So did any of you folks redeem your digital copies and are actually able to watch them in 4k and Atmos?

Amazon doesn't appear to have 4K versions on their service yet, so I think you're just going to have wait on them.

So what resolution were the digital FX originally rendered at? I take it they have not re-rendered them for 4K for this?

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There's conflicting info about the VFX coming from the studio and from Jackson himself. The studio source that Digital Bits quoted implied that the only thing done was rescanning the original film-outs. However, Jackson suggests in this featurette that the CGI was in fact tweaked and updated.


Jackson really confuses the issue by saying: "I should make it clear, we didn't upgrade or enhance any of the effects shots. They're exactly the same as you're used to seeing them, except they do look as if they were done today rather than twenty years ago."

It's remarkable how he can directly contradict himself within the same sentence without catching a breath. Are they exactly the same as we're used to seeing them, or do they look like they were done today? These are two very different things.

I understood Jackson's statement to mean that they updated the look of the special effects to match the remaster but they didn't actually change anything. They didn't add an extra mole to gollum's face or add an extra 500 horses to the ride of the rohirrim.

I think it was Jackson's way of saying we didn't add a "greedo shot first" moment while we were in there.

But he also said that they painted out "imperfections," which suggests to me that someone went in there with a digital paintbrush to "fix" things that didn't look modern enough.

Seems like various services are scrambling to catch up with this one. Vudu had the UHD options on Tuesday for everything except the extended six-pack, which they finally updated today.

The Hobbit films are far inferior, but whenever I do pull the trigger on this, I’ll just get all six for completeness.

Yeah, I finally watched that PJ video and I think it's like you guys are saying: a combination of upconverting the old FX (instead of re-rendering) and if something didn't make the transition very well, then they went in and gave those specific instances a digital touchup.

I'm mostly okay with that, re-rendering from the ground up may have been prohibitively costly and might not have made a noticeable difference, so only spend money where they have to. The biggest sin would have been making editorial changes, though there's still part of me that wants to see even longer versions with all those rumored deleted scenes.

Still waiting for more people to comment on the overall look, but I'll probably be waiting for the mega set next year. Really hoping they finally re-author the appendices to fit on one disc.

I’ll be hungover on Saturday, so I’m gonna mow through these while filling my face with pizza. I figure I’ll be fit to start drinking again around the battle at Helms Deep.

Waiting for the ultimate set this summer

I'm watching them in chronological order, so I've already watched The first two Hobbit films and they look and sound the best they've ever looked and sounded. There's more detail and the overall image is "brighter." Take note of those skylines and vistas -- phenomenal looking. Smaug's lair also benefits in a massive update in detail. You can now see individual coins littered about instead of a soft-serve pile like in the BDs.

I'll be watching BOTFA today once I finish Mank.

My god. Anyone been following the thread for this release over at blu-ray dot com? What a fucking dumpster fire.

Any thread I go to everyday, I stop once the 4K/Bluray is released cause it becomes like u said.... fucking morons that use technical words but never worked on a movie in their life. And their their opinin is fact and overshadows everyone else. That's why I never posted there before, and I've be going there for like 5 years or so.

A little bit, but it’s starting to remind me of the mustard arguments at the other other forum.

I really just want to know if there are any catastrophic issues so I can plan for buying the mega set next summer.

IRT the set next summer, some have been saying the Appendices won't be on the set. Of course, there's no confirmation or official word.

Not a member over there, just wanted to see what people thought of this new release. Plus there's a lot more talk about all other 4k releases.

What would be the point of a release without those?!

I’m just wanting those and the Costa Botes documentaries in one place.

Is it legit issues with the set or just penny ante shit? I am afraid to check.

Got my set in and it is a beautiful set. I love that the main steelbook holder is also metal itself. The Back To The Future set should have been that way as well instead of cheap cardboard.

Just a rumor at this point.

A lot of people were looking at screen grabs and declaring it a horrible transfer and it was full of EE and DNR. They didn't see the UHDs. Those that saw the actual movies commented how great they looked. Of course they were rediculed because the screen grabs told a different story. Rinse, repeat for page upon page.

And now the LOTR thread is locked

I thought the mods were nowhere to be found and noticed one user got banned. Should've been locked days ago.

I tried to read through the thread, it's like five hundred pages of DNR, vaseline on lenses, and 125 GB discs.

Can you imagine trying to moderate those trainwreck threads?

Sometimes you just gotta close things down and say "Cool it off, a bit"

Some LOTR stuff is starting to bleed over to The Hobbit thread, of course. Nature finds a way...

Has anyone redeemed their digital codes and could tell me if the HD versions are the new remasters or the previous transfers. I'd like to buy the digital versions off of VUDU but I don't know if the HDX versions are the new remasters or the old transfers.

The HDX versions are from the old transfers. The new remastered BDs don't come out until next year, so I assume that when they do, the new digital HDX copies will be from the new remasters. The UHD versions are from the new ones.