Okay, I’m sorry, didn’t we just go through this nonsense twelve months ago? The theatrical editions of the Lord of the Rings films were released on Blu-ray to great controversy last year, partly due to transfers that didn’t seem to live up to most expectations and partly due to the exclusion of the much-lauded Extended Editions. And now, after the studio and director Peter Jackson himself assured us that the less-than-ideal Blu-ray releases already in our hands were only to tide us over until the mega-perfect Ultimate boxed set would be released many years down the road, along with the coming of The Hobbit, we now find out that Warner is on the verge of unleashing the longer cuts on Blu this year! Bill Hunt at The Digital Bits got the scoop:
- “We suspect that, now that The Hobbit films are finally about to begin filming, the studio is eager to get more product on store shelves to keep the franchise fresh in the minds of fans. The Extended Rings films on BD are the obvious choice for this year. Farther down the line, of course, there will be the obvious Blu-ray and Blu-ray 3D versions of The Hobbit films, and sooner or later an “ultimate” box set of all the films with all new extras custom created by Jackson. Anyway, our sources tell us to expect some kind of official news on all this (re: Rings: Extended and Kubrick) from the studio in the next several weeks.”
That “Kubrick” news he mentions is regarding the upcoming European release of Lolita and Barry Lyndon on Blu-ray Disc on May 18th and what that might mean for us, over on the other side of the Atlantic:
- “…we’ve checked in with our industry sources on this again today, and they’ve confirmed that Warner Home Video IS going to be releasing Lolita and Barry Lyndon on Blu-ray this Spring (here in the States and elsewhere) as part of a larger Kubrick promotion.”
These are both very exciting rumours but I can’t but feel that the timing for another Rings release is way off. What do you think? Will you pick up the Extended Edition films on Blu this year, if they’re indeed released? Do you feel a bit burned by the potential of yet another double/triple-dip?
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[...] Hunt over at The Digital Bits predicted it and I didn’t believe it but here it is, coming to pass – The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy Limited [...]