This is not a thread about the legality of downloading movies. In fact, if you want to know, I recommend against downloading them.
However, I’m really impressed that New Line has been able to keep The Two Towers from appearing early on the internet. There have been countless screenings of the movie and many theaters have the film now.
How did they do it?
How could they search everyone to make sure no one is videotaping it?
Of course, it could still appear on the 'net before Wednesday, but this would still be better than Spiderman or Attack of the Clones, both which appeared about 6-7 days in advance of their release.
It wasn’t completed three or four months ago. Fake copies(with nothing but black screen for 3 hours) have been around since about 6 months ago. That’s probably what the lazy reporters are reporting.
I saw an article somewhere in print in the last couple days that one of the studio executives visited China like last week, and it was already for sale on DVD by street vendors there.
~
I haven’t seen it on Kazaa. Not that I would download it, just that I like to see if they have managed to get it out yet. I did see a copy of LOTR:The fellowship of the Rings but no Two towers.
The studios are plenty smart, but there is little they can do via brute force to protect their material. The movie is for sale [real version recently supplanting a dressed up trailer] in China, it is available on the internet if you look hard, and will probably be available in the places you are familiar with at some point as well.
All I can say is that, like the first of the trilogy, I expect it to be a fine film, and US$9 is fair entertainment value that will also serve to persuade the studio to produce more of the same.