have likely done more to raise interest in the books (incl. Simarillion and The Hobbit) themselves than anything else ever would have, and 2) these movies are nothing more than an interpretation of the book, and it’s sheer arrogance to assume that your interpretation of the book is any more valid than these other fans’ interpretation of it.
And before anyone tries to martyr himself or herself, I’ll point out that no, this isn’t trying to stifle criticism of the movies. I’m critical of the movies myself, as much as I like them. But it is trying to stifle arrogant, self-involved griping and dismissal of the movies, which is just plain rude and insulting. In other words: Internet, stop being so mean.
